World-leading Research
Cambridge University Library Research Institute supports a portfolio of collections-based research projects
Current research projects
Curious Cures in Cambridge Libraries
A project to digitise, catalogue and conserve over 180 medieval manuscripts, and to transcribe the more than 8,000 unpublished medical recipes that they contain. This project is funded by the Wellcome Trust.
CHERISH
The Cambridge Heritage Science Hub (CHERISH) aims to build a connected community for heritage science and archaeological research in Cambridge through the development of partnerships and collaborative projects.
Cambridge History of Innovation Project (CHIP)
CHIP aims to curate a public archive of Cambridge technology innovation since the 1960s and use this research and material to tell stories of Cambridge innovation for a range of audiences.
Global Bible: British and German Bible Societies Translating Colonialism
A project aiming to critically investigate British and German contributions to the creation of a global bible, that is the attempt to translate Christian scripture into all the languages of the world.
"Small performances": investigating the typographic punches of John Baskerville (1707-75) through heritage science and practice-based research
An interdisciplinary project that will make a substantial contribution to the history of printing technology, whilst ensuring it is a living process that will continue into the future.
Hidden in Plain Sight:
Historical And Scientific Analysis Of Premodern Sacred Books
The project employs a range of innovative technologies to explore how ancient books were used, modified and venerated.
Future Nostalgia: Safeguarding the knowledge of floppy disks
A year-long project investigating best practice in the preservation of floppy disks in GLAM collections.
Materialising Open Research Practices in the Humanities and Social Sciences (MORPHSS)
A project to devise ways to encourage and embed innovative open research practices within humanities and social science disciplines.
AI for Cultural Heritage Hub (ArCH)
ArCH will create a secure workspace and Community of Practice to empower practitioners and academics to analyse cultural heritage data securely with AI tools.
Taylor-Schechter Genizah Research Unit
The Taylor-Schechter Cairo Genizah Collection at Cambridge University Library is the world's largest and most important single collection of medieval Jewish manuscripts.
Since its foundation in the 1970s, the Genizah Research Unit has conserved, catalogued and completed research on the Collection. Their work continues the Collection's legacy as an unparalleled resource for the academic study of Judaism, Jewish history and the wider economic and social history of the Mediterranean and Near East in the Middle Ages and Early Modern period.
Find out more about the Genizah Research Unit and its research activities on their website linked below:
The Genizah Research Unit team share regular updates on their research and discoveries via their Genizah Fragments blog.
Ottoman-era painting of a man firing a cannon while standing on a wheeled cart CUL Or.1081.J.55
Ottoman-era painting of a man firing a cannon while standing on a wheeled cart CUL Or.1081.J.55
The text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License
Photography
Baskerville punches by Maciej Pawlikowski.
Collage from the CVC workshop, 'Putting our resources to work: transforming archives through creative strategies', Oct. 2023. Photo credit: Sana Ginwalla.
Hanna Barakat & Cambridge Diversity Fund from Better Images of AI
Historical Printing Room punches, reproduced by kind permission of the Syndics of Cambridge University Library.
Collections items featured:
Curious Cures manuscript CUL MS Dd.6.29 (ff. 27v-28r)
Promotional material for the Stereoscan II, Cambridge Scientific Instrument Company Archive, CUL Box 50.
Bible distribution by British and Foreign Bible Society to Taranaki Mission, New Zealand. Used with permission, Alexander Turnbull Library Reference: F-029.
Great Bible, Paris/London 1538/9, St John's College Cambridge, undergoing XRF analysis at the Hamilton Kerr Institute, University of Cambridge. By permission of the Master and Fellows of St John’s College, Cambridge.
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