Celebrations: Victorian and Edwardian Greeting Cards

贺卡将人们联系在一起。在COVID-19之后，问候的社区建设方面产生了额外的共鸣：我们经历了封锁，当时不可能进行身体互动，许多里程碑都是在远处标记的，即使是在近邻之间。曼彻斯特城市大学（MMU）的特别收藏博物馆和档案馆（SCM）拥有超过32，500张维多利亚和爱德华七世贺卡的无与伦比的资源：塞登收藏。这一研究不足的收藏是从c.1840到c.1920。大多数是从19世纪80年代和90年代，“黄金时代”的贺卡。大多数是圣诞卡，但其他生活事件庆祝，包括复活节，情人节，新年，生日，奖励和纪念/同情。这是一个及时的时刻来揭示这个集合：贺卡正在发生变化。电子贺卡的流行意味着许多贺卡从未以实物形式出现。然而，电子贺卡交换量，加上个性化的按需印刷贺卡和贺卡制作工艺的激增，表明贺卡已经进入了一个“新的黄金时代”。该RKE项目的核心是为员工提供专用资金，用于使用MMU SCM的大型Versascan 3650平板扫描仪对Seddon Collection卡片进行数字化。该扫描仪于2020年通过CapCo（CapCo）应用程序（AH/V011987/1）购买。该项目的第一阶段是扫描和数字化塞登收藏中选定的贺卡记录，使远程，虚拟访问成为可能。这些扫描是第二阶段的核心：一个旨在让公众参与基于收藏的研究的试点合作。利用第一阶段数码化的贺卡图像，我们将与精选的合作伙伴合作，探索这些贺卡中的当代共鸣。计划开展两项主要合作产出：与这些合作伙伴共同设计和举办一个在线展览;根据讲习班参与者的答复，为这些卡片建立一个更直观的编目系统。结合较小的产出，这些将提高这一档案收藏的知名度，并使更广泛的受众能够了解其不断传播的社区和希望信息。最初的CapCo申请是由SCM/图书馆工作人员作为调查人员提交的。这个后续应用程序有学者作为首席调查员。雷切尔·迪金森博士（PI）和艾玛·利金斯博士（CoI）是英语系的读者，他们专注于漫长的十九世纪，并通过策划展览，组织节日，举办公开讲座和领导研讨会来展示参与记录。该项目的家仍然在SCM和SCM专业人员的技能和专业知识发挥了至关重要的作用，特别是馆长斯蒂芬妮·博斯佩尔（CoI）。选择合作伙伴是因为他们带来的专业知识，见解和访问。死亡咖啡馆Chorlton将专注于从悲伤和纪念老年人的角度来看卡片。Elizabeth Gaskell House将21世纪与维多利亚时期联系起来，专注于小学年龄的儿童。内部合作伙伴曼彻斯特诗歌图书馆补充了卡片诗句的专业知识，并提供了一个年轻作家的网络，内部RISE计划增加了当代年轻人的视角，并通过学生实习提供与工作相关的经验。

Greeting cards connect people. In the wake of COVID-19, community-building aspects of greetings have taken on additional resonance: we have been through lockdowns when physical interaction was not possible and many milestones were marked at a distance, even between close neighbours. Manchester Metropolitan University's (MMU) Special Collections Museum and Archives (SCM) holds an unrivalled resource of more than 32,500 Victorian and Edwardian greeting cards: the Seddon Collection. This under-studied collection is from c.1840 to c.1920. Most are from the 1880s and 1890s, the "Golden Age" of the greeting card. The majority are Christmas cards, but other life-events are celebrated, including Easter, Valentines, New Year, Birthday, Reward and Memorial/Sympathy. This is a timely moment to reveal this collection: greeting cards are changing. The popularity of e-cards means many never take physical form. Yet, the volume of e-cards being exchanged coupled with personalised print-on-demand cards and a surge in cardmaking as craft suggest that greeting cards have entered a "new Golden Age". Central to this RKE project is dedicated funding for staff time to use the MMU SCM's large Versascan 3650 flatbed scanner to digitise a selection of the Seddon Collection cards. The scanner was purchased through a Capability for Collections (CapCo) application (AH/V011987/1) in 2020. The first stage of this project is scanning and digitising records of selected greeting cards in the Seddon Collection, enabling remote, virtual access. These scans are at the heart of stage two: a pilot collaboration which seeks to engage the public in collections-based research. Using images of cards digitised in stage one, we will work with select partners to explore contemporary resonances in these greeting cards. Two collaborative main outputs are planned: a co-curated online exhibition designed and delivered with these partners; and a more intuitive cataloguing system for these cards shaped by responses from workshop participants. Combined with smaller outputs, these will raise the profile of this archival collection and make its ongoing message of community and hope accessible to a much wider audience. The original CapCo application was submitted with SCM/library staff as the investigators. This follow-on application has academics as the lead investigators. Dr Rachel Dickinson (PI) and Dr Emma Liggins (CoI) are Readers in the English Department who specialise in the long nineteenth century and have a demonstrable record of engagement through curating exhibitions, organising festivals, delivering public lectures, and leading workshops. The project's home remains in SCM and the skills and expertise of SCM professional staff play a crucial role, particularly that of curator Stephanie Boydell (CoI). The partners were chosen because of expertise, insights and access they bring. Death Café Chorlton will focus on cards from the perspective of grief and memorialisation with older adults. Elizabeth Gaskell House connects the twenty-first century to the Victorian period, focusing on primary-aged children. Internal partner Manchester Poetry Library supplements expertise on cards' verses and offers access to a network of youthful writers, and the internal RISE programme adds the perspective of contemporary young adults and provide work-related experience through student internships.