The page would have originally been part of a book of hours, a devotional Christian text usually used in a private context. A central part of these texts is the eight hourly prayers to the Virgin Mary. The structure of these prayers is based upon the Divine Office, which was celebrated by clergy and members of the religious orders at the canonical hours (Matins, Lauds, Prime, Terce, Sext, Nones, Vespers, and Compline).

During the thirteenth century, books of hours were highly popular with both men and women of the lay elite. By this period, the books usually contained a range of devotional material in addition to the hours of the Blessed Virgin Mary, such as psalms, Litany of the Saints, the Office of the Dead, Hours of the Holy Spirit and Hours of the Cross. This page displays part of the Hours of the Holy Cross, with hymns for Sext, Nones, and Vespers.

Dating from circa 1450, it was produced when books of hours were still popular and increasingly in demand by a prosperous middle class, as both a religious and status item. While some vernacular examples are extant, the dominant language of books of hours continued to be Latin. The modest size (185 x 138 mm) of Fryer's example is also typical, as it is practical for personal devotion.

To view the manuscript or to consult any of the Fryer's research collections, simply contact fryer@library.uq.edu.au or visit the Fryer reading room on the fourth floor of the Duhig Tower (building 2), St Lucia Campus.

The theme for this year's Harmony Day is Many Stories - One Australia.

The Department of Immigration and Citizenship, who organises the celebrations of Harmony day each year on the 21st of March, describes the importance of sharing stories in celebrating Australia's diversity:

Let's go beyond the cover of the book and wander through the pages of each other's story. It's a way we can learn and understand.

With this year's emphasis on sharing stories, we wanted to share some Fryer materials which contain stories of diversity in Australia:

• A new addition to our collection, A Norwegian waltz explores the stories of Norwegian immigrants in Queensland from 1870-1914 (also available online).
• The collections of Elaine Smith and Julian Burnside & Kate Durham shed light on the experiences of people seeking refuge in Australia.
• Daisy Marchisotti's papers reflect her activism, particularly regarding Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and racism issues.
• The Queensland Experience (edited by Maximilian Brandle) documents the life and work of 14 migrants to our state.

Friday, the 8th of March is International Women's Day. Celebrated internationally on this date since 1913, Women's Day recognises women for their achievements, reflects on past struggles and accomplishments, and looks forward "to the opportunities that await future generations of women".

Women rally during 1912 strike, Brisbane
Papers of Constance Healy, UQFL 191, Box 12, Folder 9.

Women and gender studies is a key collecting area for Fryer Library. You can view an overview of Fryer collections related to International Women's Day at our online exhibition or discover specfic collections in our Guide to manuscripts on Women in Politics and History.

Amongst Fryer's manuscript collections is a folder of papers relating to the 1948 St Patrick's Day clash in Brisbane. The papers form part of the collection of Connie Healy, whose husband, Mick Healy, was secretary of the Trades & Labor Council of Queensland at the time. Mick Healy was the leader of the protest march that was met with such violence by the Queensland police.

On the morning of 17 March , a group of about 200 trade unionists began a street march from the Trades Hall building down Edward Street towards the centre of Brisbane.

They were protesting the Industrial Law Amendment Act introduced by Queensland's Labor government a week before. Reacting to the strike by railway workers which had commenced in early February, the Hanlon government invoked State of Emergency legislation on 27 February. It now sought even greater powers to combat what it labelled civil unrest by militant communist-led unions. This additional legislation prevented picketing, marching and demonstrations, and extended police powers to the arrest without warrant of strikers and those who encouraged their activities.

The unionists were met by more than 200 baton-wielding policemen. The onslaught led to multiple injuries and arrests, with a number of marchers being taken to hospital. One of the injured was Fred Paterson, MLA for Bowen, barrister, and the only Communist parliamentarian ever in the history of the British Commonwealth. Paterson had been observing the march and taking notes when he was felled with a blow from behind by Detective Sergeant Jack Mahoney. He was later taken to Royal Brisbane Hospital for treatment for concussion and a suspected fractured skull.

Fred Paterson standing behind lawyer Max Julius taking notes.

Greg Tippert being arrested, having had his nose broken by police

In the following days there was mass protest over the incident with more than 10 000 union sympathisers gathering in King George Square.

In June the government announced the repeal of the act which had brought the demonstrators to the streets. But the anti-communist paranoia which manifested itself in this brutal police action on Edward Street, Brisbane, on the morning of St Patrick's Day 1948 continued to be mobilised over the subsequent decades.

More about the 'St Patrick's Day Bash' can be found in Found in Fryer: stories from the Fryer Library collection.

In the seventeenth century, many members of the upper classes collected objects for 'cabinets of curiosities', amusing their guests with rare and unusual specimens of natural history. Shells were one of the most popular objects among collectors, and in the eighteenth century, as major voyages of discovery made available new and previously unrecorded species, these shells came to be studied in a more scientific way. One of the most beautiful products of this new scientific enthusiasm was Thomas Martyn's The universal conchologist (1789), a high quality publication intended for an elite and wealthy audience.

Martyn was present at the return of Cook's third voyage and bought two-thirds of the shells available for purchase for the large sum of 400 guineas. Rather than simply selling them on to wealthy collectors, however, he intended to produce an illustrated catalogue of all the shells of the world 'with a new systematic arrangement by the author'. Martyn's first difficulty was in finding artists experienced enough to make the detailed hand-coloured illustrations his book required. Despairing of obtaining enough artists with the proper skills, Martyn established at 10 Great Marlborough Street, Westminster, an 'Academy for Illustrating and Painting Natural History' where he trained ten young boys to produce the drawings he required.

Such was Martyn's fanatical perfectionism that when seventy copies of the first two volumes of the work were ready, each containing forty plates, he declared them to be of poor quality and started again. Complete four-volume sets of The universal conchologist containing all 160 plates are extremely rare. The work is most commonly found as two volumes bound as one, with eighty plates illustrating the shells brought back from the voyages to the South Seas. Fryer's copy takes this form.

More about Thomas Martyn and The universal conchologist can be found in Found in Fryer: stories from the Fryer Library collection.

In early 2013, the Fryer thesis collection is on the move to a warehouse space. This move will bring the whole of the Fryer thesis collection back together in one storage area.

Access to all theses will be unavailable until at least the week beginning 7 January, to allow the movers access to the collection.

Once the collection is available again, all theses should be requested at least 3 business days in advance. You can place requests by emailing the details of the thesis required through to fryer@library.uq.edu.au or telephoning 07 3365 6236.

We apologise for the interruption to access, and thank you for your patience.