This AHRC-funded 3-year project seeks to uncover the stories behind the books on the shelves at the Bodleian Library, Oxford. Our focus is on the first two decades following its seventeenth-century refurbishment by Sir Thomas Bodley (c.1600-1620), and the study examines the shape of the collection of the books donated and purchased with funds, the social backgrounds of the c.220 donors, and how these men and women were connected across the social compass of the time.

The project team are Dr Robyn Adams (PI, CELL), Dr Matthew Symonds (Co-I, CELL), Dr Alexandra Franklin (Co-I, Bodleian Library), Dr Anna-Lujz Gilbert (Post-Doctoral Research Associate), and Ben Wilkinson-Turnbull (Research Assistant). Do feel free to contact the project team!