Who was the Man in the Iron Mask? Historians have suggested various candidates. According to the story by Alexandre Dumas he was Philippe Bourbon, the twin brother of Louis XIV. But most people today know he was really Leonardo DiCaprio, in this 1998 movie.

Thirty years ago there used to be a lot of bookmarks you could pick up for free that were promotional items for new books and movies. You rarely see them anymore. Which is one of the things that make them such great collectibles.

Book: King of the World: The Life of Louis XIV by Philip Mansel

Bookmarked Bookmarks

I must have got this papyrus bookmark from the same place as the one I had in an earlier post. I’m just not sure where that was, only I don’t think it was Egypt. Oh well.

Book: A History of Ancient Egypt: From the Great Pyramid to the Fall of the Middle Kingdom by John Romer

Bookmarked Bookmarks

Yes the poem is set in the Yukon and the bookmark is from Alaska, but close enough!

Book: The Cremation of Sam McGee by Robert Service

Bookmarked Bookmarks

No, I’m not sure what a moose has to do with Montreal. Bookmarks can be random like that.

Book: Montreal Stories by Clarke Blaise

Bookmarked Bookmarks

Heading back to the old city of Suzhou again this week. After showcasing a bookmark from their modern museum, here’s one from their famous Lion Grove Garden, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The garden was built in 1342 by Buddhist monks, and has had to be rebuilt several times in the centuries since. It’s so named because the rock formations are supposed to look like lions, though from the pictures I’ve seen I think that’s a bit of a stretch.

Fun fact: The Suzhou Museum was designed by I. M. Pei. The Lion Grove Garden was previously owned by the Pei family, and I. M. Pei played in it when he was a child.

Book: The Dark Forest by Cixin Liu

Bookmarked Bookmarks

This is a bookmark from the Suzhou Museum, which was designed by the architect I. M. Pei. I have friends from Suzhou and they’ve given me several bookmarks. I’d love to visit the place, home of the celebrated “Pants” building, but it’s a long way away and I hear it’s very hot.

Books: The Three-Body Problem by Cixin Liu

Bookmarked Bookmarks

Nope. I’ve never been to New Zealand either. But somebody did get me a nice bookmark when they went! According to a note on the back it’s made from “Native Paua Shell and Rimu Timber.”

Book: Life of Pi by Yann Martel

Bookmarked Bookmarks

This is the second 3-D bookmark I’ve posted on (here’s the first). The problem is you don’t get the 3-D effect from a picture like this. You have to look at it from different directions so that the wolf seems to be moving.

Book: Nostradamus: The Evidence by Ian Wilson

Bookmarked Bookmarks

A great collection of literary essays (reviewed here), and you know every great book deserves its own bookmark.

Book: A Report on the Afterlife of Culture by Stephen Henighan

Bookmarked Bookmarks

Basically these “book darts” are a variation on the paperclip bookmark, but gentler on the pages. You can use these without causing any damage to the book at all.

Book: Chaucer’s People: Everyday Lives in Medieval England by Liza Picard

Bookmarked Bookmarks