New eresources for 20th century history: World War I, British Union of Fascists files, Northern Ireland, Middle East, Soviet women, world news

We are pleased to announce access to six major eresources which are useful for 20th century historians. They cover key historical events in British, European and world history and contain a great range of sources, from newspapers, government and diplomatic documents, maps, to digitised newsreels. Most resources are strong in international relations and political and diplomatic history, while two resources (Soviet Women, World Newsreels Online) also have a social, gender and cultural aspect, to varying degrees.

Oxford researchers, you can also access these resources remotely with your SSO.

The British Union of Fascists: Newspapers and Secret Files, 1933-1951

Homepage of the resource, depicting a black and white photo of Oswald Mosley walking past supporters showing the fascit salute.

Homepage of
The British Union of Fascists: Newspapers and Secret Files, 1933-1951, British Online Archives

Part of British Online Archives’ Politics and Protest series, the resources contained within this collection chart the rise and fall of fascism in Britain during the 1930s and 1940s, with a particular focus on Oswald Mosley’s blackshirt movement.

The bulk of the documents are official BUF publications, including Fascist Week¸ The Blackshirt, The East London Pioneer, and Action. In addition, there are hundreds of government documents relating to Mosley’s internment under Defence Regulation 18B during the Second World War. Geographical coverage includes Great Britain and the United States.

The series covered include: CAB 127 (Cabinet Office: Private Collections of Ministers’ and Officials’ Papers); HO 45 (Home Office: Registered Papers); HO 262 (Ministry of Information: Home Intelligence Division Files); HO 283 (Home Office: Defence Regulation 18B, Advisory Committee Papers); KV 2 (The Security Service: Personal Files); PCOM 9 (Prison Commission and Home Office, Prison Department: Registered Papers: Series 2); and PREM 4 (Prime Minister’s Office: Confidential correspondence and papers).

The Middle East Online Series 2 – Iraq 1914-1974 (Archives Unbound)

Lists details of two out of almsot five thousand documents in the collection.

Screenshot from Middle East Online: Iraq 1914-1974.

Drawing on the collections from the National Archives at Kew, UK, these documents cover the political and administrative history of the modern state which has emerged from the ancient civilization of Mesopotamia.

Like Series 1 (Middle East Online: Arab-Israeli Relations, 1917-1970), this database offers conference reports, ministerial memos and diplomatic dispatches, as well as official letters of correspondence from regional leaders, press releases and arms deal reports. This collection will also appeal to those with an interest in economics, politics and peace studies.

Series 2 on Iraq covers these events:

  • The war in Mesopotamia and the capture of Baghdad in 1917
  • Introduction of the British Mandate and the installation of King Faisal in 1921
  • Independence and Iraq’s membership in the League of Nations in 1932
  • Coups d’état in the 1930s and 1940s
  • The Baghdad pact of 1955 and the military coup of 1958 leading to the establishment of a republic
  • Oil concessions and the threat to Kuwait
  • The rise of Ba’athism and Saddam Hussein
  • The USSR-Iraq Treaty of Friendship in 1972
  • Iran-Iraq relations

The vast majority of the almost 5,000 documents are in English with c 100 in Arabic and c 160 in French.

Northern Ireland: A Divided Community, 1921-1972 Cabinet Papers of the Stormont Administration (Archives Unbound)

Lists details of two out of more than 1500 documents in the collection.

Screenshot from Northern Ireland: A Divided Community.

The history of Ireland in the twentieth century was dominated by the political and sectarian divide between the north and the south, leading to sustaining armed violence over several decades. 2021 markes the centenary of the creation of Northern Ireland in May 1921.

This resource provides access to Government documents of the British administration in Northern Ireland 1921-72 (CAB/4) offer what have been described as the best continuous record of government activity and decision-making in the world, and shows “how government actually worked”. The papers are a complete digital facsimile of the Cabinet Conclusion files of the Northern Ireland Government, filed as CAB/4 at the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland (PRONI). These CAB/4 files contain a full record of every debate and transaction for the entire duration of the Stormont administration, the devolved government of Northern Ireland. Separate files exist for each Cabinet Meeting and include minutes and memoranda. The discussions and decisions reflect the wide range of problems and activities involved in making the new administration work.

