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Home  »   About Us  »  Visitor Information  »  Individual visit  »  Extended tours

 

UPSTAIRS, DOWNSTAIRS AT THE BODLEIAN LIBRARY - runs most Wednesdays and Saturdays at 9.15am. 

EXPLORE THE READING ROOMS TOUR - runs most Sundays at 11.15 and 13.15

We offer two different extended tours, which show you the interior of the different buildings that form the historic heart of the University. Your guide will describe the wonderful architecture, explaining how the University came into being in the Middle Ages, and how it developed over the centuries.

Explore the Divinity School, built in 1488 for the teaching of theology. With its elaborately vaulted ceiling and its 455 carved bosses, it is a masterpiece of English Gothic architecture. Take a look in the 17th century Convocation House and Court, where Parliament was held in the Civil War.

Visit Duke Humfrey's medieval library, still in use today, but where generations of famous scholars have studied through the ages. These former readers, or users of the Library, include five kings, 40 Nobel Prize winners, 25 British Prime Ministers and writers such as Oscar Wilde, C S Lewis and J R R Tolkien.

See the additional working areas of the Library, such as the interior of the architectural icon of Oxford, the Radcliffe Camera: the first rotunda library built in Britain.

 

GENERAL POINTS ABOUT EXTENDED TOURS

Please note that because the Bodleian is a working library, the content of tours may alter and certain of the areas listed above may be omitted.The length of the extended tour is always around 90 minutes.

We are able to take children age 11 and over into the working areas of the Library on these tours. We regret that the guided tours are not recommended for young children.

If you are interested in participating in an extended tour, please check with us whether a tour is running on the Wednesday, Saturday or Sunday you wish to come. To avoid disappointment, we encourage you to book extended tours in advance.  

 

UPSTAIRS, DOWNSTAIRS AT THE BODLEIAN LIBRARY

In addition to visiting the Library’s wonderful rooms dating from the medieval period, and from the 17^th and 18^th centuries, this tour offers a new opportunity to see the new Gladstone Link, part of the Bodleian Library that lies underground. This area was formerly a closed stack, and following extensive redesign and refurbishment it opened to readers in the summer of 2011. The tour also goes through the underground tunnel which runs from the Radcliffe Camera to the Old Bodleian Library.

Times	The tour runs most Wednesdays and Saturdays from 9.15. Please note the Library is closed at certain holiday times (Easter Sunday, Christmas and New Year)
Price	Cost £13 per person We regret there are no concessions To view our Refund Policy, please click here
Tour Details	As well as visiting the underground Gladstone Link, this tour encompasses the Divinity School, built in 1488 for the teaching of theology. With its elaborately vaulted ceiling and its 455 carved bosses, it is a masterpiece of English Gothic architecture. Tour guests also visit the 17th century Convocation House and Court, where Parliament was held in the Civil War. The tour includes two historic reading rooms (rooms with books): Duke Humfrey's medieval library, still in use today, but where generations of famous scholars have studied through the ages; and the architectural icon of Oxford, the Radcliffe Camera: the first rotunda library built in Britain.   The tour includes numerous steps and stairs, and we regret no lift is available.
Duration	90 minutes approximately
Tickets	To book, please pay online by clicking University Online Store .  Please note that the online booking facility closes at 12 noon on the day before the tour. Places may still be available, and you can find out by telephoning 00 44 (0)1865 277224 (09.00-17.00). If tickets are available after 12 noon on the day before the tour, they may be purchased from our ticket office.

 

EXPLORE THE READING ROOMS TOUR

Times	In 2012 Explore the Reading Rooms tours will normally run every Sunday at 11.15 and at 13.15 Please note the Library is closed at certain holiday times (Easter Sunday, Christmas and New Year)
Price	Cost £13 per person We regret there are no concessions To view our Refund Policy, please click here
Tour Details	An exploration of the Library's wonderful reading rooms, where many of the books are held, and where, for centuries, scholars have studied. Your tour guide will show you Duke Humfrey's Library, including Selden End which is not accessible to visitors on any other day of the week, before visiting the Upper Reading Room with its magnificent 17th century painted frieze. The tour also includes the Radcliffe Camera, the Divinity School, Convocation House and Chancellor's Court.
Duration	90 minutes approximately
Tickets	To book, please pay online by visiting the University Online Store. Please note that the online booking facility closes at 12 noon on the Friday before the tour. Places may still be available, and you can find out by telephoning 00 44 (0)1865 277224 or 00 44 (0)1865 277039. If tickets are available after 12 noon on the Friday before the tour, they may be purchased from our ticket office.

 

"A great opportunity to explore Oxford Bodleian Library’s reading rooms. A must do for a Sunday." Comment from a participant in the Explore the reading Rooms Tour

 

For up to date information contact the Historic Venues Team on:
Tel: +44 (0)1865 277224, fax: +44 (0)1865 277218, e-mail: tours@bodleian.ox.ac.uk