Downside Abbey

A magical location, Downside Abbey library is home to the private collection of the Benedictine monks of Downside Abbey.
The library is one of the largest in the south-west and among the finest in the country.

Within the collection are more than 400,000 books, 60 incunabula, 175 Papal Bulls, a large collection of Vatican State papers and many very rare early printed books.

With the help of Heritage Lottery Funding and other generous benefactors, the building has been redeveloped to secure its’ future for the next few generations and to enable greater public access.

The key objective of our work at the Abbey library was to provide optimum lighting and air supply to ensure correct temperature and humidity levels, essential to the preservation and protection of these great treasures.