Order of the Argent Bear

I based my search on the keywords of Chivalry and Knighthood. There are, however, a great number of other concepts and fields which are of value to a student of Chivalry.

Knights were, for the most part, members of the ruling class and as such political and economical events were of importance to them. General and special histories provide a study of the events and people of a region and time. The library has many books on the histories of France, England and Italy for example; and many books on more special topics, such as the 100 Years War, the War of the Roses and Charlemagne, as further examples.

For getting a feel for what life was like, how people thought, and what they respected or avoided, it's hard to beat reading a contemporary writer. The library's collection in this regard is not as strong for Chivalric topics, and I was unable to find Froissart for example. Still, you can find books by Christine dePisan, Machiavelli and Aristotle, which were read in period, and you might search for the Song of Roland, Grail stories or contemporary biographies.

I started to include all of the books on armor or warfare in general, but there are many such books in the collection and it is a largely different topic from chivalry or even chivalric warfare. Search for arms, armor, war, etc. for yet more books.

Just a few notes to, hopefully, make the library a little easier to use.

The Reference Desk

No matter how unfamiliar you are with the Library, find this desk or any desk under a large question mark hanging from the ceiling and you're home free. Go up the main stairs near the entrance, keep to the right of the elevators and there's the helpful folks at the main reference desk. Or ask any employee for directions.

Books with a Call Number like R940.1 are in the reference section of the Library. That means that they can be used in the library only and can not be checked out. The reference section is on the third floor, past the reference desk. Usually books are put here because they are very expensive or specialized. When you are browsing, it pays to browse the exact same numbers in reference that you browse in the regular section.

Books with a Call Number like J942.03 Wright are in the Youth section of the library - second floor, to the right past the elevators. Many interesting and useful books are found in this section. 'Juvenile' books often differ from adult books merely by cutting through the wordy stuffola to get to the heart of a subject - perfect for a casual student - adult or youth.

Currently the Anchorage Library has branches at Loussac (the main library at 36^th and Denali); Chugiak-Eagle River (on the old Glenn Hwy); Muldoon (in the Boniface Center); Samson-Dimond (in the Dimond Mall); and Girdwood (in the Girdwood Elementary School). The branches have more limited hours than the main branch. Call Loussac (343-2844) for details.

If you have a library card, you can get any book available from another branch just by asking the Reference staff to request it for you - it will be sent to the branch you want and you can pick it up (they'll show you how to do it yourself, if you ask). It's also possible to request books not available in Anchorage and the Reference staff can help there, too. You can return any book to any branch and it will be sent to its proper home.

Take me back HOME

Comments or questions should be mailed to truffa@alaska.net , please include the words 'Argent Bear' in the subject line.