Topics debated and reported in just one sample year of the Troubles (1970) include: policing, arms and explosives, social need, prevention of incitement to religious hatred, army occupation of factories, road spiking, routing of Orange Day parades, dock strikes, law and order, riots, and the roles of the Ulster Defence Regiment (UDR) and the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC).

Paris Peace Conference and Beyond, 1919-1939

An image of the resource' s homepage, depicting 4 key statesmen (Foch, Clemenceau, Lloyd George, Orlando)

From left to right: Marshal Foch, George Clemenceau (French PM), David Lloyd George (British PM), Vittorio Orlando, (Italian PM), from Paris Peace Conference and Beyond, 1919-1939, homepage, British Online Archives (accessed 9 Aug 2021)

Drawn chiefly from the UK National Archives, including selected FO 608 files, these Foreign Office records for the first time offer an emphatic and comprehensive coverage of the various peace treaties signed at the end of the First World War. The Treaties of Versailles, Saint-Germain, Sevres, Trianon, Neuilly and Lausanne are all covered in great depth. They collectively saw to the redrawing of boundaries, the stripping back of German military might and the effective end of the Ottoman Empire. These records are supplemented by the personal papers of Robert Cecil and Arthur Balfour – held at the British Library – both of whom played prominent roles during the course of the Conference.

The papers include cabinet papers, agenda, records of conversations, memoranda, dispatches, telegrams, confidential reports, maps, treaties, and selected news clippings.

This resource has a global reach. Use it to explore and learn how the Allied Powers scrambled to create a diplomatic epilogue to ‘the war to end all wars’.

Soviet Woman Digital Archive (1945-1991)

Front cover of Soviet Women, Nov 1989, depicting a woman with 2 fluffytoy animals.

“FRONT COVER” Soviet Woman. 1989.

Established in the aftermath of WWII in 1945, the magazine Soviet Woman proclaimed on the cover of its first issue its fundamental mission: “A magazine devoted to social and political problems, literature and art…”

Published initially under the aegis of the Soviet Women’s Anti-Fascist Committee and the Central Council of Trade Unions of the USSR, it began as a bimonthly illustrated magazine tasked with countering anti-Soviet propaganda by introducing Western audiences to the lifestyle of Soviet women, including their role in the post-WWII rebuilding of the Soviet economy, and their achievements in the arts and the sciences. The Soviet Woman digital archive contains all obtainable published issues from the very first issue, comprising more than 500 issues and over 7,500 articles.

Over the years the magazine developed regular sections covering issues dealing with economics, politics, life abroad, life in Soviet republics, women’s fashion, as well as broader issues in culture and the arts. One of its most popular features was the translations of Soviet literary works, making available in English, (and other languages) works of Russian and Soviet writers that were previously unavailable, allowing readers worldwide a peek inside the hitherto insular Soviet literary world. An important communist propaganda outlet, the magazine continued its run until the collapse of the USSR in 1991.

World Newsreels Online: 1929–1966

In December of 1941, cinema audiences around the world—from New York to Tokyo, Amsterdam to Paris—waited expectantly for news of Pearl Harbor. This resource lets  historians see what those audiences saw and more, by delivering more than 500 hours of newsreels content instantly.

A screenshot of a girl on crutches

“February 28, 1944.” , directed by Anonymous , Universal Pictures Company, 1944. Alexander Street, https://video.alexanderstreet.com/watch/universal-newsreels-release-272-february-28-1944.

The vast majority of newsreels come from Polygoon-Profiti and Universal Pictures Company. Footage also includes 87 documentaries and commercial announcements. About 3000 reels are in Dutch and just over 2000 are in English, with a few hundred in French and Japanese. While newsreels focus on conflict during this time, but there is also content on children, sport, culture, social life, the environment, science and technology.

Reels come with searchable transcripts, tools to share and embed elsewhere, and tools create and export citations.

