Exhibition | Travels into Several Remote Nations of the World : Gulliver’s Travels at 300

2026 marks the 300th anniversary of the first edition of Travels Into Several Remote Nations of the World. This work, written by Jonathan Swift, is commonly known as Gulliver’s Travels.

The first edition of Gulliver’s Travels was published on 28 October 1726. It sold out within a week, and within two months a second and third edition were printed. The work was the talk of the town.

The Library is very proud to own Jonathan Swift’s own large paper copy of that first edition. This copy contains annotations by Swift’s own hand.

This exhibition explores Gulliver’s Travels as a commentary on 18th century society, politics, science, education, and human nature.

It also takes into consideration the pitfalls of the publishing process at the time, and the consequences of Swift’s methods.