Pepys Library

Cambridge


The 3000 books in this unique collection were bequeathed by the eponymous 17th-century diarist to his old college. This idiosyncratic collection of beautifully bound tomes is ordered by height. Treasures include vivid medieval manuscripts and the Anthony Roll, a 1540s depiction of the Royal Navy's ships.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Cambridge attractions

1. Magdalene College

0.03 MILES

Riverside Magdalene often catches people out – the college name is properly pronounced 'Maud-lyn'. This former Benedictine hostel's greatest asset is the…

2. Kettle's Yard

0.08 MILES

An £11 million revamp has added high-tech contemporary-art galleries to much-loved Kettle's Yard. The big draw for many though will be the original…

3. Round Church

0.17 MILES

Cambridge’s intensely atmospheric Round Church is one of only four such structures in England. It was built by the mysterious Knights Templar in 1130 and…

4. St John's College

0.19 MILES

Alma mater of six prime ministers, three saints and Douglas Adams (author of The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy), St John's is superbly photogenic…

5. The Backs

0.22 MILES

Behind the Cambridge colleges’ grandiose facades and stately courts, a series of gardens and parks line up beside the river. Collectively known as the…

6. Trinity College

0.24 MILES

The largest of Cambridge's colleges, Trinity offers an extraordinary Tudor gateway, an air of supreme elegance and a sweeping Great Court – the largest of…

7. Wren Library

0.24 MILES

The renowned Wren Library contains 55,000 books published before 1820 and more than 2500 manuscripts, including AA Milne's original Winnie the Pooh. Both…

8. Jesus College

0.31 MILES

This tranquil 15th-century college was once a nunnery of St Radegund before the Bishop of Ely, John Alcock, expelled the nuns for 'improvidence,…

  • placement: superzone
  • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
  • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [1, 1],
  • targeting:
    {
      "url": "england/eastern-england/cambridge/attractions/pepys-library/a/poi-sig/1503224/358889",
      "destination": "Cambridge",
      "continent": "Europe",
      "country": "England",
      "city": "Cambridge",
      "position": "superzone"
    }