World War I and Revolution in Russia, 1914-1918: Records of the British Foreign Office (Archives Unbound)

Lists details of two out of almost 3,500 documents in the collection.

Screenshot from World I and Revolution in Russia, 1914-1918

This collection documents the Russian entrance into World War I and culminates in reporting on the Revolution in Russia in 1917 and 1918. The documents consist primarily of correspondence between the British Foreign Office, various British missions and consulates in the Russian Empire and the Tsarist government and later the Provisional Government.

Drawing on the National Archives, UK, collection within Foreign Office 371: Records of General Political Correspondence – Russia, this resources gives online access to almost 3,500 documents. This collection comprises the complete contents of the former Scholarly Resources microfilm collection entitled British Foreign Office: Russia Correspondence, 1914-1918. The vast majority of documents are in English, with c 450 in French and a very small number in other European languages.

Maps and Mapping for Historians

Sheldon Tapestry Map of Oxfordshire

Sheldon Tapestry Map of Oxfordshire

Wed. 12 Feb. 3-4pm, Bahari Room, Weston Library

Please assemble by 2.55pm at the latest at security point, Parks Road entrance, having stored any bags in £1 lockers first.

Digital mapping with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) is widely used both in academia and commercially. The first part of the talk will focus on how GIS can be useful for Historic research with examples of how students can incorporate their own data onto a map and create interactive web maps which can help tell a story in engaging and novel ways.

Presenter: Heidi Clough

The second part of the class will focus on the Bodleian map collection which houses 1.5 million maps. From the Universe to the ground beneath our feet and from Ambridge to Zanzibar we have maps of everywhere, and all these maps are available for study. We have in our collections the oldest single sheet map of the Country as well as one of the most important agriculture maps with the plan of the field systems around Laxton from 1635. These and other beautiful and important maps are on display in our Talking Maps exhibition.

Tour leader: Stuart Ackland

Please note that there is limited availability. Email Isabel.holowaty@bodleian.ox.ac.uk if you are interested.

 

On historical population maps – a blog post from the Bodleian Map Room

[partially re-blogged from the Bodleian Map Room blog post.]

Population maps

This population map of the Saxony region of Germany is a recent addition to the map collection. Volksdichte-Schichtenkarte des Königreiches Sachsen nach der Zählung vom 1. Dezember 1900 (Population density layers map of the Kingdom of Saxony after the census of December 1, 1900) shows density of population by colour with two insets for the areas around Dresden and Leipzig from an earlier 1846 census.

Volksdichte-Schichtenkarte des Königreiches Sachsen nach der Zählung vom 1. Dezember 1900, C22:25 (74)

Population maps such as this are, in the field of cartography, a relatively recent product, with the first known examples being published in the early 1800s. Early maps would give tables showing population figures. [read more…]

Reading rooms in Weston Library open 29 Sept

Today (29 Sept 2014) is an important milestone in the history of the Bodleian Library: The Weston Library (formerly New Bodleian Library) opened its three reading rooms to readers. The temporary Special Collections Reading Room in the RSL and Rhodes House Library have now transferred to the Weston Library.

At the moment the building is initially opening exclusively to readers. Some disruption, due to continuing collection moves and fitting-out of public areas, including exhibition galleries and tearoom, will continue until the official opening in March 2015.

Where is the Weston Library?

The Weston Library is on the site of the former New Bodleian Library, ie the corner of Broad Street and Park Road. The reader entrance is on Park Road.

Weston on map

What are the opening hours?
Mon-Fri 9am – 7pm; Sat 10am – 4pm; Sun closed

Which reading room should I use?

  • RARE BOOKS, ARCHIVES AND WESTERN MANUSCRIPTS is in the Rare Books and Manuscripts Reading Room (Level 1)
  • MAPS are in the Rare Books and Manuscripts Reading Room (Level 1)
  • MUSIC is in the Mackerras Reading Room (Level 1)
  • ORIENTAL MANUSCRIPTS AND RARE BOOKS are in the David Reading Room (Level 5)
  • COMMONWEALTH AND AFRICAN STUDIES COLLECTIONS are in the David Reading Room (Level 5)

You can order normal stack request items to any of the reading rooms.

