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{{short description|Main research and legal deposit library of the University of Cambridge}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2019}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2015}}
{{Infobox library
| library_name       = Cambridge University Library
| name_en            =
| library_logo       =
| image              = Main UL building.jpg
| caption            = Cambridge University Library
| country            = [[England]]
| type               = [[Academic library]]
| scope              =
| established        = Before 1416
| ref_legal_mandate  =
| location           = [[West Road, Cambridge]]
| coordinates        = {{coord|52|12|18.6|N|0|6|29|E|scale:1000|display=inline,title}}
| branch_of          =
| num_branches       =
| items_collected    = {{Flatlist|
* [[book]]s
* [[Academic journal|journals]]
* [[newspaper]]s
* [[magazine]]s
* [[Sound recording|sound and music recordings]]
* [[map]]s, [[Printmaking|prints]]
* [[drawing]]s
* [[manuscript]]s
}}
| collection_size    = 9,000,000 items (approx.) 
| criteria           =
| legal_deposit      = Yes
| req_to_access      =
| annual_circulation =
| pop_served         = University of Cambridge, and others
| members            = University of Cambridge (and some other groups on application)
| budget             =
| director           = [[Jessica Gardner]]
| num_employees      =
| website            = {{URL|www.lib.cam.ac.uk}}
}}

'''Cambridge University Library'''  is the main research library of the [[University of Cambridge]]. It is the largest of over 100 libraries [[Libraries of the University of Cambridge|within the university]].<ref>{{Cite web|title = Facilities and resources {{!}} Undergraduate Study|url = http://www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk/courses/facilities-and-resources|website = www.undergraduate.study.cam.ac.uk|access-date = 9 July 2015}}</ref> The library is a major scholarly resource for members of the University of Cambridge and external researchers. It is often referred to within the university as the UL.<ref>For example, the Twitter account is [https://twitter.com/theul the UL]</ref> Thirty-three [[Libraries of the University of Cambridge#Affiliated Libraries|faculty and departmental libraries]] are associated with the University Library for the purpose of central governance and administration, forming "Cambridge University Libraries".

Cambridge University Library is one of six [[legal deposit]] libraries under UK law.<ref name="Introduction to legal deposit">{{cite web|title=Introduction to legal deposit|url=http://www.bl.uk/aboutus/legaldeposit/introduction/|publisher=British Library|access-date=17 March 2014}}</ref> It holds about 9 million items (including maps and sheet music) and, through legal deposit, purchase and donation it receives around 100,000 items every year. The University Library is unique among the legal deposit libraries in keeping a large proportion of its material on open access and in allowing some categories of reader to borrow from its collections.

Its original location was the [[Old Schools]] near the [[Senate House (University of Cambridge)|Senate House]] until it outgrew the space there. A new library building was constructed in the 1930s. The library took over the site of a former military hospital on the western side of [[Cambridge]] city centre, now between [[Robinson College, Cambridge|Robinson College]] and the Memorial Court of [[Clare College, Cambridge|Clare College]]. The current building, designed by [[Giles Gilbert Scott]], opened in 1934. The librarian, [[Jessica Gardner]], is the second woman to hold this office.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/news/cambridge-welcomes-dr-jessica-gardner-new-university-librarian|title=Cambridge welcomes Dr Jessica Gardner as new University Librarian|first=Francesca|last=Harper|date=9 December 2016|website=www.lib.cam.ac.uk}}</ref>

== History ==
===The first library===
[[File:Development of UL in 1930s.jpg|alt= The Cambridge University Library|left|thumb|Construction of the main UL building in the 1930s]]
By the middle of the 14th century, the [[University of Cambridge]] owned a collection of books. These would have been kept in chests along with other valuables, rather than in a library building as would be recognised today.<ref>{{Cite web|title = History of Cambridge University Library {{!}} Cambridge University Library|url = http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/about-library/history-cambridge-university-library|website = www.lib.cam.ac.uk| date=5 March 2015 |access-date = 10 September 2015}}</ref>

A common university library can be traced to the beginning of the 15th century, with the first direct reference to a 'library'. In March 1416, the will of William Loring was proved, which bequeathed three volumes to the library thus: "''Item volo quod omnes libri mei juris civilis remaneant in communi libraria scolarium universitatis Cantebrigg' in perpetuum''." In the second decade of the 15th century, the library found a home on the newly built [[Old Schools]] site.

