FOOTNOTES:

Fig. 50. Ground-plan of the Library at Queens' College, Cambridge.Fig. 50. Ground-plan of the Library at Queens' College, Cambridge.

Fig. 51. Elevation of book-desk in Library of Queens' College, Cambridge.Fig. 51. Elevation of book-desk in Library of Queens' College, Cambridge.[309]

It should be carefully noted, when studying this plan, that the distance between each pair of windows is not more than 2 feet, and that the end of the desk covers the whole of this space. If this fact be borne in mind when examining libraries that are now fitted up in a different way, it becomes possible to detect what the original method was.

I propose to name this system of fittings the lectern-system; and I shall shew, as we proceed, that it was adopted, with various modifications, in England, France, Holland, Germany and Italy.

Fortunately, one example of such fittings still exists, at Zutphen in Holland, which I visited in April, 1894. Shortly afterwards I wrote the following description of what is probably a unique survival of an ancient fashion[310].

The library in which these fittings occur is attached to the church of SS. Peter and Walburga, the principal church of the town. A library of some kind is said to have existed there from very early times[311]; but the place where the books were kept is not known. In 1555 a suggestion was made that it would be well to get together a really good collection of books for the use of the public. The first stone of the present building was laid in 1561, and it was completed in 1563. The author of theTheatrum Urbium Belgicæ, John Blaeu, whose work was completed in 1649, describes it as "the public library poorly furnished with books, but being daily increased by the liberality of the Senate and Deputies[312]."

The room is built against the south choir-aisle of the church, out of which a door opens into it. In consequence of this position the shape is irregular, for the church is apsidal, and the choir-aisle is continued round part of the apse. It is about 60 feet long, by 26 feet broad at the west end. In the centre are four octagonal columns on square bases, supporting a plain quadripartite vault. The room is thus divided longitudinally into two aisles, with a small irregular space at the east end.

The diagrammatic ground-plan, here subjoined (fig. 52), willhelp to make this description clear. It makes no pretensions to accuracy, having been drawn from notes only[313].

Fig. 52. Ground-plan of the Library at Zutphen.Fig. 52. Ground-plan of the Library at Zutphen.

There are two windows, each of three lights, at the west end of the room, and four similar windows on the south side, one to each bay. There is a fifth window, now blocked, at the south-east corner. Some of these windows contain fragments of richly coloured stained glass—among which the figure of a large green parrot is conspicuous; but whether these fragments were brought from the church, or are part of the glass originally supplied to the library, there is no evidence to shew. Most of these windows are partially blocked, having been damaged, it is said, in one of the numerous sieges from which Zutphen has suffered. The position of the church, close to the fortifications, as Blaeu's bird's-eye view shews, makes this story probable. The floor is paved with red tiles. The general appearance of the room will be understood from the view of the north aisle reduced from a photograph (fig. 53)[314].

Fig. 53. General view of the north side of the Library attached to the church of S. Walburga at Zutphen.Fig. 53. General view of the north side of the Library attached to the church of S. Walburga at Zutphen.

Fig. 54. Desk and reader on the south side of the Library at Zutphen. From a photograph.Fig. 54. Desk and reader on the south side of the Library at Zutphen. From a photograph.

Fig. 55. Elevation of (A) one of the bookcases in the Library at Zutphen: (B) one of those in the Library at Queens' College, CambridgeFig. 55. Elevation of (A) one of the bookcases in the Library at Zutphen: (B) one of those in the Library at Queens' College, Cambridge[315]

Fig. 56. End of iron bar, Zutphen.Fig. 56. End of iron bar, Zutphen.

There are eighteen bookcases, or desks; namely, ten on the south side of the room, and eight on the north side (fig. 52). The material is oak; the workmanship very rude and rough. I will describe those on the south side first. Each is 9 feet long by 5 feet 5¼ inches high, measured from the floor to the top of the finial on the end; and the lower edge of the desk on which the books lie is 2 feet 6¼ inches above the floor; but the general plan, and the relative dimensions of the different parts, will be best understood from the photograph of a single desk at which a reader is seated (fig. 54), and from the elevation of one of the ends (fig. 55, A), beside which I have placed the elevationof one of the desks at Queens' College (B). The photograph shews that in fixing the height of the desk above the ground the convenience of readers has been carefully considered. The iron bar that carries the chains is locked into the ornamental upright, passes through a staple in the middle of the desk, and into the upright at the opposite end, which is left plain. This bar is half an inch in diameter, and one inch above the level of the top of the desk. It is prevented from bending by passing through a staple fixed in the centre of the desk. A piece of ornamental iron-work is fixed to the upright. It is made to represent a lock, but is in reality a mere plate of metal, and the tongue, which looks as though it were intended to move, is only an ornament, and is pierced by the keyhole. The lock is sunk in the thickness of the wood, behind this plate, and the bar, which terminates in a knob, is provided with two nicks, into which the boltsof the lock are shot when the key is turned (fig. 56). Between each pair of desks there is a seat for the reader.

Fig. 57. End of one of the desks on the north side of the Library, Zutphen.Fig. 57. End of one of the desks on the north side of the Library, Zutphen.

Fig. 58. Piece of chain, shewing the ring attached to the bar, the swivel, and one of the links, actual size. Guildford.Fig. 58. Piece of chain, shewing the ring attached to the bar, the swivel, and one of the links, actual size. Guildford.

