This carving in the nave of Sterling Memorial Library recalls the founding of the University's first library in 1701, when a group of shoreline clergymen came together to share their resources. The Beinecke's new exhibit shows how the function of the library has changed over the years.

Beinecke display explores how Yale's
library has evolved over the centuries

It's a tale that's been passed down for generations: In 1701, when the founding of Collegiate School was imminent, 10 ministers gathered at the Branford home of the Reverend Samuel Russel, each bringing a number of books, which were ceremoniously placed on Russel's parlor table to mark the founding of the school. While the exact identity of these books may remain forever shrouded in mists of time and story-telling, the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library has gathered together a number of volumes that may well have been at Yale since its beginning for an exhibition titled "A Library for Its Time: Collections Then and Now, 1701-2001." The display is being presented Oct. 5-Dec. 21 as part of Yale's Tercentennial celebration. The exhibition contrasts that early theological library, which was well suited to the purposes of the University's founders, with a selection of the diverse authors, subjects, eras, formats, genres and languages now collected by the Beinecke Library to support the research and curricula of its time. Yale's Earliest Library The books that found their way into the earliest Yale library were, for the most part, printed in Switzerland, Germany and Holland in the 16th and 17th centuries. Some were more than a century old when the school opened in 1701, and none of their authors was still among the living. Most of the books are written in Latin, then the lingua franca of scholarship. A few titles, all of them printed in the 1600s, were in English. The books in this hypothetical recreation of Yale's founding collection do not document the great expeditions or scientific discoveries of the age, and they don't contain a line of Shakespeare, Marlowe or Ben Jonson. Except for a few historical and philosophical works, it is a theological library. There is a Bible, of course -- the Latin translation of Immanuel Tremellius and Franciscus Junius (Geneva, 1590) -- as well as the works of Saint Augustine, a 10-volume edition published in Basel in 1569, the gift of Yale's first rector, Abraham Pierson. While some books are devoted to Swiss Reformers associated with Ulrich Zwingli, the focal point of the collection is Calvinism. One highlight of the exhibit is Calvin's "Institutio Christianae religionis," a work first published in 1536; the volume on display was printed in 1606 in Geneva and bears on its title page the ownership inscription of Yale founder James Pierpont. The works in English in the Beinecke display are all commentaries on books of the Bible: Andrew Willet's commentary on Genesis in its third edition (London, 1632) may have rested on the shelves of Yale's first library alongside Nicholas Byfield's thoughts on the Epistle to the Colossians (London, 1615) and Joseph Caryl's "Exposition with practicall observations upon ... the booke of Job," published in London in the mid-17th century. "Books & Beyond" Three hundred years after the compilation of Yale's original library, the Beinecke Library is still avidly collecting 16th and 17th century books. The library's most recent acquisitions of works from this period range in topic from art to astronomy, cosmography, costume, architecture, military science, navigation, fencing, fishing, gaming and hunting. Among the library's holdings are also city guides, how-to manuals, biographies, scientific treatises, classical texts reprinted and translated, and thousands of literary works, from poetry to popular street plays. Just as Yale's collection of 16th- and 17th-century works has grown in subject matter and format, the Beinecke Library has gathered materials from across the centuries in its quest to explore the record of human history and thought in all its multiplicity. The second half of the Beinecke exhibition is called "Books & Beyond" to emphasize the fact that a modern rare book library collects not only books, but broadsides, pamphlets, maps, musical scores, prints, ephemera, documentary art, audio tapes, historical films, photographs and even computer disks. Among the items in the exhibition are an illuminated manuscript, representing the Beinecke's large collection of medieval and Renaissance codices, and several incunables, books printed in the West between the appearance of the Gutenberg Bible in 1455 and the beginning of the 16th century. Items from the other end of the time-line include 20th-century literary archives and the artistic/literary products of Modernism, such as Marinetti's "metal book" and selections from the papers of Gertrude Stein, Georgia O'Keeffe, and the Theatre Guild. Also on display are musical scores and a selection of rare photographs, as well as art works by Georgia O'Keeffe and Charles Demuth. An illustrated brochure will be available during the exhibition. The Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, located at 121 Wall St., is open for exhibition viewing 8:30 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday, and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Saturday. The library will be closed Nov. 22-25 for the Thanksgiving holiday. For further information, call (203) 432-2977 or visit the library's website at www.library.yale.edu/ beinecke. T H I SW E E K ' SS T O R I E S Alumnus James Bundy to be next Drama Dean Endowment increases to $10.7 billion Beinecke display explores how Yale's library has evolved over the centuries School of Art show pays testament to Yale alumni's influence . . . New book will explore ways to combat terrorism Renowned architect Tadao Ando is year's first Chubb Fellow Study reveals cells' critical role in fighting cancer Looking at art proves to help students become better doctors Archive documents work of lover of nature and good literature Exhibit features Chinese artist's prison paintings, notes Former Yale president to discuss public education Faculty to be featured speakers at campus events Divinity Dean, faculty serving as presidents of scholarly groups Link between abolitionism and feminism will be explored in conference Yale composers are honored with ASCAPLU$ awards Setting the stage for Yale's gala celebration Campus Notes Bulletin Home|Visiting on Campus|Calendar of Events|In the News|Bulletin Board Yale Scoreboard|Classified Ads|Search Archives|Deadlines Bulletin Staff|Public Affairs Home|News Releases| E-Mail Us|Yale Home Page