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Leiden University Libraries is a library founded in 1575 in Leiden, Netherlands. It is regarded as a significant place in the development of European culture: it is a part of a small number of cultural centres that gave direction to the development and spread of knowledge during the
Enlightenment Enlightenment or enlighten may refer to: Age of Enlightenment * Age of Enlightenment, period in Western intellectual history from the late 17th to late 18th century, centered in France but also encompassing (alphabetically by country or culture): ...
. This was due particularly to the simultaneous presence of a unique collection of exceptional sources and scholars. Holdings include approximately 5,200,000 volumes, 1,000,000 e-books, 70,000 e-journals, 2,000 current paper journals, 60,000 Oriental and Western
manuscripts A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand – or, once practical typewriters became available, typewritten – as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in ...
, 500,000 letters, 100,000 maps, 100,000
prints In molecular biology, the PRINTS database is a collection of so-called "fingerprints": it provides both a detailed annotation resource for protein families, and a diagnostic tool for newly determined sequences. A fingerprint is a group of conserve ...
, 12,000 drawings and 300,000 photographs. The library manages the largest collections worldwide on Indonesia and the
Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
. Furthermore, Leiden University Libraries is the only heritage organization in The Netherlands with three registrations of documents in UNESCO's Memory of the World Register. :"''Est hic magna commoditas bibliothecae ut studiosi possint studere''" ::— Josephus Justus Scaliger :"The greatest advantage of the library is that those who want to study, can study."


History

The 16th-century
Dutch Revolt The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt ( nl, Nederlandse Opstand) (Historiography of the Eighty Years' War#Name and periodisation, c.1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and t ...
against the
Habsburgs The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...
created a new country with a new religion. Soon, the need for a seat of higher learning was felt and in 1575
Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; nl, Universiteit Leiden) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. The university was founded as a Protestant university in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince o ...
was founded with the spoils from a confiscated Catholic monastery nearby. At the time the university was founded, it was immediately determined that a library in the vicinity of lecture halls was an absolute necessity. The library's first book was the
Polyglot Bible A polyglot is a book that contains side-by-side versions of the same text in several different languages. Some editions of the Bible or its parts are polyglots, in which the Hebrew and Greek originals are exhibited along with historical translat ...
, printed by Christoffel Plantijn, a gift of William of Orange to the library in 1575. The presentation of this book is regarded as the base on which the library is built (''fundamentum locans futurae aliquando bibliothecae''). The library became operational in the vault of the current Academy building at Rapenburg on 31 October 1587. In 1595 the ''Nomenclator'' appeared, the first catalogue of Leiden University Libraries as well as the first printed catalogue of an institutional library in the world. The publication of the catalogue coincided with the opening of the new library on the upper floor of the Faliede Bagijnkerk (now Rapenburg 70) next to the Theatrum Anatomicum. In 1864 the copy for the complete alphabetical catalogue of the library in Leiden from 1575 to 1860 was finished; it was never to appear in print. Readers were able to consult alphabetical and systematic registers of the Leiden library in the form of bound catalogue cards, known as ''Leidse boekjes''. This remained the cataloguing system for the library until 1988. The 22nd Librarian of Leiden University, Johan Remmes de Groot took the initiative for the Dutch library automation endeavor PICA ( Project Integrated Catalogue Automation). Pica was started up in 1969 and was bought by
OCLC OCLC, Inc., doing business as OCLC, See also: is an American nonprofit cooperative organization "that provides shared technology services, original research, and community programs for its membership and the library community at large". It was ...
in 2000. The first automation project in Leiden started in 1976, produced 400,000 titles via the Dutch PICA-GGC and resulted within a few years in a catalog on microfiche, which partly replaced the famous ''Leiden booklets'' catalogue. In 1983 the library moved to its present location on Witte Singel in a new building by architect Bart van Kasteel. The first online catalogue became available in 1988. According to Nicholas A. Basbanes, Leiden University Libraries represent ''"an essential benchmark ..not only for the teeming collection of extraordinary materials it has scrupulously gathered and maintained over a sustained period of time, but most of all for being the world's first scholarly library in a truly modern sense. The litany of 'firsts' recorded at Leiden is dazzling - the first printed catalogue to be prepared by an institution of its holdings, the first attempt to identify and maintain what today are known as 'special collections,' the first systematic attempt to develop a corps of influential friends, patrons, and benefactors throughout the world, the first 'universal' library, the list goes on and on - and underpinning it all is a humanistic approach to education and discovery that has figured prominently throughout its history, along with an unbending belief in the limitless potential of human inquiry."''


