Founded in 2013, the Oregon Rare Books Initiative (ORBI) seeks to publicize the wonderful early print and manuscript collections of Knight Library at UO, to encourage their use in the classroom, and to stimulate an intellectual community gathered around the history of the book.
ORBI currently seeks to draw particular attention to the many early volumes not currently listed in the UO online catalogue. Finding ways to facilitate the complete cataloging of the collection will be an important step towards making it available for use. These untapped riches complement the catalogued holdings and offer an outstanding resource for teaching and research that could not be duplicated today even were money no object. In an age of austerity, library budget cuts, and diminishing resources for the humanities, ORBI seeks to develop a new area of excellence within the University’s core academic mission by drawing on this preexisting but inaccessible resource.
You can join our email list here: