The Biblioteca Nacional de Venezuela (in

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

: ''National Library of Venezuela''), located in

Caracas Caracas (, ), officially Santiago de León de Caracas, abbreviated as CCS, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela, and the center of the Metropolitan Region of Caracas (or Greater Caracas). Caracas is located along the Guaire River in th ...

, is the legal deposit and copyright for

Venezuela Venezuela (; ), officially the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela ( es, link=no, República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a country on the northern coast of South America, consisting of a continental landmass and many islands and islets in th ...

. It was established on July 13, 1833, by decree of General

José Antonio Páez José Antonio Páez Herrera (; 13 June 1790 – 6 May 1873) was a Venezuelan leader who fought against the Spanish Crown for Simón Bolívar during the Venezuelan War of Independence. He later led Venezuela's independence from Gran Colombia. ...

. Diego Bautista Urbaneja, a Minister of Foreign Affairs, was designated as the first director. The current headquarters of the library was designed by architect Tomás Sanabria from 1981 to 1989 in the style of

Brutalist architecture Brutalist architecture is an architectural style that emerged during the 1950s in the United Kingdom, among the reconstruction projects of the post-war era. Brutalist buildings are characterised by minimalist constructions that showcase the ...

, featuring a range of design elements and distinctive construction techniques. The library contains several special collections: * Automated Catalog * Orientation and Reference * CEDINBI (Library Information and Documentation Center) * General Bibliographic Collection (CBG) * Hemerographic Collection (CH) * Collection of Official Publications (CPO) * Old Documentary Collection (CDA) * Arcaya Collection (CA) * Sound and Cinema Collection and Flat Works Collection (CSCCOP). According to their website, "The institution aspires to be an active organization in the generation of knowledge through the publication of various titles, printed or virtual, specialized or of collective interest, which are a contribution to the formation of a citizenry committed to building a better society."

History

In 1831 Interior Secretary

Antonio Leocadio Guzmán Antonio Leocadio Guzmán Águeda (Caracas, Venezuela, November 5, 1801 - November 13, 1884) was a Venezuelan politician, journalist, and military leader. He was the father of Antonio Guzmán Blanco. He was the founder of the Liberal Party. From ...

proposed the idea of merging convent libraries and books that were previously scattered throughout the country. While the 1833 decree by then-president José Antonio Páez is the widely-accepted date of establishment, it wasn't until 1870 that a "solid base for the functioning of the ational Librarywas established." In 1874 president

Antonio Guzmán Blanco Antonio José Ramón de La Trinidad y María Guzmán Blanco (28 February 1829 – 28 July 1899) was a Venezuelan military leader, statesman, diplomat and politician. He was the president of Venezuela for three separate terms, from 1870 until ...

mandated that the collections of the convent libraries were to be delivered to the Universidad Central de Venezuela. These collections would ultimately be added to the National Library, then located in the university campus. The first printed catalog, the ''Catalog of the Library of the University of Caracas'', was published in 1875 by Adolfo Ernst, a prominent scientist who would go on to become the director in 1876.

References

External links

Official site (in Spanish)
{{DEFAULTSORT:National Library Of Venezuela 1833 establishments in Venezuela Buildings and structures in Caracas Deposit libraries Libraries established in 1833 Libraries in Venezuela

History

See also

References

External links