Leiden University Libraries today

Leiden University Libraries focuses on the complete information chain. The library facilitates not only access to (published) information but increasingly supports the evaluation, use, production and dissemination of scholarly information. To accomplish this the library's activities range from supporting education in
information literacy The Association of College & Research Libraries defines information literacy as a "set of integrated abilities encompassing the reflective discovery of information, the understanding of how information is produced and valued and the use of inform ...
to serving as an expert center for digital publishing. The library aims to function as the scholarly information manager of Leiden University. The strategic plan ''Partner in Kennis'' (Partner in Knowledge) focuses on the transformation of the library to an expert centre supporting research and education in digital spaces through Virtual Research Environments and Datalabs, the realization of library learning centres, the development of new expert areas such as data curation and text & data mining, and on digital information skills. Leiden's Catalogue makes available a considerable array of digital scholarly information: more than 400 databases, >70,000 e-journals, >5,000 newspapers and newsmagazines, >1,000,000 e-books and reference works, many hundreds of millions of journal articles, its digital special collections and repository materials. These digital information resources are available worldwide to Leiden University students and staff. The special collections and archives of Leiden University (see below) are increasingly made available through the library's Catalogue and Digital Collections environment. The library supports researchers from Leiden University through its Centre for Digital Scholarship which focuses on
open access Open access (OA) is a set of principles and a range of practices through which research outputs are distributed online, free of access charges or other barriers. With open access strictly defined (according to the 2001 definition), or libre op ...
, copyright,
data management Data management comprises all disciplines related to handling data as a valuable resource. Concept The concept of data management arose in the 1980s as technology moved from sequential processing (first punched cards, then magnetic tape) to r ...
, text and data mining and virtual research environments. The library makes all doctoral dissertations available online through the Catalogue and Leiden University Scholarly Publications that functions according to the
open access Open access (OA) is a set of principles and a range of practices through which research outputs are distributed online, free of access charges or other barriers. With open access strictly defined (according to the 2001 definition), or libre op ...
principles. Furthermore, publications from Leiden researchers are increasingly made available through the same repository. Thanks to the use of international standards, among others the Open Archives Initiative, the repository is visited daily by general and specialized search engines that harvest and index this information. In 2007, the library started with an ambitious program to renew and renovate its facilities: wireless access became available throughout the library in December 2007, in March 2008 the completely renovated ''Special Collections Reading Room Dousa'' was reopened, in June 2008 the fire protection systems installed in the closed stacks and the vaults of the library were taken into use, in December 2008 library patrons were able to make use of the new facilities created in the renovated ''Information Centre Huygens'', and a new exhibition space was opened on March 25, 2010, in the direct vicinity of a completely renovated entrance. In 2012-2013 the study areas (the complete first floor and parts of the second floor) of the University Library were renovated and a media centre was opened. Since June 1, 2009, the Leiden libraries form one organization: ''Leiden University Libraries (UBL)''. Leiden University Libraries has a number of locations: the University Library, the libraries of Social and
Behavioral Sciences Behavioral sciences explore the cognitive processes within organisms and the behavioral interactions between organisms in the natural world. It involves the systematic analysis and investigation of human and animal behavior through naturalistic o ...
, Law,
Mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...
and Natural Sciences and the East Asian Library. The collections of the former
Archeology Archaeology or archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of material culture. The archaeological record consists of artifacts, architecture, biofacts or ecofacts, sites, and cultural landscap ...
, Art History and Kern libraries are available at the University Library. On September 3, 2012, a Library Learning Centre was opened on the university's The Hague campus. Leiden University Libraries took over in 2013 the colonial collections including the entire map collections (
colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 a ...
and modern) of the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT) and in 2014 the complete collection of the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV). By bringing these collections together with those of the university libraries, the largest Indonesian and
Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
collections worldwide were created. Furthermore, Leiden University Libraries took over the KITLV-Jakarta office where extensive paper and digital collections on modern Indonesia are collected and cataloged. To house its world-famous and vast Asian collections a number of new facilities have been created: an open stack area making 5 km of materials directly available and a new remote storage facility housing 38 km of library materials. On 14 September 2017, H.M. Queen Máxima opened The Asian Library, a new floor on top of the University Library. In 2017, the Academic Historical Museum became part of UBL. The library of The Netherlands Institute for the Near East, specialised in the fields of
Assyriology Assyriology (from Greek , ''Assyriā''; and , '' -logia'') is the archaeological, anthropological, and linguistic study of Assyria and the rest of ancient Mesopotamia (a region that encompassed what is now modern Iraq, northeastern Syria, southea ...
, Egyptology and Near Eastern Archaeology, became part of UBL in 2018. Leiden University Libraries works together with other organizations nationally and internationally on innovation projects in this area. The library e.g. participated in the
DAREnet DAREnet (2003 - 2007) stands for Digital Academic Repositories and is an initiative by the Dutch organisation Surf. The DARE programme is a joint initiative by the Dutch universities and the National Library of the Netherlands, the Royal Netherlan ...
project and in projects financed by the European Union such as DRIVER-II and
OAPEN An open-access monograph is a scholarly monograph which is made openly available online with open license. Concept Open access is when academic research is made freely available online for anyone to read and re-use. As with open access journals, th ...
.