The earliest catalogue is dated {{Circa|1424}}, at which time there were 122 volumes in the library.<ref>Higgins, Hannah. ''The Grid Book''. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press, 2009. p.180. {{ISBN|978-0-262-51240-4}}</ref> The second earliest surviving catalogue was drawn up in 1473, and records 330 volumes. During the [[English Reformation]], while there does not seem to be evidence of widespread destruction of books, as there was at Oxford, some books were certainly destroyed, and there were very few donations. [[King's College, Cambridge|King's College]] received only one bequest between 1528 and 1568.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Oates|first=J. C. T.|date=1962|title=The Cambridge University Library: 1400-1600|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4305285|journal=The Library Quarterly: Information, Community, Policy|volume=32|issue=4|pages=270–286|doi=10.1086/619053 |jstor=4305285 |s2cid=144221637 |issn=0024-2519|url-access=subscription}}</ref> From the 16th century, the library received generous donations or bequests of books and growth was considerably increased once the privilege of legal deposit had been granted. In 1648 the House of Commons ordered funds for the library.<ref>"House of Commons Journal Volume 5: 27 March 1648." ''Journal of the House of Commons: Volume 5, 1646-1648.'' London: His Majesty's Stationery Office, 1802. 515-516. [http://www.british-history.ac.uk/commons-jrnl/vol5/pp515-516 British History Online website] Retrieved 12 May 2023.</ref>

The library's space was greatly extended with the building of the Cockerell Building on [[Senate House Passage]] in 1837&ndash;42.

===The new library===
Following an initiative by [[A. F. Scholfield]] (librarian from 1923 to 1949), it was decided to build a larger facility. The site selected comprised the {{convert|8|acre|ha}} joint cricket field of King's and Clare Colleges. During the [[World War I|First World War]], a large part of the site had been requisitioned by the [[War Office]] to create the 1st Eastern General Hospital, a facility for the [[Royal Army Medical Corps]] to treat military casualties.<ref>{{Cite web|title = From the Front to the Backs: Story of the First Eastern Hospital|url = http://www.cam.ac.uk/research/news/from-the-front-to-the-backs-story-of-the-first-eastern-hospital|website = University of Cambridge|date = 1 July 2014|access-date = 5 November 2015}}</ref> The hospital had 1,700 beds at its height and treated some 70,000 casualties between 1914 and 1919.<ref>{{cite web |title=First Eastern General Hospital |url=http://www.firsteasterngeneralhospital.co.uk/ |access-date=25 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190721111320/http://www.firsteasterngeneralhospital.co.uk/ |archive-date=21 July 2019 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The new University Library building was designed by [[Giles Gilbert Scott]], who also designed the neighbouring Clare Memorial Court (part of [[Clare College, Cambridge|Clare College]]). It was constructed between 1931 and 1934. It is a [[Grade II listed building]].<ref>{{National Heritage List for England|num=1126281|desc=University Library|grade=II}}</ref> Inside are a number of 17th and 18th century [[bookcase]]s including those designed for the old University Library by [[James Essex]] in 1731&ndash;34.<ref name=hg>{{NHLE |num= 1126281|desc= University Library|access-date= 29 March 2017|mode=cs2}}</ref> The funds for the new library were raised by colleges and from private donors. The American philanthropist [[John D. Rockefeller]] provided the largest part of the funds for the library's construction. Sensing that it needed a grander entrance, Rockefeller persuaded the architect to add the distinctive front-facing tower.<ref name="Indie">{{cite news|last1=Gardner|first1=Jessica|title=The mysterious Cambridge library tower, supposedly full of banned books, is opening to the public|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/long_reads/cambridge-university-library-tower-banned-books-opening-copyright-a8325196.html|access-date=7 May 2018|work=The Independent|date=1 May 2018}}</ref> The tower can be seen for several miles around Cambridge.<ref name="Indie"/>  The bronze main entrance and the aluminium bronze screens to the reading room were made by [[H. H. Martyn & Co.]]

