Scope

The tools I have decided to use for this research topic will be the academic library catalogue of 'Monash University' which I have access to and internet search engines. I have had success in finding some very good books on the Bodleian Library and have found the internet a great source of information.

These books are a rare example of medieval binding.

Chained book

The book on the right is an example of original 15th chained binding. Institutional libraries like the Bodleian Library stored their books this way, attaching the chain to the shelf. This was done in order to protect the books from theft or loss.

Scope of research-

I intend to show the Bodleian Library in the period of the beginning of the 17th century. This is the period when Sir Thomas Bodley rescued the Duke Humfrey's Library which in the mid 16th century under legislation passed by King Edward VI was purged of any material with traces of Roman Catholicism or superstition.

The focus will be on introducing the reader to the physical environment and architecture of the Bodleian Library. I will also introduce the reader to the collection Sir Thomas Bodley acquired and the scholars who used the library during this time.