Library books ended up sticking to woodwork when staff put them back on shelves just hours after they were varnished.

Text books had to be peeled off ledges at the world-famous Bodleian library's upper reading room following the embarrassing blunder.

The room is used by researchers of British and European history. It houses periodicals and works in series, standard text of authors and complementary works. But red-faced library staff refused to reveal what texts were involved in the accident, although they were not thought to be of any historic value. A library spokesman said: "It's not a serious problem. That's all we're saying."

The Bodleian is undergoing a major redecorating programme and the upper reading room was closed while the shelf painting took place. The Bodleian is the main research library of Oxford University and used by scholars from around the world.

A university spokesman said: "Shelves which have been painted or varnished are left for a number of weeks in order to dry."