The desks on the north side of the room differ slightly from those on the south side. They are rather larger, the ends are of a different shape and devoid of ornament (fig. 57), and there is a wider interval between the bar and the top of the desk. It seems to me probable that the more highly ornamented desks are those which were put in when the room was first fitted up, and that the others were added from time to time as new books had to be accommodated.

The books are attached to the desk by the following process. A chain was taken about 12 inches long, more or less, consisting of long narrow links of hammered iron. These links exactly resemble, both in shape and size, those of a chain which may still be seen in the library of the Grammar School at Guildford, Surrey[316]. This chain, of which a piece ishere figured (fig. 58), was probably made in 1586, or only 23 years after the building of the library at Zutphen. It terminates, like those at Zutphen (fig. 59), in a swivel (to prevent entanglement), attached to the ring which is strung upon the bar. The attachment of the chain to the book was effected by means of a piece of metal bent round so as to form a loop through which the last link of the chain was passed. The ends of the loop, flattened out, were attached by nail or rivet to the edge of the stout wooden board which formed the side of the book. This mode of attachment will be best seen in the volume which I figure next (fig. 60)—a collection of sermons printed at Nuremberg in 1487. It is believed to have once belonged to a Dominican House at Bamberg, in the library of which it was chained[317].

The iron loop in this specimen (fig. 60) is fastened to what I call the right-hand board of the book; by which I mean the board which is to the right hand of a reader when the book lies open before him; but the selection of the right-hand or the left-hand board depended on individual taste. Further the mode of attachment is never the same in two examples. The iron and rivets are often clumsy, and do considerable damage to the leaves, by forcing them out of shape and staining them with rust.

In this method of chaining no provision is made for removing any bookfrom the desk when not wanted, and placing it on a shelf beneath the desk, as was done in some Italian modifications of the system. Each volume must lie on the desk, attached by its chain, like a Bible on a church-lectern. The smallest number of volumes on any desk at Zutphen is six; the largest, eleven; the total, 316. Most of those on the south side of the room were printed during the first half of the sixteenth century; those on the north side are much later, some as late as 1630. I did not see any manuscripts.

If we now reconsider the indications preserved at Queens' College, it will, I feel sure, be recognised that the desks atZutphen explain them, and enable us to realise the aspect of what I conceive to have been the most ancient method of fitting up a collegiate or a monastic library. When such a room first became necessary in a monastery, and furniture suitable for it was debated, a lectern would surely suggest itself, as being used in the numerous daily services, and proving itself singularly convenient for the support of books while they were being read.

Fig. 59. Piece of the iron bar, with chain, Zutphen.Fig. 59. Piece of the iron bar, with chain, Zutphen.

Another example of such fittings was once to be seen at Pembroke College, Cambridge, in the library above the hall (fig. 48). In Dr Matthew Wren's account of that library already quoted there is a passage which may be translated as follows:

I would have you know that in the year 1617 the Library was completely altered and made to assume an entirely new appearance. This alteration was rendered necessary by the serious damage which, to our great sorrow, we found the books had suffered—a damage which was increasing daily—partly from the sloping form of the desks, partly from the inconvenient weight of the chains (tum ex declivi pluteorum fabricâ, tum ex ineptâ mole catenarum)[318].

These desks were copied at S. John's College in the same University. A contract dated 20 June, 1516, provides that the contractor

shall make all the Desks in the Library wythin the said college of good and substanciall and abyll Tymber of Oke mete and convenient for the same Library, aftir and accordyng to the Library within ... Pembroke Hall[319].

Fig. 60. Chained book, from a Dominican House at Bamberg, South Germany.Fig. 60. Chained book, from a Dominican House at Bamberg, South Germany.

The Library here referred to was on the first floor to the south of the Great Gate of the college. It is now divided into chambers, but its original extent can be readily made out by its range of equidistant windows. The wall-spaces dividing these are 28½ inches wide, practically the same as those at Queens' College.

At Peterhouse also a similar arrangement seems to have subsisted when the catalogue of 1418 was made. The very first book, a Bible, is said to stand "in the sixth lectern on thewest side (lectrino 6oex parte occidentali)." The wordlectrinumis unusual, but it emphasizes the form of the desk more clearly than any other.

Fig. 61.Single desk in the old Library, Lincoln Cathedral.Fig. 61.Single desk in the old Library, Lincoln Cathedral.

A splendid example of this type of case is to be seen at Lincoln (fig. 61), where three "stalls" or desks, belonging to theold library already described[320], are still preserved. Each is about 7 ft. long, 3 ft. broad, and 4 ft. 4 in. high to the top of the sloping portion. At each end, and in the centre, is a massive molded standard, 7 ft. 2 in. high, terminating in a boldly carved finial; and these three standards are connected together by a band of open-work, of a design similar to that of the cornice of the library. Half way between this band and the top of the desk is the bar to carry the chains, now of wood, but formerly of course of iron; and below this again is a shelf 18 in. wide, projecting slightly beyond the sloping portion of the desk. The edge of the desk is protected by a ledge, as usual, and under it is a second shelf extending the whole width of the piece of furniture. What was the use of these shelves? As the bar is above the desk, not below it, the books must have reposed, as a general rule, upon the desk, instead of being laid on their sides on the shelf below it when not wanted by a reader. The chains would not have been long enough to allow of any other arrangement. I think, therefore, that the lower shelf must have been a constructional contrivance, to assist in keeping the standards in their places. The narrow upper shelf, on the other hand, was probably intended for the convenience of the reader. He might place on it, temporarily, any book that he was not using, and which got in his way while he was reading one of those beside it; or, if he was making extracts, he might set his inkstand upon it.

