Be more West 4 🧊 It's one of the coolest places in the UL. Need some other spots to cool down in our building? 👇 ➡️The Commonwealth Room ➡️The East Asian Reading Room (AOI) ➡️South Wing Study Hub ➡️The exhibition space ➡️The tea room ➡️A shady spot in the courtyards

We’re hiring! Library Storage Facility Forklift Driver/Picker Cambridge University Library Storage Facility (LSF), located in Witchford, Ely, is looking for 2 enthusiastic and diligent people to join its team. Apply by 5 July: https://loom.ly/7TpyJsY

“The idea of the Libraries Alliance formed around a simple belief: the power of libraries through life.” 📚 Read more about the values and goals of the Libraries Alliance in this new blog post by Dr Jessica Gardner, Cambridge University Librarian: https://loom.ly/zz32ayI.

We’re hiring: Liaison Librarian (CST/CEB) The Liaison Librarian will deliver library services across Cambridge West, with particular responsibility for Computer Science and Technology (CST) and Chemical Engineering and Biotechnology (CEB) Apply before Sunday 5 July: https://loom.ly/K9_PH_M

It’s the 400th anniversary of a book being discovered in a Cambridge market, which would be unremarkable except it was found in the belly of a fish (which had been caught off King’s Lynn and gutted that morning), and consisted of three essays by a Protestant martyr (and was republished. Obviously) 🧵

400 years ago today, a codfish was gutted at Cambridge Market. 🐟   Inside it was a tiny book containing Protestant texts from the early years of the English Reformation.   Was this a providential message from God, a piece of political propaganda or an elaborate hoax? Music by Julius H. from Pixabay

Have you been working on something exciting in your library? The Assistant Library Staff Forum is taking place at Newnham College on 24 September 2026 and we would love to hear from you! Scan the QR code below or submit your proposal through the link in our bio by 5 July 2026.

Cambridge students, our trolleys are waiting patiently for your books! Please help us fill them back up before you head off on your summer adventures. If you need to return books after you've graduated and can't return in person, you can use our freepost returns service: https://loom.ly/wf0LwIs

Happy Summer Solstice! ☀️ Here is an excellent personification of the great golden orb in the sky, complete with impressive side-eye 👀 Hand-coloured wood cut from Theoricarum novarum textus Georgii Purbachii cum... expositione Domini Francisci Capuani, 1515 (Norton.b.14).

As the term drifts to a close, take a moment to pause in our beautiful Dye Garden. 🌿 The hollyhocks are blooming, and the sky is once again washed with Cambridge blue. 🩵 We hope you have a happy weekend in the sunshine! ☀️ 📍 Find the Dye Garden in the North Courtyard.

Last month, we enjoyed a fantastic poetry workshop with the Friends of the Cam and the charity WildFish. This Sunday, the Friends of the Cam will celebrate their commitment to defending the river by reading the Declaration of the Rights of the River Cam on Jesus Green. 🔎 https://loom.ly/mjnfHTg

Following the sad news of Hockney’s death on 11 June, we’ve been looking back at some of the artist's earliest work. Whilst attending Bradford Grammar School, he contributed witty illustrations to the school magazine, The Bradfordian. March 1953 issue, Cambridge University Library (Webb.5.1.117).

'Francis Bacon and the crisis of the palatinate' Quentin Skinner Lecture, 19 June https://bit.ly/442lfre Dr Samuel Zeitlin (UCL) will discuss Bacon’s evolving responses to the crisis of the Palatinate through writing and civil histories, in response to the onset of the Thirty Years War

We're delighted to be contributing to Cambridgeshire Libraries' Refugee Week Community Fair. The event takes place this Saturday 20 June at Cambridge Central Library. 🔎Find out more: https://loom.ly/rThz1wo

Going to Cambridge University Library tomorrow? Please read! 👇 We are hosting our Library Late event tomorrow evening (Thurs 18 June). To make sure everything is ready, we're closing at the earlier time of 7:15pm. Thank you for your understanding. 🔗 Last few tickets: https://loom.ly/rza0EYg

Mighty Odysseus @theul.bsky.social

This first edition of Oscar Wilde’s The Happy Prince contains the story of a secret love affair... 📖The Happy Prince: and other tales by Oscar Wilde illustrated by Walter Crane and Jacomb Hood, 1888. (Keynes.X.6.3) #LGBTQ+ #PrideMonth #RareBooks #CambridgeUniversityLibrary

Curiosity, history and community. That’s the Cambridge spirit behind our 2026 #LGBTQ+ #PrideMonth book display! 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🫶 Find it in the South Reading Room throughout June.

