Magdalene Library News
Library News
Peckard, Equiano and the Aboliltion of the Transatlantic Slave Trade – Part I
The Magdalene Archives support the renaming of Riverside Bridge after abolitionist Olaudah Equiano. This post explores his friendship with Peter Peckard, Master of Magdalene.
Remembering Seamus Heaney
The tenth anniversary of the death of Seamus Heaney — who was, after W B Yeats, Ireland’s most celebrated poet and, like Yeats, a Nobel Laureate for Literature — is being very widely marked. Here, we remember Seamus’s special relationship with Magdalene.
A Persian Manuscript for Samuel Pepys: Naval Networks and Indology in Restoration England.
Pepys Library 1281 is a Persian manuscript of Anvarī’s poetry, reflecting Samuel Pepys's interest in non-Latin scripts. It highlights his connections with global intellectual networks in the 17th century.
Digitisation of Pepys’s ‘Calligraphicall’ Fragments
We are pleased to announce the digitisation of Samuel Pepys’s collection of medieval manuscripts and early printed book fragments.
The Digitisation of Pepys’s ‘Calligraphicall’ Fragments
The digitisation of Samuel Pepys's collection of medieval manuscript and early printed book fragments is now available online, offering a valuable resource for both scholars and general readers.
Pepys and the Coronation
Pepys's vivid diary account of King Charles II’s 1661 coronation and procession, alongside related engravings and books in the Pepys Library, offers a personal view of the grand event.
Jane Porter
For International Women’s Day 2023, the historic libraries of Magdalene are highlighting the life and work of the novelist Jane Porter (c.1775-1850).
Pepys and Witchcraft, the Fascinated Sceptic
Pepys’s diary and library reveal a deep, curious engagement with witchcraft debates, collecting demonologies, ballads, and sceptical as well as credulous texts from the 16th and 17th centuries.
Magdalene Partbooks
The Magdalene Partbooks, linked to 17th-century theatre music, now feature in RISM with over 650 works, many copied by Charles Babel, including music by Purcell, Paisible, and Valoix.
Moving Magdalene's Memories
Magdalene holds a rich collection of historical records stored across the College. The first priority was to unite these archives in the New Library’s Archive Centre, with plans to catalogue them online for global access.
Dr Luckett Bequest
The Old Library has received a major bequest from Dr Richard Luckett, including rare Purcell scores, semi-opera libretti, and early music theory texts, enhancing its Restoration collections.
Two Magdalene Birdmen
Magdalene celebrates two ornithologists: Newton, a pioneer of bird conservation, and Lack, who revolutionised ornithology by studying bird behaviour and ecology in the wild.