Bernardin de Saint-Pierre (1737–1814) was a major figure of the late Enlightenment in France, author of the best-selling novel Paul et Virginie (1788) which was first published as part of a much longer philosophical text, the Études de la Nature (1784). [read more]

In June 2002, the Bodleian Library acquired the unique complete manuscript of a hitherto unknown Arabic cosmographical treatise known as the Book of Curiosities. The manuscript is a copy, probably made in Egypt in the late 12th or early 13th century, of an anonymous work compiled in the first half of the 11th century in Egypt. The treatise is extraordinarily important for the history of science, especially for astronomy and cartography, and contains an unparalleled series of diagrams of the heavens and maps of the earth. [read more]

"The treasure roll of Richard II, compiled in 1398/9, offers a rare insight into the magnificence of a late medieval English king. The roll, unknown until it was rediscovered in the 1990s, describes in exceptional detail the crowns, jewels, and other precious objects belonging to the king and to his two queens, Anne of Bohemia and Isabelle of France. The value of the items listed on the roll is extraordinary even by modern standards, as is the craftsmanship and skill that went into their production. [read more]

"The MMTC exists thanks to the extraordinary lifetime’s work of Raymond Mander and Joe Mitchenson, who met as young actors in a production of The Merry Wives of Windsor at the London Docklands Settlement in the East End in the late 1930’s, and formed a professional and personal partnership that was to last until Raymond’s death in 1983. Both were already keen collectors of theatre-related material, and the home they shared at 5, Venner Road in Sydenham was filled over the years with the vast collection of theatre ephemera, works of art, books and props which they accumulated together. [read more]