The Biblioteca Comunale Sperelliana (est. 1666) is the main

public library A public library is a library that is accessible by the general public and is usually funded from public sources, such as taxes. It is operated by librarians and library paraprofessionals, who are also Civil service, civil servants. There are ...

, since 2010 housed in the former convent of San Pietro located on Via di Fonte Avellana #8, in

Gubbio Gubbio () is an Italian town and ''comune'' in the far northeastern part of the Italian province of Perugia (Umbria). It is located on the lowest slope of Mt. Ingino, a small mountain of the Apennines. History The city's origins are very ancient. ...

, province of Perugia,

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. This library originated on 10 June 1666 with the donation to the city by the bishop of Gubbio,

Alessandro Sperelli Alessandro Sperelli C.O. (1589–1671) was a Roman Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Gubbio (1644–1671), Apostolic Nuncio to Naples (1652–1653), Auxiliary Bishop of Ostia e Velletri (1642–1644), and Titular Bishop of ''Orthosias in ...

of his collection of over 7000 volumes. He also provided funds for its maintenance and cataloguing. It was initially housed in the Palazzo Pretorio, Gubbio. The collection grew with the addition of other endowments, including the archival collections of Vincenzo Armanni, the book collections of abott Luigi Ranghiasci, Bonfatti, Mantovani, and of Pietro and Oderigi Lucarelli. Additional books derived from the 19th-century suppression of religious institutions. In 1974, the collection was moved to the former convent of Santo Spirito in via Cairoli. In 2010, it was moved to its present location in the former

Olivetan The Olivetans, formally known as the Order of Our Lady of Mount Olivet, are a monastic order. They were founded in 1313 and recognised in 1344. They use the Rule of Saint Benedict and are a member of the Benedictine Confederation, where they are ...

monastery of San Pietro.Library official site
Among the treasures of the collection are two 16th-century globes, both of the world and the sky, completed by Matthäus Greuter (1556 - 1638).

References

Libraries in Umbria Biblioteca Sperelliana Buildings and structures in Gubbio 1666 in literature Educational organizations established in the 1660s Organizations established in 1666 Libraries established in the 17th century {{Library-stub