Academic Library Days in the WUL

Academic Library Days in the WUL. Science begins in the library!

A library is not merely a repository of knowledge, but also a space for its discovery, development, and dissemination. For this reason — in line with this year’s theme for the Days of Academic Libraries, "Science Begins in the Library" — we invite researchers, students, university's employees, history enthusiasts, and everyone else who values science, books, and libraries to the latest installment of the Colloquia Bibliologa Wratislaviensia series.

On 5.11.2026, 2:00 p.m., mgr Karolina Szula, from the Wroclaw University Library's Manuscripts Department, will deliver a lecture titled “Medical Practice in Medieval Wroclaw: The Case of the 14th-Century Physician Tomasz of Wroclaw”.

The subject of the meeting will be Thomas of Wroclaw (1297 – c. 1378), a physician of English origin who was educated in Bologna or Montpellier. Upon his arrival in Wroclaw, he became associated with the Premonstratensian monastery in Olbin. He served as a court physician to the Silesian dukes and also held the position of auxiliary bishop of Wroclaw.

The lecture will cover selected aspects of his biography, as well as excerpts from medical treatises preserved in codices held by the Wroclaw University Library. Particular attention will be given to the relationship between the knowledge Thomas derived from the works of earlier authors and his own observations and medical experience.

Thomas’s writings demonstrate that he did not merely repeat existing knowledge. He evaluated it, supplemented it with his own observations, and adapted it to local conditions. Among other things, he modified recipes and replaced hard-to-obtain ingredients with substitutes. His work — dating to the period before the founding of the University of Krakow — serves as an important testament to the transmission, development, and practical application of medical knowledge in medieval Silesia.

This is also an excellent example of how library collections can serve as a starting point for contemporary research into the history of science, medicine, and culture. For science truly begins in the library.

Organizational information

Term: 5.11.2026, 2:00 p.m.
Place: Wroclaw University Library, Fryderyka Joliot-Curie 12 St., room no. 4, level 0
Participation: free of charge, limited number of places

Registration is required via the registration form: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/YWJbcCPPi7?origin=lprLink

We invite to participate in the event!