On the 19th of March, the CLG visited Magdalene
College – with three different libraries to look round this was a packed
evening and after a glass of wine in the College Parlour we split off into
groups to begin the tour.
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| The lovely Magdalene College wine... |
Deputy College Librarian Annie Gleeson took us round
Magdalene’s modern, working collection, established as a library in its own
right in the 1960s and now housing around 26,000 books aimed at the college’s 340
undergraduates. The working library has grown by extensions over time, and this
layout lends the space a cosy feel – rooms follow one after the other,
providing students with popular, hidden-away
study spaces surrounded by books, some with views out onto the Fellows’ Gardens.
From the working collection, we moved on to the Old Library,
where Deputy Librarian (Pepys Libray and Special Collections) Catherine
Sutherland was on hand to tell us about some of the College’s ancient
treasures. Magdalene was first founded in 1428, and the collection of the Old
Library reflects this long history.
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| In the Old Library |
The
Old Library is particularly strong on 18th century sermons, and also boasts a
collection of early printed books, some hand-painted, and a number of medieval
manuscripts. Many famous names are associated with books, prints and papers
held in the Old Library – T.S. Eliot, Nicholas Ferrar, and George Mallory to
name a few. And the collection is not just academic – shelves of buttery books,
dating from the mid-17th century, provide an insight into the
workings of college life.
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| College Buttery books in the Old Library |
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Delightfully retro...
collections from the Old Library
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The most treasured collection at Magdalene is, of course,
the Pepys Library, which came to the Library through the will of the famous
diarist. Samuel Pepys died in 1703 and his diary records such iconic events as
the outbreak of the plague and the Great Fire of London. Pepys Librarian Dr
Jane Hughes talked about just why Pepys’ diary is so important as a resource
for social historians; Pepys wrote about all aspects of day to day life – from
attending plays to drinking tea. The Pepys Library contains not only his
diaries – handwritten in Shelton’s shorthand, and undeciphered until 1819 – but
also Pepys’ personal Library, books held in their original bookshelves, and
bound in Pepys’ personal binding, bearing his own bookplate with motto – ‘The mind
maketh the person.’
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The outside of the
Pepys Library
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As well as a volume of the famous diary, we saw out on
display many other treasures testifying to the richness of Pepys’ personal
library. A discriminating as well as enthusiastic collector, Pepys ensured his
library numbered exactly 3000 books (and Magdalene must maintain this number,
neither adding nor taking away, or risk forfeiting the collection to Trinity
College...) Among the many beautiful items we saw – which included maritime
books, collections of ballads and fragments of medieval manuscripts - a
scribe’s model book from c.1410, filled with coloured studies of birds, animals
and drapery, was particularly eye-catching, as was the Anthony Roll, open to
the only contemporary picture of the doomed ship, the Mary Rose.
Thanks to Annie, Catherine, and Jane for showing us round,
and answering our many questions with such enthusiasm!
Contributed by Emily Downes, Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies Library.
For more information visit the fantastic Magdalene College Libraries Blog or follow @magdlibs
