Bologna Library
Octavis Uberstine
If you're a cinema addict like me, Bologna is the place to be.
Especially in summer when Piazza Maggiore becomes an open-air arena.
But also every day, if you have time to spend at Cineteca di Bologna and its library. A huge selection is dedicated to cinema, photography and all their relatives.
The quantity and quality of bookshops can tell a lot about a city and the people who live it.Vintage librerie like Nanni or new format that combines books and food, like Modo Infoshop: here's my selection of the most unique bookshops of Bologna.
Modena Cathedral is a storybook written on the stone. It's a UNESCO Heritage site. But most of all it's a symbol, loved by all the locals in Modena.Read why you should put it on your travel bucket list.
Like much of the architecture in Bologna, the Archiginnasio is distinguished by its red color, its porticoes, its inner courtyard, and its intricately decorated loggias. Two stairways lead to the upper floor, which hosts the library, reading rooms and anatomical theater.
Should you manage to convince the ladies at the front desk of your studious intentions, you will be asked to hand over a piece of ID for a key and then directed to the locker room to deposit everything except your most necessary items. No bags are allowed inside, no food and no drink. I was even sent back for trying to take my laptop case in. You could hide a rare book in there, I was told.
We lend materials to other libraries through an inter-library loan program. This service is only available to libraries and not individuals. Libraries interested in borrowing materials should check our catalog to determine our holdings. Only books from the general collection that are not checked out are available for lending, and some materials (reference items, periodicals, etc.) are excluded from lending. The request should state the call number of the book, as it appears in the catalog. A fee is charged for each loan. For additional information contact us via email.
Bologna University Library
The Bologna University Library, with important collections of antique and modern books, is the University's central library, offering general library services, conservation and historical and scientific research facilities.
EZproxy
This service allows you to access electronic resources with restricted access (databases, periodicals and electronic books, etc.) from home or from any location outside the University network.
The Biblioteca comunale dell'Archiginnasio (Archiginnasio Municipal Library) is a public library in Bologna, Italy. It is located inside the Palace of the Archiginnasio in Bologna since 1838, when a section of the building was destined to preserve the books collected from the closure of the religious orders made by Napoleon. The increase of the collections was pursued by purchasing and by donations from eminent people and scholars of Bologna, among them the cardinal Giuseppe Mezzofanti, Giovanni Gozzadini, Marco Minghetti, Giovanni Pascoli, Jacob Moleschott, Luigi Serra, Laura Bassi, Aurelio Saffi, Riccardo Bacchelli, Pelagio Palagi.
All of this material, handwritten and printed collections, are of the utmost importance. They deal mainly with the civil, cultural, religious and social history of Bologna and its territory from the Middle Ages to the present day.
From the role of Basilica of the city at the time of the Roman occupation, to the headquarters of the troops that guarded the Town Hall, the function of Salaborsa changed multiple times.
An interesting curiosity concerns its name: it derives from the role that this building has played after the creation of the Committee led by well-knwn Bolognese entrepreneurs. In fact, the Salaborsa has represented for many years the central place of the economic life in Bologna, where stock exchange transactions, market operations and trade took place.
Under the administration of the Apostolic Vicars, the garden of the palace was built next to the stables and, later on, it turned into the Botanical Garden thanks to Ulisse Aldrovandi.
The Botanical Garden was one of the oldest gardens in Europe, but it was then transferred to Via San Giuliano, near the Palazzina della Viola in San Donato district, where it is still possible to visit it.
At the launch of the project of the Urban Park of Piazza Maggiore, the municipal administration decided to create in this square a cultural city center (which includes the Morandi Museum, The Municipal Art Collections and the Archaeological Civic Museum besides the Salaborsa Library).
The modernist-style glass and iron interior makes the building one of a kind and the documentation it offers includes not only books and newspapers, but also comics, CDs, maps, audiobooks and much more.
Inside the Salaborsa Library it is possible to admire the remains of the ancient stratifications (and even walk on them) thanks to the crystal floor and, for the students, there are also two study halls (one for the youngest ones and one for university students).
In 2016 the covered square of the Salaborsa was dedicated to Umberto Eco, semiotic, essayist and famous professor of the University of Bologna. For Eco was the library the union of study, ideas, meeting points, books and communication, the strength and success of Bologna as a university and cultural city. These are the same characteristics that can be found in the covered square of Salaborsa.
After the liberation, in 1945, the inhabitants of Bologna began to bring photographs and flowers to this place in honor of the fallen ones and, later on, the municipal administration provided for the construction of this Memorial monument to partisans.
The Salaborsa Library is a real multimedia library; it offers resources also available remotely through the official website, which allows to combine history and modernity, tradition and innovation.
Before you enter the archaeological area, there is a timeline of the history of Bologna, at the end of which is a door. Through the door, you are transported back in time, surrounded by ancient building foundations, a well, and even an ancient sewage system. A kind Italian guide may even be available to point out the different layers of history, which are clearly visible in the remarkably preserved structures. The deepest, oldest levels of the ruins may date back even earlier than the founding of Bologna, suggesting a settlement already existed here before the Romans.
When you enter the Salaborsa Library, take the staircase to the left to access the museum. It is free to enter, although they do ask a small donation if you are able. The library and museum are open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. and 3 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Bologna is very much a shopping city. A multitude of shops and boutiques can be found mostly under the wonderful medieval arches for which the city is world-renowned. In fact, there are some 600 arches (3,796 meters in length) and around 40km of porticoes present in the city. These porticoes are today a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
As one enters the Library of the Archiginnasio, you are immediately drawn to the inner courtyard and colourful decorative wall elements on the ground floor level. It is clear that the walls of the library tell an intriguing story of scientific knowledge through the ages.
The Library of the Archiginnasio, located centrally in Bologna is by far my number one highlight of the city for those interested in history and culture. The Anatomical Theatre equally makes for great viewing, so too do the books and overall magnificent interior design.
Elizabeth Joss-Bethlehem is the founder and main writer at The Museum Times. She works as a university lecturer by day and is an avid travel blogger and arts and culture enthusiast by night. Elizabeth started The Museum Times out of the need to give smaller, lesser-known museums more exposure.
The Museum Times is run by journalist and travel blogger Elizabeth Joss (www.elizabethjoss.com). The website aims to provide increased visibility to smaller, lesser-known museums that usually do not get as much visibility due to lack of funds. Museums mentioned are spread across the world and are true gems worth talking about.
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The periodicals that I could view are only a selection of the holdings kept by the library. In fact, the Biblioteca delle Donne owns 495 titles, 108 of which are still current. Among them, there are some historical items from the 19th century, such as Cordelia.
The library functions as a repository of historical information, but it is also active in the shaping of contemporary knowledge about gender. EBook@women, a digital publishing house and bookstore focused on feminism, is linked to the Biblioteca delle Donne. One can find both new texts and classical feminist books, which have been digitalized for easier access.
The "Antonio Cicu" Law Library was part of the Department of Legal Studies until May 2018. It has now merged into the Libraries and Right to Education Area (ABIS) and is divided into different sections (CICU main office, SPISA specialized section, Filopanti section, CDE European Documentation Centre). All the information relating to timetables, services, resources and online catalogs have been brought together on the new website.
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