english - Biblioteca de Catalunya

One of the reading rooms in the 1940sWorks to salvage the patrimony,(1936-1939)

View of the garden with the orange trees and the Jacarandain the backgroundView of the annex building and of the interior courtyard of EgipcíaquesGeneral reading room, Western block

The collections:the wealth and amplitude of the bibliographic resourceThe collection of the Biblioteca de Catalunya is rich and has a great bibliographicand documentary value. It is made up of nearly three milliondocuments in various formats: books, magazines, newspapers, manuscripts,etchings, maps, scores, sound and audiovisual recordings, CD-rom, etc.Since 1981 it has brought together the printed and recorded material comingfrom the legal deposit of Catalonia. Since its foundation, documents, collectionsand libraries have been acquired from diverse sources and origins.The donations made by many private citizens and many institutions havecontributed, over many years, to strengthening the historical and bibliographicalvalue of the centre.

The collections of historical patrimonyManuscripts and archiveThe Manuscripts collection of the Biblioteca de Catalunyabrings together an important collection of documents,which includes everything from medieval manuscriptsto letters and writings by figures from the XX th century.Special mention must be made of the most emblematictexts: the Homilíes d’Organyà (XIII th century); the Llibrede l’Ordre de Cavalleria by Ramon Llull; Provençal andCatalan songbooks (XIV-XV th centuries); the Crònica ofDesclot; the Viatges of the Baron of Maldà (XVIII th century);the ’Oda a la pàtria de Bonaventura Carles Aribau (1833);L’Atlàntida and other original works by Jacint Verdaguer,and several manuscripts by the principal Catlan authorsof the XX th century, such as Eugeni d’Ors, Carles Riba,Josep Carner, Josep Maria de Sagarra, Josep Pla, or morerecently, Néstor Luján, Maria Mercè Marçal and JaumeFuster. The Biblioteca de Catalunya also has an interestingcollection of parchments, collections of autographs, noble,commercial and institutional collections. Of particularinterest are the collection of the Junta de Comerç, that ofErasme de Gònima, that of the Marquis of Saudín, etc. Thisentire documentary collection is of great use to scholars.Cançoner Gil, XIV th centuryEls Greuges de Guitart Isarn, senyor de Caboet. Parchment, XIth century

Rare prints and special collectionsIn 1917, ten years after the foundation ofthe Biblioteca, the Rare prints section wascreated, to which were assigned the foundationaland heritage collections, such as theAguiló collection, acquired in 1908. Presentlythe Rare Prints collection houses bookswhich are ancient, rare, valuable or precious,including the incunabula (printed before theyear 1500). Its structure is divided in to twomain groups: The Catalan Reserve – namedAguiló – and the General Reserve, particularlyrich in books from the Golden Age of Spanishliterature, and which also includes worksfrom other periods. Of particular importanceamong the Special Collections are the Cervantine(one of the richest and most completecollections of the works of the author),the Verdagueriana (with a wide selection ofworks and editions of this Catalan poet), theFullets Bonsoms (an extraordinary collectionof legislative, administrative, legal, informativeand literary texts in Catalan spanningthe XVI th to the XIX th centuries), as well as thePrat de la Riba, Espona, Almirall, Rull, TorresAmat, Bulbena, Pedro Pons, Elzeveriana andSant Joan de la Creu collections, and theToda collection, of the Spanish bibliographicaloutput of Italy, the Verrié collection ofchildren’s books, that of books in small format,the mythological collection, that of theFrench Revolution and Human Rights, or theLoose Leaf collection, among others.Eiximenis, Francesc. Llibre de les dones. Barcelona,1495. Incunabula

Etchings, drawings, maps and photographyThe heterogeneous material of the graphic collection of the Biblioteca de Catalunya is found in differentformats: posters, prints, drawings, photographs, ex-libris, ancient photoetchings, calcographicplates, woodcuts, lithographs, maps, programmes, prospectuses, etc. The chronological scope is fromthe XVI th century to the present day.Template of the work Vida y hechos del ingenioso cavallero D. Quixote de la Mancha by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. Barcelona, 1755

Lo Pare Arcangel. Barcelona, 25 th April 1811El Diluvio. Barcelona, 10 th February 1879El poble català. Barcelona, 12 th November 1904Pèl & Ploma. Barcelona, 3 rd June 1899

