Charles Dickens was #BornOnThisDay in 1812. This is his birthplace in Portsmouth, photographed in 1909 by Alfred Hugh Fisher (1867-1945). You can see more of Fisher's photographs in the Cambridge Digital Library: https://loom.ly/keMdjB4#BornOnThisDay RCS/Fisher 21/5091 (Royal Commonwealth Collection).

Happy LGBT+ History Month from your libraries! You'll find lots of displays across University of Cambridge Libraries and Archives. Here are some highlights from the Haddon Library, the English Faculty Library and the Casimir Lewy Library.

Gliding our way into the weekend, and the Winter Olympics... ⛸️ This charming photo (MS Kennet D22) from Kathleen Scott’s diaries shows her son Peter ice skating in Switzerland in 1923. Peter later became a renowned naturalist and environmentalist.

I knew we had Hrabanus Maurus manuscripts that looked like this @theul.bsky.social, but no idea we had this equally amazing printed edition of 1503 highlighted by @liamsims.bsky.social. Gosh. Completely wonderful.

Yesterday I arranged a trip to the Cairo Geniza unit with students. The earliest dated copy of the Hebrew bible, next to a shopping list of the Chief Rabbi (lemon chicken and molokhia), and at the other end of the table a letter from merchants in India. Such wonderful collection! @theul.bsky.social

Beautiful 19th-century Indian mica paintings from Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu, Southern India. Mica is a thin, transparent mineral with a glass-like surface. Pictured here are a Hujam, a barber, and his wife (1869). See the full set in the Cambridge Digital Library: https://loom.ly/V9BSC5I

#OnThisDay in 1555, John Rogers became the first of many Protestants burned at the stake during the reign of Mary I. Born in 1500, Rogers was the editor of this English translation of the Bible published in 1537 under the pseudonym Thomas Matthew (BSS.201.B37.5).

🌐 Two upcoming events will share the findings of the AI for Cultural Heritage Hub (ArCH) project. ArCH has created a prototype workspace designed to analyse cultural heritage data securely using AI tools. To book: https://loom.ly/aykS0B4 Funded by @ai.cam.ac.uk

Cambridge University @theul.bsky.social now provides direct access to The Economist (from 1997 to present) myaccount.economist.com/s/institutio... More information here ejournalscambridge.wordpress.com/2026/01/30/n...

What's new from your libraries this term? Read the Lent Term update from your libraries here: https://loom.ly/8CKqyJs #CambridgeUniversityLibrary

Saw this on the Tube this morning. Today marks 40 years of Poems on the Underground. You can see the archive @theul.bsky.social.

Today I discovered a 1903 brochure promoting the UL’s Chinese collection. It bears the names Professor Wade and Giles, the first two Chinese professors and honorary curators, whose selfless efforts built and preserved our collection, reminding me why safeguarding books matters. @theul.bsky.social

Me, at the end of January. Picture is from a Dutch edition of the ‘Cordiale quattuor novissimorum’ (1484) on death and the final journey of the soul, ascribed to Dionysius Carthusiensis & Gerardus de Vliederhoven (Inc.5.E.11.1[3124]). 📷 by @liamsims.bsky.social

Today marks the 40th anniversary of Poems on the Underground! The archive of this beloved literary project was donated to Cambridge University Library in 2024. The Poems on the Underground collection has been catalogued and is available for consultation. Find out more: https://loom.ly/CkKUpV4

📚 Some of our most historic collections for #LibraryShelfieDay! ⭐This part of our collection is known as the ‘Stars’, from the paper asterisks stuck on their spines. It contains the contents of the Library as it stood in 1714. Photo by @liamsims.bsky.social

✍️ Need help with your academic writing? Support sessions with our Royal Literary Fund Fellow, Alexander Masters, are available for all current Cambridge University students and staff. To book, email [email protected]. Manuscript image: MS Gg.1.1

#HolocaustMemorialDay. Today, our Music department encourages us to remember the musicians forced into Terezín concentration camp. Captive Jewish composers produced and performed powerful work that has endured, ensuring the responsibility of remembrance doesn’t end with the survivors.

The January choice for our Really Popular Book Club is Katabasis by R. F. Kuang. Join us tomorrow to discuss the book with Dr Tabitha Stanmore (@magicnotwitches.bsky.social) 📅TUES 27 JAN 2026 ⏰7PM to 8PM 🎟️ Free, online and open to all: https://loom.ly/TBY0WOg

Crime fiction is by far the UK’s most read, bought and borrowed genre of fiction. Not sure which fictional sleuth to try next? Kick off your #NationalYearOfReading2026 by checking our reading list of crime classics, featuring some defining books from the genre: https://loom.ly/i_2u-Tk#NationalYearOfReading2026

Today marks 125 years since the death of Queen Victoria. Victoria died at Osborne House, on the Isle of Wight, on 22 January 1901. This fascinating selection of press clippings shows the reaction across Europe. British Colonial & Foreign Press Cutting Agency (Syn.2.90.7-8).

We are pleased to announce @theul.bsky.social has purchased two further 2026 ebook collections; University of Chicago Press and University of Pennsylvania Press. Please read this blogpost for more details, ebookscambridge.wordpress.com/2026/01/21/c...

We’ve got millions of books at Cambridge University Library. 📚 Not sure how to find what you're looking for? This video will get you started: https://loom.ly/c5qjW7U

New year, new term – what's new from Cambridge University Libraries? Read the Lent Term update from your libraries here: https://loom.ly/8CKqyJs #CambridgeUniversityLibrary

We’re exploring ways to preserve the heritage of our building, reduce its environmental footprint, and keep it at the forefront of academic research. This January, join the conversation by visiting one of our exhibitions or talks, held across Cambridge. https://loom.ly/fSvTWXs

Perhaps the weirdest item in @theul.bsky.social's catalogue, which is not in fact a book but an actual boot from 17th-century Lithuania (it's a long story...)