Special Collections

Leiden University Libraries hold a large number of special collections of national and international importance. These include manuscripts, early printed books, maps, atlases, prints, drawings, and photographs. To make these collections visible for a broad audience, the library partnered in 2015 with ''De Boekenwereld'', a richly illustrated magazine in Dutch for lovers of books with information about the early and modern book and graphic art.


Western Manuscripts

The collection ''Western Manuscripts'' contains all western manuscripts (including 2,500 medieval manuscripts and fragments and 25,000 modern manuscripts), 300,000 letters, archives and 3,000 annotated prints of the University Library, including the archives of the university.


Western Printed Works

The collection ''Western Printed Works'' contains materials printed before 1801 (including 700
incunabula In the history of printing, an incunable or incunabulum (plural incunables or incunabula, respectively), is a book, pamphlet, or broadside that was printed in the earliest stages of printing in Europe, up to the year 1500. Incunabula were pro ...
) and rare and precious works from after 1801. In the course of four centuries the collection has been expanded through bequests, gifts and acquisitions of collections from scholars. Furthermore, the University Library obtained the deposit right for a copy of each book for which the States of Holland had given the privilege to print. The collection also includes more than 100,000 printed works from the library of the ''Maatschappij der Nederlandse Letterkunde'' which has been deposited on permanent loan since 1876.


Bodel Nijenhuis Collection

The ''Bodel Nijenhuis Collection'' contains mainly old maps, atlases, topographical prints and drawings. Most of the collection was obtained as a bequest from J.T. Bodel Nijenhuis. The lawyer Johannes Tiberius Bodel Nijenhuis (1797–1872), director of the publishing house Luchtmans, for 25 years a member of the ''Maatschappij der Nederlandse Letterkunde'', was a passionate collector of cartographical and topographical material. The collection contains 60,000 maps (of which 3,000 drawings), 1,500 atlases, 24,000 topographical prints, 1,600 drawings and the archive of Youssouf Kamal's ''Monumenta Cartographica Africae et Aegypti''.


Oriental Collections

From its very onset the study of the Orient was of vital importance to the new university. Theologians studied the Semitic languages to perceive the meaning of the Bible. Political and commercial interests prompted the new-born Dutch Republic to establish relations with its enemies' enemies, among whom the Ottoman Empire, then at the zenith of its power. In the course of its expansionist policy the Dutch Republic secured possession of the Indonesian archipelago and other territories in South East Asia. In Japan, Dutch merchants maintained a trading post to the exclusion of all other European powers. In the course of four centuries countless manuscripts, printed books and photographs on the Orient and Oriental Studies have found their way to the library of Leiden University. Oriental Studies are still flourishing at Leiden University, and the Oriental Collections are still growing to serve the needs of the national and international scholarly community. The ''Oriental Collections'' of Leiden University Libraries are known as the ''Legatum Warnerianum'' (Warner's Legacy), referring to Levinus Warner (1619–1665), envoy to the Sublime Porte at Constantinople, whose collection of 1,000 Middle Eastern manuscripts forms the core of the present-day Oriental Collections. In 1659 following the death of the Ottoman bibliophile-encyclopedist Kâtip Çelebi his library was sold. At the time it was the largest private library in Istanbul, and Warner acquired part of it for the University of Leiden. The ''Oriental Collections'' nowadays contain 30,000 manuscripts and 200,000 printed books on subjects ranging from Archaeology to Zoroastrianism and in languages from Arabic to Zulu.


