Treasures of the British Library

Telling the remarkable stories of over 2,000 years of human experience, our Treasures of the British Library Gallery gives you a peek into the wonders of our vast collection:

• Enter the minds of literature’s greatest writers: view the desk where Jane Austen penned her novels, original writings from Charles Dickens and Shakespeare’s First Folio.
• See the Lindisfarne Gospels and the oldest surviving examples of printed text in Japan.
• Get a whistle-stop tour around the world with religious texts from across the globe, including one of the earliest Qur’ans and a Hindu manuscript written on a palm leaf.
• Explore science and innovation through the ages from Michelangelo’s anatomical illustrations to Anne McLaren’s early experiments into in vitro fertilisation (IVF).
• Meet Gandhi, the Suffragettes and other courageous figures who have inspired change.

Get a taste of what’s inside the Gallery in our accompanying Treasures website.

What’s new in Treasures?

From January 2019, you will find:

• A completely new Printing case including the Gutenberg Bible, Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales and the world’s oldest dated complete printed book, the Diamond Sutra 
• Leonardo da Vinci’s theatrical stage designs
• A new case on contemporary female artists.