These desks evidently stood in the old library against the shafts of the roof, for one of the ends has been hollowed out in each to receive the shaft; and the finial, which is left plain on that side, is bent over slightly, to admit it under the brace (fig. 39).

As I have now described three varieties of the lectern-system, I will place before my readers, side by side, elevations of each of the three (fig. 62) drawn to the same scale. It will be seen that they resemble each other exactly in essentials. The differences observable are accidental, and may be referred to individual taste.

That this form of desk was recognised on the continent astypical of library-fittings is proved by its appearance in a French translation of the first book of theConsolation of Philosophyof Boethius, which I had the good fortune to find in the British Museum[321](fig. 63). This manuscript was written in Flanders towards the end of the fifteenth century. In such a work the library shewn requires what I may term generalised fittings. An eccentric peculiarity would have been quite inadmissible.

Fig. 62. Elevation of (A) one of the bookcases in the Library at Zutphen; (B) one of those in the Library at Queens' College, Cambridge; (C) one of those in the Library of Lincoln Cathedral.Fig. 62. Elevation of (A) one of the bookcases in the Library at Zutphen; (B) one of those in the Library at Queens' College, Cambridge; (C) one of those in the Library of Lincoln Cathedral.

In the Stadtbibliothek of Nuremberg some of the oldest works on jurisprudence still preserve their chains. Each hasa short chain about 12 in. long fixed on the upper edge of the left-hand board. The title is written on the middle of the upper edge of the right-hand board. It is obvious that these volumes must have lain on a desk with their titles uppermost[322].

Fig. 63. Interior of a Library. From a MS. of a French translation of the first book of the Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius: written in Flanders towards the end of the fifteenth century.Fig. 63. Interior of a Library. From a MS. of a French translation of the first book of the Consolation of Philosophy by Boethius: written in Flanders towards the end of the fifteenth century.

Fig. 64. Library of the Collège de Navarre, Paris, now destroyed.Fig. 64. Library of the Collège de Navarre, Paris, now destroyed.

It is probable that similar fittings were used in the library of the Sorbonne, Paris, which was first established in 1289, with books chained for the common convenience of the Fellows (in communem sociorum utilitatem)[323]. This library was divided into two separate collections, which formed, so to speak, two distinct libraries. The first, called the great library, or the common library, contained the books most frequently studied. They were chained, and could only be taken out under the most exceptional circumstances. A statute, dated 1321, the provisions of which recall the collegiate statutes summarised above, directed that the best book the society possessed on each subject should be thus chained. The second division of the library, called the small library, contained duplicates, books rarely consulted, and generally all those of which the loan was authorised under certain conditions[324]. The following description of this library has been given by Claude Héméré (Librarian 1638-43) in his MS. history. This I proceed to translate:

The old library was contained under one roof. It was firmly and solidly built, and was 120 feet long by 36 feet broad.... Each side was pierced with 19 windows of equal size, that plenty of daylight both from the east and the west (for this was the direction of the room) might fall upon the desks, and fill the whole length and breadth of the library. There were 28 desks, marked with the letters of the alphabet, five feet high, and so arranged that they were separated by a moderate interval. They were loaded with books, all of which were chained, that no sacrilegious hand might [carry them off. These chains were attached to the right-hand board of every book] so that they might be readily thrown aside, and reading not be interfered with. Moreover the volumes could be opened and shut without difficulty. A reader who sat down in the space between two desks, as they rose to a height of five feet as I said above, neither saw nor disturbed any one else who might be reading or writing in another place by talking or by any other interruption, unless the other student wished it, or paid attention to any question that might be put to him. It was required, by the ancient rules of the library, that reading, writing, and handling of books should go forward in complete silence[325].

This description indicates desks similar to those of Zutphen. Even the height is the same.

A library which vividly recalls the above account, with 19 windows on one side and probably the same number on the other, was built in 1506 for the Collège de Navarre, Paris, now the École Polytechnique[326]. My illustration (fig. 64) is from aphotograph taken shortly before its destruction in 1867. I have calculated that it was about 108 ft. long by 30 ft. wide.

The library of the Collège d'Autun, Paris, was similarly arranged. An inventory taken 29 July, 1462, records: "dix bancs doubles, à se seoir d'une part et d'autre, et ung poupitre; esquelz bancs et poupitre out esté trouvez enchaisnez les livres qui s'ensuyvent, qui sont intitulez sur la couverture d'iceulx[327]." The catalogue enumerates 174 volumes, or rather more than 17 for each "banc" or lectern. The expressionbancs doublesis interesting, as it seems to imply that there were at that time libraries in whichbancs simpleswere used; that is to say, lecterns with only one sloping surface instead of two.

A study of the catalogue drawn up in 1513 for the Augustinian House of S. Victor, Paris, by Claude de Grandrue, one of the monks, shews that the same system must have been in use there. Further, his catalogue is an excellent specimen of the pains taken in a large monastery to describe the books accurately, and to provide ready access to them. A brief prefatory note informs us that the desks are arranged in three rows, and marked with a triple series of letters. The first row is marked A, B, C, etc.; the second AA, BB, etc.; the third AAA, BBB, etc. To each of these letters are appended the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4 and so on, to shew the position of the required volume. For instance—to take one at random—Abælardi confessiois marked P. 13: that is, it is the thirteenth book on the desk in the first row marked P. When the catalogue proper—in which each manuscript is carefully described—was finished, the author increased its usefulness by the composition of an alphabetical index[328].

