Rare book and manuscript CRAI Library. Academic year 2019-20
Author: Rare book and manuscript CRAI Library
Keywords: User training, CRAI, Rare book and manuscript, library, Universitat de Barcelona, guides, ancient book, manuscript, incunabula

Databases and digital collections

Databases: Rare book and Manuscript CRAI Library manages two databases.
Printers’ devices
Former owners
Digital collections:
The BiPaDi (Biblioteca Patrimonial Digital) web page contains full-text digital versions of a range of historical collections. The texts can also be accessed from the CRAI catalogue.
The Memòria Digital de Catalunya (MDC) includes the Gravats de la Biblioteca de Reserva, Juntas Literarias del Reial Col·legi de Cirurgia de Barcelona, Fons Grewe, Marques impressors catalans and Material cartogràfic antic collections. They can be accessed directly from its page as well from the CRAI catalogue.

Hands-on sessions with documents from the Rare Bok and Manuscript CRAI Library

The Manuscript Room can be used for hands-on sessions as well as methodological ones. Reservations are essential and can be made via the online form in the web page of the Rare Book and Manuscript CRAI library.

Sponsor a document project

Items in the Rare Book and Manuscript CRAI Library collection can be sponsored, allowing users to contribute to their restoration and digitization.

Rare Book and Manuscript CRAI Library
Rare Book and Manuscript CRAI Library
Gran Via de les Corts Catalanes, 585
08007 Barcelona
First floor inside Philology CRAI Library
Tel.: 934 035 313 / 934 035 793
E-mail: bib.reserva@ub.edu
Timetable: Monday to Friday, 8.30am to 8.30pm
(pick up the books at 8.15pm)
Transports: L1, L2 (University station)
52, 54, 59, 68, 67, H7, V13

© CRAI UB, academic year 2019-20

RARE BOOK AND MANUSCRIPT CRAI LIBRARY

Brief history

The origins of the Rare Book and Manuscript CRAI library can be traced to two main events: the ecclesiastical confiscations of Mendizábal in 1836 and the restoration of the University to Barcelona in 1842. The bibliographic collections of expro-piated convents of different religious orders in the Barcelona province, covering a wide range of themes and dating from distinct periods, account for more than ninety per cent of the current collection. The remainder comprises the ancient library collection of the University of Cervera, donations and acquisitions, and the former collection of the School of Medicine and Surgery, which later became the Faculty of Medicine.

Collections

· Manuscripts: 2,150 manuscripts, dating from the tenth to the nineteenth century and covering a wide range of subjects. The most emblematic item is the 1343 Chronicle of James I.
· Incunabula: 1,240 copies of 830 different editions. Particularly well represented is printing in Barcelona and Spain, as well as throughout Europe. Ninety-one of the items cannot be found in any other Spanish library, and four are the only surviving examples in the world.
· Printed books: More than 11,000 printed editons from the sixteenth century, approximately 22,000 from the seventeenth century, some 31,000 from the eighteenth century and 3,500 from the period 1800‒1820, with roughly twice this number of copies for each period. There is a significant presence of European printing, especially Spanish, Italian, French and Portuguese and, to a lesser extent, Flemish, German and Swiss. Particularly noteworthy are the sermons and works on legal sciences and medicine.

Engravings: More than 8,000 engravings from the sixteenth to the nineteenth century, representing all of the major techniques and trends. Most of the collection comes from a donation made by the National Library of Spain in 1887.
Parchments: There are 890 parchments from different monasteries, comprising documentation from places such as Empordà, the Col·legi de l'Assumpció of the ancient Studium Generale of Lleida, and bachelor’s degree diplomas from the University of Cervera and other universities, dating from the eleventh to the eighteenth century.

Consultation

Items from the Rare Book and Manuscript CRAI Library can be viewed in the consultation room. The service is available to registered users only. Once users have registered and verified their details, the library staff will deliver the requested material to the reading desk. First-time users will be asked to read the rules and recommendations for the consultation and handling of ancient
books.

Catalogues

The main UB catalogue can be consulted on line and provides a specific search filter for ancient books.
There are two supplementary catalogues for printed books: a card inventory of authors and anonymous works and a title page photo inventory, both located in the corridor of the Torres Amat room in the Philology CRAI Library.

Manuscripts. The online catalogue does not include all the manuscripts. The full inventory can be consulted in F. Miquel Rosell. Inventario general de manuscritos de la biblioteca de la Universidad de Barcelona. Madrid, 1958-1969. 4 v. + 7 index folders for manuscripts 1‒2030. This work, as well as the inventory of manuscripts 2031‒2169, is also available at the Dipòsit Digital UB.
Engravings. Online catalogue, List of engravers and Record book in the library.
Parchments. Users should request the card inventory from library staff.

Copy services

Users wishing to produce copies of material from the Rare Book and Manuscript CRAI Library must complete a request form either at the Library or through the Interlibrary Loan Service. Current fees are published on the web page.
If the copies have to be published, it is necessary to make the request with the Permission of use document.

Web page

The Rare Book and Manuscript CRAI Library web page provides details about each of the collections and the range of services available.
It also features a blog containing news related to the collections and other library activities.