Moves of collections into the Weston Library will take place until Summer 2016 as material currently kept at other locations is transferred. During this period items may still be ordered as normal, but will be subject to a 24 hour delivery time. Updates of collection moves.

Duke Humfrey’s Library is now closed until Monday 13 October 2014 when it will re-open as an invigilated reading room supporting higher-level studies in the Humanities. Open-shelf material, esp local history in R.Top and R1-R3, etc. will remain in Duke Humfrey’s. During the closure period, contact library staff if you need any material in R.Top or R1-3.

Related links:

Special Collections Contact details

Training sessions in Week 7 on maps and reference management

Next week Bodleain Libraries will be running a workshop on Mendeley for reference management:

mapsArcGIS Workshop for Historians (Wed 27 Feb 14.00-17.00) (wk 7)
This practical session provides an introduction to the use of GIS in historical research and analysis. It will focus on making historical maps of study areas, using symbology (colour coding etc.) to encode historical statistics and other information and extracting geographical data from scans of historic maps.
Convenor: Michael Athanson, Deputy Map Librarian, Bodleian Library
Venue: Training Room, Radcliffe Science Library > Book now

WISER: Mendeley for Reference Management (Wed 27 Feb 14.00-16.00) (wk 7)   Mendeley is a relatively new reference management tool and one which is receiving a great deal of extremely positive feedback. It does all the things that traditional reference management packages do (for example allowing you to build up a database of citations and insert them into word processed documents) but also has collaborative features for researchers.  mendeley

This session will be of interest to anyone looking for an alternative to Endnote and RefWorks as well as those who are new to reference management. > Book now
Presenter: Oliver Bridle

Keeping up with Bodleian Libraries training opportunities
Why not follow join our mailing list by sending an empty email to wiser-subscribe@maillist.ox.ac.uk, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/oxwiser or visit the BodWiser blog at http://bodwiser.wordpress.com.

Not a member of Oxford University?
If you are not a current member of Oxford University but would like to attend a workshop please contact usered@bodleian.ox.ac.uk. Please quote your Bodleian readers card barcode number.

Questions?
Please contact usered@bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Related Links WISER Workshops LibGuide | Maps LibGuide | Bodleian History Faculty Library Training webpage | Reference Management LibGuide | Contact Us

Training sessions for historians next week

During week 6 Bodleian Libraries will be running their popular workshop on Reference Management.   They are also currently looking for volunteers to participate in focus groups relating to e-resources and are offering £10 vouchers as an incentive (see more details below).

Section of Selden mapMapping for Historians (Wed 20 Feb 14.00-15.30) (wk 6)
This session will introduce you to the Bodleian’s 1.3 million maps and atlases — how to find material in the collection and use it in your research. It will also touch on the use of GIS to make your own maps to include in your written work, covered in more detail in Week 7.
Target audience: All interested graduate students
Convenor: Michael Athanson, Deputy Map Librarian, Bodleian Library
Venue: Duke Humphrey’s Reading Room, Old Bodleian Library > Book now

WISER: Tech Tools – Reference Management (Wed 20 Feb 14.00-17.00) (wk 6) – Keeping track of your references and formatting them correctly for your thesis or publication is a chore. Reference management software makes it much easier and is worth investigating but which option is best for you?  This session introduces the two market leaders, RefWorks and Endnote, plus two relatively new but popular tools, Mendeley and Zotero. We will give an overview of each package and explore the pros and cons of each.

