[Orchestral music plays]
Man: Welcome to Mirror of the world. I’m here with Sir Redmond Barry. Sir Redmond, welcome
Redmond: Pleasure. So what is this Mirror of the world?
Man: It’s an ever-changing exhibition of some of the rare, beautiful and historically significant books held in the Library’s extensive collections.
Redmond: Are any of the books ones I purchased?
Man: Definitely. You started the collection and it’s been added to since. All of these books have been selected because they have shaped, defined and described the world in which we live
Redmond: When I lived in Melbourne, it was a much different place than it is now. I don’t know if you can even imagine this library back in1856.
Man: Well, tell me about it. What was it like?
Redmond: You didn’t need to post a bond or provide a letter of introduction like you did to gain admittance to other libraries. Our Library was free and open to all over 14 years of age who had clean hands and would observe the decencies of dress and manner.
Man: Well we don’t check people’s hands anymore but your vision has endured for over 150 years.
Redmond: Has it been that long? I remember it like it was yesterday. Almost 4000 volumes arrived from England just in time for the opening. My good friend Augustus Tulk and I spent the entire night unpacking the crates and shelving the books ourselves.
Man: That must have been quite a night. Sir Redmond, I want to change tack a bit. I know that libraries are important repositories of knowledge but I’ve often wondered: why does civilisation even have books?
Redmond: Well, I suppose it is just the natural progression of writing and reading.
Man: But why do we read and write?
Redmond: What a curious question. Well, I imagine to record things, to preserve things.
Man: Well, it seems that 4000 years ago in ancient Suma having things written down was pretty important.
[Music swells. Goats bleat in background.]
Man 1: But I did pay! These goats are less than a year old.
Man 2: We have no record of you paying last year’s taxes.
Man 1: But I did pay!
Man 2: There is no record. I will take these ten goats for payment for last year and these ten as payment for this year.
Man 1: But wait, wait!
[Sound of clay tablets shuffling.]
Man 1: Here, is this it?
Man 2: This is the way of planting grain.
[Sound of clay tablets shuffling.]
Man 1: It must be this one.
Man 2: This is how to make medicine for coughing. Does it work?
Man 1: The wife swears by it.
[Sound of clay tablets shuffling.]
Man 1: What about this one?
Man 2: This is it. Paid in full five sheep, ten goats …
Man 1: So?
Man 2: This will do. You have a whole library in there.
Man 1: I save everything that is written. Somewhere here I have the first part of the story of Enanna.
[Music swells]
Redmond: Lucky for us mankind started recording things on vellum and paper. Can you imagine a library full of clay tablets?
Man: Well, they would have lasted a long time!
Redmond: When we purchased books for the travelling libraries we made sure that they would last. They were bound in full green Morocco leather with gilt spine and marbled end papers.
Man: Those sound beautiful.
Redmond: Sometimes we’d purchase books just because of their rarity. Of course they didn’t travel. Did you know that in 1871 I managed to purchase Audubon’s Birds of America for only 100 pounds?
Man: I did know that, but did you know that today it is worth millions?
Redmond: Good heavens. Is it on display?
Man: I’m not sure. The physical items that are put on display in the Galleries are changed quite often, in order to preserve and protect them.
Redmond: That’s not important. It is the very existence of these books that has always fuelled my curiosity. May I?
Man: Please. I think you’ll recognise quite a few volumes.
[Music ends]
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