How, I shall be asked, can the form of the bookcase or desk (pulpitum) be inferred from this catalogue? I reply: In the first place, because there are no shelf-marks. The librarian notes the letter of the desk, and the place of each book on it, but nothing more. Secondly, because the number of manuscripts accommodated on each desk is so small. There are 50 desks,and 988 manuscripts—or, an average of little more than 19 to each. At Zutphen the average is exactly 18. This piece of evidence, however, is so important that I will give it in detail. The following table, compiled by myself from the catalogue, gives the letters used to mark the desks, and the number of manuscripts on each.

A13AA13AAA15B21BB16BBB16C13CC19CCC17D18DD18DDD19E17EE21EEE17F20FF17FFF29G18GG18GGG24H16HH17HHH29I16II23III25K17KK21KKK29L22LL21LLL23M21MM20MMM26N18NN20——O14OO13269P19PP23Q22QQ27R14RR26S14SS28T21TT24————334385

These totals give a general total of 988 manuscripts, which, divided by 50, makes the average number for each desk, as stated above, 19˙76.

Further, my theory is supported by the positive evidence of a description of this library (unfortunately without date) quoted by M. Delisle: "Les livres estoient couchez et enchaisnez, sur de longs pupitres, et une allée entre deux[329]." It is obvious that the English system of placing each lectern between a pair of windows could not have been maintained here.

At Queens' College, Cambridge, the catalogue, dated 1472, enumerates 192 volumes, divided over 10 desks and 4 half-desks, each called a step (gradus). There were (avoiding fractions) 8 books on each half-desk, and 15 on each complete desk; sothat by comparing the plan (fig. 50) and elevation of a desk (fig. 51) with the views of the library at Zutphen, a good idea of a college library in the fifteenth century can be obtained.

Before I leave the lectern-system, I will describe two eccentric specimens of it. The first is still to be seen at Trinity Hall, Cambridge; the second once existed at the University of Leyden.

Fig. 66. Elevation of a book-desk and seat in the Library of Trinity Hall, Cambridge.Fig. 66. Elevation of a book-desk and seat in the Library of Trinity Hall, Cambridge.

Fig. 65. General view of the Library at Trinity Hall, Cambridge.Fig. 65. General view of the Library at Trinity Hall, Cambridge.

Fig. 68. A French Library of 1480. From MS. 164 in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.Fig. 68. A French Library of 1480. From MS. 164 in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.

The library of Trinity Hall is thoroughly medieval in plan, being a long narrow room on the first floor of the north side of the second court, 65 feet long by 20 feet wide, with eight equidistant windows in each side-wall, and a window of four lights in the western gable. It was built about 1600, but the fittings are even later, having been added between 1626 and 1645 during the mastership of Thomas Eden, LL.D. They are therefore a deliberate return to ancient forms at a time when a different type had been adopted elsewhere.

There are five desks and six seats on each side of the room, placed, as usual, at right angles to the side-walls, in the inter spaces of the windows, and in front of the windows, respectively. Their arrangement, and the details of their construction, will be understood from the general view (fig. 65), and from the elevation (fig. 66).

Fig. 67. Lock at end of book-desk. Trinity Hall.Fig. 67. Lock at end of book-desk. Trinity Hall.

These lecterns are of oak, 6 feet 7 inches long, and 7 feet high, measured to the top of the ornamental finial. There is a sloping desk at the top, beneath which is a single shelf (fig. 66, A). The bar for the chains passes under the desk, through the two vertical ends of the case. At the end farthest from the wall, the hasp of the lock is hinged to the bar and secured by two keys (fig. 67). Beneath the shelf there is at either end a slip of wood (fig. 66, B), which indicates that there was once a moveable desk which could be pulled out when required. The reader could therefore consult his convenience, and work either sitting or standing (fig. 65). For both these positions the heights are very suitable, and at the bottom of the case was a plinth (fig. 66, C), on which he could set his feet. The seats between each pair of desks were of course put up at the same time as the desks themselves. They shew an advance in comfort, being divided into two, so as to allow support to the reader's back.

Similar desks occur in a beautiful miniature (fig. 68) froma manuscript (now in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge[330]) written in France about 1480. They appear to be solid—possibly fitted with cupboards for books under the sloping portion. No seats are shewn, and, as a reader is standing between them consulting a book, it may be concluded that they could only be used by students in that position.

Lastly, I reproduce (fig. 69) a print by Jan Cornelis Woudanus, shewing the library of the University of Leyden in 1610[331]. The bookcases were evidently contrived with the view of getting the largest number possible into the room. Each contained a single row of books, chained to a bar in front of the shelf; and, also for the purpose of saving the space usually occupied by a seat, readers were obliged to consult them standing. There are eleven bookcases on each side of the room, each containing from 40 to 48 volumes. At the end of the room are two cupboards, probably for manuscripts; and to the right of the spectator is a third press, markedLegatum Josephi Scaligeri. He died in January, 1609. Further, as an illustration of the usual appliances for study found in libraries at this period, and often mentioned in catalogues and account-books, I would draw attention to the globes and maps.

