In addition to donating the bronze boar, Porcellino, to the Descartes Foundation at the University of Waterloo, Dr. Henry Crapo, a former faculty member in the Department of Pure Mathematics, donated a collection of rare and unique items relating to the history of dance.
Since Dr. Crapo's initial donation in 1975, the Library has augmented the collection through the antiquarian book market and has been able to add numerous titles complementary to those in the original Crapo Collection.
The Dance Collection is now one of the major collections housed in the Special Collections department. It contains some of the most important, but scarce items relating to the history of dance and ballet; its chronological range, from 1535 to the mid-twentieth century, offers Canadian scholars a unique resource for research. It contains many books which are not available elsewhere in Canada, and a number of items not available elsewhere in North America.
From: Nvove Inventioni di Balli. By Cesare Negri. (Milano, 1604.), {p.245}.
From: Arte de Danzer a la Francesa. By Pablo Minguet e Irol. (Madrid, n.d.). {p. 8.}.
From: Arte de Danzer a la Francesa. By Pablo Minguet e Irol.
Frontispiece from: Thesee Tragedie en Musique, Ornee d'Entrees de Ballet. By Jean Baptiste Lully, adapted from Quinault. (1688).
Frontispiece from: Suite du Repertoire des Bals on Receuil de Contredanses. Vol. IV. By La Cuisse. (Paris, 1762.)
From: Traite, elementaire, theorique et pratique de l'Art de la Danse. By Carlo Blassis (Milan, 1820). [Plate XIV}.
