Oooohhh,,,,

Rare Biblical Texts From Bodleian and Vatican Libraries Digitized

So exciting

Vatican and Oxford libraries announce joint digital conversion of some manuscripts, books

Owen M. Smith, associate professor of Philosophy and Classical Studies at Stephen F. Austin State University in Texas, says it would be “absolutely fantastic. Right now a professional scholar has to spend the time and money to visit dozens of different libraries and do meticulous copying of the passages involved and then (take the) comparisons back home and it can take years to put out a critical edition.

“Now that these things are online, they can be accessed from a desktop that would greatly increase the availability of these works and decrease the time and expense involved in having access to them.”

And the nice thing is that I can actually read some of it. :)

Have any scholars died from ladders at the Bodleian in 400 years?

Just wondering.

After 400 years, health and safety bans stepladders from historic Oxford library… but nobody can reach the books

Stepladders have been banned from part of Oxford University's historic Bodleian library - because of health and safety fears.

The ruling by officials means that students cannot use items on the higher shelves of the Duke Humfrey reading room.

However, the university is standing its ground and refusing to move the books from their 'original historic location' on the room's balcony.

As a result of the stalemate, students have to travel to libraries as far away as London to view other copies.

What's the main thing they teach you in library school? The point of a library is to provide access to information. What's the point of having pretty historical books without anyone being able to read them? Even a collector or book hoarder savours each book he or she owns and reads them on occasion. But in this case they have become mere decoration, no better than when shallow people buy old books they never read to make their house look more intellectual, which is a shame. Sure, the ladders aren't necessarily the best of solutions, but they've worked well for this long, haven't they?

Thanks to Steven of Library Stuff for this gem.