Lines of Thought: Discoveries that Changed the World

Fri 11 March 2016 - Sat 1 October 2016

Cambridge University Library

In 2016, Cambridge University Library is celebrating 600 years as one of the world’s greatest libraries.

The wills of William Loring and William Hunden, both proved in March 1416, bequeathed books to ‘the common library of all scholars of the University’. Over the course of the last six centuries, the Library’s collections have grown from a few dozen volumes on a handful of subjects into an extraordinary accumulation of over eight million books, maps, manuscripts and journals, enhanced by an ever-increasing range of electronic resources. From its beginnings as an asset for a tiny community of theologians and canon lawyers in the medieval university, the Library’s mission has expanded to serve the international scholarly community and now, through its digitisation projects, to reach new audiences across the world.

To celebrate its 600th birthday, the first of two stunning free exhibitions 'Lines of Thought' features some of Cambridge’s most iconic treasures and influential works, spanning more than 4,000 years of human thought and investigating through six distinct themes how both Cambridge and its collections have changed the world. Now extended by popular demand, the exhibition runs until Saturday 1 October.

A free exhibition guide can be picked up at the Library or from University Library events throughout the anniversary year. Special family activities are available free of charge.

The exhibition will close at 1.30 on Tuesday 27 September owing to a private function.

Cost: Free