bibliomaniacs
Compulsive book hoarders
Bibliomaniacs are people obsessed with collecting books—not merely avid readers, but compulsive acquirers who accumulate far more than they could ever read.
The term carries a hint of affectionate mockery: Her apartment was crammed floor to ceiling with volumes she'd never open, a true bibliomaniac's lair.
The singular is bibliomaniac.
Uncommon valuable printed works
- first editionsOriginal printing runs
- incunabulaEarliest European printed books
- manuscriptsHandwritten or typed originals
- foliosNumbered manuscript pages
quartos · signed copies · limited editions · antiquarian books · illuminated manuscripts · vellum · ephemera · broadsides
Public book lending institutions
- bookshopsRetail stores for literature
- auction housesFirms selling to highest bidder
- reading roomsSpaces designated for books
- studiesLearns through examination
book stacks · archives · private collections · bookstalls · estate sales
Those who gather volumes
- antiquariansSeekers of old artifacts
- book dealersVendors of printed volumes
- librariansCollection curators at lending institutions
- archivistsKeepers of historical documents
Desire to gather wealth
- bibliophiliaLove of books
- bookaholicsObsessive literary consumers
- accumulationCollected mass over time
- possessionState of owning
rare books
Uncommon valuable printed works
- first editionsOriginal printing runs
- incunabulaEarliest European printed books
- manuscriptsHandwritten or typed originals
folios · quartos · signed copies · limited editions · antiquarian books · illuminated manuscripts · vellum · ephemera · broadsides · chapbooks
libraries
Public book lending institutions
- bookshopsRetail stores for literature
- auction housesFirms selling to highest bidder
- reading roomsSpaces designated for books
studies · book stacks · archives · private collections · bookstalls · estate sales
book collectors
Those who gather volumes
- antiquariansSeekers of old artifacts
- book dealersVendors of printed volumes
- librariansCollection curators at lending institutions
acquisitiveness
Desire to gather wealth
- bibliophiliaLove of books
- bookaholicsObsessive literary consumers
- accumulationCollected mass over time