Robyn Adams

Dr. Robyn Adams serves as Senior Research Fellow at University College London's Centre for Editing Lives and Letters (CELL), where she has held academic positions since September 2012. Her research centers on early modern book history and archival studies with particular focus on the Bodleian Library's development.

Her educational background includes comprehensive training at Queen Mary, University of London: Bachelor of Arts (Honours, 2000), Master of Arts (2001), and Doctor of Philosophy (2004). This foundation supports her specialized work in historical bibliography and manuscript analysis.

Adams' research examines sixteenth and seventeenth-century intelligencer networks, library foundations, and book donation practices. Her current project Shaping Scholarship: Early Donations to the Bodleian Library investigates early seventeenth-century philanthropic networks, building on her previous work Building a Library Without Walls. She specializes in forensic analysis of rare books and archival materials, with interests spanning from Elizabethan intelligencers to pirate accusations and diplomatic correspondence.

Her publication portfolio demonstrates consistent focus on early modern libraries and book history, with recent work analyzing Bodleian donation networks and seventeenth-century library problems. The research integrates material culture studies with diplomatic history, particularly examining figures like William Herle and Thomas Bodley.

As Principal Investigator for multiple projects including the Diplomatic Correspondence of Thomas Bodley and Letters of William Herle, Adams manages significant research initiatives. Her work with the Royal Society's Hooke Folio project demonstrates interdisciplinary collaboration across academic institutions.

Adams contributes to academic discourse through leadership in professional activities including the Seventeenth-Century Libraries conference (2019) and membership in the Bibliographical Society and London Topographical Society. She teaches Unstitching the Early Modern: Archive and Book Skills (CMII0015) for UCL's MA in Early Modern Studies program.