London Rare Books School

London Rare Books School
School of Advanced Study
University of London

Conscious of its rich heritage of book collecting and its ownership of numerous rare books
and manuscripts the Trust works closely and collaboratively with the London Rare Books
School. In 2023 the Trust initiated an annual bursary to encourage attendance at this well-
regarded annual school. Details on how to apply and information about the bursary can be
found on the Institute of English Studies (IES) website: http://ies.sas.ac.uk

The London Rare Books School (LRBS) 2024 Summer School has now launched! There are a number of exciting courses open for booking.

Meet Caiban - one of our recipients

With support from a bursary funded by Dr Williams's Library, Caiban Butcher spent a week in early June at the London Rare Books School, attending an intensive course on The Book in Early Modern England. Caiban is currently employed as a Library Assistant at the Bodleian Libraries' Special Collections department.

A week of seminars provided an overview of the history of the book in this crucial period, with a focus on the geography, culture, and economics of printing and bookselling in seventeenth-century London. The sessions covered a range of topics, including: literacy and the rise of popular print; the invention and consumption of printed news; the interaction of manuscript and print; the development of copyright and censorship; and the emergence of the book as an object to be coveted, collected, and catalogued, both by private individuals and early modern libraries. The week also introduced essential skills in bibliographical research, from discerning format to using STCs and primary documents.

The week included trips to Stationers' Hall (with a rare glimpse at the original Stationers' Register), Lambeth Palace Library (to examine selections from its collections), and the St Bride Foundation (with a printing session delivered by the Bodleian's own Richard Lawrence).

Caiban said: "I thoroughly enjoyed my time at LRBS 2024. The course was a fascinating deep dive into the history of the book in early modern England and provided an invaluable professional development opportunity, cementing my interest in a career in rare books. I am deeply grateful to Dr Williams's Library for their financial support, without which it would have been impossible to attend LRBS at all."

Short Courses

We also have a range of short courses running throughout 2024, including a three-day course ‘Recognising and Dating English Bookbindings 1450-1850’ being held at Shrewsbury School. Information on all short courses can be found here.