Exhibition: The Past Lives of Books
As books pass through the hands of different readers over time, they accumulate traces that speak of their unique histories to those who can decipher them. In this exhibition, books from the antiquarian collection at St Hilda’s College Library reveal glimpses of their past lives through the marks that previous owners have left in them.
Come to the exhibition and encounter, amongst others, an 18th-century little boy practising his alphabet, Napoleon’s sister, and a furious early modern reader swearing in the margins of a Catholic chronicle. 'The Past Lives of Books' will show that rare books are fascinating historical artefacts with value that goes far beyond the texts they contain.