Who is this session for? Postgraduates, researchers and academics

Presenters: Oliver Bridle, Ljilja Ristic and Angela Carritt > Book Now

Help the Libraries and earn a £10 Amazon/Blackwells voucher – Bodleian Libraries are looking for postgraduates, academics and researchers who would be willing to participate in a focus group and user testing. This is aimed at improving access to e-resources (e.g. e-journals and e-books). Volunteers will be rewarded with a £10 Amazon or Blackwells voucher.     No prior knowledge is required. Participants need to be available to come to the Radcliffe Science Library on Parks Road for about 1 hour on one of the following dates:

Tuesday 19th February (starting at 4pm)
Thursday 21st February (starting at 2.30pm)
Monday 25th February (starting at 10.00am)

During the session you will join 5-6 other library users to chat with a couple of librarians and try out some online resources.   At the end of the session you will receive a £10 Amazon or Blackwells voucher as a thank you for your help.    If you are interested in participating please contact usered@bodleian.ox.ac.uk.   Please let us know:

1. Your name
2. Subject of study
3. Academic status (e.g. undergraduate, postgraduate etc)
4. Your email address
5. Your telephone number
6. Please indicate which of the dates above would be convenient for you
If you have any queries please contact usered@bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Keeping up with Bodleian Libraries training opportunities: Why not follow join the WISER mailing list by sending an empty email to wiser-subscribe@maillist.ox.ac.uk, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/oxwiser or visit the BodWiser blog at http://bodwiser.wordpress.com.

Not a member of Oxford University? If you are not a current member of Oxford University but would like to attend a workshop please contact usered@bodleian.ox.ac.uk. Please quote your Bodleian readers card barcode number.

 Questions? – Please contact usered@bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Related Links WISER Workshops LibGuide | Maps LibGuide | Bodleian History Faculty Library Training webpage | Reference Management LibGuide | Contact Us

Training sessions for historians

WISER

During week 4 Bodleian Libraries will be running workshops on RefWorks, measuring impact using bibliometrics and finding books and journals:

RefWorks for Sciences and Social Sciences (Mon 4 Feb 9.15-12.15) (wk 4) – RefWorks is an online tool which allows you to manage your references/citations, insert them into your work, automatically generate bibliographies and easily switch between citation styles. This introduction is open to all but the section on importing references will focus on Science/Social Science examples.

Who is this session for? Postgraduates, researchers and academics and undergraduates wishing to use reference management software

Presenters: Shona McLean and Nia Roberts > Book Now

WISER: Bibliometrics I – Who’s citing you? (Tue 5 Feb 10.00-11.00) (wk 4) – An introduction to citation tracking as a tool for finding out who has cited your work. We will cover citation tracking using Web of Science, Scopus and Google Scholar and will include time for you to use each tool to find citations to your own work.

Who is this session for? Postgraduates, researchers and academics, staff involved in the REF or measuring impact.

Venue: Please note – this session will take place at the Radcliffe Science Library

Presenters: Juliet Ralph and Karine Barker > Book Now

WISER: Bibliometrics II – Tools of the trade (Tue 5 Feb 11.15-12.15) (wk 5) – An introduction to tools such as Journal Citation Reports, Web of Science, Scopus and Essential Science Indicators for calculating research impact in the Sciences and Social Sciences.  We cover: finding journal Impact Factors, calculating your h-index, finding  ‘hot’ papers and authors,  comparing  research output of institutions and countries, and the emerging area of altmetrics.

Who is this session for? Postgraduates, researchers and academics, staff involved in the REF or measuring impact.

Please note – this session will take place at the Radcliffe Science Library

Presenters: Juliet Ralph and Karine Barker > Book Now

WISER: Finding Stuff – Books etc on SOLO ( Fri 8 Feb. 14.00-15.00) (wk 4) – An introduction to SOLO for finding books, journal titles and other materials in Oxford libraries. The session will cover effective search techniques, placing hold requests for items in the stacks, reservations and using the SOLO eshelf and saved searches.

Who is this session for? All members of Oxford University and other Bodleian Libraries readers

Presenters: Joanne Edwards and Angela Carritt > Book Now

WISER: Finding Stuff – Journal Articles (Fri 8 Feb 15.00-16.15) (wk 4) – This session will focus on finding journal articles for your research using a wide range of databases as well as developing effective search strategies. There will be plenty of time for participants to try out their own searches using databases for their subject.

Who is this session for? Postgraduates, researchers and academics.