Bibliotheca Thysiana

The ''
Bibliotheca Thysiana The Bibliotheca Thysiana was erected in 1655 to house the book collection of the lawyer Johannes Thysius (1621–1653). Upon his early death, he left a legacy of 20,000 guilders for the building of a public library ("tot publycque dienst der studi ...
'' was erected in 1655 to house the book collection of the lawyer Joannes Thysius (1622–1653). Upon his early death, he left a legacy of 20,000 guilders for the building of a public library ("tot publycque dienst der studie") with a custodian's dwelling. Designed by the architect Arent van 's-Gravensande, the building follows the Dutch Classical style and is regarded as one of the jewels of Dutch 17th century architecture. It is distinguished by its balanced proportions and the purity of its Ionic order on top of a high basement. The ''Bibliotheca Thysiana'' is the only surviving 17th century example in the Netherlands of a building that was designed as a library. It is quite extraordinary that a complete private 17th century library has been preserved and thus offers a good impression of the book collection of a young, learned bibliophile from the period of late Humanism. The collection contains about 2,500 books and thousands of pamphlets in all scientific fields.


Maatschappij der Nederlandse Letterkunde

Otherwise known as the MNL, the "
Maatschappij der Nederlandse Letterkunde The Maatschappij der Nederlandse Letterkunde (English "Society of Dutch Literature", often abbreviated ''MNL'') is a prestigious and exclusive literary society. The MNL was established in Leiden in 1766 and is still located there. At the moment, ...
" (Dutch Society of Letters) was founded in Leiden in 1766 to promote the study of Dutch historical linguistic subjects. This society joined the Leiden University Libraries in 1876, and since 1999 forms the basis of the DBNL - the digital online library of the Dutch Language, an initiative for an online open access archive of the greatest works in Dutch literary history. The society had regular meetings in Leiden on literary subjects, but also on scientific subjects. It became fashionable for the elite to become members, and many were also members of the Dutch Society of Science ( Hollandsche Maatschappij der Wetenschappen), a similar society for the study of scientific subjects founded in Haarlem in 1752. Both societies still hold contests and award prizes for achievement.


Print Room

Founded in 1822, the Print Room possesses art works from the sixteenth century until the present day. Whether you are interested in mythological scenes from the Italian Renaissance,
daguerreotype Daguerreotype (; french: daguerréotype) was the first publicly available photographic process; it was widely used during the 1840s and 1850s. "Daguerreotype" also refers to an image created through this process. Invented by Louis Daguerre an ...
s, the largest collection of portraits in the Netherlands,
stereophotography Stereoscopy (also called stereoscopics, or stereo imaging) is a technique for creating or enhancing the illusion of depth in an image by means of stereopsis for binocular vision. The word ''stereoscopy'' derives . Any stereoscopic image is ...
or Dutch landscapes by Rembrandt and his pupils, the Print Room has them. The holdings presently amount to some 12,000 drawings, around 100,000 prints and some 80,000 photographs, with an emphasis on Dutch art. Amongst the drawings and prints you will find works by famous Dutch artists like Goltzius, Visscher,
Rembrandt Rembrandt Harmenszoon van Rijn (, ; 15 July 1606 – 4 October 1669), usually simply known as Rembrandt, was a Dutch Golden Age painter, printmaker and draughtsman. An innovative and prolific master in three media, he is generally consid ...
, Troost, Maris, Toorop, and Veldhoen, but prominent artists from other European Schools, like Hogarth, Callot, Canaletto, and Dürer are also present with specimens up to 1900. The photography collection spreads from its earliest history to the present day and boasts examples of virtually every Dutch photographer, from anonymous nineteenth-century pioneers through Piet Zwart and Paul Citroen to Ed van der Elsken and Johan van der Keuken, including a lot of attention to present day photographers such as Erwin Olaf and Hendrik Kerstens.


Colonial Collection (KIT)

The collection was started in 1864 with the opening of the Colonial Museum in Haarlem, but parts date back to the predecessor of the museum: the department of 'Trade and Colonies' founded in 1777 and part of the Hollandsche Maatschappij van Wetenschappen. In 1913 the collection was taken over by the Colonial Institute in Amsterdam founded in 1910. In 1950, after the Dutch decolonization, the mission of the Colonial Institute changed which was reflected in a name change to Royal Tropical Institute. But also the development of the collection changed quite drastically. In 2013 the library of the Royal Tropical Institute was closed and the part of the collection that dealt with the former Dutch colonies was housed at Leiden University Libraries.