I present these bookcases at this point of my researches with some diffidence, for they can hardly be said to represent the lectern-system. On the other hand, they do not exactly represent any other; and I therefore submit that they may be looked at here, as transitional specimens, bridging over the interval between the desks we have lately been considering, and those which we shall have to consider in the next chapter.

Fig. 69. The interior of the Library of the University of Leyden. From a print by Jan Cornelis Woudanus, dated 1610.Fig. 69. The interior of the Library of the University of Leyden. From a print by Jan Cornelis Woudanus, dated 1610.

FOOTNOTES:[258]The Statutes of the Colleges of Oxford and Cambridge bearing on the care of books have been thoroughly analysed by Professor Willis in his essay on "The Library,"Arch. Hist.iii.pp. 387-471, which I edited and completed. I have therefore not thought it necessary to acknowledge each quotation separately, but I wish it to be understood that this section of my present book is to a great extent borrowed from him.[259]Wood,History and Antiquities of the University of Oxford, ed. Gutch, 4to. Oxford, 1796, Vol.ii.Part 2, p. 910.[260]Commiss. Docts.(Oxford), Vol. 1. Statutes of Merton College, Cap. 2, p. 24.[261]Sketch of the Life of Walter de Merton, by Edmund [Hobhouse], Bishop of Nelson, New Zealand, 8vo. Oxford, 1859, p. 39.[262]Annals of University College, by Wm. Smith, 8vo. 1728, pp. 37-39. I have compared Mr Smith's version with the Statute as printed by Anstey,Munimenta Academica,i.58, 59, and have made a few corrections.[263]Commiss. Docts.(Oxford), Vol.i.Statutes of Oriel College, p. 14.[264]Ibid.p. 22.[265]Commiss. Docts.(Cambridge),ii.38. De omnibus libris Domus, Munimentis, et Chartis custodiendis.[266]Ibid.p. 17. De Duobus Decanis et eorum officio.[267]Commiss. Docts.(Cambridge),ii.44. Statutum de libris Collegii.[268]Commiss. Docts.(Cambridge),ii.432. De libris Collegii.[269]The words are "in libraria communi ... ad sociorum communem usum continue remanere."[270]Commiss. Docts.(Oxford), Vol.i.Statutes of New College, p. 97. De libris collegii conservandis et non alienandis.[271]Commiss. Docts.(Oxford), Vol.i.Statutes of All Souls' College, p. 54. De custodia bonorum ad capellam pertinentium.[272]Ibid.Vol.ii.Statutes of Magdalen College, p. 60. De custodia librorum, ornamentorum, jocalium, et aliorum bonorum collegii.[273]Ibid.Statutes of Corpus Christi College, p. 89. De custodia bonorum Collegii.[274]This passage is quoted in a short account of Pembroke College Library, drawn up by Matthew Wren, D.D., while Fellow, as the preface to a volume dated 1617, in which he recorded the names, of those who had presented books to the Library. The words at the end of the statute are: "sub cautione idonea custodi librorum exposita sine fraude."[275]The history of Merton College has been most admirably written, in Mr Robinson's series of College histories, by my friend Bernard W. Henderson, M.A., Fellow and Librarian. His researches have thrown a new light on the library, and especially on the date of the fittings. My most cordial thanks are due to him, to the Warden and to the Bursar, for their kindness in allowing me access to the library, and also to all the documents referring to it.[276]Reg. Vet.fol. 7 b. Vicesimo quarto die Octobris celebrata erat eleccio librorum philosophie inter philosophicos collegii socios.Undecimo die mensis Novembris celebrata erat eleccio librorum theologie in domo custodis inter Theologos collegii socios.[277]Ibid.fol. 110. 18o.die eiusdem mensis [Marcii] fuit eleccio librorum logicalium in Alta Aula.[278]Ibid.fol. 125 b.[279]Reg. Vet.fol. 118.[280]The words are: "qui quidem liber jacuit pro caucione alterius libri decretorum collegii."[281]Ibid.fol. 121.[282]Ibid.fol. 100 b.[283]See above,p. 71.[284]Dugdale,Mon. Angl.iv.403-406.[285]See above,p. 108.[286]Cat. Vet. Libr. Eccl. Cath. Dunelm.ed. Surtees Soc. pp. 39-41.[287]Wood,History etc., Vol.ii.p. 910.[288]Leland,Comm. de Script. Brit.ch. 131. I owe this important quotation to the kindness of Dr James.[289]Printed in theCamb. Antiq. Soc. Comm., Vol.ii.p. 73.[290]The headings of the two lists are as follows: "Libri per nos de presenti dicto nostro Collegio dati et in dicto Collegio ex nunc ad Sociorum communem usum perpetuo remansuri.""Libri vero de presenti per nos dicto collegio dati, quorum usum nobis pro vitæ nostræ tempore quamdiu nobis placuerit duximus reservandum, immediate inferius describuntur."[291]Arch. Hist.Vol.ii.p. 442. History of Trinity College.[292]Collected Papers of Henry Bradshaw, 8vo. Camb., 1889, pp. 19-34.[293]No heading to the first division of the list is given in the catalogue.[294]Camb. Ant. Soc. Comm., Vol.ii.p. 165.[295]Ibid.Vol.ii.p. 258.[296]Camb. Ant. Soc. Quarto Publ., No.i.This catalogue represents the state of the library at the end of the fifteenth century, for it contains the books given by Richard Nelson, who founded a Fellowship in 1503, and probably gave his books at the same time, "sub ea condicione quod semper remanerent cum tribus sociis."[297]From my additions to the essay on "The Library," by Professor Willis, p. 404.[298]This catalogue, written at the beginning of the old parchment Register of the College, has been printed by Dr James in hisCatalogue of the MSS. in the Library of Peterhouse, 8vo. Camb., 1899. pp. 3-26.[299]From my additions to the essay on "The Library," by Professor Willis, p. 402.[300]Commiss. Docts.(Cambridge), Vol.i. p. 21. Stat. 24.[301]Ibid.p. 22.[302]This analysis of the catalogue of Peterhouse Library is borrowed from the Introduction which I had the pleasure of contributing to my friend Dr James'Catalogue.[303]Arch. Hist., The Library, p. 404.[304]Arch. Hist., vol.i., p. 138.[305]I have to thank my friend Mr T. G. Jackson, architect, for kindly lending me this section of Bishop Cobham's library. For his history of the building, see hisChurch of St Mary the Virgin, Oxford, 4to. 1897, pp. 90-106. With regard to the number of windows he notes (p. 102): There would have been eight, two to a bay, were it not that the tower buttresses occupy half the western bay.[306]Anstey,Mun. Acad.i.227.[307]Jackson,ut supra, p. 98.[308]The total height of this desk-end is 66 in.; from the ground to the beginning of the groove 31 in.; each slit is 19 in. long.[309]For scale seefig. 62, p. 163.[310]Camb. Ant. Soc. Proc. and Comm.Vol.viii.pp. 379-388, 7 May, 1894.[311]The existing Library is still called the New Library.[312]Novum ac Magnum Theatrum Urbium Belgicæ, fol. Amsterdam, 1649, s. v. Zutphania. For these historical facts I have to thank my friend Mr Gimberg,Archivariusat Zutphen.[313]I have to thank Mr T. D. Atkinson, architect, for drawing this plan.[314]I have again to thank Mr Gimberg for this photograph. It was a work of no small difficulty owing to the imperfect light.[315]For scale seefig. 62, p. 163.[316]I have described this library inCamb. Ant. Soc. Proc. and Comm.Vol.viii.pp. 11-18.[317]This book is now in the University Library, Cambridge.[318]Arch. Hist., The Library,iii.429. It is obvious that these heavy chains must have been attached to the lower edge of one of the boards, and that the bar must have been below the desk and not above it. See above,p. 139.[319]Arch. Hist.ii.244.[320]See above,pp. 117-121.[321]MSS. Harl. 4335. The picture hanging on the wall represents Philosophy offering her consolation to a sick man.[322]For this information I have to thank my friend, Bernard W. Henderson, M.A., Fellow of Merton College, Oxford.[323]Delisle,Cabinet des manuscrits,ii.186,note.[324]This account is, in the main, a translation of that given by M. Delisle,ut supra.[325]Bibl. Nat. Par. MSS. Lat. 5493. For the history of this library see Delisle,ut supra, pp. 142-208; Franklin,Anciennes Bibliothèques de Paris,i.pp. 221-317.[326]Franklin,ut supra, vol.i.p. 399.[327]Franklin,Bibliothèques de Paris,ii.70.[328]Delisle,ut supra,ii.228-231; Franklin,ut supra,i.135-185. The catalogue of Claude de Grandrue is in the Bibliothèque Nationale, fonds latin, No. 14767; the alphabetical index in the Bibliothèque Mazarine, No. 1358.[329]Delisle, p. 228,note.[330]The MS. (No. 164) is by Frère Jehan de Castel.[331]This reproduction is from a copy of the print now in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge. It also occurs on a reduced scale inLes Arts au Moyen Age et à l'Epoque de la Renaissancepar Paul Lacroix, 4o.Paris, 1869, p. 492; and inIllustrium Hollandiae et Westfrisiae Ordinumetc. 4o.Lugd. Bat., 1614.

