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The British Library’s blockbuster 2007 exhibition, 'Sacred: Discover What We Share' (which ran from 27 April – 23 September) has been long-listed for the prestigious Art Fund Prize.

'Sacred' attracted record numbers of visitors, making it the most successful British Library exhibition to date. The exhibition brought together some of the world’s most important and beautiful religious texts from Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Rare and exquisite examples from the Library’s collections - considered to be one of the greatest in the world – were presented alongside treasures on loan from other institutions.

Many of the lavishly illustrated or decorated books and manuscripts had never, or seldom, been on public display while others were shown for the first time in the UK. Sacred also marked the first time that texts from these three faiths will have been displayed and explored together, side-by-side, in a major UK exhibition. The exhibition attracted over 200,000 visitors during its five month run.

Although the Sacred exhibition closed in September, an online gallery and interactive web resources are available at www.bl.uk/sacred

Graham Shaw, Head of Asia, Pacific and Africa Collections at the British Library and Lead Curator of Sacred, commented: “I am absolutely delighted that Sacred has been long-listed for The Art Fund Prize. Sacred attracted record numbers of visitors, making it the most successful British Library exhibition to date. The exhibition, considered by many to be a timely and important one, was an ambitious undertaking in itself, but together with a varied events programme (attracting over 7000 people), public tours, educational workshops and web resources (drawing over 26,000 visitors), as well as a regional programme, we were able to reach an unprecedented audience. It is immensely gratifying to consider that over 200,000 visitors - both of faith and of no faith – came to think, to debate and learn. I hope that Sacred has contributed to a greater understanding of the three faiths, Judaism, Christianity and Islam, their historical roots, and their significance in the world today.”

The Art Fund Prize is the largest single arts prize in the UK, which recognises and rewards the best new development of the previous calendar year in a UK museum or gallery. The winner of the Prize will be announced on 22 May.

In additon to the free events held throughout the year at The British Library also runs tours of the site - which are an enjoyable way to find out more about the history, collections and architecture of the library. For further information and tickets please call +44 (0)20 7412 7639. For tickets, please call +44 (0)1937 546 546, email: Visits-Tours@bl.uk or ask at the information desk in the library entrance hall.

The British Library at St Pancras is the national library of the United Kingdom - and one of the world's greatest libraries. The library currently includes 150 million items, in most known languages, with 3 million new items: including a copy of every publication produced in the UK and Ireland, as well as CD, DVD and mini-disc material - being incorporated into the collection every year. If you’re not in London readers can experience the British Library online at www.bl.uk and also help the British Library conserve the world's knowledge by visiting Adopt a Book.

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