500 Years of Science in Print: the Whipple Library at Cambridge Festival

In March 2026, the public were treated to an exclusive look behind the curtain at some of the Whipple Library's most significant treasures. Four sold-out sessions ran across three days (19–21 March), titled 500 Years of Science in Print. The Library welcomed a total of 80 people for an exclusive tour including such items as Robert Hooke's Micrographia (1665), Galileo's Dialogo (1632), and Darwin's On the Origin of Species (1859). The sessions, led by Acting Librarian, Elizabeth White, with support from the Whipple Museum Director, Dr Josh Nall, followed a rough chronological order, beginning with two of the Library's incunable (pre-1501) works. These were Hyginus's Poetica Astronomica (STORE 54:10), printed in 1482 by Erhard Ratdolt, and Manilius's Astronomica (STORE 53:9), printed in 1499 by Aldus Manutius. These early works are especially valuable for showing how illustrations circulated; the books share the same set of woodcut illustrations, but one set is mirrored, showing that the images had been traced and re-carved for the newer print.

A brief look at the Whipple's 1558 copy of Peter Apian's Cosmographia (STORE 94:4) revealed unique binding techniques which recycled old vellum manuscript sheets, as well as beautifully printed maps and volvelles. After showing three large 16th & 17th-century herbals by Brunfels (STORE 63:18), Mattioli (STORE 56:8), and Gerard (STORE 119:11), Elizabeth handed over to Josh who spoke about Robert Hooke's Micrographia (CR 8:38), a work containing some of the earliest illustrations of objects seen through a microscope, including the famous image of a flea, which caused a happy eruption of gasps. Keeping with the Royal Society theme, Elizabeth brought out the Whipple's first edition copy of Isaac Newton's Principia Mathematica (STORE 70:5) as well as a copy of Robert Boyle's treatise on the Saltness of the Sea (STORE BOYLE C:20), which was owned and autographed by Isaac Newton.

Josh then discussed one of the most unique items in the collection, a first edition of Galileo's Dialogo left unbound and entirely unread due to its censorship soon after publication. Placed alongside it was a thumbnail-sized edition of Galileo's Letter to Cristina de Lorena, produced in 1896 (E703 D.12). This was a crowd-pleaser, and the audience enjoyed taking turns peering at its tiny font (dubbed 'fly's eye' by the printers) through a magnifying glass.

Turning the focus towards medical history, William Cheselden's Anatomy of the Human Body (STORE 223:31) from 1740, and Francis Sibson's enormous 1859 manual, Medical Anatomy (STORE 195:51), showed the evolution of anatomical illustration from copper engravings to coloured lithographs. Unsurprisingly, the Whipple's first edition of Darwin's On the Origin of Species (STORE 74:5) was a hit with audiences, as was the unexpected treasure which the Library team loves to share with visitors: Grace Chisholm Young's own copy of her 1906 textbook, The Theory of Sets of Points (STORE 224:11). This is a veritable scrapbook of Grace's life, including drawings, inscriptions, photographs and postcards from various correspondents.

Finally, Elizabeth showed a copy of Women as Army Surgeons (1920) by Flora Murray (STORE 164:6), in which she recently discovered some unusual archive documents linked to a former owner of the book, Dr Bessie Cook. This provoked interesting discussions about provenance and modern history. The event may have been led by Library and Museum staff, but the audience were true collaborators, bringing to light interesting thoughts, insights, and questions every step of the way.

Report by Elizabeth White