The earliest libraries belonged to temples and administrative bodies, resembled our modern archives, and were usually restricted to the aristocracy, nobility, theologians, and for the use of scholars.

Dispersed along the shelves of the British Library today are many volumes that once stood side by side in private libraries. This collection of original essays explores some of the most important printed collections which have been brought together within the British Museum Library since its foundation in 1753, casting new light on the individuals whose personal interests and taste they reflect. Ranging from the library of Henry VIII to Sir Joseph Banks, and from Sir Hans Sloane to George III, this volume also acts as a handbook to provenance within the British Library collections, providing guidance on the interpretation of marks of ownership, stamps, shelfmarks and other forms of evidence to be found in particular copies.