Magdalene College is deeply saddened by the death of Professor Sir John Gurdon FRS, who served as Master of the College from 1995 to 2002.
www.magd.cam.ac.uk/news/profess...

Two men climbing the clock tower at Magdalene College in 1915.

"‘A Disastrous Expedition’: I.A. Richards Caught Climbing the Roofs of Magdalene College". Check out our new article about the fabled practice of night climbing in Cambridge. Image ©Master and Fellows of Magdalene College Cambridge. @magdalenecollege.bsky.social

Highly recommended by our library staff - a fun and informative introduction.

Reading Samuel Pepys's Shorthand: an online talk and workshop Find out how Pepys kept his secret diary and have a go at reading the shorthand he wrote it in for yourself!

Come to a free online event about Pepys’s diary, neither of which clashes with England’s matches in the Euros! ⚽️

Saturday 5 July at 6-7pm BST. 
tinyurl.com/shorthand-sa...
Or
Tuesday 8 July 2-3pm BST.
tinyurl.com/shorthand-tu...

A handwritten inscription in the margin of THE COVNTESSE OF PEMBROKES ARCADIA (1621) that reads: “Elizabeth Pride her Book giuen her by [the?] Lord Larrance / a ugly Lord a rogue a folle of a Lord” STC 22545 • Folger Shakespeare Library

a #herbook inscription for the ages:

Elizabeth Pride her Book giuen her by [the?] Lord Larrance / a ugly Lord a rogue a folle of a Lord

🔥🔥🔥

STC 22545 • @folger.edu

The importance of provenance information in library catalogue records has been discussed in 'Finding the Marginal in Marginalia: The Importance of Including Marginalia Descriptions in Catalog Entries' by Dr Zoe Screti-with special mention of Magdalene's rare book cataloguing!
doi.org/10.1177/1550...

Ultimately, we can only be grateful for this strange series of events. Almost 400 years after its composition, Pepys’s diary still fascinates and delights its readers for its passages on the plague, the Great Fire of London, and the scandals of the court of King Charles II.
#SamuelPepys

Early printed editions of Samuel Pepys's diary on the shelves at Magdalene College, which are part of the Henk Hiltrop bequest. The volumes have leather and cloth bindings with gilt lettering on spine labels.

Loveman also notes the strangeness pointed out by Leigh Hunt in 1841, that a diary of such personal and sometimes scandalous information was written at all and so meticulously; stranger still that it be freely donated to his College where it contents were at risk of discovery.

Lastly, the diary is comprised of over 1 million words, spanning 3100 pages and meriting six volumes for the complete works. Thus, the abridged first edition required editing out around three quarters of the total.

Early printed editions of Samuel Pepys's diary on the shelves at Magdalene College, which are part of the Henk Hiltrop bequest. The volumes have blue cloth covers with gilt lettering.

This was especially true in certain cases where Pepys’s intentions were subtly encoded in his writing and easily missed. Secondly, the diary was frequently lewd and faced censorship for obscenity.

Did you know that efforts to have the diary published were far from easy? Firstly, the diary was composed in shorthand, the transcription of which was more like translation, as @kateloveman.bsky.social notes in her recent work, ‘The Strange History of Samuel Pepys’s Diary’.

Title page of the first edition of Samuel Pepys's diary, published by Henry Colburn in 1825.

Frontispiece of the first edition of Samuel Pepys's diary, showing Samuel Pepys at a desk with a large wig on his head and a globe beside him, published by Henry Colburn in 1825.

200 years ago #otd, Pepys’ Diary was first sent to print in two volumes priced at six guineas each, soon becoming a vital source for studying the Restoration period and a hallmark of British history. In celebration of this bicentennial, let’s take a look at the remarkable history of this diary. 🧵

This print has been used to illustrate many other conclaves in the 17th century, with the images being 'recycled' and the names of the Popes replaced each time. These conclave prints were popular tourist souvenirs.

In this instance, the conclave took five months to elect a new Pope - it concluded in the July of that year, when the cardinals were starting to suffer from the summer heat.

The print depicts the ceremonies associated with the death of Alexander VIII (Pietro Vito Ottoboni) and the conclave to elect the new Pope Innocent XII (Antonio Pignatelli) in 1691.

A black and white engraving of St Peter's Basilica, the Vatican, with angels above and lettering below.

Two images of the cardinals processing for the start of the conclave and greeting the new Pope.

An image of the whole print, in black and white, depicting a plan of the Vatican, St. Peter's Basilica, and scenes from the ceremonies associated with the death of Alexander VIII and the election of Pope Innocent XII at the edges.

To mark the beginning of the Papal conclave, here's a few details from 'Nuova et esatta pianta del conclave..' published by Giovanni Giacomo de Rossi. It dates from 1691, and appears in Samuel Pepys's 'Stampe di Roma' print albums.

A lovely picture of the library!

Hot off the (Cambridge University) press, and already in the Pepys Scholars' Library - the Pepys Library reference collection at Magdalene. #camlibs

Interested in the conservation of rare books and manuscripts? Check out our 'Back a Book' fundraising initiative for the Pepys Library, Old Library and Archives:

Thank you!

Elizabeth Bathurst Old Library H.20.178. Bathurst, Elizabeth: Truth Vindicated… London: Mary Hinde, 1773. For International Women’s Day 2025, we are showcasing a book with a unique trail of female authorship, p…

A new blog post for International Women's Day, featuring a book from the Old Library which was written, printed, and owned by three different women across three centuries. #Internationalwomensday #IWD2025 #rarebooks #speccolls #camlibs