Presenters: Kerry Webb, Isabel McMann and Angela Carritt > Book Now

Keeping up with Bodleian Libraries training opportunities: Why not follow join our mailing list by sending an empty email to wiser-subscribe@maillist.ox.ac.uk, follow us on Twitter at http://twitter.com/oxwiser or visit the BodWiser blog at http://bodwiser.wordpress.com.

Not a member of Oxford University? – If you are not a current member of Oxford University but would like to attend a workshop please contact usered@bodleian.ox.ac.uk. Please quote your Bodleian readers card barcode number.

Questions? – Please contact usered@bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Also coming up this term

Section of Selden mapMapping for Historians (Wed 20 Feb 14.00-15.30) (wk 6)
This session will introduce you to the Bodleian’s 1.3 million maps and atlases — how to find material in the collection and use it in your research. It will also touch on the use of GIS to make your own maps to include in your written work, covered in more detail in Week 7.
Target audience: All interested graduate students
Convenor: Michael Athanson, Deputy Map Librarian, Bodleian Library
Venue: Duke Humphrey’s Reading Room, Old Bodleian Library > Book now

ArcGIS Workshop for Historians (Wed 27 Feb 14.00-17.00) (wk 7)
This practical session provides an introduction to the use of GIS in historical research and analysis. It will focus on making historical maps of study areas, using symbology (colour coding etc.) to encode historical statistics and other information and extracting geographical data from scans of historic maps.
Convenor: Michael Athanson, Deputy Map Librarian, Bodleian Library
Venue: Training Room, Radcliffe Science Library > Book now

Related Links WISER Workshops LibGuide | Maps LibGuide | Bodleian History Faculty Library Training webpage | Reference Management LibGuide | Contact Us

Information skills sessions for students and academics

This term there are a variety of workshops open to undergraduate students, postgraduate students, researchers and academics at Oxford University. Here are the WISER information skills courses coming up next week and some courses specifically for historians that are coming up over the  term.  Spaces on courses are limited so book early to avoid disappointment.

Courses specifically for Historians

RefWorksRefWorks for Historians (Fri 1 Feb 11.00-13.00) (wk 3)
RefWorks is an online tool which allows you to manage your references, insert them into your work, automatically generate bibliographies and easily switch between citation styles.
Who is this session for? Any students, researchers or academics interested in using the RefWorks
Presenter: Alice Nelson
Venue: IT Room, History Faculty, Old Boys’ School, George Street > Book now

Section of Selden mapMapping for Historians (Wed 20 Feb 14.00-15.30) (wk 6)
This session will introduce you to the Bodleian’s 1.3 million maps and atlases — how to find material in the collection and use it in your research. It will also touch on the use of GIS to make your own maps to include in your written work, covered in more detail in Week 7.
Target audience: All interested graduate students
Convenor: Michael Athanson, Deputy Map Librarian, Bodleian Library
Venue: Duke Humphrey’s Reading Room, Old Bodleian Library > Book now

ArcGIS Workshop for Historians (Wed 27 Feb 14.00-17.00) (wk 7)
This practical session provides an introduction to the use of GIS in historical research and analysis. It will focus on making historical maps of study areas, using symbology (colour coding etc.) to encode historical statistics and other information and extracting geographical data from scans of historic maps.
Convenor: Michael Athanson, Deputy Map Librarian, Bodleian Library
Venue: Training Room, Radcliffe Science Library > Book now

WISERWISER Workshops in Week 3

Further details about upcoming sessions and online booking are available at ox.libguides.com/workshops or by following the links below.

Some individual workshops are designed for particular groups (for example researchers or postgraduates). Check the individual class descriptions for more details.