Collection of the Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies (KITLV)

The KITLV was founded in 1851 and created the foremost collections on Southeast Asia (especially on Indonesia) and the
Caribbean The Caribbean (, ) ( es, El Caribe; french: la Caraïbe; ht, Karayib; nl, De Caraïben) is a region of the Americas that consists of the Caribbean Sea, its islands (some surrounded by the Caribbean Sea and some bordering both the Caribbean Se ...
(especially
Suriname Suriname (; srn, Sranankondre or ), officially the Republic of Suriname ( nl, Republiek Suriname , srn, Ripolik fu Sranan), is a country on the northeastern Atlantic coast of South America. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north ...
,
Aruba Aruba ( , , ), officially the Country of Aruba ( nl, Land Aruba; pap, Pais Aruba) is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands physically located in the mid-south of the Caribbean Sea, about north of the Venezuela peninsula of ...
and the
Netherlands Antilles nl, In vrijheid verenigd"Unified by freedom" , national_anthem = , common_languages = Dutch English Papiamento , demonym = Netherlands Antillean , capital = Willemstad , year_start = 1954 , year_end = 2010 , date_start = 15 December , ...
). The collection contains about 1 million - mostly postcolonial - books and special collections, including 150.000 digitized historical photographs, maps, prints and unique archives. On July 1, 2014, the management of the collection was transferred from the
Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences ( nl, Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen, abbreviated: KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed ...
to Leiden University Libraries.


Scaliger Institute

The ''Scaliger Institute'', founded in 2000, aims to stimulate and facilitate the use of the special collections in both teaching and research. For this purpose, the institute offers favourable working conditions and expertise, organizes lectures, symposia, master classes, and special courses, and provides fellowships to junior and senior scholars from the Netherlands and elsewhere who wish to work in Leiden for a longer period. These include the Brill, Elsevier, Van de Sande, Juynboll en Ailion fellowships, which focus on different disciplines or regions. The Scaliger Chair, affiliated with both the Institute at Leiden University Libraries and the university's Faculty of Humanities, is tasked with "promot ngteaching and research relating to the Special Collections held by the University library" through outreach activities directed towards academic and non-academic audiences. Scaliger professors: * Wim Gerritsen (2002–2006) * Harm Beukers (2007–2016) *
Erik Kwakkel Erik Kwakkel (born 28 May 1970, Meppel) is a Dutch scholar who specializes in medieval manuscripts, paleography, and codicology Codicology (; from French ''codicologie;'' from Latin , genitive , "notebook, book" and Greek , '' -logia'') is the ...
(2016–2018) *
Rick Honings Rick may refer to: People * Rick (given name), a list of people with the given name * Alan Rick (born 1976), Brazilian politician, journalist, pastor and television personality * Johannes Rick (1869–1946), Austrian-born Brazilian priest and my ...
(2020–present) Furthermore, an internationally prominent scholar is frequently appointed as ‘Visiting Scaliger Professor’ who delivers i.a. the Scaliger Lecture: Anthony Grafton (2009), François Déroche (2010), Peter Frankopan (2017),
Ted Underwood TED may refer to: Economics and finance * TED spread between U.S. Treasuries and Eurodollar Education * ''Türk Eğitim Derneği'', the Turkish Education Association ** TED Ankara College Foundation Schools, Turkey ** Transvaal Education Depart ...
(2019). The institute was named after Josephus Justus Scaliger (1540–1609), Leiden's most renowned scholar during the early years of its existence and a great benefactor of the University Library through the donation, at his death, of his exceptional collection of manuscripts and all his oriental books.


Specific information

* Areas of concentration: archaeology, anthropology, art, astronomy, cartography,
classics Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
, education, history, law, literature, medicine,
Orientalism In art history, literature and cultural studies, Orientalism is the imitation or depiction of aspects in the Eastern world. These depictions are usually done by writers, designers, and artists from the Western world. In particular, Orientalist p ...
, papyrology,
philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
, politics,
publishing Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...
, religion, science. * Some individual collections:
D. Bierens de Haan David Bierens de Haan (3 May 1822, in Amsterdam – 12 August 1895, in Leiden) was a Dutch mathematician and historian of science. Biography Bierens de Haan was a son of the rich merchant Abraham Pieterszoon de Haan (1795–1880) and Catharina Ja ...
, Willem Bilderdijk, T. Bodel Nijenhuis, G.J.P.J Bolland, J. Golius, A.P.H. Hotz, J. Huizinga, Constantijn and Christiaen Huygens, F. Kellendonk, Justus Lipsius, P. Marchand, E.M. Meijers, K.H. Miskotte, J. Oort, V. Perelešin, M. Rijke, J.J. Scaliger, C. Snouck Hourgronje, C.P. Tiele, H.N. van der Tuuk, I. Vossius, L. Warner, N. van Wijk, Jan Wolkers. * Some institutional collections: Bohn Publishers, Sijthoff Publishers, Bibliothèque Wallonne, NHK (Dutch Reformed Church), Seminarium Remonstrantum, photographs Indonesia, ISIM (Islam), Zaken Overzee (Netherlands Ministry of Overseas Affairs).


