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The Bibliography Room houses two substantial collections: the rare book collection and the printing collection. The Bibliography Room, colloquially known as the Bib Room, was founded with the College in 1963, with the intention of creating a dedicated space for preserving and furthering the study of the history of the book. Our book collection consists of over 22,000 volumes spanning 4000 years of history: from a Sumerian clay tablet, to 15th century manuscript leaves, to a first edition Charles Dickens novel, the rare book library broadly speaks to the diverse history of the book throughout cultures and time.
Also in the Bib Room is our letterpress printing collection, a highlight for students at Massey College and U of T. Massey College has over 15 presses, including 5 iron hand presses from the 19th century. Letterpress reflects the art and craft of printing using moveable type: each letter of every word is hand set and hand printed. The printing collection houses hundreds of fonts of lead and wood type, with typefaces from different cultures, languages, and styles throughout history. The collection is a living museum, and is regularly activated by students, volunteers, and visiting scholars.
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