Ege in Muskegon: Broken Books in the Peripheral Manuscripts Project

This essay problematizes the role and connections of the early twentieth-century biblioclast Otto F. Ege and the fragments he created through dispersal of books into Midwestern collections. After an overview of the activities of Ege as a dismantler of books, the author presents the role of his legacy in the context of the research project, The Peripheral Manuscripts Project: Digitizing Medieval Manuscript Collections in the Midwest . Ege worked out of Cleveland and has connections to many of the project’s partner collections being digitized and catalogued, including eleven previously unidentified fragments that are held in an art museum in Michigan. Many more such connections have come to light within the project. The case study offers additional context to the discussion of the role that Midwestern institutions have played and continue to play in the conservation of this important cultural heritage.