[258]The Statutes of the Colleges of Oxford and Cambridge bearing on the care of books have been thoroughly analysed by Professor Willis in his essay on "The Library,"Arch. Hist.iii.pp. 387-471, which I edited and completed. I have therefore not thought it necessary to acknowledge each quotation separately, but I wish it to be understood that this section of my present book is to a great extent borrowed from him.

[259]Wood,History and Antiquities of the University of Oxford, ed. Gutch, 4to. Oxford, 1796, Vol.ii.Part 2, p. 910.

[260]Commiss. Docts.(Oxford), Vol. 1. Statutes of Merton College, Cap. 2, p. 24.

[261]Sketch of the Life of Walter de Merton, by Edmund [Hobhouse], Bishop of Nelson, New Zealand, 8vo. Oxford, 1859, p. 39.

[262]Annals of University College, by Wm. Smith, 8vo. 1728, pp. 37-39. I have compared Mr Smith's version with the Statute as printed by Anstey,Munimenta Academica,i.58, 59, and have made a few corrections.

[263]Commiss. Docts.(Oxford), Vol.i.Statutes of Oriel College, p. 14.

[264]Ibid.p. 22.

[265]Commiss. Docts.(Cambridge),ii.38. De omnibus libris Domus, Munimentis, et Chartis custodiendis.

[266]Ibid.p. 17. De Duobus Decanis et eorum officio.

[267]Commiss. Docts.(Cambridge),ii.44. Statutum de libris Collegii.

[268]Commiss. Docts.(Cambridge),ii.432. De libris Collegii.