Documents inscribed in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register

In the prestigious UNESCO Memory of the World Register documents are inscribed that affirm their world significance and outstanding universal value. * The Leiden La Galigo manuscript, written in Buginese (May 25, 2011). ''From the NBG collection.'' * The Dutch translation of the autobiographical manuscript of the Javanese prince Diponegoro (1755 -1855), national hero and pan-Islamist (June 18, 2013). ''From the KITLV collection.'' * The Panji manuscripts with ancient tales revolving around the mythical Javanese prince Panji (October 30, 2017).


Librarians of Leiden University

Since the founding of the university in 1575 there have been 25 Librarians of Leiden University:


Library locations


Present locations

*University Library, Witte Singel 27, Leiden (Architect: Bart van Kasteel) *Asian Library, Witte Singel 27, Leiden (Architect: Katja Hogenboom studio with FELSCH architecten) *Law Library, Steenschuur 25, Leiden *Social and Behavioral Sciences Library, Wassenaarseweg 52, Leiden *Gorlaeus Library and Mathematics and Natural Sciences Library, Einsteinweg 55 & Niels Bohrweg 1, Leiden *Walaeus Library (LUMC), Albinusdreef 2, Leiden *NINO Library, Witte Singel 25, Leiden *Academic Historical Museum, Rapenburg 73, Leiden *Wijnhaven Library, Campus The Hague, Turfmarkt 99, The Hague *KITLV-Jakarta, Jl. H.R. Rasuna Said Kav S-3, Jakarta, Indonesia


Former locations

1587-1595: Academiegebouw, Rapenburg 73, Leiden. 1595-1983: Faliede Bagijnkerk, Old University Library, now: University Board, Rapenburg 70, Leiden. File:Gewelven kamer - Leiden - 20135437 - RCE.jpg, Vault room at Rapenburg 73 (location 1587–1595) hotograph 1940File:Leiden 1610.jpg, Rapenburg 73 (1610) Print by Woudanus in ''Stedeboeck der Nederlanden'', Amsterdam: Willem Blaeu, 1649. File:Leiden 1694.jpg, Rapenburg 70 (1694) La nouvelle bibliothèque, from ''Les delices de Leide, une des célèbres villes de l'Europe'', Leiden: P. van der Aa, 1712 File:Goedeljee University Library.jpg, Rapenburg 70 (c.1890) File:Gevels - Leiden - 20137291 - RCE.jpg, Rapenburg 70 (1963) File:Leiden-Universiteitsbibliotheek.jpg, Current location: Witte Singel 27 (2006) File:ErfgoedLeiden LEI001017058 Rijks Universiteits Bibliotheek.jpg, Interior of the University Library. Glass negative, circa 1880. Photographer: Jan Goedeljee 1824–1905. File:ErfgoedLeiden LEI001017056 Rijks Universiteits Bibliotheek.jpg, Reading room, University Library. Glass negative, circa 1880. Photographer: Jan Goedeljee (1824–1905).


Leiden University Libraries in fiction

* Dutch author Frans Kellendonk (1951–1990) located his novel ''Letter en Geest. Een spookverhaal.'' (1982) in Leiden University Libraries. The main character in the novel Frits Mandaat replaces a sick colleague in the library. Kellendonk worked briefly in 1979 as a subject specialist for English literature at Leiden University Libraries.