WISER: Finding Stuff – Journal Articles (Mon 28 Jan 9.30-10.45) (wk 3)
This session will focus on finding journal articles for your research using a wide range of databases as well as developing effective search strategies. There will be plenty of time for participants to try out their own searches using databases for their subject.
Who is this session for? Postgraduates, researchers and academics.
Repeated: Fri 8 Feb 15.00-16.15 (week 4)
Presenters: Kerry Webb, Isabel McMann and Angela Carritt > Book Now

WISER: Finding Stuff – Conferences (Mon 28 Jan 10.45-11.45) (wk 3)
Conference papers can be difficult to find but they are valuable because they describe cutting-edge research. This session will enable you to find out about forthcoming conferences and also to locate the published papers of proceedings which have taken place.
Who is this session for? Postgraduates, researchers and academics.
Presenters: James Shaw and Sue Bird > Book Now

WISER: Finding Stuff – Books etc on SOLO (Wed 30 Jan  14.00-15.00) (wk 3)
An introduction to SOLO for finding books, journal titles and other materials in Oxford libraries. The session will cover effective search techniques, placing hold requests for items in the stacks, reservations and using the SOLO eshelf and saved searches.
Who is this session for? All members of Oxford University and other Bodleian Libraries readers
Repeated Fri 8 Feb. 14.00-15.00 (wk 4)
Presenters: Joanne Edwards and Angela Carritt > Book Now

WISER: Finding Stuff – Theses and Dissertations (Wed 30 Jan 15.15 – 16.30) (wk 3)
Guidance on finding theses, both those submitted to and held in Oxford, and those from other institutions in the UK and abroad. It will demonstrate how to exploit some of the main sources of information : SOLO, Index to Theses (UK and Ireland); and Dissertations and Theses (International), EThOS and ORA.
Who is this session for? Postgraduates, researchers and academics.
Presenter: Craig Finlay and Angela Carritt > Book Now

WISER: Your thesis, copyright and ORA (Fri 1 Feb 15.45 – 16.45) (wk 3)
Oxford DPhil students are required to deposit a copy of their thesis in ORA (Oxford University Research Archive). This session will focus on copyright and other issues that DPhil students need to take into account when preparing and writing their thesis so that they do not encounter problems when they deposit. DPhils are encouraged to attend this session early so that they can make sensible decisions regarding rights from the start of their research.
Who is this session for? Resarch Postgraduates who are required to write a thesis
Presenter: Catherine Goudie > Book Now

Related Links WISER Workshops LibGuide | Maps LibGuide | Bodleian History Faculty Library Training webpage | Reference Management LibGuide | Contact Us

Nicholas Crane lecture on Mercator the Map who Mapped the Planet

Museum of the History of Science, Broad Street
‘Between the Lines’ Lecture Series
Tuesday, 12 June 2012 at  7pm

‘Mercator: the Man who Mapped the Planet’

Nicholas Crane, geographer, explorer, writer and broadcaster, will talk about his book on Gerard Mercator.

An event not to be missed by fans of ‘Coast’ and his many other television programmes.

Admission free.  Doors open at 6.30.

Nicholas Crane’s book ‘Mercator: the man who mapped the planet’ is available to borrow from the HFL at shelfmark MN553 Merc/C

Related links: Nicholas Crane biography (Orion Books) | Museum of the History of Science | Wikipedia entry on Mercator 1569 World Map

Selden Map of China: Colloquium 15 September

In 1712, the antiquary and diarist Thomas Hearne was appointed Keeper of the Anatomy School, now the main reference area in the Lower Reading Room of the Bodleian Library.

In 1721, he wrote a list of its contents, among which was “A very odd mapp of China. Very large, & taken from Mr. Selden’s”.

This is what we now know as the Selden Map of China. It was left to us by the London lawyer John Selden in 1659, and has been famous as an interesting curiosity ever since. But only in January 2008, when the visiting scholar Robert Batchelor noticed the very faint lines indicating trade routes and compass bearings from the port of Quanzhou to all parts of East Asia and beyond, was the immense significance of the map realised.

The map was in a very bad state, having been backed with linen in the early 20th century. A number of generous donors have sponsored its conservation, and a Colloquium will be held on Thursday, 15 September in the Convocation House, Bodleian Library, to present the map to a wider audience and to enable a number of specialists in the field to pool their knowledge of it.

View the Colloquium programme here.

The event is free, but places are limited. Please register to attend by e-mail to: bookcentre@bodleian.ox.ac.uk  using the subject line “Selden Map”.