Applications are open for the Munby Fellowship 2026-27 📚 An opportunity to spend a year conducting bibliographical research based on the world-class collections of Cambridge. ⏰Closing date: 1 Feb 2026 More information on applying: https://loom.ly/stSFkzg

Seventeenth-century squirrel, looks like it’s eating a little nut. On an embroidered binding from a 1641 psalter, SSS.34.27 @theul.bsky.social. #AlphabetChallenge #WeekBforBooks 📷 #photography

Not all telephone boxes are for phone calls 📞 This fully-refurbished K6 (Kiosk No. 6) telephone box at @theul.bsky.social has been repurposed as a book drop for returning loans 📚 📸 Lloyd Mann

We're open as usual today, Saturday 17 January. As a thank you for your patience while we were closed yesterday, there's free tea and coffee for readers and staff available in the Tea Room until 2pm ☕

We're back! The University Library will open again on Saturday 17 January. The issue this morning was due to a burst water pipe, which has now been safely resolved. We are pleased to confirm there is no damage to, or concern for, our collections. https://loom.ly/JAHIoXk

The University Library will be closed today, due to a burst water pipe. We are pleased to confirm there is no damage to, or concern for, our collections. The heating and hot water are currently still off throughout the building. https://loom.ly/JAHIoXk

Due to an unplanned maintenance issue which requires further assessment, the University Library will not be open to readers until 12 noon at the earliest today. We'll update as soon as we have an opening time. You can also check our Service Update page: loom.ly/JAHIoXk

The Main Reading Room at Cambridge University Library reopens tomorrow, Friday 16 January. There continue to be some restrictions on the materials available for fetching. Learn more: https://loom.ly/JAHIoXk. Thanks for your patience. For any questions: [email protected] / 01223 333000.

Munby Fellowship in Bibliography based @theul.bsky.social in Cambridge - closes on 1 February, so still time to apply.

Due to maintenance issues in the University Library, the Main Reading Room will remain closed on Thursday 15 January. Additionally, there are some restrictions on the materials available for fetching. Thanks for your patience. Find out more: https://loom.ly/JAHIoXk.

📝 The Research Skills Training Programme from University of Cambridge Libraries and Archives is open for bookings! 👋 Designed primarily for PhD students and researchers, the sessions are open to all Cambridge staff and students. 🔎Learn more and book: https://loom.ly/RjU6dj4

The old Cambridge University Library. @theul.bsky.social #AlphabetChallenge #WeekBforBooks 📷 #photography

Due to maintenance issues in the University Library, the Main Reading Room remains closed today and tomorrow (13-14 Jan). Additionally, there are some restrictions on the materials available for fetching. Thanks for your patience. There is more information available here: https://loom.ly/JAHIoXk.

Fascinating to see this @theul.bsky.social today - Newton’s drawing of his reflecting telescope, made in 1668.

Painter John Singer Sargent was born on this day in 1856. In 1915 he painted this portrait of University Librarian Francis Jenkinson, to mark the 25th year of his librarianship. It hangs outside the present Librarian's office @theul.bsky.social.

The Main Reading Room at the University Library is closed today (Monday, January 12th) due to a heating issue. Contractors are on-site to resolve the problem, and we are working to minimise the disruption.

A nice record of 81 plants still in flower on 29 October 1800 around Winthorpe, Nottinghamshire by Revett Sheppard (1778-1830), then a student in his twenties at @caiuscollege.bsky.social, Cambridge. From his ‘Naturalist’s Calendar’, MS Add. 9839/22/1 @theul.bsky.social. @bsbibotany.bsky.social 1/2

This book claims to have been printed on the frozen River Thames in 1814 during the last of the great frost fairs! Frostiana, published by G. Davis in 1814 (Syn.7.81.93)

Call now open for Visiting Fellowships in our Natural History Humanities programme! Building long-term collaborations with early career researchers on Cambridge GLAM collections. @camunivmuseums.bsky.social @theul.bsky.social @cubotanicgarden.bsky.social www.ccc.cam.ac.uk/initiatives/...

📅 Coming up on 13 January! Join an interactive workshop on Fair Attribution and Publishing for Technicians. Open to technicians across the University, in any department and at any grade/level (you don’t need “technician” in your job title). Find out more and book a place: https://loom.ly/iPT645k

Our Annual Review illuminates the remarkable breadth of work undertaken by our wonderful colleagues across our Libraries and Archives network, and at the University Library. 🔎Read about our extraordinary year: https://loom.ly/3cGDvuQ Pictured: scanning the 13th-century Merlin manuscript fragment.

The January choice for our Really Popular Book Club is Katabasis by R. F. Kuang. Join us online to discuss the book with Dr Tabitha Stanmore (@magicnotwitches.bsky.social) 📅TUES 27 JAN 2026 ⏰7PM to 8PM 🎟️ Free, online and open to all: https://loom.ly/TBY0WOg

Our 2026 Christmas card is already sorted 🤝 This wonderful photo of Cambridge University Library in the snow was taken by Lloyd Mann.

There is now a combined Special Collections Reading Room for manuscripts and archives at the UL. Learn more about the changes: https://loom.ly/hXnGx8w

Sledging our way into the New Year... Images from our collections: 1. Children sledging down a hill, 1884 (1884.7.702). 2. Bears in a rustic sledge, 1909 (Waddleton b.1.441).