The Changing World of Rare Books

The Role of the Rare Book Library in Higher Education: An Outsider Surveys the Issue

“…In many cases status rather than need has been the predominant motive. 43 It is, in such cases, as if an institution's administration had heard that a rare books library is now one of the ''maturity symbols" of the American college or university. 44 The result, as Gordon N. Ray suggests, is often a .paneled "treasure room'' with locked cases and carpeting on the floor, not to mention scattered collections and star pieces that have been assembled without regard to the special interests of the faculty, and a curator converted from a librarian past his or her prime or the weakest member of the English department.…”