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'"Can you tell me something of its provenance…?"
This is the question most frequently asked by researchers consulting our early printed collections, and there are some features of the history of the College's library which can help to explain the institutional, and often personal, history of most of the collection. The Benefactors' Register The college was founded in 1438, and from the first statutes, rules were laid down by Archbishop Chichele concerning the keeping of books and the recording of their donors. In Chapter 26 of the Statutes, it was stated that the details of the books and donors were to be recorded in a Register (figs. 1-2) made specifically for the purpose: ...
