Bodleian Library, Oxford
Radcliffe Camera, with the main buildings of the Bodleian Library behind.
In the courtyard of the Bodleian Library.
Entrance to the old School of Grammar and History.
Antique books in the Duke Humphrey Library.
The Divinity School.
Main entrance to the Bodleian Library.
The Upper Reading Room in the Bodleian Library.
Founded in 1602 and regarded as a masterpiece of English Gothic architecture, the Bodleian Library is one of the oldest libraries in Europe and today serves as the main research library of the University of Oxford.
The Bodleian Library was originally "Bodley's Library" and has been known informally to centuries of Oxford scholars as "the Bod."
History
Oxford's Bodleian Library opened in 1602 with a collection of 2,000 books assembled by Thomas Bodley of Merton College. The new library replaced one that had been donated to the Divinity School by Duke Humphrey of Gloucester (brother of Henry V of England), but had dispersed in the 16th century.
In 1610, Bodley made an agreement with the Stationers' Company in London to put a copy of every book registered with them in the library. The Bodleian collection grew so fast that the first expansion of the building was required in 1610–1612, and another in 1634–1637. When John Selden died in 1654, he left the Bodleian his large collection of books and manuscripts.
In 1911 the United Kingdom Copyright Act continued the Stationers' agreement by making the Bodleian one of the five "copyright libraries" in the United Kingdom, where a copy of each book copyrighted in the country must be deposited.
Two floors of bookstack opened beneath the Radcliffe Camera and Radcliffe Square in 1913, and a large new bookstack and reading room, the New Bodleian building, was built in the 1930s. A tunnel under Broad Street conects the Old and New Bodleians, and contains a pedestrian walkway, a mechanical book conveyor and a pneumatic Lamson tube system for book orders.
The Oxford Digital Library (ODL) provides online access to the collections. The Bodleian Library has also offered its support to the establishment of the JournalServer open-access digital library and allocated resources on the Oxford Digital Library Servers. The Oxford Digital Library started operationally in July 2001 and has a rich collection of digital archives.
In 2004, Oxford made an agreement allowing Google to digitize 1 million books owned by the Bodleian Library.
What to See
The main "Old Bodleian" building contains upper and lower reading rooms, the gift shop, and the Divinity School. Visitors are not allowed into the reading rooms except on guided tours, which usually occur daily.
Today, the Bodleian includes several off-site storage areas as well as nine other libraries in Oxford, including the Bodleian Japanese Library, the Bodleian Law Library, and the Radcliffe Science Library. Altogether, the sites now contain 9 million items on 176 km of shelving, and have seats for 2,500 readers.
To be granted access the library, one must be a student or fellow of Oxford University and make the following declaration:
I hereby undertake not to remove from the Library, nor to mark, deface, or injure in any way, any volume, document or other object belonging to it or in its custody; not to bring into the Library, or kindle therein, any fire or flame, and not to smoke in the Library; and I promise to obey all rules of the Library.
The Bodleian Library's religious interest lies in its impressive collection of biblical and religious manuscripts. Unfortunately, these are generally not accessible to visitors. Notable manuscripts at Bodleian include:
- Parts of the Oxyrhynchus Papyri, 3rd-5th century New Testament fragments (more holdings in Oxford's Sackler Library and the Ashmolean Museum)
- 6th-century uncial Book of Acts
- 10th-century Latin Gospels
- Caedmon Manuscript - Old-English Genesis, Exodus and Daniel, c. 1000 AD
- 11th century Life of St. Basil in Old English
- 12th century Meditationes by Godwin of Sarum
- 15th-century life of St. Gilbert of Sempringham
- 15th-century English copy of Albertus Magnus treatise
Quick Facts
| Names: | Bodleian Library; Bodley's Library; The Bod |
| Type of site: | Library with religious manuscripts |
| Address: | Broad Street, Oxford, England OX1 3BG |
| Phone: | 01865/277224 |
| Tours: | The only way to see the interior of the library is on a guided tour. Daily: 10:30, 11:30, 2, 3; Saturday 10:30 & 11:30 |
Travel Resources
- Oxford Map - find your way with our detailed interactive aerial map
- Oxford Transportation - how to get to and around Oxford
- Oxford Travel Forum - get tips, advice, answers on Oxford
- Oxford Hotel Reviews - unbiased ratings from fellow travelers
- Oxford Hostels - selection of budget lodgings from HostelBookers
- Oxford Car Rentals - low prices from AutoEurope
Article Sources
- Personal visits (2005-07).
- Bodleian Library - Official Website (see esp. Early Manuscripts in the Bodleian Library)
More Information
- Traveler Reviews of Bodleian Library - TripAdvisor
- Bodleian Library - Britain Express
