To complement the books I already had from Monash's general collection and offsite store, this week I went to their Rare Books department. I only found two books there that were really relevant to my project, but they were beautifully made books from the early 20th century. Unfortunately they were too tightly bound and fragile to scan or copy. When I originally looked at the catalogue there was a third book, but I found the relevant chapter on Google books. The Librarian had a little laugh about that, but considering that I only had my lunch breaks to read through the material there, the Google books option was much more practical, just not as fun.
Most of the material in Rare Books was about Bodley himself, of which I already have more than enough information. But it also provided some insight into the Bodleian library’s incredible collection. I love the way that poet Henry Vaughn put it in the 17th century - “Thou can’st not die! Here thou art more than safe, where every book is thy large epitaph” (Trecentale Bodleianum 1913). In the wider library, there was certainly no shortage of information to explore a collection that has been in the making for four hundred years.
The catalogue of the Bodleian collection in 1605 was one among the first in the world. It circulated widely, and was very influential. It was around 700 pages, and of course completely handwritten. The main subject concentrations at this time were theology, medicine, law and arts.
From the start, theology was a big priority in the collection. It comprised half of the collection in 1605 and 1612. In fact, there is some speculation that part of the raison d'etre of the library in the first place was as “a weapon in the struggle against Catholicism”. This same article went as far as to say that the library had an “anti-Catholic purpose” (Jackson 1969).
Bodley also had a strong disapproval of what he termed “idle bookes and riffe raffes” which included “plays, fiction and often just books in English” (Vaisey 2000). Amazingly, Shakespeare was included in this. It is thought, though, that James (the first librarian) accepted a lot of material of this persuasion into the collection without Bodley’s knowledge, and kept it out of the catalogue (Jackson 1969). Shakespeare was not officially listed on the catalogue until 1623.
Among the early acquisitions was a copy of Francis Bacon’s Advancement of Learning, presented by the author because of the “ark” he felt Bodley had built to “save learning from the deluge” (Jackson 1969).
Kenneth Graham made the Bodleian his heir after his only son died while a student of Oxford. His widow presented the library with the original manuscript of The Wind in the Willows in 1943. The income and royalties continue to greatly help the library today (The Bodleian Library and its Friends 1969).
When the Bodleian library first opened there were 2,000 books in the collection, but by 1649 this had risen to more than 12,000 (Birrell 1923). It reached one million in 1914 (University of Oxford n.d.).
The collection is not just comprised of books, though. Other items donated in the early years included a crocodile, whale, skull, mummy, skeleton, and, shockingly, the “dried body of a negro boy” (Gibson 1914). This, thankfully, is no longer part of the collection. What is, however, is the collection of hair of famous people such as writers Keats and Mary Shelley (Bennett 2000).
My next post will include scanned pictures of some of the highlights of the Bodleian’s collection.
REFERENCES
History of the Bodleian n.d., University of Oxford, viewed September 4 2010, <http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/docs/historybodleian.pdf>
Pietas Oxoniensis: in memory of Sir Thomas Bodley, knt; and the foundation of the Bodleian Library 1902, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
The Bodleian Library and its Friends: Catalogue of an Exhibition held 1969-1970 1969, Bodleian Library, Oxford.
The First Printed Catalogue of the Bodleian Library 1605: a facsimile 1986, Clarendon Press, Oxford.
Trecentale Bodleianum: a memorial volume for the three hundredth anniversary of the public funeral of Sir Thomas Bodley 1913, Clarendon Press, Oxford.
Bennett K 2000, ‘Beyond the Book: Cultures of Collecting in Oxford Libraries and Beyond’, Bodleian Library Record, vol. 17, pp. 180-184.
Birrell A 1905, In the name of the Bodleian: and other essays, viewed September 20, 2010,
Pietas Oxoniensis: in memory of Sir Thomas Bodley, knt; and the foundation of the Bodleian Library 1902, Oxford University Press, Oxford.
The First Printed Catalogue of the Bodleian Library 1605: a facsimile 1986, Clarendon Press, Oxford.
Trecentale Bodleianum: a memorial volume for the three hundredth anniversary of the public funeral of Sir Thomas Bodley 1913, Clarendon Press, Oxford.
Bennett K 2000, ‘Beyond the Book: Cultures of Collecting in Oxford Libraries and Beyond’, Bodleian Library Record, vol. 17, pp. 180-184.
Birrell A 1905, In the name of the Bodleian: and other essays, viewed September 20, 2010,
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