The Centre for the Study of the Book fosters the study of book arts through the Bodleian Bibliographical Press and through programmes for universities and the public.
A letterpress workshop in the Old Bodleian Library and a press in the public area of the Weston Library enable hands-on demonstrations and classes for universities, schools and the public. Since 1949, the Bodleian Library has maintained presses for the purpose of teaching practical printing. The workshop has an accessible entrance on the ground floor of the Old Bodleian Library, at the Schola Musicae door.
Information about any upcoming public courses and workshops is available on the Bodleian's Visit website.
The Broad Street Press, located in Blackwell Hall, the main foyer of the Weston Library, is the Bodleian’s public-facing press for drop-in printing of keepsakes. See the schedule posted there for public drop-in printing at weekends and special events.
Group printing visits
The Bodleian's letterpress workshop is located in the Schola Musicae, in the Old Bodleian Library (view PDF map).
Visits for Higher Education and professional groups may be arranged through the Centre for the Study of the Book. Contact bookcentre@bodleian.ox.ac.uk.
The workshop in the Schola Musicae, Old Bodleian Library, is used for practical teaching letterpress printing, and for reconstructions of early printing techniques.
A callout to letterpress printers worldwide for ‘Extracts. Supplied by a sub-sub-librarian,’ from Herman Melville’s Moby-Dick (1851) resulted in a collaborative and multifaceted new collection in 2019.
The Bodleian Libraries helped artist Tamarin Norwood to create an artwork 38 feet long, with text printed in a single continuous line using the replica 17th-century hand-press at the Weston Library for Special Collections.