Sound and audiovisual heritageThe importance of the heritage collection of the Sound library is demonstratedby its wealth in both quantity and quality, besides its mission tocatalogue the discographic and audiovisual output of Catalonia as thepoint of entry to the Legal Depot. The collection of the Sound Archive isconstituted by 400,000 sound and audiovisual documents, organized intwo sections: Old Recordings and Modern Recordings. These pieces arefound in different formats: wax cylinders, pianola rolls, 8 track cartridges,Berliners, open spools, 33, 45 and 78 rpm records, cassettes, CD’s, videos,DVD’s…etc. The collection as a whole reflects the evolution of sound andaudiovisual formats from their origins until the present day. One of themost well known collections is that of Radio Barcelona. In 1994, in commemorationof its seventieth anniversary, Radio Barcelona donated itsentire record library to the Biblioteca de Catalunya and a broad selectionof their own programmes and recordings, which constitute an interestingdisplay of talks, interviews and historic moments broadcast by a radiostation that was founded in 1924. In total there are 112,000 records, 8,000sound tapes that reproduce programmes, radio plays and speeches by famousfigures of the universal history of the XX th century. Among the collectionsof the Sound Archive are recorded a rich selection of original voicesof historical figures, such as Alexander Fleming, Joan Brossa, CarmenAmaya, Frederica Montseny, Salvador Dalí, Jacinto Benavente, John CowderyKendrew, M. Aurèlia Capmany, Hipòlit Lázaro, Francesc Macià, LluísCompanys, Ramón Tamames, Jean-Paul Sartre, Joan Capri, Mary Santpere,Alfredo di Stefano, Joan Miró, Jordi Rubió i Balaguer, Vinicius de Moraes.Recently the Audiovisual Poet’s Archive has been added, produced by theCollegiate Association of Writers of Catalonia.Wax cylinders. Turull Collection

ARCA(Archive of Old Catalan Magazines)The digital collectionARCA. Archive of Old Catalan MagazinesThis is an open access portal which includesdiscontinued periodical publicationswhich have been representative withinCatalan society and culture. It is a cooperativedepot of digital preservation promotedby the Biblioteca de Catalunya with thesupport of the Consortium of UniversityLibraries of Catalonia. This portal will facilitatethe consultation of the whole collectionof periodical publications, even thoughthe original copies are distributed amongseveral different institutions. It is a projectwhich will maximize the potential of researchamong scholars and will contributeto the preservation of original periodicalheritage, since the use of the collections onpaper will be reduced, so avoiding physicalwear and tear.The Biblioteca de Catlunya, as a member of the Consortium of University Libraries of Catalonia,participates in the Digital Library of Catalonia. It has also collaborated, since 1998, onthe project of the Miguel de Cervantes Virtual Library. In recent years, the Biblioteca de Catalunyahas undertaken many projects to promote the digitization of its own collection and thesubsequent consultation via the web. Among these projects, the following are worthy of note:PADICAT(Digital Heritage of Catalonia)The PADICAT project, begun in 2005, has asits objective to design and produce a systemthat enables the Biblioteca de Catalunya tocompile, process and give permanent accessto the digital output of Catalonia, that is tosay to bring together all of those documentswhose origin is digital. It is the equivalent ofthe already well-known Legal Depot in theworld of the book. In order to achieve this,the digital material published on the Internetis gathered en masse, there is a drive for thesystematic depositing of the online output ofthe agents involved in Catalonia, and lines ofresearch are promoted through the integrationof the digital resources regarding certainevents in Catalan public life. The PADI-CAT project enjoys the collaboration of theCentre de Supercomputació de Catalunya(CESCA) and the backing of the Secretariatof Telecommunications and the InformationSociety of the Government of Catalonia.RACO(Open Access Catalan Magazines)RACO is a depot from which articles withthe complete text from scientific, culturaland scholarly magazines that are currentlyin publication can be consulted in openaccess. The principal aim of RACO is toincrease the visibility and consultation ofmagazines, whether they are electronicor scanned from paper format, in order todisseminate the academic and scientificoutput. With this project the electronic publicationof Catalan magazines is promoted,and their consultation and preservation isfacilitated. This initiative is a joint effortbetween the CBUC, the BC and the CESCA.

