The DIGITAL BODLEIAN collections make print items, archives, manuscripts, maps, images, and other materials from the Boolean Libraries at the University of Oxford available online.
According to their website, the digital library’s mission is to “make portions of the Bodleian’s extraordinary library collections open to a wide variety of users from around the world for learning, teaching, and research.”
The website provides four ways to make use of the digital library. First, users can search the digital archives using a powerful search engine. Second, a user-friendly interface is provided for browsing the collections. Third, users can create their own custom collections adding tags and notes. Finally, resources can be shared using social media.
The collections can be filtered by early printed books, ephemera, history and politics, maps, oriental, prints and portraits, science and natural history, western manuscripts, or through the many other collection areas available.
Of particular interest to librarians is the Treasures of the Bodleian section focusing on well-known and often used documents. This area provides access to materials of interest to teachers and students such as a letter from an Egyptian boy to his father, Marco Polo’s Travels, and The Gutenberg Bible.
To explore the treasures section, go to http://treasures.bodleian.ox.ac.uk.
To learn more, go to the website at http://digital.bodleian.ox.ac.uk.
