THE DUCHESS OF CORNWALL CARRIES OUT ENGAGEMENTS IN OXFORD
26TH JANUARY 2021
Engagement 1
The Duchess of Cornwall, accompanied by author Philip Pullman, will visit the University of Oxford’s Bodleian Library.
Upon arrival at Weston Library, Her Royal Highness, accompanied by author Philip Pullman, will view the library’s new exhibition, ‘Melancholy: A New Anatomy’, and the Sheldon Tapestry Map of Oxfordshire, which is on display for the first time in a century. Following this, The Duchess will meet Sally Dunsmore and Tony Byrne, organisers of the Oxford Literary Festival (taking place March 25th – April 23rd). The Bodleian is one of the festival’s cultural partners.
In the Mackerras Reading Room, Her Royal Highness will meet students and library staff. The Duchess will be shown a number of demonstrations in the library’s Conservation Studio, before looking at a selection of the library’s ‘special treasures’ in the Horton Room.
The Duchess of Cornwall’s Reading Room
The Duchess of Cornwall is passionate about the importance of literacy, and is keen to promote the benefits of reading both to children and adults alike. The Duchess of Cornwall’s Reading Room is an Instagram community for book lovers of all ages, abilities and backgrounds. It was inspired by the success of Her Royal Highness’s reading lists shared during the pandemic in 2020, and offers new seasons of book recommendations, as well as exclusive insight from the authors themselves. To find out more, follow @DuchessofCornwallsReadingRoom on Instagram.
The Bodleian Libraries, Oxford
The Bodleian Libraries at the University of Oxford is the largest university library system in the United Kingdom. It includes the principal University library – the Bodleian Library – which has been a legal deposit library for 400 years; as well as 27 libraries across Oxford including major research libraries and faculty, department and institute libraries. Together, the Libraries hold more than 13 million printed items, over 80,000 e-journals and outstanding special collections including rare books and manuscripts, classical papyri, maps, music, art and printed ephemera. For more information, visit www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk.
Engagement 2
The Duchess of Cornwall will open the Marcela Botnar Wing, the newest of the Botnar Institute for Musculoskeletal Science’s facilities at the University of Oxford, based at the Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre site, Windmill Rd, Oxford OX3 7LD.
Upon arrival, Her Royal Highness will be introduced to Professor Andrew Carr (Nuffield Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery, Head of Department for NDORMS, University of Oxford) and Professor Jonathan Rees (Director of the Botnar Institute for Musculoskeletal Science). The Duchess will be escorted into the new research building to meet a number of major benefactors from the Marcela Trust, and members of staff from the University.
Her Royal Highness will tour the research spaces, viewing demonstrations from University researchers along the way. Upstairs, The Duchess will be shown the Clean Room, the first of its kind in the UK, where biomedical devices are created.
Across the newly constructed bridge, linking the existing Botnar building with its new wing, Her Royal Highness will officially open the new wing by cutting a ribbon, before joining a reception. The Duchess will later unveil a plaque, to be positioned in the new wing.
Before departing, Her Royal Highness will plant a tree for the Queen’s Green Canopy by the entrance to Botnar Campus.
The Duchess of Cornwall
Her Royal Highness is Patron of the Nuffield Orthopaedic Charity. The Duchess last visited the Centre in May 2014 to open Botnar 2.
The Duchess has been President of the Royal Osteoporosis Society since 2001, and became involved with the charity in 1997 following the deaths of her mother and grandmother as a result of the disease. In October 2020, Her Royal Highness marked World Osteoporosis Day in a video message.
About Osteoporosis
Osteoporosis is a fragile bone disease that causes painful, debilitating and sometimes fatal fractures (broken bones), particularly of the wrist, hip and spine. Osteoporosis is very common; 1 in 2 women and 1 in 5 men over the age of 50 are expected to break a bone during their lifetime.
Botnar Research Institute for Musculoskeletal Sciences, NDORMS
The Botnar Institute is a world-leading research centre in musculoskeletal sciences. The Institute takes a multidisciplinary approach to research, encompassing orthopaedics, rehabilitation and rheumatology, and innovatively using epidemiology, engineering and statistics to deliver better care to everyone.
Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre
The Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre is an internationally renowned orthopaedic hospital, with strong affiliations to the University of Oxford. It has been treating patients with bone and joint problems for more than 80 years and has a world-wide reputation for excellence in orthopaedics, rheumatology and rehabilitation. The hospital also undertakes specialist services such as the treatment of bone infection and bone tumours, limb reconstruction and the rehabilitation of those with limb amputation or complex neurological disabilities.
The Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre Charity
Over the last 20 years, The Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre Charity has raised all the funds for the Botnar Institute for Musculoskeletal Sciences, which has been built in three phases at a cost of £20 million. In the hospital (the NOC), the NOC Charity has also raised funds for a children’s ward and outpatients, two adult wards, a hydrotherapy pool, and much more. Her Royal Highness opened the new hospital on a visit in 2007.
