December 2 – The Unicorn
As the first University in Scotland, we thought it would be fitting to start the St Andrews Library’s Special Collections advent calendar with the most quintessentially Scottish of fantastic beasts – the unicorn. With…
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‘The teaching of politics at the University of St Andrews, 1600-1650’
In the final report by our 2019 visiting scholars, Karie Schultz reflects on her time at St Andrews. Earlier this summer, I had the opportunity to spend two weeks at the University of St Andrews Library’s Special…
Dr Elsie Maud Inglis (1864-1917) and Scottish Women’s Hospitals
On the birthday of Dr Elsie Maud Inglis, we share with you some of the highlights from the records of University Hall (the first female student residence in Scotland, opened in 1896) which connect Dr Inglis with St…
Philanthropist Andrew Carnegie and the University of St Andrews
This week we mark the centenary of the death of Andrew Carnegie, Scottish-American steel magnate and philanthropist, who gave away almost 90% of his fortune (almost $5 billion in 2019 value) between his retirement in…
The St Andrews Periodic Table
In honour of UNESCO’s International Year of the Periodic Table 2019, the Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is showcasing the wonders of the Periodic Table and chemical elements. As part of their programme of events the…
Souvenir Tapes of Graduation
As a living collection, the muniments (the University’s own archive) continue to grow with regular transfers of historical records from across the University’s departments and units. One of the more recent transfers…
“For a quart of Ale is a dish for a king.”: celebrating Beer Day Britain
To help celebrate Beer Day Britain (raise a pint at 7pm on 15th June and say ‘Cheers to Beer’!), this week we’re taking a look at some of the beer-related items held in the Library’s Special Collections. St Andrews…
Examinations for Ladies Literate in Arts
It is that time of year again when our students are hard at work studying for their end of module exams. In continuation of previous blogs about examinations at St Andrews, this term we take a look at the examinations…
Senatus Stories: Interesting discoveries in Muniments
I’ve spent the last two months on placement in Special Collections, following the closure of my usual workplace in the Museum of the University of St Andrews (MUSA) for renovation and extension. One of my weekly tasks…
International Women’s Day 2019: The first women in the Library
The theme for International Women’s Day (IWD) 2019 is ‘Balance for better’ with a call to action to help ‘forge a more gender-balanced world.’ Women have been studying at St Andrews for 127 years having been first…