Ive been a reader at the British Library since 1984 and still stop by on a fairly regular basis- driven by my research agenda.
In the Library on 17th March looking at some books, I was interested to be told that my seat number was no longer required to collect the items I’d reserved (remotely as that is now working again) and take them to my desk.
I’m not sure when the requirement to give your seat number dates from but I sense it was at least around in Lenin’s day since its known what desk he sat at in the old Bloomsbury Round Reading Room.
In those days when you ordered books by a paper slip from a printed catalogue there were good reasons for it. There was of course no way of knowing whether the book you’d reserved was out and in use to another reader. If it was a librarian could check with that reader at their desk whether they were actually using it, and if not reassign it.
In addition as Victorian Turkish Baths points out on BlueSky in the days of the Round Reading Room the seat number meant that in due course a library assistant would deliver books to your desk. The move to St Pancras abolished slips (although they made a brief return in 2024) and meant the reader collected books from the issue counter
At St Pancras pre the October 2023 cyberattack anyway ordering books was done electronically you could (and can now) see whether a book is available or not before you visit the Library.
Progress in history but the tradition of giving my seat number may be hard to break!
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