The building bears a resemblance to Scott's industrial architecture, including [[Bankside Power Station]] (now [[Tate Modern]]). The library tower stands {{convert|157|ft|m}} tall, {{convert|6|ft|m}} shorter than the top of [[St John's College, Cambridge|St John's College Chapel]] and {{convert|10|ft|m}} taller than the peak of [[King's College Chapel, Cambridge|King's College Chapel]]. Supposedly, in opening the building, [[Neville Chamberlain]] referred to it as "this magnificent erection".  Contrary to popular belief, pornographic material is not stored in the tower.<ref name="apperly">{{cite web |website=[[Varsity (Cambridge)|Varsity]] |url=http://www.varsity.co.uk/news/873/1/ |first=Eliza |last=Apperly |title=Nothing racy in 'tower of porn' |access-date=25 March 2017 }}</ref>

The library has been extended several times through ground annexes and underground extensions which allowed for new legal deposit documents to be stored. The main building houses the Japanese and Chinese collections in the Aoi Pavilion, an extension donated by [[Tadao Aoi]] and opened in 1998.

The University Library has also built a large storage facility in [[Ely, Cambridgeshire|Ely]] which has more than 100 kilometres of shelving for future legal deposit books and periodicals. Work on a £17.1 million off-site facility to house the growing collection finished in 2018 and provides Cambridge University with one of the largest library storage buildings in the world.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Savva|first1=Anna|title=Cambridge University Library has run out of space for all its books and manuscripts|url=http://www.cambridge-news.co.uk/news/local-news/cambridge-university-library-run-out-12840142|access-date=4 April 2017|date=3 April 2017}}</ref>

== Legal deposit library ==
Cambridge University Library is one of the six [[legal deposit]] libraries under UK law, the others being the [[British Library]], the [[National Library of Scotland]], the [[National Library of Wales]], the [[Bodleian Libraries]], Oxford, and the [[Trinity College Library|Library of Trinity College]], Dublin.<ref name="Introduction to legal deposit"/> Although the [[Irish Free State]] left the UK in 1922, Trinity College Dublin remains a UK deposit library and the UK libraries reciprocally retain deposit rights for Irish publications.<ref name="dail1963021400009">{{cite web|url=http://oireachtasdebates.oireachtas.ie/debates%20authoring/debateswebpack.nsf/takes/dail1963021400009#N482|title=Committee on Finance. – Copyright Bill, 1962—Committee Stage|date=14 February 1963|work=Dáil Éireann Debate|pages=Vol.199 No.11 p.9 cc.1475–6|access-date=19 May 2017}}</ref><ref name="tcd">{{cite web|url=https://www.tcd.ie/library/collection-man/legal-deposit.php|title=Legal Deposit|work=The Library of Trinity College Dublin|date=10 June 2016|publisher=Trinity College Dublin|access-date=19 May 2017}}</ref> As a legal deposit library, the University Library is entitled to claim without charge a copy of all books, journals, printed maps and music published in the [[United Kingdom]] and [[Ireland]]. This has contributed to the library's large holdings of over seven million books and 1.5 million periodicals. Between 800 and 1200 books a week are received through legal deposit.

From 6 April 2013, legal deposit also covers material published digitally and online, so that the Legal Deposit libraries can provide a national archive of the UK's non-print published material, such as websites, blogs and ejournals. Significant digitisation efforts continue as more manuscripts and early-modern books are acquired and scanned by the University of Cambridge.
[[File:cmglee Cambridge Wren Library University Library.jpg|thumb|The University Library (background) and Trinity College's [[Wren Library]] (foreground), as viewed from St John's College chapel tower]]

== Access ==
The library is open to all members of the University of Cambridge. As is traditional among British university libraries, postgraduates and academics from other UK universities are allowed reference-only access to the library's collection, and members of the public may apply for access to use the Library for reference if their research requires access to materials held there. Students and academics from other libraries and institutions must submit a request for access before using the facilities in Cambridge.

The library is unique among the UK's legal deposit libraries in keeping a large proportion of its books on open access and in allowing some categories of reader (for example Cambridge academics, postgraduates and undergraduates) to borrow from its collection. It has a Tea Room in which meals, snacks and beverages are available. The library regularly puts on [http://exhibitions.lib.cam.ac.uk/ exhibitions], free to the public, and featuring items from its collections.