[269]The words are "in libraria communi ... ad sociorum communem usum continue remanere."

[270]Commiss. Docts.(Oxford), Vol.i.Statutes of New College, p. 97. De libris collegii conservandis et non alienandis.

[271]Commiss. Docts.(Oxford), Vol.i.Statutes of All Souls' College, p. 54. De custodia bonorum ad capellam pertinentium.

[272]Ibid.Vol.ii.Statutes of Magdalen College, p. 60. De custodia librorum, ornamentorum, jocalium, et aliorum bonorum collegii.

[273]Ibid.Statutes of Corpus Christi College, p. 89. De custodia bonorum Collegii.

[274]This passage is quoted in a short account of Pembroke College Library, drawn up by Matthew Wren, D.D., while Fellow, as the preface to a volume dated 1617, in which he recorded the names, of those who had presented books to the Library. The words at the end of the statute are: "sub cautione idonea custodi librorum exposita sine fraude."

[275]The history of Merton College has been most admirably written, in Mr Robinson's series of College histories, by my friend Bernard W. Henderson, M.A., Fellow and Librarian. His researches have thrown a new light on the library, and especially on the date of the fittings. My most cordial thanks are due to him, to the Warden and to the Bursar, for their kindness in allowing me access to the library, and also to all the documents referring to it.

[276]Reg. Vet.fol. 7 b. Vicesimo quarto die Octobris celebrata erat eleccio librorum philosophie inter philosophicos collegii socios.Undecimo die mensis Novembris celebrata erat eleccio librorum theologie in domo custodis inter Theologos collegii socios.

[276]Reg. Vet.fol. 7 b. Vicesimo quarto die Octobris celebrata erat eleccio librorum philosophie inter philosophicos collegii socios.

Undecimo die mensis Novembris celebrata erat eleccio librorum theologie in domo custodis inter Theologos collegii socios.

[277]Ibid.fol. 110. 18o.die eiusdem mensis [Marcii] fuit eleccio librorum logicalium in Alta Aula.

[278]Ibid.fol. 125 b.

[279]Reg. Vet.fol. 118.

[280]The words are: "qui quidem liber jacuit pro caucione alterius libri decretorum collegii."

[281]Ibid.fol. 121.

[282]Ibid.fol. 100 b.

[283]See above,p. 71.

[284]Dugdale,Mon. Angl.iv.403-406.

[285]See above,p. 108.

[286]Cat. Vet. Libr. Eccl. Cath. Dunelm.ed. Surtees Soc. pp. 39-41.

[287]Wood,History etc., Vol.ii.p. 910.

[288]Leland,Comm. de Script. Brit.ch. 131. I owe this important quotation to the kindness of Dr James.

[289]Printed in theCamb. Antiq. Soc. Comm., Vol.ii.p. 73.

[290]The headings of the two lists are as follows: "Libri per nos de presenti dicto nostro Collegio dati et in dicto Collegio ex nunc ad Sociorum communem usum perpetuo remansuri.""Libri vero de presenti per nos dicto collegio dati, quorum usum nobis pro vitæ nostræ tempore quamdiu nobis placuerit duximus reservandum, immediate inferius describuntur."

[290]The headings of the two lists are as follows: "Libri per nos de presenti dicto nostro Collegio dati et in dicto Collegio ex nunc ad Sociorum communem usum perpetuo remansuri."

"Libri vero de presenti per nos dicto collegio dati, quorum usum nobis pro vitæ nostræ tempore quamdiu nobis placuerit duximus reservandum, immediate inferius describuntur."

[291]Arch. Hist.Vol.ii.p. 442. History of Trinity College.

[292]Collected Papers of Henry Bradshaw, 8vo. Camb., 1889, pp. 19-34.

[293]No heading to the first division of the list is given in the catalogue.

[294]Camb. Ant. Soc. Comm., Vol.ii.p. 165.

[295]Ibid.Vol.ii.p. 258.

[296]Camb. Ant. Soc. Quarto Publ., No.i.This catalogue represents the state of the library at the end of the fifteenth century, for it contains the books given by Richard Nelson, who founded a Fellowship in 1503, and probably gave his books at the same time, "sub ea condicione quod semper remanerent cum tribus sociis."

[297]From my additions to the essay on "The Library," by Professor Willis, p. 404.

[298]This catalogue, written at the beginning of the old parchment Register of the College, has been printed by Dr James in hisCatalogue of the MSS. in the Library of Peterhouse, 8vo. Camb., 1899. pp. 3-26.

[299]From my additions to the essay on "The Library," by Professor Willis, p. 402.

[300]Commiss. Docts.(Cambridge), Vol.i. p. 21. Stat. 24.

[301]Ibid.p. 22.

[302]This analysis of the catalogue of Peterhouse Library is borrowed from the Introduction which I had the pleasure of contributing to my friend Dr James'Catalogue.

[303]Arch. Hist., The Library, p. 404.

[304]Arch. Hist., vol.i., p. 138.

[305]I have to thank my friend Mr T. G. Jackson, architect, for kindly lending me this section of Bishop Cobham's library. For his history of the building, see hisChurch of St Mary the Virgin, Oxford, 4to. 1897, pp. 90-106. With regard to the number of windows he notes (p. 102): There would have been eight, two to a bay, were it not that the tower buttresses occupy half the western bay.

[306]Anstey,Mun. Acad.i.227.

[307]Jackson,ut supra, p. 98.

