Arks for Learning : A Short History of Oxford Library Buildings

Oxford Bibliographical Society, Oxford, first edition, 1995. Illustrated laminated wrappers, 4to, 26 cm,. xiii, 176 pp, 71 ills (some in colour). From the introduction: "The aim of the present publication is to document how Oxford's library collections have been housed over the ages and to illustrate this from the many surviving features which can still be seen in various buildings today. To understand how study and storage systems have evolved will assist a comprehension of a rich but complex information resource, encourage a better appreciation of this great heritage, and allow the very considerable problems which its conservation raises to be seen in their historical context. The long timespan of Oxford's libraries, like that of its other buildings and its gardens, presents a living museum where those fortunate enough to frequent these places, even for a short time, can see and understand something of the way in which, over the years, forces, intellectual, artistic, technical and financial have interacted to mould the setting, workplaces and learned materials of a great university. Booklabel of the bibliophile A R A Hobson on front inside wrapper, Near Fine.