Membership

Leiden University Libraries participates as a member in: *NVB, the Dutch Association of Information Professionals *UKB, the Dutch consortium of university libraries and the National Library *SAE, Academic Heritage Foundation *FOBID, the Netherlands Library Forum *Centre for the Study of the Book,
Bodleian Library The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford, and is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. It derives its name from its founder, Sir Thomas Bodley. With over 13 million printed items, it is the second- ...
*LIBER, Association of European Research Libraries * IFLA, International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions * Knowledge Unlatched (Charter member) *
OAPEN An open-access monograph is a scholarly monograph which is made openly available online with open license. Concept Open access is when academic research is made freely available online for anyone to read and re-use. As with open access journals, th ...
, Open Access Publishing in European Networks (Founding member) * IIIF, International Image Interoperability Framework (Founding member)


Exhibitions

Leiden University Libraries organizes about four exhibitions annually using Leiden University's rich special collections. The exhibition room is located in the entrance area of the University Library (Witte Singel) and is open freely for the public during library opening hours. In addition, Leiden University Libraries regularly organizes extensive exhibitions in collaboration with museums. In the past period the following exhibitions have been realized: *''Kaarten: navigeren en manipuleren.'' National Museum of Ethnology, Leiden, 21 October 2022 - 29 October 2023. *''Books that made History.'' Rijksmuseum van Oudheden, Leiden, 22 June 2022 - 4 September 2022. *''Alexine Tinne, photographer - her world view.'' Haags Historisch Museum, The Hague, 26 January 2022 - 12 Juni 2022. *''Photography Becomes Art. Photo-Secession in Holland 1890-1937.'' The Hague Museum of Photography, The Hague, 7 September 2019 - 8 December 2019. *''Leiden Celebrates! Highlights of an Academic Collection.'' Rembrandt House Museum, Amsterdam, 17 October 2014 - 26 January 2015. *''Straatwerken'' (drawings by 17th century artist Leonaert Bramer). Westfries Museum, Hoorn, 14 December 2013 - 3 March 2014. *''World Treasures! From Cicero to Erwin Olaf. Discover the Special Collections of Leiden University.'' Stedelijk Museum De Lakenhal, Leiden, 9 March 2013 - 30 June 2013. *''Turcksche boucken (Turkish books) from Levinus Warner. A seventeenth century diplomat and book collector in Istanbul.'' Museum Meermanno, House of the Book, The Hague, 15 December 2012 - 3 March 2013. *''Sweet&Salt. Water and the Dutch.'' Kunsthal, Rotterdam, 14 February 2012 - 10 June 2012. *''Erwin Olaf: Relief of Leiden.'' Stedelijk Museum De Lakenhal and Leiden University Libraries, Leiden, 29 September 2011 - 8 January 2012. *''In Atmospheric Light. - Picturalism in Dutch Photography 1890-1925.'' Rembrandt House Museum, Amsterdam, 1 April 2010 - 20 June 2010. *''Photography! A special collection at Leiden University.'' The Hague Museum of Photography, The Hague, 23 January 2010 - 18 April 2010. *''On route to the Golden Age - Hendrick Goltzius & Jacob de Gheyn II.'' , Venlo, 28 November 2009 - 28 February 2010. *''City of Books. Seven Centuries of Reading in Leiden.'' Stedelijk Museum De Lakenhal, Leiden, 22 February 2008 - 1 June 2008. * ''Goed gezien. Tien eeuwen wetenschap in handschrift en druk.'' Rijksmuseum van Oudheden, Leiden. 30 October 1987 - 17 January 1988. Furthermore, Leiden University Libraries often serves as lender to exhibitions by major museums in The Netherlands and abroad.


Publications


General (selection)

* Christiane Berkvens-Stevelinck: ''Magna commoditas - Leiden University's great asset. 425 years library collections and services''. Amsterdam, Leiden University Press, 2012. [Enlarged and updated edition
Digital version
* Elfriede Hulshoff Pol: 'The first century of the Leiden University Library'. In: ''Leiden University in the seventeenth century. An exchange of learning''. Leiden, Universitaire Pers Leiden, 1975. * ''Quaestiones leidenses. Twelve studies on Leiden University Library and its holdings published on the occasion of the quarter-centenary of the university. Ed. by Christiane Berkvens-Stevelinck ... et al. Leiden, Universiteitsbibliotheek, 1975


Collections (selection)