== Janus ==
In 2002, the library began a special project termed Janus (after the [[Janus|Roman god]]) to provide a single point of networked access to catalogues of archives and manuscript collections held throughout Cambridge. This is a major development for the Cambridge Universities Libraries, especially because Cambridge is home to more than 100 libraries and research institutes, each with their own mandate and organisational structure. A widening number of participating repositories, both University and non-University, are working together to provide comprehensive coverage of archives in the city and surrounding area. While it was running, Janus could be accessed by students and members of university both online and in-person.<ref>[http://janus.lib.cam.ac.uk/db/node.xsp?id=Webpages/Public/about About Janus], Cambridge University Library</ref>

At the beginning of March 2021, Janus was decommissioned<ref>{{Cite web |title=Visiting the Archive Centre |url=https://www.kings.cam.ac.uk/archive-centre/visiting-the-archive-centre |access-date=2024-04-20 |website=King's College Cambridge |language=en}}</ref> and replaced by [https://archivesearch.lib.cam.ac.uk/ ArchiveSearch], an index of archives and finding aids for most of the archives in the city of Cambridge, including
* Cambridge University Libraries
* University faculties and museums
* The majority of the colleges of the University

== Historical Printing Room ==
[[File:Historical Printing Room at the Cambridge University Library.png|thumb|A type cabinet showing an upper case and a lower case of Ehrhardt type in the HPR]] In addition to archives for some major figures in the history of typography and printing (Stanley Morison, Frances Meynell, etc), the Library hosts the Historical Printing Room.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Paul |first=Suzanne |date=2018-07-15 |title=Historical Printing Room |url=https://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/collections/departments/rare-books/rare-books-collections/historical-printing-room |access-date=2024-04-20 |website=www.lib.cam.ac.uk |language=en}}</ref>

In the early 1970s, [[Philip Gaskell]] as the Librarian of Trinity College set up a bibliographical teaching press similar to those at the [[Bodleian Library|Bodleian]], [[University College London]], and other institutions. The idea was to permit students to experience the historical process of letterpress printing themselves so they could better understand early book structure and the activities necessary to produce books. Classes began in 1974 and have continued to the present day.

Equipment in the HPR include Philip Gaskell's own [[Albion press|Albion iron hand press]], a small etching press, paper moulds made for [[William Morris]], and other equipment donated or loaned by [[Cambridge University Press]]. Research at the HPR is supported by significant archives at the CUL, including the Broxbourne collection of type specimens,<ref>{{Cite web |last=Paul |first=Suzanne |date=2018-07-13 |title=Broxbourne Collection |url=https://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/collections/departments/rare-books/collections/broxbourne-collection |access-date=2024-04-20 |website=www.lib.cam.ac.uk |language=en}}</ref> the Chapbooks collection, and extensive archives of eminent printers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Paul |first=Suzanne |date=2017-02-27 |title=Printers' papers |url=https://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/collections/departments/manuscripts-university-archives/significant-archival-collections/printers |access-date=2024-04-20 |website=www.lib.cam.ac.uk |language=en}}</ref>

== Digitisation project ==
[[File:Newton&#039;s Annotated copy of his Principia Mathematica.jpg|thumb|Newton's personal copy of the first edition of ''Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica'', annotated by him for the second edition. Displayed at the library]]

In June 2010, Cambridge University announced that a £1.5 million donation would allow them to start [[digitizing|digitising]] some of the collections in the University Library and eventually provide access to them free of charge over the [[Internet]] via the [[Cambridge Digital Library]] website. Initially the project will focus on two collections called "The Foundations of Faith" and "The Foundations of Science", which includes writings by Isaac Newton and his contemporaries, as well as documents from the Library's archives of [[Christianity|Christian]], [[Islam]]ic and [[Judaism|Jewish]] texts.

