[DCRM-L] How should a rebus be transcribed?

[Joe A Springer]

Erin,
I think option A is the most consistent with the way we handle somewhat
similar cases, e.g. 2B4.1 Edition statements with special characters.  I
think I might be inclined to always just name the picture in brackets in
the title area and then do any interpreting in the note (along the lines of
0G3.7): Title and publisher's address in the form of a rebus with pictures
of a boot [i.e. "Bute"], city, bridge, hole, London, buildings and garden. 
Because, as in this example, there may be bracketed information that is not
part of the rebus, I think if we do go with Option A we may need to name
the pictures in the note.  (I don't really like the "rebus for ..." model.)
 
Option C looks like one would want to have as added title access.  
This example includes only "simple" rebuses where one picture=one word. 
When there are compound rebuses, say [tree]+[house], I think option A will
still work well.  What about rebuses where a single (& transcribable!)
letter or numeral fills in for one or several syllables in a multi-syllable
word?

Joe Springer

On Sun, 29 Mar 2009 21:50:51 -0400, "Erin Blake" <EBlake at FOLGER.edu> wrote:
> Has anyone transcribed a rebus? While talking about disguised dates in
> chronograms, the DCRM(G) editors wondered about other kinds of disguised
> information. For example, the print at http://dcrmg.pbwiki.com/Rebuses
> might be dealt with using one of the following options:
> 
> Option A:
> Title: The [boot i.e. Bute] interest in the [city], or the [bridge] in
the
> [hole]
> Imprint: [London] : Sold in May's [Buildings] Covent [Garden] [by George
> Bickham, 1760]
> Note: Title and publisher's address in the form of a rebus.
> 
> Option B:
> Title: The [rebus for boot, i.e. Bute] interest in the [rebus for city],
or
> the [rebus for bridge] in the [rebus for hole]
> Imprint: [London] : Sold in May's [rebus for buildings] Covent [rebus for
> garden] [by George Bickham, 1760]
> 
> Option C:
> Title: The Bute interest in the city, or the bridge in the hole
> Imprint: [London] : Sold in May's Buildings, Covent Garden [by George
> Bickham, 1760]
> Note: Title in the form of a rebus, with pictures for Bute (a boot),
city,
> bridge, and hole. Publisher's address in the form of a rebus, with
pictures
> for Buildings and Garden.
> 
> The print in question could also be catalogued as a broadside, but the
> other two examples linked to from http://dcrmg.pbwiki.com/Rebuses are
> clearly graphic materials.
> 
> What do you think?
> 
>    EB.
> 
> ---------------------------------------
> Erin C. Blake, Ph.D. | Curator of Art & Special Collections | Folger
> Shakespeare Library | 201 E. Capitol St. SE | Washington, DC 20003-1004 |
> office tel. 202.675-0323 | fax 202.675-0328 | e-mail: eblake at folger.edu