* ''Maps That Made History. 1000 Years of World History in 100 Old Maps.'' Martijn Storms (ed.). Tielt: Lannoo, 2022. * ''Kaarten die geschiedenis schreven. 1000 jaar wereldgeschiedenis in 100 oude kaarten.'' Martijn Storms (ed.). Tielt: Lannoo, 2022. * ''Books That Made History. 25 Books from Leiden That Changed the World.'' Edited by: Kasper van Ommen and Garrelt Verhoeven. Leiden: Brill, 2022. * ''Boeken die geschiedenis schreven.'' Redactie: Kasper van Ommen & Garrelt Verhoeven. Amsterdam: Athenaeum, 2022. * Kester Freriks & Martijn Storms. ''Grensverkenningen. Langs oude grenzen in Nederland.'' Amsterdam: Athenaeum, 2022. * ''Fotografie wordt Kunst. Photo-Secession in Holland 1890-1937. Photography Becomes Art. Photo-Secession in Holland 1890-1937''. Concept, image editing and text: Maartje van den Heuvel. Zwolle: WBOOKS in collaboration with Leiden University Libraries, 2019. * ''Voyage of Discovery. Exploring the Collections of the Asian Library at Leiden University''. Edited by: Alexander Reeuwijk. Leiden: Leiden University Press, 2017.
Digital version
* Luitgard Mols & Arnoud Vrolijk. ''Western Arabia in the Leiden Collections. Traces of a Colourful Past''. Leiden: Leiden University Press, 2016.
Digital version
* ''For Study and Delight. Drawings and Prints from Leiden University''. Edited by: Jef Schaeps, Elmer Kolfin, Edward Grasman, Nelke Bartelings. Leiden: Leiden University Press, 2016. * ''Leiden viert feest. Hoogtepunten uit een academische collectie''. Onder redactie van Jef Schaeps en Jaap van der Ven. Leiden: Leiden University Press, 2014. * Arnoud Vrolijk, Jan Schmidt & Karin Scheper. ''Turcksche boucken. De oosterse verzameling van Levinus Warner, Nederlands diplomaat in zeventiende-eeuws Istanbul. The Oriental collection of Levinus Warner, Dutch diplomat in seventeenth-century Istanbul''. Eindhoven: Lecturis, 2012. * Corien J.M. Vuurman. ''Nineteenth-century Persia in the Photographs of Albert Hotz. Images from the Hotz Photograph Collection of Leiden University Library, the Netherlands''. Rotterdam en Gronsveld: Barjesteh van Waalwijk van Doorn & Co's Uitgeversmaatschappij, 2011. * Maartje van den Heuvel, Janrense Boonstra & Jan van Dijk. ''In atmospherisch licht. Picturalisme in de Nederlandse fotografie 1890-1925. In Atmospheric Light. Picturalism in Dutch Photography 1890-1925''. Zwolle: Waanders, 2010. * Maartje van den Heuvel & Wim van Sinderen. ''Photography! A Special Collection at Leiden University''. Leiden: Leiden University & the Hague Museum of Photography, 2010. * ''Fotovoorkeuren. 50 auteurs kiezen een foto uit de collectie van het Leids Prentenkabinet''. Onder redactie van Joke Pronk & Tineke de Ruiter. Amsterdam: Voetnoot, 2007. * ''Bronnen van kennis. Wetenschap, kunst en cultuur in de collecties van de Leidse Universiteitsbibliotheek''. Onder redactie van Paul Hoftijzer, Kasper van Ommen, Geert Warnar & Jan Just Witkam. Leiden: Primavera Pers, 2006. * ''Oostersche weelde. De Oriënt in westerse kunst en cultuur. Met een keuze uit de verzameling van de Leidse Universiteitsbibliotheek''. Onder redactie van Jef Schaeps, Kasper van Ommen & Arnoud Vrolijk. Leiden: Primavera Pers, 2005. * ''Hora est! On dissertations''. Leiden, 2005
Digital version
* ''Jan Oort, astronomer'', with contrib. by Jet Katgert-Merkelijn & Jos Damen. Leiden, 2000
Digital version
* ''Goed gezien. Tien eeuwen wetenschap in handschrift en druk''. Eindredactie R. Breugelmans. Leiden 1987. * R. Breugelmans: ''Leiden imprints 1483-1600 in Leiden University Library and Bibliotheca Thysiana. A short-title catalogue''. Nieuwkoop, De Graaf, 1974.


See also

* List of libraries in the Netherlands


References


External links

*
Leiden University Libraries CatalogueLeiden University Libraries Digital CollectionsLeiden University Scholarly Publications (Repository)Scaliger InstituteVideos from and about Leiden University Libraries
{{Authority control Leiden University Academic libraries in the Netherlands Archives in the Netherlands 1587 establishments in Europe Buildings and structures in Leiden