Bodleian Library (Oxford, UK)

Founded in 1602, the Bodleian Library stands as one of Europe's oldest academic libraries, housing 13 million items including a Gutenberg Bible and original Shakespeare folios. Its collection is 30% larger than the average research library in the UK, and it supports over 24,000 Oxford students annually with a £2.5 million preservation budget. The Bodleian's legal deposit rights guarantee a copy of every UK publication—a privilege shared only with #3 British Library—while its treasures predate the Library of Congress by two centuries. Its 400-year history gives it a 200-year advantage in rare manuscripts over the New York Public Library.