==Friends of the Cambridge University Library==
The Friends of the Cambridge University Library was established by a group of individuals, organisations and private donors who are committed to supporting the growth and development of the library. Members of the Friends regularly raise funds for future construction projects and archival restoration efforts, as well as the acquisition and purchase of rare books or manuscripts. Membership in the group is open to all alumni and members of the public interested in the preservation of knowledge and literature. Special events and tours are organised to recognise the contribution of the membership. The Friends of the Cambridge University Library has raised more than £150,000 through regular and special donations over the past five years.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/friends|title=Friends of the Library|first=Laura|last=Waldoch|date=16 December 2014|website=www.lib.cam.ac.uk}}</ref>

== Staff ==
[[File:12th-century painters - Dover Bible - WGA15730.jpg|thumb|12th-century manuscript of the Dover Bible, in the [[Parker Library, Corpus Christi College]], Cambridge.]]
The official office of [[List of University Librarians at the University of Cambridge|Librarian of the university]] was not established until 1577, when William James was appointed Librarian. The first set of regulations "for the Office of keeping the Library" were then formed in 1582.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |title=Cambridge University Library: a history |last=Oates |first=J. C. T. |author-link=J. C. T. Oates |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1986 |isbn=0-521-30656-6 |location=Cambridge |page=[https://archive.org/details/cambridgeunivers0000oate/page/491 491] |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/cambridgeunivers0000oate/page/491 }}</ref> Little is known of the administration before the late sixteenth century. Before 1577, the University Chaplain had overall responsibility of the Library among other duties. Sixteen potential Chaplain-Librarians have been identified.<ref name=":0" />

In 1721 the post of Principal Librarian (Protobibliothecarius) was created for [[Conyers Middleton]] "as a mark of sympathy with him in his opposition to Richard Bentley".<ref>{{Cite web|url = http://janus.lib.cam.ac.uk/db/node.xsp?id=Glossary%2Fprotobibliothecarius|title = Protobibliothecarius|access-date = 9 September 2015|website = Janus}}</ref> In 1828 this post was merged with that of Librarian (Bibliothecarius).

Various scholars have held the position. [[Abraham Wheelocke]] was librarian of the "Public Library" at Cambridge University, and was also Reader in [[Old English language|Anglo-Saxon]] in the 17th century. [[Augustus Theodore Bartholomew]] was a librarian at Cambridge University for over 25 years. The classicist [[A. F. Scholfield]] was Librarian from 1923 to 1949. More recent University Librarians have included [[Eric Bertrand Ceadel]], [[F. W. Ratcliffe]] (1980–94), [[Peter Fox (librarian)|Peter Fox]] (1994–2009) and [[Anne Jarvis]] (2009–16). Other notable members of staff include the bibliographer [[Henry Bradshaw (scholar)|Henry Bradshaw]] and the [[Uranian poetry|Uranian poet]] [[Charles Edward Sayle]], author of a history of the library.

The current librarian is [[Jessica Gardner]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/news/cambridge-welcomes-dr-jessica-gardner-new-university-librarian|title=Cambridge welcomes Dr Jessica Gardner as new University Librarian|date=9 December 2016 }}</ref> She joined the library in April 2017, becoming the 36th University Librarian.

== Exhibitions ==
The main University Library hosts [https://exhibitions.lib.cam.ac.uk/ exhibitions] in its purpose-built Milstein Exhibition Centre. These change approximately every six to eight months and are open to all. Recent exhibitions have highlighted Cambridge's significant collection of documents from the [[Cairo Genizah]], the landscape and geology of the English [[Fenlands]], and the architectural history of the Cambridge University. The exhibitions are sponsored by the Cambridge University Library and are organised by the team of librarians and leading academics in the field. Entry to the exhibitions is always free and open to the general public.

== Special collections ==
[[File:Interior reading room.jpg|alt=Interior of the main reading room|thumb|Interior of the main reading room]]
[[File:Bronze book bollards in front of Cambridge University Library.jpg|thumb|upright|Bronze book [[Bollard (traffic)|bollard]] by Harry Gray in front of Library]]
As part of its collection<ref name="lib">{{cite web|url=http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/collections.htm|title=Library collections – Cambridge University Library|website=www.lib.cam.ac.uk|access-date=27 November 2005|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080915000658/http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/collections.htm|archive-date=15 September 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> of more than 8,000,000 volumes, the library contains a wealth of printed and manuscript material from earlier times. This includes:

