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The Bodleian Library & Radcliffe Camera: Reading Rooms

The Old Bodleian Library

For many new library users the first point of call will be the Bodleian Main Enquiry Desk (MED), located at the north end of the Lower Reading Room. Here you will find staff from the Enquiry team who can help with orientation and a range of general enquiries. The MED staff oversee the General Reference section, also located at the north end of the Lower Reading Room. This includes some print catalogues for material that cannot be found electronically.

Pictures of Main Enquiry Desk and Upper Reading Room

The Upper Reading Room houses the Library's open-shelf collections for History and English. These collections include sets of sources for History, and sets of works and critical volumes for many authors who are important in the study of English. There is also a History of Science section. Readers can order up to 10 closed-stack requests to the "Upper RR (Staffed Desk)" or "Upper RR (Self Collect)". For more information about Self Collect please see the Self Collect service web-page. Some material must be delivered to the Staffed Desk, for example microfilms, older material and items on interlibrary loan from other libraries.

Useful subject guides are available for General and British History, and English. More detailed information about the collections and services in the Upper Reading Room, including a map of the reading room, can be found on the Upper Reading Room webpages

The Lower Reading Room houses, along with the General Reference section, the Bodleian’s collections of Classics and Ancient History, Theology (including Patristics) and Philosophy. These collections consist of core works and critical volumes for authors in these subjects. Readers can order up to 10 closed-stack requests to the "Lower RR Self Collect" service point located at the north end, in the Reference Room near the Main Enquiry Desk. For more information about Self Collect please see the Self Collect service web-page.

Useful subject guides are available for Classics, Theology and Philosophy. More detailed information about the collections and services in the Lower Reading Room, including a map of the reading room, can be found on the Lower Reading Room webpages

Pictures of Lower Reading Room and Duke Humfrey's Library

Duke Humfrey’s Library is now a general reader space overseen by the Bodleian Library Reader Services Department, having previously been part of Special Collections operations. It offers more quiet study space in the Selden End to augment the seating currently available elsewhere in the Old Bodleian Library. Seating is also available in the bays in the central section of the Library.

Rare Books, Oxford University theses, Maps and Music, which used to be available for request to Duke Humfrey's, can now be requested to reading rooms in the new Weston Library on Broad Street. Information for readers about this library is available here.

Duke Humfrey's Library has the following opening hours:

Monday - Friday: 09.00-19.00
Saturday: 10.00-16.00

These hours will be the same in term and vacation, though may be affected by closed periods and Bank Holidays. Duke Humfrey's Library does not open on Sundays.

Special Collections material remains in its historic locations in Arts End and in the bays of Duke Humfrey's Library itself. As before, this material can be requested through SOLO and will now be consulted in the Weston Library. It cannot be consulted in Duke Humfrey's. If you have any enquiries about accessing this material, please direct them to Special Collections Staff in the Weston Library specialcollections.bookings ; 01865 277150) or ask at the Old Bodleian Main Enquiry Desk.

The Radcliffe Camera

The Upper Camera Reading Room holds the Bodleian Library's teaching collection for History and English. Useful subject guides are available for General and British History and English. It also holds the History Faculty Library's Undergraduate Set Text reference collection. There is no delivery point for material from the closed stack in this reading room. More detailed information about the collections and services in the Upper Camera Reading Room, including a map of the reading room, can be found on the Upper Camera webpage

Pictures of Lower Camera and Upper Camera reading rooms

The Lower Camera Reading Room holds the beginning of the History Faculty Library's lending collection, which continues in the Upper Gladstone Link. Readers can order up to 10 closed-stack requests to the "Bod Radcliffe Camera (Lower)" Self Collect service point in this reading room. For more information about Self Collect please see the Self Collect service web-page. More detailed information about the collections and services in the Lower Camera Reading Room, including a map of the reading room, can be found on the Lower Camera webpage.

For more information about the History Faculty Library, please see the section below or visit their webpage

The History Faculty Library

The History Faculty Library is located within the Old Bodleian Library and Radcliffe Camera complex. Staff can be found at the HFL Staff Office in the Upper Camera Reading Room and at service points in the Lower Camera. The Library's collections are shelved in the Upper and Lower Camera reading rooms and in the Gladstone Link.

The Undergraduate Set Text Collection is located in the Upper Camera. This collection is for undergraduate historians taking Options, Special and Further Subject courses.

Pictures of Upper Camera ceiling and Gallery

The main lending collection, with Library of Congress (LCC) classification, begins in the Lower Camera Reading Room and continues in the Upper Gladstone Link.  There are regular sized and oversize sections of the sequence.  These books can be borrowed by current members of Oxford University, once they have registered as Bod HFL members.

The Local History Collection is in the Lower Gladstone Link.  This is a small lending collection of English and Welsh local history series. These books can be borrowed by current members of Oxford University, once they have registered as Bod HFL members.

For more information about the History Faculty Library, please visit their webpage

 

The Weston Library

The Weston Library (formerly the New Bodleian Library), is open to readers for the consultation of Special Collections. Entry to the reading rooms is from the Parks Road entrance. For more information about Special Collections operations in the Weston, please consult the Special Collections page of this guide.

For further details, please see: http://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/weston
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