The Mystery of the McGraw Tower Print
In the basement of Risley Hall you will find a print shop, and there among the drawers of type, galleys, and presses is a cabinet filled with wood blocks carefully carved by students over the decades. One block in particular caught my attention. It was of McGraw Tower, and it had been carved in such a way that if you cut out the print, it could be folded into the shape of the tower itself. I was smitten. Months later, when we in RMC were looking for material for the 150th anniversary exhibit, I remembered the block and made a print. Apparently, I have not been the only one taken by this clever idea. It has become one of the most popular items in the exhibit. From the beginning we wanted to give the artist credit, but unfortunately, like most of the blocks in the cabinet, it was unsigned. And Jim Tyler, who has run the shop for some years, could not recall the student who had made it.
This is where you come in.
We need your help to identify the artist who created the block that has created such a stir. Did you work in Risley and remember seeing a fellow student working on this block? Do you remember seeing it printed somewhere or handed out for an event?
Was it you?
Please contact us here in the Division of Rare and Manuscript Collections with any leads: email rareref@cornell.edu, or phone 607-255-3530.