*A copy of the [[Gutenberg Bible]] from 1455, the earliest European example of a book produced using movable type.
*Library of [[John Dalberg-Acton, 1st Baron Acton|Lord Acton]], Catholic historian and Regius Professor of Modern History in 1885–1902. The extensive library (around 60&nbsp;000 volumes) collected by Lord Acton for research was bequeathed to the University Library on his death. The collection contains books from the 15th to 19th centuries, with emphasis on European history and church history. Many of the books contain annotations in Lord Acton's own hand.
*An archive of [[Charles Darwin]]'s correspondence and books from his working library (including copies of his own works). In November 2020, the library announced that two of Darwin's notebooks had been lost, probably stolen, around December 2000.<ref>{{Cite news|date=2020-11-24|title=Charles Darwin: Notebooks worth millions lost for 20 years|language=en-GB|work=BBC News|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-55044129|access-date=2021-01-15}}</ref> They were returned anonymously in 2022.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Jones |first1=Rebecca |title='Stolen' Charles Darwin notebooks left on library floor in pink gift bag |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-60980288 |access-date=5 April 2022 |work=BBC News |date=5 April 2022}}</ref>
*The Hanson collection, containing important books on navigation and shipbuilding, as well as maritime atlases, some dating from the 16th century.
*The Bradshaw collection, containing more than 14&nbsp;000 books relating to [[Ireland]], printed in Ireland, or written by Irish authors. This is one of the most important collections of its kind in the world. The collection was formed by [[Henry Bradshaw (scholar)|Henry Bradshaw]], d. 1886. At present, the emphasis is on books printed in Ireland before 1850.<ref>Sayle, Charles (1916) ''A Catalogue of the Bradshaw Collection of Irish Books in the University Library, Cambridge''. 3 vols. Cambridge: Printed for the University Library</ref>
*The library of the typographer [[Stanley Morison]], who had close links with [[Cambridge University Press]].
*"The Royal Library", an important collection of more than 30&nbsp;000 books assembled by [[John Moore (Bishop of Ely)|John Moore]] (1646–1714), [[Bishop of Ely]]. The collection was bequeathed to the University Library by [[George I of Great Britain|George&nbsp;I]] in 1715, hence the name.
*The library of the [[Royal Commonwealth Society]], containing books, periodicals, pamphlets, photographs and manuscripts relating to the [[British Empire]] and the [[Commonwealth of Nations|Commonwealth]].
*[http://www.asiamap.ac.uk/collections/collection.php?ID=141 South Asian], [http://www.asiamap.ac.uk/collections/collection.php?ID=142 Southeast Asian] and [http://www.asiamap.ac.uk/collections/collection.php?ID=143 Tibetan] collections. 
*The [[British and Foreign Bible Society|Bible Society]] library and the library of the [[Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge]] (SPCK).
*The [[Cairo Genizah|Taylor-Schechter Genizah Collection]], a store of 140&nbsp;000 manuscripts and manuscript fragments, mainly in Hebrew and Arabic, from the Ben Ezra synagogue in [[Cairo]].
*[[Codex Bezae]] Cantabrigiensis, an important codex of the New Testament dating from the fifth century, written both in Greek and Latin. The Greek text is unique, with many interpolations found nowhere else. It was given to the University of Cambridge by the Protestant scholar [[Theodore Beza]], friend and successor of [[John Calvin|Calvin]]; hence the name.
*[[Codex Zacynthius]],  a Greek New Testament codex dated paleographically to the 6th century CE.
*The [[Cambridge Songs]] (''Carmina Cantabrigiensia''), a collection of [[Goliard]]ic medieval Latin poems, preserved on ten leaves of the Codex Cantabrigiensis.
*[[Edward Granville Browne|E.G. Browne]]'s collection of around 480 codices in Arabic, Persian and Turkish.
*Several composer archives: [[William Alwyn]], [[Arthur Bliss]], [[Roberto Gerhard]], [[Peter Tranchell]].
*Papers of [[Isaac Newton]], [[William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin|Lord Kelvin]], [[Ernest Rutherford]], [[George Gabriel Stokes]], [[Joseph Needham]], [[George Edward Moore|G. E. Moore]] and [[Siegfried Sassoon]], among others.
*Archives of the [[Royal Observatory, Greenwich]].
*Material and archives of the University of Cambridge, from probates and graces to records of various student societies.
*Around 1.5 million maps.

