Huntington Verso

The Huntington Art Gallery has a cool holiday tree again. Last year, a cacophony of colorful piñatas covered the noble fir, a concept developed by designer David Netto. This year, artist Konstantin Kakanias conceived of a tree adorned with whimsical birds

Today is my last day as institutional archivist and curator of manuscripts at The Huntington. Just over eight years ago, I came here to be the first person to hold the official title of "institutional archivist."

In the case of The Three Witches, there was more than met the eye. In 2012, The Huntington received a $500,000 grant from the Mellon Foundation to develop an integrated preservation program that would serve both the Library and Art divisions.

As champagne corks pop on Dec. 31 to welcome the New Year, many in the field of medicine will be raising a glass to Andreas Vesalius (1514–64), born 500 years ago on this day. A Flemish-born anatomist and physician, Vesalius wrote one of the most influential books on human anatomy

One of the greatest rewards of my job as a literary manuscripts curator is meeting and becoming friends with the authors whose papers I collect, and one of the sweetest of these friendships has been with the American novelist Kent Haruf.

There they were. Pinkie and Blue Boy all chopped up into a million little squares and reassembled into the most glorious shellacked folding screen I had ever laid eyes on. I was in love.

For author Ari Kelman, the passage of 150 years has not dulled the impact or resolved the ambiguities surrounding the Sand Creek Massacre, one of the most notorious events in U.S. history.

Anyone searching for an authentic American dish to serve for Thanksgiving dinner should consider the humble succotash: it would make a hearty addition to the meal and a terrific conversation starter.

On Nov. 19, 1863, President Abraham Lincoln delivered one of the greatest speeches in American history: the Gettysburg Address. It was a delicate moment in the young nation's identity.

One of the great things about working at The Huntington is that we're surrounded by all this cool stuff: on any one day, we can walk outside and see roses, orchids, cycads, bonsai, penjing and puyas.

Tucked away in a lesser-known corner of The Huntington, on a half-acre site that once served as a gravel parking lot, sits a garden known as the Ranch. This demonstration garden is literally bursting with the sights, smells, and sounds of a mostly edible landscape

It's as if Henry Fuseli (1741–1825), the Anglo-Swiss artist who created the recently acquired painting The Three Witches (1782), had concocted a magic brew to ensure his canvas would eventually end up among The Huntington's treasure trove of artworks.