Editing The Queen's College, Oxford (section)

==== The Upper Library ====
The Upper Library has been a focal point for the College ever since its construction at the end of the 17th century. The ceiling plasterwork, its most outstanding feature, was designed by James Hands, whilst the library itself was built by John Townsend. The designer remains unknown, although a likely candidate is [[Henry Aldrich]], who was Bishop of Oxford and Dean of Christ Church, as well as chief communicator between Christopher Wren and the College whilst the Back Quad was being designed.<ref>{{Cite web|title=History of the Library|url=https://www.queens.ox.ac.uk/library-and-your-studies/history-of-the-library/|access-date=23 September 2024|website=The Queen's College, Oxford}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Schapiro|first=Meyer|title=Theory and philosophy of art: style, artist, and society|date=1994|publisher=George Braziller|isbn=978-0-8076-1357-3|series=Selected papers|location=New York}}</ref> Unlike many other similar rooms in Oxford libraries, the Upper Library remains as a silent reading room for students open during staffed hours.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.queens.ox.ac.uk/library/opening-hours/|title=Opening Hours - The Queen's College|work=ox.ac.uk|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160117052447/http://www.queens.ox.ac.uk/library/opening-hours/|archive-date=17 January 2016}}</ref>

===== Eighteenth Century Globes and Orrery =====
On display in the middle of the library are two eighteenth century [[Papier-mâché|papier maché]] Senex [[globe]]s and an [[orrery]] from the same period. [[John Senex]] was the foremost globe maker of the eighteenth century,<ref>{{Cite web|title=Dorothy Sloan–Rare Books: Auction 22|url=https://www.dsloan.com/Auctions/A22/item-map-senex-1725.html#:~:text=John%20Senex%20(1678-1740),Society%20on%20July%2024,%201728.|access-date=22 September 2020|website=dsloan.com|archive-date=2 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201002003421/https://www.dsloan.com/Auctions/A22/item-map-senex-1725.html#:~:text=John%20Senex%20(1678-1740),Society%20on%20July%2024,%201728.|url-status=live}}</ref> and also crafted the miniature globe featured in the orrery. The globes are now found in cases that were designed and fitted by Welsh furniture designer Bernard Allen in 2007, after being removed from the library for a period of time in 2002 for structural repair and restoration by renowned English globe conservator Sylvia Sumira.{{Citation needed|date=September 2020}}

The [[Benjamin Cole (instrument maker)|Benjamin Cole]] orrery was a gift to the College in 1763 from a Group of Gentleman Commoners of the College, recorded in two entries in the Benefactors' Book, as well as on an inscription in the lunar calendar scale.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Bridgwater|first=David|date=28 December 2018|title=Bath, Art and Architecture: John Vanderstein at Queen's College, Oxford - Part 12, The Upper Library Doorcase - with some notes concerning the Orrery by Benjamin Cole|url=http://bathartandarchitecture.blogspot.com/2018/12/john-vanderstein-at-queens.html|access-date=22 September 2020|website=Bath, Art and Architecture|archive-date=2 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201002000715/http://bathartandarchitecture.blogspot.com/2018/12/john-vanderstein-at-queens.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The instrument is made of [[brass]], [[steel]], and [[wood]], contained within a wooden case and resting on a mahogany stand with a glazed cover.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal|last=Betts|first=Jonathan|date=December 2016|title=Excerpt from A report following the servicing and inspection of The Queen's College Grand Orrery, 2016|url=https://www.queens.ox.ac.uk/sites/www.queens.ox.ac.uk/files/insight-michaelmas-term-2016.pdf|journal=The Queen's College Library 'Insight'|issue=6, Michaelmas 2016|pages=15|access-date=22 September 2020|archive-date=15 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715014609/https://www.queens.ox.ac.uk/sites/www.queens.ox.ac.uk/files/insight-michaelmas-term-2016.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> Johnathan Betts, in an ''Excerpt from A report following the servicing and inspection of The Queen's College Grand Orrery'' in 2016, describes the instrument as standing<blockquote>on a fine mahogany table with six finely carved cabriole legs, the whole covered with a multi-panelled protective glass shade which can be locked securely onto the table, preventing access to the orrery.<ref name=":1" /></blockquote>In the same article, Betts illustrates the orrery,<blockquote>fitted in a mahogany twelve-sided case, with lacquered brass mounts and surmounted, on a brass pillared gallery, with a large lacquered brass hemispherical armillary structure. The mechanical orrery itself incorporates within its compass the solar system out to Mars, including the Earth and Moon, with additional mountings fixed on the outside of the case for attaching static models of Jupiter and Saturn.<ref name=":1" /></blockquote>The turning of the orrery is a traditional event at Queen's, done by hand only once every few years or on special occasions. Only two people are permitted to turn the orrery: the Patroness of the College, a position most recently occupied by The Queen Mother, and the [[Sedleian Professor of Natural Philosophy]], a Fellow of Queen's.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Shaw|first=Tessa|date=September 2011|title=The orrery in the Upper Library|url=https://www.queens.ox.ac.uk/sites/www.queens.ox.ac.uk/files/Insight2011.pdf|journal=The Queen's College Library 'Insight'|issue=1, Michaelmas 2011|pages=15|access-date=22 September 2020|archive-date=15 July 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715020459/https://www.queens.ox.ac.uk/sites/www.queens.ox.ac.uk/files/Insight2011.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref> This event most recently took place on 4 February 2020, during the Hilary term, with professor [[Jonathan Keating]] as the honorary orrery-turner.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}