British Library blogs
About our blogs
These blogs from our curators, subject specialists and guest bloggers express the thoughts and opinions of individual British Library staff members and guests.
Latest posts
And did those feet: did Alexander the Great visit Britain?
04 February 2023 Medieval manuscripts
As our major exhibition, Alexander the Great: The Making of a Myth, demonstrates, Alexander has been the protagonist of countless legends across the world and from the time of his birth to the present. Perceforest, a mysterious and dramatic 14th-century...
Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis: a genius cursed by fate?
03 February 2023 European studies
Dulwich Picture Gallery is currently holding an exhibition of the works of Mikalojus Konstantinas Čiurlionis, the best known Lithuanian artist and composer. Over a hundred works are on loan from the M.K. Čiurlionis National Museum of Art in Kaunas where...
George Edward Dessa: Lord Lytton’s Would-be Assassin
01 February 2023 Untold lives
In a previous blog post I wrote of an assassination attempt on Lord Lytton, Viceroy of India. I was asked if I could find out more about George Edward Dessa (sometimes written De Sa), the would-be assassin. Contemporary press reports...
PhD Placement Opportunity – The Pacific Islands in print: surveying the British Library collections
31 January 2023 Americas and Oceania Collections
Applications are now open for an exciting new PhD placement working with the Americas and Oceania team. Under the title The Pacific Islands in print: surveying the British Library collections, current PhD students are invited to spend three months (or...
All British Library blogs
Americas studies
What's on the mind of Team America?
Asian and African studies
From our subject specialists and curators
Collection care
Behind the scenes with our conservators and scientists
Digital scholarship
Supporting research with digital content
Endangered archives
News about the projects saving vulnerable material from around the world
English and drama
On literature and theatre collections from the 16th century to the present day
European studies
Exploring Europe at the British Library
Innovation and enterprise
Business, innovation and enterprise
Living knowledge
Behind the scenes at the British Library
Maps and views
Cartographic and topographical materials at the British Library
Medieval manuscripts
Digitisation and other projects
Music
News about our music collections and services
Science
The latest scientific developments
Social science
Projects, events, resources and research methods
Sound and vision
News from the Library’s Sound and Moving Image teams
The Newsroom
News about yesterday’s news, and where news may be going
UK web archive
Announcements and information about the UK Web Archive
Untold lives
Sharing stories from the past, worldwide