The Services of the BC are as follows:n General and specialized bibliographicinformation sought in person or by email:info@bnc.catn Internet access via the wireless network(Wifi), with free access for users of the BCn Consultation of the digitized collectionsand access to information in electronicsubscription format (press, databases…).Access to a wide reference section of freeaccess. Users may propose desiderata ofdocuments which will be considered by theBiblioteca de Catalunya and an assessmentwill be made of whether it is useful to acquirethem.n Consultation of the collections in anyphysical format in the Biblioteca de Catalunya.At the users disposal is equipmentfor the reading and reproduction ofmicrofilms. On the consultation of the collections,see the specific section Practicalsummary for consultation of the collections.n Reservation of documents via the website.This is a service which is extremelysuccessful among users, as it allows themto order in advance the documents theywish to consult. Thus the time spent waitingwhile the books are located in the stores isreduced.n Reproduction of documents on paper or indigital format. Orders can be placed via theemail address: pib@bnc.cat.The prices and norms can be found on thewebsite.n Interlibrary lending. The Biblioteca deCatalunya offers a lending service betweenthe BC and other libraries in Catalonia,Spain or abroad for consultation or researchpurposes. The BC participates in severalprogrammes and interlibrary lending agreementswith other institutions, such as theConsortium of University Libraries of Catalonia,with the aim of promoting the useof the collections between libraries. Thisservice is free of charge and only the costsincurred by the postal procedures and forreproductions is applied. For more information,see the corresponding section of thewebsite or write to: pib@bnc.catn Lending of documents for exhibitions.The Biblioteca de Catalunya allows numerousdocuments to be loaned each year toother institutions such as museums, librariesor archives, whether within the countryor abroad, to put on temporary exhibitions.This service promotes the disseminationof documents which are usually displayedwithin a specific historical, literary or artisticpresentation, a fact which underlinesthe documentary and patrimonial value ofeach item. All of the information regardingthe use of the service is available on thewebsite. The address to which to write forinformation is: prestecexposicions@bnc.catn Personal lending. This service, in complementto the functions of the nationallibrary, is of a more restricted use. Evenso, the Biblioteca de Catalunya, unlike themajority of national libraries which do notoffer this service, permits that books datingfrom later than 1958, which are duplicatedand do not form part of the bibliographicpatrimony of Catalonia, may be loaned duringfifteen days. The maximum number ofvolumes is three per user. The regulation isavailable on the website.n Lending of laptop computers for researchpurposes. The Biblioteca de Catalunya haslaptop computers with Office accessoryprogrammes, access to the Internet viaWifi which can be lent to researchers whorequire them for specific purposes. Thisservice is free of charge.n User training. General sessions arescheduled on the working of the Biblioteca,and also specific sessions aimed at teachinggroups. In recent years, these activitieshave increased and a special attention hasbeen given to preparing exclusive sessionsfor university students from the humanities.These sessions have been carried out inclose collaboration with the teacher. Bookingscan be made via the website.n Resource guides. The Biblioteca deCatalunya produces resource guides of athematic nature which are available on thewebsite. The objective of these guides isthat they should be a useful tool for users.They list reference works, on paper orelectronic, which are valued selectively, aswell as qualitatively and with a view to theirrelevance according to subject matter. TheGuides are extremely useful aids, owingto the quantity of information that existsnowadays on any subject.Other services:n Cubicles available to researchers for periodsof no less than a week.n Self-service cloakroom

