Unlocking History number (UH#)
UH0168
Original
Corrected folding sequence! Jane Austen's Roll-folded locked letter to Cassandra [Bath] 17 May
Model and research notes
MIT Libraries, Unlocking History Research Group archive, MC0760, Box 27.
Letterlocking Unique Video number(s) (LUV #s) & Instructional video(s) URL
LUV 168 https://youtu.be/U3eAEwz35QE (incorrect folding sequence)
LUV 302 https://youtu.be/WHO658Plwr0 (correct folding sequence)
Instructional video info transcription
Forthcoming
Letterlocking Category number (LC #)
LC06L
Letterlocking Format number (LF #)
4RW
Security score
Low
Assessment of Confidence in assigning LC#
Attested
Substrate
Paper
Dimensions
Opened (in mm): H: 235mm x W: 185mm
Letterpacket (in mm): H: 80mm x W: 110mm
Manifestation
Opened
Distinctive letterlocking style(s)
Independent folding: Roll fold
Tuck-and-seal
Locking mechanism
Tuck
Security enhancements
Not known
Letterlocking category formula (shorthand)
LC6
Fold + Tuck + Adhere
(F + T + A)
Letterlocking manipulation sequence (shorthand)
Forthcoming
Locking instructions
Forthcoming
Images
Forthcoming
Foldable(s)
Forthcoming
Step-by-steps
Forthcoming
Substrate map
Forthcoming
Virtual unfolding results
NA
Manipulations
Writing: Margin folds
Postal: Postage marks
Opening: Tears, Seal tears
Filing (Storage, Display): NA
Repair: Mends
Damage
Tears
Features
Dirt on panels/ in crease
Radiating wrinkles
Wrinkles
Article(s)
NA
Book
Jana Dambrogio and Daniel Starza Smith with the Unlocking History Research Group. Letterlocking: The Hidden History of the Letter. Cambridge and London: MIT Press, 2025.
Citation for the letter(s)
UH0168
Original
Jane Austen’s holograph letter to Cassandra Austen, Bath, England (May 17, 1799). Houghton Library, Harvard University, MS Eng 870, Box 2 (83A).
This letter is referred to as Number 19 in Deidre LeFaye's Jane Austen's Letters.
Model
MIT Libraries, Unlocking History Research Group archive, MC0760, Box 27.
Video
LUV168
Jana Dambrogio, Teresa Leone, Gwen Speeth, and the Unlocking History Research Group, “Incorrect fold sequence: Jane Austen’s signed holograph letter to her best friend and sister, Cassandra Austen, England (1799).” Filmed: January 17, 2022. Duration: 2:51. Posted: 8 March 2022. URL: https://youtu.be/U3eAEwz35QE. Accessed March 4, 2025.
LUV302
Jana Dambrogio and the Unlocking History Research Group. “Corrected folding sequence: Jane Austen's roll-folded locked letter to Cassandra, England, (1799).” Filmed: April 8, 2024. Duration: 3:05. Posted: April 13, 2024. URL: https://youtu.be/WHO658Plwr0. Accessed March 4, 2025.