From 19 January to 20 February 2026, we had the opportunity to visit the University of Oxford as research fellows from Klosterneuburg Abbey. This research stay provided us with valuable time and an inspiring academic environment in which to pursue our work. Our main goal during this fellowship was to write a profile for the German scribe Johannes Reynbold von Zierenberg, which will be published in the open access database of Charles University in Prague.
An important part of our work in Oxford involved consulting manuscripts written by Johannes Reynbold, which are today preserved at two different colleges, namely Merton College and Balliol College. At Merton College, we had the pleasure of meeting Dr. Julia Walworth, who kindly gave us a tour of the historic library. It was particularly interesting to gain insight into how a historic library is managed in the UK. We were especially fascinated to learn more about manuscript digitisation (which is done a lot at the Abbey in Klosterneuburg as well) and the maintenance of historic buildings.
We wanted to highlight that every Friday at 10.30 am, the Medieval Coffee Morning takes place at the Visiting Scholars Center of the Weston Library. We attended several, and each one offered the chance to meet new people and discover new materials from the special collections. The Coffee Mornings were a wonderful opportunity for networking and allowed us to become more familiar with some of the Bodleian Library’s special collections.
In addition to these activities, we also had the pleasure of meeting with people from various departments across the University, such as the Imaging Team, who digitise books and objects, the Conservation Team, the Exhibition Team and the Heads of Medieval Studies. We are especially grateful to Dr. Peter Tóth for organising these meetings and for welcoming us so warmly in Oxford!
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