Christ Church Library is a
Georgian building that forms the south side of
Peckwater Quadrangle
The Peckwater Quadrangle (known as "Peck" to students) is one of the Quadrangle (architecture), quadrangles of Christ Church, Oxford, Christ Church, Oxford, England. It is a Grade I listed building.
Christ Church Library is on the south side of ...
in
Christ Church, Oxford
Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...
,
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
. To the east is
Canterbury Quadrangle. The library houses the college's modern
lending library
A lending library is a library from which books and other media are lent out. The major classifications are endowed libraries, institutional libraries (the most diverse), public libraries, and subscription libraries. It may also refer to a librar ...
and early printed books on two floors.
History
The first library at Christ Church was established in 1562 in what had been the refectory of
St Frideswide's Priory. The books, of which around 140 remain in the library, were originally
chained to wooden lecterns.
A new library was designed in the eighteenth century, with the intention of attracting aristocratic students to the college by equalling the great classical library buildings of
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...
and
Trinity College, Dublin
Trinity College Dublin (), officially titled The College of the Holy and Undivided Trinity of Queen Elizabeth near Dublin, and legally incorporated as Trinity College, the University of Dublin (TCD), is the sole constituent college of the Univ ...
. The most likely candidate for the architect is Dr
George Clarke of
All Souls; the master mason was William Townsend/Townesend. Building work started in 1717 and was only completed in 1772.
The books were housed on the first floor to avoid damp and flooding, while the ground floor was designed as an open
loggia
In architecture, a loggia ( , usually , ) is a covered exterior Long gallery, gallery or corridor, often on an upper level, sometimes on the ground level of a building. The corridor is open to the elements because its outer wall is only parti ...
. However, a bequest of paintings from General
John Guise during the protracted construction of the library led to the enclosure of the ground floor to display them. The
Christ Church Picture Gallery has since moved to a separate, modernist, building.
The collections incorporate substantial bequests of books from, amongst others,
Robert Burton;
Henry Aldrich
Henry Aldrich (15 January 1648 – 14 December 1710) was an English theologian, philosopher, architect, and composer.
Life
Aldrich was educated at Westminster School under Dr Richard Busby. In 1662, he entered Christ Church, Oxford, and in 1 ...
, Dean of Christ Church; William Stratford, a canon of the cathedral;
William Wake
William Wake (26 January 165724 January 1737) was a minister in the Church of England and Archbishop of Canterbury from 1716 to his death.
Life
Wake was born in Blandford Forum
Blandford Forum ( ) is a market town in Dorset, England, o ...
,
Archbishop of Canterbury
The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the Primus inter pares, ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the diocese of Canterbury. The first archbishop ...
; and
Charles Boyle, 4th Earl of Orrery.
Collections
Christ Church Library contains one of the largest collections of early printed books in Oxford outside the
Bodleian Library
The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1602 by Sir Thomas Bodley, it is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. With over 13 million printed items, it is the second-largest library in ...
. The library was described in 1946 as 'a heterogeneous collection of about 100,000 works' and this is the figure which has generally been quoted since. For comparison, the modern collection holds around 72,000 books .
Exhibitions
The library also hosts exhibitions; these have ranged from the art and photography of
Lewis Carroll
Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (27 January 1832 – 14 January 1898), better known by his pen name Lewis Carroll, was an English author, poet, mathematician, photographer and reluctant Anglicanism, Anglican deacon. His most notable works are ''Alice ...
(curated by Edward Wakeling, Allan Chapman, Janet McMullin and Cristina Neagu) to a commemoration of
Johann Joachim Winckelmann
Johann Joachim Winckelmann ( ; ; 9 December 17178 June 1768) was a German art historian and archaeologist. He was a pioneering Hellenism (neoclassicism), Hellenist who first articulated the differences between Ancient Greek art, Greek, Helleni ...
(curated by
Amy Smith,
Katherine Harloe and Cristina Neagu).
References
Bibliography
* Christ Church Library
Books and articles about the Library
External links
Christ Church LibraryOutline of the collections in ''Handbuch deutscher historischer Buchbestände in Europa''
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1562 establishments in England
1717 establishments in England
Library
A library is a collection of Book, books, and possibly other Document, materials and Media (communication), media, that is accessible for use by its members and members of allied institutions. Libraries provide physical (hard copies) or electron ...
Libraries of the University of Oxford
Buildings and structures completed in 1772
Library buildings completed in the 18th century