Origami in the wild. A little gift on the way through North Wing 2 to the Tea Room at @theul.bsky.social.

This month's #ReallyPopularBookClub choice is Call Me by Your Name by André Aciman. Join us online to discuss the novel with Aaron Muldoon, a scholar of contemporary queer literature & film at the University of Cambridge. 30 June, 7-8pm 🎟️ https://loom.ly/2Mgua-s#ReallyPopularBookClub #LGBTQ+ #PrideMonth 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

There's still time to book your ticket for this week's Library Late!

Before you leave Cambridge for the end of term, please remember to return your library books! For 24/7 returns, use the drop box outside the UL. If you need to return books after you've graduated, and can't return in person, you can use our freepost returns service: https://loom.ly/wf0LwIs

🦋 The swallowtail is one of the UK’s most striking butterflies. It’s rare too, and most commonly associated with the Norfolk Broads, where it can be seen from late May to mid-July. Have you ever seen one in the wild? The Nature Book, 1909.10.154. #WorldSwallowtailDay

We're keeping the doors open late on Thursday 18 June for our Library Late! Experience the UL after hours with a pop-up bar and DJ Bosslady on the decks. Plus workshops, board games, talks, films and live poetry performances. ⏰7.30PM TO 10PM 🎟️£8. Adults only. 🔗https://loom.ly/rza0EYg

Coming up next week, it's the FREE 45 minute introductory tour of the @theul.bsky.social exhibition: Living Water: Poetry, Art and the Fight for Clean Rivers with Dr Chris Burgess at Cambridge University Library. 16/06/2026 @ 12:15. Register here: www.cilip.org.uk/events/Event...

Level 4 of the #Backrooms or South Wing 4 at the UL? 🌀🤔 🎬 ‘Backrooms’ is a sort of mystery sub-genre of the internet where people talk about endless, empty corridors. It’s now the subject of a new horror film. Still confused? We are too, but our stacks do seem to fit the bill.

We’re mixing things up on Thursday 18 June for a special Library Late experience! Experience the UL after hours with a pop-up bar and DJ Bosslady on the decks. Plus workshops, board games, talks, films and live poetry performances. ⏰7.30PM TO 10PM 🎟️£8. Adults only. 🔗https://loom.ly/rza0EYg

Curiosity, history and community. That’s the Cambridge spirit behind our 2026 #LGBTQ+ #PrideMonth reading list. 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️🫶 These books are all available at Cambridge University Library, or ask for them at your local library. 🌍 👇

Day 8, #30DaysWild. Jackdaw outside @theul.bsky.social.

“Four physicians inspecting urine flasks in an apothecary shop…” Medieval medicine or the set up to a very niche pub joke? Thoughts on the punchline welcome below 👇 🔎Hortus sanitatis (Inc.3.A.1.8[37]), Germany, 1491: https://loom.ly/GoXNDik @camdiglib.bsky.social

Did you know that Cambridge University had a farm? Its archive is held @theul.bsky.social and the University Archivist explores its history in our latest blog! specialcollections-blog.lib.cam.ac.uk?p=31573

Our latest blog is a guest post by Linda van Rheinberg, a student at Heinrich Heine University (Düsseldorf) who spent time examining medieval manuscripts @theul.bsky.social with her fellow students earlier this year. Read all about it here! specialcollections-blog.lib.cam.ac.uk?p=31935

Living Water: Poetry, Art and the Fight for Clean Rivers explores the work and legacy of artist Barrie Cooke, and his remarkable creative friendship with poets Seamus Heaney and Ted Hughes. 🎟️ FREE entry 📍Cambridge University Library and Pembroke College 🔎 Find out more: https://loom.ly/64SyJug

"This beast is woonderful nimble, setting upon her prey like a Lyon." On this most important of days – #HugYourCatDay – we beseech you to find a tiny-but-fierce cat to hug (with their permission, of course). 🔎The historie of foure-footed beastes by Edward Topsell. London, 1607 (SSS.1.9).