[308]The total height of this desk-end is 66 in.; from the ground to the beginning of the groove 31 in.; each slit is 19 in. long.

[309]For scale seefig. 62, p. 163.

[310]Camb. Ant. Soc. Proc. and Comm.Vol.viii.pp. 379-388, 7 May, 1894.

[311]The existing Library is still called the New Library.

[312]Novum ac Magnum Theatrum Urbium Belgicæ, fol. Amsterdam, 1649, s. v. Zutphania. For these historical facts I have to thank my friend Mr Gimberg,Archivariusat Zutphen.

[313]I have to thank Mr T. D. Atkinson, architect, for drawing this plan.

[314]I have again to thank Mr Gimberg for this photograph. It was a work of no small difficulty owing to the imperfect light.

[315]For scale seefig. 62, p. 163.

[316]I have described this library inCamb. Ant. Soc. Proc. and Comm.Vol.viii.pp. 11-18.

[317]This book is now in the University Library, Cambridge.

[318]Arch. Hist., The Library,iii.429. It is obvious that these heavy chains must have been attached to the lower edge of one of the boards, and that the bar must have been below the desk and not above it. See above,p. 139.

[319]Arch. Hist.ii.244.

[320]See above,pp. 117-121.

[321]MSS. Harl. 4335. The picture hanging on the wall represents Philosophy offering her consolation to a sick man.

[322]For this information I have to thank my friend, Bernard W. Henderson, M.A., Fellow of Merton College, Oxford.

[323]Delisle,Cabinet des manuscrits,ii.186,note.

[324]This account is, in the main, a translation of that given by M. Delisle,ut supra.

[325]Bibl. Nat. Par. MSS. Lat. 5493. For the history of this library see Delisle,ut supra, pp. 142-208; Franklin,Anciennes Bibliothèques de Paris,i.pp. 221-317.

[326]Franklin,ut supra, vol.i.p. 399.

[327]Franklin,Bibliothèques de Paris,ii.70.

[328]Delisle,ut supra,ii.228-231; Franklin,ut supra,i.135-185. The catalogue of Claude de Grandrue is in the Bibliothèque Nationale, fonds latin, No. 14767; the alphabetical index in the Bibliothèque Mazarine, No. 1358.

[329]Delisle, p. 228,note.

[330]The MS. (No. 164) is by Frère Jehan de Castel.

[331]This reproduction is from a copy of the print now in the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge. It also occurs on a reduced scale inLes Arts au Moyen Age et à l'Epoque de la Renaissancepar Paul Lacroix, 4o.Paris, 1869, p. 492; and inIllustrium Hollandiae et Westfrisiae Ordinumetc. 4o.Lugd. Bat., 1614.

RECAPITULATION. INVENTION OF THE STALL-SYSTEM. LIBRARY OF CORPUS CHRISTI COLLEGE, OXFORD, TAKEN AS A TYPE. SYSTEM OF CHAINING IN HEREFORD CATHEDRAL. LIBRARIES OF MERTON COLLEGE, OXFORD, AND CLARE COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE. THE STALL-SYSTEM COPIED AT WESTMINSTER ABBEY, WELLS, AND DURHAM CATHEDRALS. THIS SYSTEM POSSIBLY MONASTIC. LIBRARIES AT CANTERBURY, DOVER PRIORY, CLAIRVAUX.

If the evidence brought forward in the last chapter be accepted, the Library which a Monastery or College built in the fifteenth century was a long narrow room lighted by rows of equidistant windows. Occasionally, if neighbouring buildings allowed, there was a window at the end of the room also. The fittings were lecterns of wood. On these the books were laid, each volume being fastened by a chain to a bar usually placed over the desk, but occasionally, in all probability, in front of it or beneath it. The readers sat on benches immoveably fixed opposite to each window. It is obvious that reading was convenient enough so long as the students were few, but if they were numerous and the books chained too closely together much annoyance must have been caused. When the University of Oxford petitioned Humphrey Duke of Gloucester in 1444 to help them to build a new library, they specially dwelt upon the obstacles to study arising from the overcrowded condition of the old room. "Should any student," they said, "be poring over a single volume, as oftenhappens, he keeps three or four others away on account of the books being chained so closely together[332]."

Further, the lectern-system was so wasteful in the matter of space, that, as books accumulated, some other piece of furniture had to be devised to contain them. The desk could not be dispensed with so long as books were chained; and it therefore occurred to an ingenious carpenter that the required conditions would be fulfilled if the two halves of the desk were separated, not by a few inches, but by a considerable interval, or broad shelf, with one or more shelves fixed above it. Thus a case was arrived at containing four shelves at least, two to each side of the case, which could be made as long as the width of the library permitted. I propose to call this system "the stall-system," from the wordstaulum(sometimes writtenstalla,stallus, orstallum), which is frequently applied to a case for books in a medieval library.

There are at least five fine examples of this system at Oxford—none, I am sorry to say, at Cambridge. There was a set at Clare College, supplied to the old Library about 1627, but they have since been altered by the removal of the desks. Those at Oxford are at Corpus Christi College (1517), S. John's College (1596), Sir Thomas Bodley's library (1598), Merton College (1623), Jesus College (1677-79), Magdalen College (of uncertain date).

As a type of this system I shall take the library of Corpus Christi College, founded in 1516 by Richard Fox, Bishop of Winchester. The library was ready for the fittings by the end of March in the following year, as we learn from a building account preserved by Hearne:

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