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Treasure 66: Aberdeen International Youth Festival Programmes
266 The Aberdeen International Youth Festival (AIYF) takes place in venues across the city and beyond from 29 July to 6 August 2016. This will be the 44th year that Aberdeen has hosted a youth arts festival and Aberdeen Local Studies hold a large collection of programmes and flyers from throughout its history.
The AIYF as we know it today evolved out of an earlier undertaking called the International Festival of Youth Orchestras (IFYO) which was first held in Aberdeen in 1973.
The festival became known as the Aberdeen International Youth Festival in 1983, the same year in which the AIYF Dance School, AIYF International Music School and the Mary Garden Memorial Prize were established.
AIYF has welcomed over 30,000 performers to Aberdeen since its inception and has become one of Scotland's major international cultural events, offering unique opportunities to the local community and talented young performers from around the world.
Find out more about the ups and downs of the festival's history in the Treasures from our Collections interactive exhibition on the touchscreen in Central, Airyhall, Tillydrone and Mastrick libraries. Treasure 67: Proposed Bathing Station and Promenade for Aberdeen Beach, 1893
267 We're revisiting Aberdeen Beach again this month as we take a closer look at a lithograph of the Proposed Beach Bathing Station and Promenade from 1893 by City Architect John Rust and Alexander Gibb & Co.
The Bathing Station opened in May 1896 and featured a range of brand new facilities in a purpose-built, red brick building at Aberdeen Beach. Facilities included plunging baths supplied with fresh and salt water, retiring rooms and a refreshment room.
It proved so popular that it had been extended by 1898 to include a swimming pool, water chute, additional baths and Turkish Baths.
Generations of Aberdonians learnt to swim in the fresh water pool. The prominent Victorian red brick building stood overlooking the beach and smoke could often be seen pouring from its monumental chimney stack which dominated the city skyline.
By the 1970s, the building was gradually deteriorating and a decline in use sadly led to its closure in July 1972 before the building was demolished.
View images from our archive of Aberdeen Bathing Station in the Treasures from our Collections interactive exhibition on the touchscreens in Central, Airyhall, Tillydrone and Mastrick libraries. Treasure 68: Select Views of Edinburgh, from original paintings by Lieutenant Colonel Batty, 1831
268 To coincide with the Edinburgh International Festival, we are showcasing our collection of engravings and etchings of the city by early Victorian artists.
The engravings are extracted from Select views of some of the principal cities of Europe. From Original paintings by Lieutenant Colonel Batty which was published in January 1831 by Moon, Boys and Graves, known as the "printsellers [sic] to the King" and initially sold for £7.
Robert Batty (1789-1848) was an army officer and an artist who recorded and illustrated his many experiences of active service. Select Views are compiled of etchings and notes from his time spent serving abroad in cities such as Gibraltar, Lisbon, Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Brussels and Antwerp. In total, seven plates of Edinburgh were presented in the volume. Each plate is accompanied by a descriptive text published both in English and in French.
Many local and London-based artists contributed to the volume including Edward Goodall (1795-1870), W.R. Smith (active 1826-1852), George Cooke (1781-1834), and William John Cooke (ca. 1796-1865). The plates portray Edinburgh from different viewpoints with many featuring the city's iconic castle and skyline.
The collection depicts Scotland's capital through the eyes of 19th Century artists, residents and visitors to the city of Edinburgh and reflects the artistic style and techniques of Victorian Britain.
Find out more about the Victorian artists behind the engravings in the Treasures from our Collections interactive exhibition on our touchscreens. Treasure 69: Mrs Elmslie's Institution Plans by Archibald Simpson, 1837
269 Mrs Elmslie was one of a number of Victorian philanthropic benefactors sympathetic to the plight of those who were poor, neglected or homeless and on 19 November 1840, she opened the Aberdeen Female Orphan Asylum - known also as Mrs Elmslie's Institution - on 19 Albyn Place.
This lithograph shows the building as originally envisaged by architect Archibald Simpson with little gate-houses at either side of the street entrance. Aberdeen City Libraries hold a series of 14 plans of the granite building which have been bound together into a single volume. The collection includes elevations, sections and floor plans dated September 1837.
The Orphan Asylum closed its doors on 27 July 1891 and the remaining girls were transferred to the Girls' Home and School of Domestic Economy on King Street. The building was sold to the Aberdeen School Board for £4,500 and, after extensive additions and refurbishment, it became the new home of Aberdeen High School for Girls, renamed as Harlaw Academy in 1970.
Find out more about Mrs Elmslie and her Institution, including its rules and regulations, daily meals and class timetables, in the Treasures from our Collections exhibition on touchscreens in Central, Airyhall, Tillydrone and Mastrick libraries. Treasure 70: Official Report of the Fourth Olympiad, London, 1908
270 To celebrate the 31st modern Olympic Games taking place in Rio 2016, we have chosen a treasure which sheds some light on how the games have evolved over time by looking at the official report of the 4th Olympiad, held in London in 1908.
Originally scheduled to take place in Rome, the Italian organisers declared themselves unable to host the competition, citing amongst other reasons, an eruption of Mount Vesuvius. As the runner-up in the award of the 1908 Games selection, it was proposed that they be held in London instead.
The London Olympics of 1908 was the first to feature a purpose-built stadium and set the standard for all future Games. Another Olympic first was the fact that the sports arena included a swimming tank, whereas previous swimming competitions had taken place in open water. It also fixed the official distance of the modern marathon at 26 miles and 385 yards - the additional yards being added to ensure the finish line was in front of the Royal Box.
The Summer Olympics of 1908 featured 2,008 athletes from 22 countries. By comparison, Rio de Janeiro will host over 10,000 male and female athletes from 207 nations, and feature 306 events in 28 Olympic sports.
The 1908 Games were hailed as a great success - particularly considering the short preparation time, and they founded several key features of modern Olympic Games.
View our touchscreens to find out more about the controversies of the 1908 Olympics, and some of the record-breaking medal winners. Guest treasure: Aberdeen Royal Lunatic Asylum Lunacy Forms
271 This month's Guest Treasure was kindly selected by NHS Grampian Archives who hold fascinating and varied collections of historical health records from across the North East of Scotland.
Aberdeen Royal Lunatic Asylum has changed a lot since it opened in 1800, as has the way in which patients were admitted. Following the passing of the Lunacy (Scotland) Act in 1857, people who were being admitted had to have been assessed by two different doctors who would set out why that person's symptoms merited admission to the Asylum. These were recorded on Medical Certificates - or 'Lunacy Forms' as they are called in these volumes.
The forms give background information on the patient - their name, age, address, next of kin and so on, before recording the two doctor's statements. Supporting case notes also survive, which give further information on the individual patients, but there are also surviving annual reports which can be found in Aberdeen Central Library. These detail the changes which happened in the hospital each year, give statistics on the number of patients admitted, and provide information on how well the hospital was being run.
View the Lunacy forms in greater detail on our touchscreens. |