Wednesday 8 August 2012

Christ Church College


           

During our day trip to the lovely city of Oxford, our class made a trip to Christ Church College.  I will admit my knowledge of Oxford  was vague so it made my visit much more exciting and interesting.  I had no clue that Oxford is all about Lewis Carroll Alice in Wonderland. In fact I was in Oxford during the 150th anniversary of the publication of Alice in Wonderland; how cool is that? I did not know that Winston Churchill hung out there.  I did not know that J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis liked to meet up for dinner at a pub called the Eagle and Child; this was the location of my first fish & chips experience.  Yes.  Oxford is an awesome place to visit!   

                   
Alter at Christ Church Cathedral
                             
 
Christ Church College is chock full of a vast, fascinating history. The college was originally planned by Cardinal Wolsey; famous for being a chief adviser to Henry VIII.   Several famous people have studied there including John Locke, Robert Hooke and thirteen prime minsters as well.

Ceiling in Christ Church College Library
                              
Our visit to Christ Church College Library was a privileged visit ; a wonderful surprise to say the least.  The library is quite beautiful.  The detail in the building is fantastic.  The ceilings are beyond gorgeous and included detail that I was not expecting which made the experience all the more grand.  The collection housed upstairs, the special collection, is magnificent.  I have never before seen a library with so much natural light.  It was simply amazing.  The shelves and flooring are all wood.  There were wooden ladders lined along the shelves.  It felt like an old-fashioned library and it is awesome to be able to say that I have been inside.  Again it was a welcomed visit and one we were lucky to get.  Thank you Maria Franchini for allowing us to visit.  It was a privilege!

Christ Church College Library Upper Floor
                                
  Bits of Information
  • The collection is full of early printed books and manuscripts with strength in Hebrew materials.   
  • The library pictured in this blog is known as The Upper Library. 
  •  It is 150 feet long and contains 40,000 books. 
  •  A library was first established at Christ Church in 1562.  Outside the Bodleian Library, Christ Church Library has the largest collection of early printed books in Oxford. 
This is just a small taste of what Christ Church is all about.  You should totally take a look at this link and learn some more!

No comments:

Post a Comment