The cultural activities of the BCSaint George’s Day. Open DayThe Biblioteca de Catalunya, in order to disseminate its patrimony and culture in general, organizes numerousactivities throughout the year in order to bring its collections closer to researchers and to all of the citizens.n Letting of rooms for functions. The BC hasspaces which it lets temporarily to otherinstitutions for activities:Various activities are organized:n Open Day. This is held each year on SaintGeorge’s Day. During the course of this dayone can see an audiovisual presentation onthe Biblioteca de Catalunya which includesgraphic images of its history, the building,the collections and the services; exhibitionsare prepared which show documents in differentformats, recent acquisitions, specificfacsimiles, virtual exhibitions of photos in3D… Also the Frederic Marès Book Museumcan be visited, and the Sala Cervantina.Every year, for the Open Day, complementaryactivities are presented.n Temporary exhibitions, conferences andpresentations. The collections of the Bibliotecade Catalunya are varied, rich and valuable.Every year exhibitions, conferences andpresentations are held about them with theobjective of revealing these collections tosociety. Recently concerts, recitals and playshave also been put on. All of this informationis systematically updated on the website.n Frederic Marès Book Museum. The Marèscollection comes from the private donationof the bibliophile Frederic Marès. Throughits selection of items one can trace a routethrough the history of the book: frommedieval production, the incunabula, theprinted works of the XVI-XVIII th centuries,the industrial product of the XIXth andearly XXth centuries, to the different typesof bindings that have existed. This collec-tion can be found in the Via Crucis hall andcan be visited if requested in advance.n General and thematic visits for groups.The Biblioteca offers a service of organizedvisits for groups that request it. You willfind the information on the website.n Editions and publications. The Bibliotecade Catalunya publishes informative andscientific materials. There are publicationswhich are only edited in digital format.Some examples of different types of publicationsare the following: virtual exhibitions,cultural agenda, BCNews, TresorsBC,cataloguing standards, catalogues of theBiblioteca and of exhibitions, facsimile editions,..The catalogue of all of the publicationsof the Biblioteca de Catalunya can beconsulted on the website.

Practical summary for consulting the collectionsOpening hoursThe majority of the documents of the Biblioteca de Catalunya are foundin the conservation depots and their consultation must be requested.The BC has two reading rooms:n The Prat de la Riba reading room for materials that form part of thespecial documents collection: parchments, manuscripts, printed documentsfrom the XV th – XVIII th centuries, music in manuscript and printedform, etchings, maps, posters…and any valuable edition.n The general reading room for materials printed or recorded principallyduring the XIX th – XXI st centuries: books, journals, magazines… andsound and audiovisual materials.To know whether or not the Biblioteca de Catalunya has a particulardocument, the catalogues must be consulted. Presently, the majority ofthem are available for consultation on the website www.bnc.catFor any unresolved question or consultation the best course is to approachthe reference service, either in person or online info@bnc.catOnce the work has been located, the request form must be completed(this can also be done online). Attention must be paid to the topographiccode, which is a combination of numbers and letters that serves tolocate the document among the shelves of the depots. In the electronicregisters this is generally found at the end, preceded by the abbreviationTOP. On manual registers it is written in pencil on the upper rightcorner.The services of administration of membership cards,lending, interlibrary lending and reproductions areclosed thirty minutes before the Biblioteca de Catalunyacloses. The service for requesting documentscloses one hour before the BC closes.Biblioteca de CatalunyaHospital, 5608001 BarcelonaTel. 93 270 23 00Fax 93 270 23 04bustia@bnc.cathttp://www.bnc.catMonday - Friday from 09.00 to 20.00Saturday, from 09.00 to 14.00Arxiu Joan MaragallC. Alfons XII, 7908006 Barcelona93 241 30 04arxiujoanmaragall@bnc.catMonday - Friday from 10.00 to 14.00Wednesday from 16.00 to 20.00Last Saturday of each month, from 10.00 to 14.00 hMonth of August: closed.Up to five documents may be requested at a time. Usually, after a waitingtime that varies between twenty and thirty minutes, the majority ofdocuments requested are given to the user; with the exception of documentswhich are located in external depots, in which case you shouldask to be informed.In order to consult the documents it is necessary to give your Librarypass or membership card, which will be returned when the documentsare returned. Reservations can be made for the following day.If you wish to use other services such as reproductions, interlibrarylending, training sessions…you must approach the counter staff.

Documents Depot of the Biblioteca de Catalunya

The BC in figuresLinear metres of shelving: 1,500 m of free access (20,000 volumes)49,000 m of depotApproximate total surface area of the Biblioteca: 15,000 m2Approximate total surface area of the General reading room: 2,700 m2Approximate surface area of the Reserve room: 360 m2Seats (reading points): 229Equipment:19 computers for public use (2 printers, one in colour)Microform readers/reproducers de: 6Image readers/reproducers: 5Sound readers/reproducers: 8Reproduction machines: 5 (2 are scanners; 1 is a colour photocopier)Total documents:3 millions (estimation)

www.bnc.cat