BLP-Spring-2015-Catalogue

NEW TITLESDr John Radcliffe was the most successfulphysician of his day. On his death in 1713 hedirected that part of his large fortune shouldbe used to build a library on a site at the heartof Oxford, between the University Churchof St Mary’s and the Bodleian. Early designswere made by the brilliant architect NicholasHawksmoor, who outlined the shape so familiartoday: a great rotunda surmounted by Oxford’sonly dome.104 pages, 234 x 156 mm8 pages of colour platesand 36 black and whiteintegrated illustrationsISBN: 978 1 85124 429 4Hardback, £12.99November 2014Dr Radcliffe’s LibraryThe Story of the Radcliffe Camerain OxfordStephen HebronThe Radcliffe Camera is one of the most celebratedbuildings in Oxford. Instantly recognizable, its greatdome rises amid the Gothic spires of the University.Through early maps, plans and drawings, portraits,engravings and photographs this book tells thefascinating story of its creation, which took morethan thirty years, and describes its subsequentplace within Oxford University.It would take decades to acquire and clear thesite, and after Hawksmoor’s death in 1736 theproject was taken over by the Scottish architectJames Gibbs, who refined the designs andsupervised the construction of ‘Dr Radcliffe’sLibrary’, creating, in the process, an architecturalmasterpiece and Britain’s first circular library.Stephen Hebron is a curator and the author ofnumerous books, including Shelley’s Ghost (2010)and Marks of Genius (2015), also published by theBodleian Library.VISIT THE EXHIBITIONRemembering Radcliffe28 November 2014–20 March 2015Bodleian Library, Oxford4