Enfilade

The National Trust and Waddesdon Manor (Rothschild Collections) Annual Conference
Bound for Greatness: Books, Libraries, and Book Collecting in the 18th and 19th Centuries
Waddesdon Manor, Buckinghamshire, 1 July 2014

Organised by Mark Purcell, Christopher Rowell, and Pippa Shirley

The Morning Room at Waddesdon Manor, with a view of the collection of illustrated books and bindings and a portrait of the collector Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild. Photo: John Bigelow Taylor © The National Trust, Waddesdon Manor

The annual National Trust/Waddesdon Manor Conference this year is on the subject of books, libraries, and book collectors and collecting, prompted by the publication in 2013 of the Waddesdon catalogue of Printed Books and Bookbindings. Our distinguished speakers are drawn from across the book world—from libraries, universities, historic house collections, and the book trade. There will also be an opportunity to view the special exhibitions in the manor, including Royal Spectacle: Ceremonial and Festivities at the French Court. This exhibition features the lavishly illustrated books that document the many extravagant festivities and ceremonies staged for the French court during the 17th and 18th centuries.

The day will begin with coffee at 9:45 and end with a drinks reception finishing around 6:00. The £25 conference fee includes tea and coffee on arrival and a two-course lunch. To book a place, please ring the booking line on 01296 653226, Monday to Friday (except Bank Holidays), 10am–4pm, or email: bookings.waddesdon@nationaltrust.org.uk.

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P R O G R A M M E

9:45  Registration and Coffee in the Manor Restaurant

10:15  Christopher Rowell (Furniture Curator, National Trust) and Pippa Shirley (Head of Collection, National Trust / Waddesdon Manor), Welcome and Introduction

10:15  Paul Quarrie (Maggs and former Senior Director of Sotheby’s Department of Rare Books and Manuscripts), ‘The Changing Fortunes of the “Rare Book” in France around 1800: A Chapter in the History of Taste’

10:45  Raphaële Mouren (Librarian and Deputy Directory, The Warburg Institute), Title TBC

11:15  Robert Betteridge (Rare Books Curator, National Library of Scotland), ‘The Library of the Dalrymples of Newhailes’

11:45  David Adshead (Head Curator, National Trust), Architecture of Libraries

12:15  Questions and Discussion

12:30  Lunch in the Manor Restaurant

1:30  Mirjam Foot (Emeritus Professor of Library & Archive Studies, University College London), ‘Two 19th-Century Collectors: A Shared Love of Bookbindings?’

2:00  John O’Brien (Professor in the School of Modern Languages and Cultures, Durham University), Anglo-French

2:30  Mark Purcell (Libraries Curator, National Trust), ‘The Lost Library at Clumber Park’

3:00  Rachel Jacobs (Assistant Curator, Waddesdon), ‘The Royal Spectacle at Waddesdon Manor: An Exhibition of 17th- and 18th-Century French Festival Books’

3:20  David Pearson (Director of Culture, Heritage and Libraries, City of London Corporation), ‘Emerging Themes in the Study of the Private Library’

3:45  Tea in the Manor Restaurant with an opportunity to visit the shop (3:45–4:30 only), the Manor, and special exhibitions

5:00  Reception on the Terrace