I know what you're thinking, the title ‘Class Mark K’ is pretty vague, but I just didn’t know how else to describe this magical corner of the Annex, where I lost a good hour of my day because of the sheer number of books that I just wanted to delve into...
Whilst browsing the collections housed in the Annex of Gladstone’s Library one day, I found this gem of a class mark, and all I could think was how useful this would have been for my friend while we were at University. We were both studying at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David and in our final year we began our Masters dissertations.
The topic of witchcraft and witch trials had always interested me but when my roommate decided to focus her dissertation on witchcraft that was when the interest really came alive. So when I found a whole section dedicated to the topic of witchcraft and witch trials at Gladstone’s Library I had to send her a picture. Her response was; 'why did I not know about this while writing my dissertation??!!' That made me think a few things. One; what book shall I start with and how many of these can I get through during my internship here, two; can I read all the other books I want to read at the same time, and three; how many people could be at university right now working on their dissertations, and like us, know nothing of the collections and some of the amazing books held right here at Gladstone’s Library.
So, there I was, standing, gawking at this shelf and thinking 'come on, just pick one to read this afternoon, you only need one…' I left the Annex with two books in total. History of Magic by Eliphas Levi had various sections each with its own numerous chapters. I particularly enjoyed whenever magic in the Ancient world was the focus point. With that in mind, I moved on to the next book in my pile, Witchcraft and Magic in Europe: Ancient Greece and Rome. I was in my element with this book! Chapters on Circe and Medea with sections on cursed tablets and protection amulets. I could have used a copy of this for my Magic in Antiquity module!
Gladstone’s Library would definitely have been the place to visit while we were at university, to get our dissertations done; while my friend was writing about the witch trials, I could have been working on my dissertation on Helen of Troy. Gladstone’s Library holds a large collection of books that linked to our degrees and would have been the perfect place to stay to write up the dreaded 15,000 words. That and the fact that it reminds me of Belle’s Library in Beauty and the Beast, but that’s a whole different story...
By Katie Ruffley, Intern
What is your favourite section of the Library, where have you have found yourself getting lost? Let us know by leaving a comment!