== Cultural references ==
[[File:Cambibl.jpg|thumb|upright|Cambridge University Library]]
*The Cambridge University Library has featured in several films and television programmes, including the [[The Theory of Everything (2014 film)|''Theory of Everything'']], ''[[The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader]]'', ''[[Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows]]'', ''[[Cloud Atlas (film)|Cloud Atlas]]'', ''[[A Discovery of Witches (TV series)|A Discovery of Witches]]'', and ''[[The Man Who Knew Infinity (film)|The Man Who Knew Infinity]]''.
*The tower of the Library has featured in a number of news programmes and documentaries for reportedly containing [[Victorian era|Victorian]] pornography, though this has been disproved.<ref name="Indie"/><ref name="apperly"/>
*In the unfinished novel ''[[The Dark Tower (Lewis novel)|The Dark Tower]]'', attributed to [[C. S. Lewis]], the eponymous tower is a replica of this building.

== See also ==
* [[Libraries of the University of Cambridge]]
* [[List of University Librarians at the University of Cambridge]]
* Some manuscripts:
** [[Book of Deer]]
** [[Cambridge University Library, Ff. i.27]]
** [[Papyrus Oxyrhynchus 76]]
*[[Listed buildings in Cambridge (west)]]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Bibliography ==
*Alston, R. C. (winter 1989) "Cambridge University Library", in: ''Research Libraries in OCLC''; no. 89, pp.&nbsp;2–8
* [[Henry Bradshaw (scholar)|Bradshaw, Henry]] (1889) ''Collected Papers''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press [https://archive.org/details/collectedpaperso00bradiala Textus]
*Fox, Peter (ed.) (1998) ''Cambridge University Library: the Great Collections''. Cambridge University Press {{ISBN|0-521-62636-6}} (Paperback {{ISBN|0-521-62647-1}}).
*Oates, J. C. T., & [[David McKitterick|McKitterick, D.]] (1986) ''Cambridge University Library: a History'' 2 vols.
** Oates, J. C. T. ''Cambridge University Library: a History; [Vol. 1]: From the beginnings to the Copyright Act of Queen Anne''. Cambridge: University Press {{ISBN|0-521-30656-6}}
** McKitterick, David ''Cambridge University Library: a History; [Vol. 2]: the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries''. Cambridge: University Press {{ISBN|0-521-30655-8}}
* Ratcliffe, F. W. (2007) ''Books, Books, Just Miles and Miles of Books: across the library counter, 1950–2000''. Cambridge: F. W. Ratcliffe (autobiography)
* Sayle, Charles (1916) ''Annals of Cambridge University Library 1278–1900''. Cambridge: University Library

=== Descriptions of collections ===
* Oates, J. C. T. (1954) ''A Catalogue of the Fifteenth-Century Printed Books in the University Library, Cambridge''. Reissued: Cambridge: [[Cambridge University Press]] {{ISBN|978-1-108-00848-8}} [https://books.google.com/books?id=boA8AAAAIAAJ&q=%22Alwyn+Faber+Scholfield%22 Extracts]
* Reif, Stefan C. (1997) ''Hebrew Manuscripts at Cambridge University Library: a description and introduction''. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press {{ISBN|978-0-521-58339-8}} [https://books.google.com/books?id=MDuYkcahsq8C&q=Ceadel+Eric+obituary Extracts]
*{{cite book|title=A catalog of the Wade collection of Chinese and Manchu books in the library of the University of Cambridge|first1=Thomas Francis|last1=Wade|last2=Cambridge University Library|others=Compiled by Herbert Allen Giles|year=1898|publisher=University Press|url=https://archive.org/details/catalogofwadecol00cambrich}}
*{{cite book|title=A Catalogue of the Collection of Chinese and Manchu Books Given to the University of Cambridge|author=Cambridge University Library|year=1898|publisher=The University Press|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CEVDAAAAYAAJ}}

== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
*[http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/ Cambridge University Library website]
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20100324150331/http://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/newton/ Library catalogue search]
*[http://cudl.lib.cam.ac.uk/ Cambridge Digital Library]
*[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cambridgeshire-28466238 Photographs taken during building]

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