Picking Calendula officinalis (commonly known as pot marigold) in the Dye Garden! 🏵️🎨 These vibrant blooms will be dried and processed to make dye. We hope for soft, glowing yellows, honey golds, and warm straw tones. #CambridgeUniversityLibrary #CULConservation 📷by Raffaella Losito

This, but with a cocktail in hand. 🍸 We're keeping the doors open late on Thursday 18 June for our Library Late! Experience the UL after hours with a pop-up bar and DJ Bosslady on the decks. TICKETS: £8. Adults only. 🎟️https://loom.ly/rza0EYg 📷by Alice the Camera.

Mon 20 July 2026, 8-9.30pm, next @beertheologycam.bsky.social at Fort St George pub, #Cambridge. @suzpaul.bsky.social, Keeper of Rare Books & Early Manuscripts @theul.bsky.social, ‘Medieval Manuscript Sermons: Lessons for Today?’. Open to all - just turn up. www.grahamkings.org/article/beer...

Still time to sign up for a FREE tour of the Living Water exhibition @theul.bsky.social with Dr Chris Burgess. #Exhibitions #CleanRivers #Libraries

Exam season = locked in at the UL. Here are the study spots we keep coming back to: 📚 Commonwealth Room – quiet, focused energy ☀️ South Reading Room – cosy rainy day vibes ❄️ West 4 – beloved for its good air con 🏛️ Main Reading Room – the undisputed GOAT of study spaces What's your favourite?

How to stay sane in a heatwave, Medieval-style: 1. Sit on the riverbank with your legs in the water and leeches on your legs 2. Eat all your meals in a canopied bath full of ice 3. Keep hydrated All images are from a 15th century book: Régime du corps (CUL MS Ii.5.11).

✍️ Ever wanted to write poetry? Led by novelist Dr Yvonne Battle-Felton, Academic Director of Creative Writing at Cambridge, this fun introductory workshop is perfect for poetry beginners. 📅Sat 6 June ⏰10-11:30am 🎟️£10 I 18+ 📍Cambridge University Library https://loom.ly/zYiLe-M

🌿 This sprig of wild mignonette (Reseda lutea) was picked from a cornfield near Horseheath, Cambridgeshire, in 1784 – and it still survives today in a remarkable herbarium compiled by Edward Hanmer. Explore it online in @camdiglib.bsky.social https://loom.ly/Nf6YOy8 (MS Add.10547)

Eid Mubarak 🌙 We are marking Eid al-Adha by sharing this remarkable copy of the well-known Islamic prayer-book, the Dalāʼil al-khayrāt. It is written in Maghribi script and was designed for travel. MS Add.3500 Dalāʼil al-khayrāt Muḥammad ibn Sulaymān al-Jazūlī (d. 1465) West Africa, 19th century

Industrial action at the University of Cambridge is taking place on 26, 27, 28 and 29 May (Tuesday - Friday). We aim to maintain services during the strikes but we advise you to check our service updates page before travelling to our libraries: https://loom.ly/JAHIoXk.

Don't miss Part One this week!

We are open as usual today, Monday 25 May! If you need a break from all the hard work, why not pop into our exhibition, Living Water? No need to book, just drop in and cool off (it has air con! 😎). #CambridgeUniversityLibrary

The Lady of Eloquence in her garden – lengthy to-do list in hand, but manifesting calm. 😌 We hope you have a great bank holiday and can enjoy the marvellous weather. If you need us, we’re open as usual on Bank Holiday Monday, 25 May. Les douze dames de rhétorique (MS Nn.3.2)

Dive into Living Water: Poetry, Art and the Fight for Clean Rivers, at Cambridge University Library. We're open this Bank Holiday Monday. No need to book – just drop in and immerse yourself: https://loom.ly/64SyJug Seen in this photo: River Dart Rapids 84, by Barrie Cooke.

Step inside Cambridge University Library after hours for an unforgettable evening inspired by our new exhibition, Living Water. 📅THURSDAY 18 JUNE 2026 ⏰7.30PM TO 10PM 📍Cambridge University Library 🎟️TICKETS: £8. Adults only. 🔗More info and to book: https://loom.ly/rza0EYg

We ❤️ Bees! Here's a few of our favourite Bee-things for #WorldBeeDay! There's medieval bees, a model honeycomb, Darwin's kids help-out with an experiment, and poor Oliver Rackham gets stung! 🐝 🧵 1/7...