Bodleian Centre for the Study of the Book

The Bodleian CSB presents lectures, seminars, classes, workshops, prizes and opportunities for engagement with manuscripts, book history, and Bodleian Special Collections. Also find notices and links below to affiliated groups and programmes of book and manuscript studies. For schools, email: education@bodleian.ox.ac.uk

To register for email updates from the Centre for the Study of the Book, email bookcentre-newslist-subscribe[at]maillist.ox.ac.uk.


Hilary Term 2026

Seminar in Palaeography and Manuscript Studies

Starting Monday 26 January. Seminars will take place in the Horton Room, Weston Library, 2:15-3:45pm on Monday afternoons in 2nd, 4th, 6th, and 8th week. All are welcome; a University of Bodleian reader card is usually required to access the seminar room. Manuscripts will be shown.

26th January: ‘Manuscripts in the hands of Franciscus Junius (1591-1677),’ Kees Dekker (Groningen)

9th February: ‘The Bodleian’s Gaignières Collection: A paper museum for Gothic tombs’, Emily Guerry (Oxford)

23rd February: ‘The Bruce Codex (MS. Bruce 96): Answering the Riddles of Coptic Gnostic Manuscript’, Eric Crégheur (Université Laval)

9th March: ‘Pen-Flourishing and the Boundaries of Meaning’, Seamus Dwyer (Cambridge)


All Souls Seminars in Medieval and Renaissance Music

Starting Thursday 29 January, 5-7 pm GMT; Join on Zoom; registration required!

All Souls Seminars in Medieval and Renaissance Music | Faculty of Music

This long-running series of seminars, convened by Dr Margaret Bent, considers all aspects of medieval and renaissance music. 


Spring School: Exploring the Medieval Sky

An Introduction to the “Science of the Stars” Through Manuscripts and Instruments
Weston Library, 16–20 March 2026
See poster for details.
The spring school is open to all Oxford undergraduate and postgraduate students. Registration is free.
Registration deadline: 2 February 2026
To register please email: laure.miolo@history.ox.ac.uk

Bodleian Special Collections Coffee mornings, Fridays at 10:30am in the Weston Library for Special Collections

All Bodleian Readers are welcome, every Friday in termtime, 10:30-11:30 at the Special Collections coffee morning in the Visiting Scholars’ Centre (Level 2, Weston Library).

A Bodleian Reader card or University card is required for access. Each week a guest speaker shows new acquisitions, discoveries or re-discoveries from the Special Collections. To subscribe to email updates for Friday coffee mornings, send an email message to coffee-mornings-weston-subscribe[at]maillist.ox.ac.uk 


Oxford Bibliographical Society meetings

All welcome. See the OBS website for list of events.


Visit the Bodleian Bibliographical Press: printing history through practice

Trinity Term 2026

The Lyell Lectures

Mercedes García-Arenal: Muslim Books in Christian Hands: From Iberian Moriscos to Early Modern Europe

Starting Tuesday, 28 April 2026. Registration opens 30 January 2026, please bookmark this link: The Lyell Lectures 2026 | Visit the Bodleian Libraries


Report of the Bodleian Centre for the Study of the Book 2024-25


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