Iconic books are texts revered as objects of power rather than just as words of instruction, information, or insight. In religious and secular rituals around the globe, people carry, show, wave, touch and kiss books and other texts, as well as read them. This blog chronicles such events and activities. (For more about iconic books, see the links to the Iconic Books Project at left.)

Sunday, October 21, 2007

Hitler's Honors

Salt Lake City police have recovered stolen memorabilia that once belonged to Adolf Hitler, including several elaborate documents lavishing honors on him (see the photo gallery). From an Iconic Books perspective, the wooden box in which they were stored (best seen in the news clip from Spiegel TV) is as revealing as the documents themselves for emphasizing the value that was placed on these paper items. (Thanks to my colleague, Albrecht Diem, for bringing this news to my attention.)

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