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Where to find an obscure piece of Shakespeare ‘decoding’ technology in DC

This WWII-era machine was used to decode Shakespeare鈥檚 works

Follow 91欧美激情鈥檚 Matt Kaufax as he explores hidden gems, local landmarks and unique stories across the D.C. area every week. New episodes of 91欧美激情鈥檚聽鈥淢att About Town鈥聽segment are released each Tuesday and Thursday.

Have you ever tried “decoding” Shakespeare the old-fashioned way?

In the latest episode of “Matt About Town,” 91欧美激情’s Matt Kaufax reports on what it takes to make sure volumes of books and plays 鈥 which are more than 400 years old 鈥 make it through to the modern age intact and accurate through an obscure piece of technology at D.C.’s Folger Shakespeare Library.

The Hinman Collator was a 400-pound opto-mechanical device that William Shakespeare scholar Charlton Hinman invented in the late 1940s.

It used lights, mirrors, and a blinking strobe effect to superimpose and rapidly compare two pages from different copies of a book, making minute typographical variations or text differences instantly jump out to the researcher.

Over the years, it has been used by scholars and researchers from all over the world who study Shakespeare, and it’s a huge part of the reason our favorite plays, movies, novels, etc., that adapt the famous playwright’s works today are still such a huge part of the culture.

This is part four of a five-part series on the Folger Shakespeare Library.

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Matt Kaufax

If there's an off-the-beaten-path type of attraction, person or phenomenon in the D.C. area that you think more people should know about, Matt is your guy. An award-winning reporter for 91欧美激情, he's always on the hunt for stories that provide a unique local flavor鈥攁 slice of life if you will.

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