Spaces to visit
Old Bodleian Library
Within the Old Bodleian Library there are five internal spaces to visit, all accessed via the Proscholium on the ground floor. Please note that Duke Humfrey’s Library, the only area where visitors can see old books on original bookshelves, is on the first floor and is regrettably not wheelchair accessible.
Divinity School
Located on the ground floor of the Old Library, this splendid medieval room is the University’s oldest teaching and examination room used for the study of Theology. Considered to be a masterpiece of late Gothic architecture, it was built between 1424–88.
The Divinity School features in numerous Harry Potter films, including The Philosopher’s Stone and The Goblet of Fire.
Visit: By tour or individual visit
Convocation House
Convocation House is a 17th-century room, constructed as a meeting place for the University’s supreme legislative body. Convocation House briefly housed Charles I’s Parliament while the King was resident in Oxford during the Civil War, for the period 1642–6.
Visit: By tour only
Chancellor's Court
Chancellor's Court, connected to Convocation House, is the University’s former courtroom. Formerly known as the Apodyterium, this is a square room with a fan-vaulted ceiling and panelling from the 1630s.
Visit: By tour only
Duke Humfrey’s Library
Duke Humfrey’s Library is the most ancient library room and the atmospheric heart of the library. Tours pass through the oldest section of the library, built between 1610–12. Featuring wooden desks and reading areas; large stained glass windows; and shelves of early books across the main level and a higher gallery, many still shelved in the pre-19th-century manner with the spines facing inward.
Please note, it is not possible to touch any books when visiting Duke Humfrey's Library.
Visit: By tour only
Radcliffe Camera
Funded by the eminent Dr John Radcliffe, designed by James Gibbs and built between 1737–48, this grand circular building in the middle of Radcliffe Square is an iconic landmark in Oxford and a working library.
Visit: By tour only
Proscholium
The Proscholium is the entrance hall from the Old Library, built between 1610–12 as a vestibule to the Divinity School underneath the extension to Duke Humfrey’s Library. Today it displays materials from the Bodleian’s collections about the history of, and research led by, the University.
Group tours normally start in the Proscholium.
Visit: Free entry or by tour
Old Schools Quadrangle
The external quadrangle provides a great 360O view of the Old Library building, a fine example of Gothic architecture constructed between 1610–19. Here you can find the statue of the Third Earl of Pembroke, Chancellor of the University of Oxford from 1617–30 who donated an important collection of manuscripts to the library.
The Bodleian Shop is located in the Old Schools Quadrangle, while the Bodleian’s Ticket Office is located by the Great Gate. Entrance to the Old Library is from the quadrangle through the main door to the Proscholium.
Visit: Free entry
Weston Library
At the modern Weston Library, the home of the Bodleian’s special collections and a working library and research centre for studying the Bodleian’s greatest treasures, you can experience exhibitions, events and displays featuring the Libraries’ famous collections, or visit the popular café and shop.
Free Wi-Fi is available in the Weston.
https://www.youtube.com/embed/3uu11E9nT2U
Blackwell Hall
Blackwell Hall is the Weston Library's splendid entrance atrium with a colonnade overlooking Broad Street. The exhibition rooms, Bodleian Café and The Zvi Meitar Bodleian Libraries Shop can all be accessed via Blackwell Hall.
Visit: Free entry
S T Lee Gallery and The Treasury
The Weston Library houses two exhibition galleries – the S T Lee Gallery and The Treasury. Here you can view the finest books, manuscripts, prints, maps and drawings in the Bodleian's collections through a changing programme of exhibitions.
Visit: Free entry
The Bodleian Café
The Bodleian Café is situated in Blackwell Hall. From the café, visitors can look upon book-lined galleries and the inner workings of the library.
Opening times
Monday – Friday: 8.30am – 5pm
Saturday: 9am – 5pm
Sunday: 11am – 5pm
Other sites
Public events and activities also take place at the Taylor Institution Library and the Radcliffe Science Library.
