Did the independent folds of Ira Aldridge’s letter once contain an insert? Ireland (1835) (UH6181)

Modelled after Ira Aldridge to Sir MacDonnell, Kilkenny, Ireland, 8 February 1835, Manuscripts, Archives and Rare Books Division, Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York Public Library, Miscellaneous American Letters and Papers (MALP), 1740-2006 SC MG 76, b. 1 f. 16, “MALP- Aldridge, Ira.” Model located in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Libraries (MIT), Unlocking History Research Group archive, MC0760.
Letter from Ira Frederick Aldridge, American, Black, Shakespearean actor who was born in 1807. Aldridge left the U.S. at about age 17 and became especially famous for his roles in Shakespearean tragedy and particularly for playing Othello. He performed all over Europe from the 1830s, including in England, Ireland, Germany, Russia, and Poland. He was scheduled to perform in New York in August 1867, but died in Łodz Poland, on 7 April 1867.
This letter, written in 1835 from Kilkenny, was addressed to William MacDonnell, Esq. in Ireland, regarding a previous letter about plans for the reopening of the Cork Theater. Aldridge had not received a reply to the prior letter and wondered if perhaps it had not reached MacDonnell.
After folding his sheet of paper in half to make a bifolium, Aldridge wrote his letter on the first page. It is possible the bifolium was then opened, and the left page was roll-folded twice into thirds up to the center of the bifolium. Then folded one more time in the same direction using the fold that created the bifolium. In the vertical orientation, the letter was then folded twice along the long edge, once from the top and once from the bottom, creating a c-fold. Next, the letter was roll-folded twice along the short edge, starting from the thicker end, into a rectangular letterpacket. The large flap was then tucked into the small expanded pocket, closing the letterpacket. Hot sealing wax was applied under the exposed edge of the tucked flaps and also to the outside of the flap. The letter was locked by impressing the seal stamp into the hot wax to create an exposed seal. The important application is under the paper, however, since this is what secures the letter shut.
The crease pattern on Aldridge's letter reveals the leaves of the bifolium were independently folded, using a technique common in Europe to include inserted or enclosed items. Did Aldridge’s letter include enclosed items? Once the letter was opened, at first glance, the crease pattern resembles a typical technique where both leaves of the bifolium are folded in tandem to create a tuck-and-seal letterpacket. Both techniques were used simultaneously by Aldridge. As so often occurs in letterlocking, we find one person using more than one method to lock their letters shut - why might someone choose one method over another? Letters by Aldridge that have no postal marks or address information on the outer panels of the letterpackets have been found in the private collection of Walter O. Evans, MD and Linda J. Evans, the Folger Shakespeare Library, and the New York Public Library. Were these letters inserted into letters like the one demonstrated In this video? This method of independent folding may help us understand Aldridge’s postal habits.
Produced and directed by Sheree Watson, MD, Jana Dambrogio, Walter O. Evans, MD, and Linda J. Evans. Demonstrated by Walter O. Evans, MD. Special thanks to Violet Payne and family and Eve Khan. Funded by the Seaver Institute, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Libraries, and Jana Dambrogio in support of our project, “Unlocking History.”
Citation information: Authors: Sheree Watson, MD, Walter O. Evans, MD, Linda J. Evans, Jana Dambrogio, and the Unlocking History Research Group. Title: "Did the independent folds of Ira Aldridge’s tuck-and-seal once contain an inserted item? Ireland (1835)." Unlocking History number 6181/Letterlocking Unique Video number: 286. Letterlocking Instructional Videos. Date filmed: 16 November 2022. Duration: 3:38. Date posted: 19 February 2023. Video URL: [Insert URL]. Date accessed: [Date].
Copyright 2023-present. Jana Dambrogio, , the Unlocking History Research Group and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). All rights reserved. The following copyrighted material is made available under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0) License creativecommon.... Contact the MIT Technology Licensing Office for any other licensing inquiries.
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TH-cam URL: • Did the independent fo...

[@artamarti176]

I can’t get enough of these letter locking videos. Thank you! And thanks for the super useful subtitles :)

[@MrPollywalnuts]

Letter Locking videos is great and i love the sealing wax AND the crunchiness sound of the paper. Godspeed to you.

[@jeffreycrawley1216]

"Did the independent folds of Ira Aldridge’s letter once contain an inserted item?"
According to Betteridge's law of headlines the answer is probably "NO" but I do so like these videos.
Keep posting please!

[@aserta]

It does look like a small pochete, so perhaps indeed it held something inside.

[@user-sh1zt5mw3o]

Спасибо

[@RealziesCuts]

Stimulus is the 🐐