[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 156 (2010), Part 4]
[House]
[Page 5526]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




      RECOGNIZING THE JAY I. KISLAK COLLECTION AND LECTURE SERIES

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the 
gentlewoman from Florida (Ms. Ros-Lehtinen) is recognized for 5 
minutes.
  Ms. ROS-LEHTINEN. Mr. Speaker, I rise tonight to acknowledge the 
contributions of a humanitarian and philanthropist from my area of 
South Florida, Mr. Jay Kislak. A Florida resident for over half a 
century, Jay is known to be one of the State's leading citizens, with 
an outstanding record of charitable projects and personal achievements.
  Jay's involvement in our community has included leadership roles in 
organizations like the Florida Council of 100, the Florida Historical 
Society, the Historical Association of Southern Florida, Mortgage 
Bankers Association of America, the University of Miami, the Greater 
Miami Jewish Federation, Miami Dade's Arts in Public Places Trust, 
Mount Sinai Medical Center, and the American Red Cross, among so many 
others.
  Jay's participation in our community is only matched by his 
involvement in the preservation of Florida's dynamic history. Over the 
years, and together with his wife Jean, Jay has collected countless 
rare books, maps, and art that capture the history and the culture of 
Florida, focusing especially on the early years of European 
exploration.
  Jay's collection is certainly one of the most comprehensive in the 
Nation. In 2004, Jay made an extraordinary gift to our country. He 
donated more than 3,000 of these rare books, manuscripts, and other 
objects to our Library of Congress. Known as ``Exploring the Early 
Americas'', this collection is now on display in the library's historic 
Thomas Jefferson building right across the street from us.

                              {time}  1715

  This gift is one of the most significant gifts ever received by the 
Library of Congress.
  To give a sense of the extent of this collection, let me just name a 
few of the major pieces:
  A vast collection of Mayan cultural and religious works and carvings.
  The first printed nautical map of the entire world, the Carta Marina 
from the year 1516.
  A 1524 map on which Florida is first named.
  Original documents signed by the famed explorers Cortes, Pizarro, and 
Las Casas.
  From 1598, the first atlas to include Florida.
  The journal of Cabeza de Vaca in which he narrates his wanderings 
across Florida and the Southeast after his shipwreck off the coast of 
the present-day St. Petersburg.
  Also, the 1589 hand-colored engraving by Baptista Boazio of St. 
Augustine, Florida, the earliest engraving of any locality in the U.S.
  Also, one of George Washington's personal journals from his time 
spent at Mount Vernon.
  And letters from John Quincy Adams and James Monroe pertaining to the 
purchase of Florida and to the foreign policy of the United States.
  Mr. Speaker, these are just some of the major items that are in Jay's 
impressive collection.
  In support of this collection, the library now hosts an ongoing 
lecture series, program of exhibitions, research, and public education 
programs named after Jay Kislak. And this week the Jay Kislak 
Foundation held one of its annual lectures right here in Washington at 
the Library. The event included historian Jonathan Spence, one of the 
foremost experts on modern China and the Sterling Professor of History, 
Emeritus, at Yale University.
  Jay's philanthropy continues to astound in its breadth and its scope. 
Through Jay's substantial contribution, countless generations will be 
able to view a window into our past as Americans and as Floridians.
  Jay, thank you for all that you have done and will continue to do on 
behalf of our Nation and our home community. Thanks from a grateful 
Nation.

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