Italy
Italy
There are 10 institutions given the title of national libraries
in Italy. The National Central Libraries in Rome and Florence are the most
prominent, and both receive matenals under the deposit laws of 1886 and
subsequent modifications. The Library in Florence started with a donation
from Antonio Magliabechi in the early 18th century. In 1935 it was moved
to Its present site, near the Church of Santa Croce, on the right bank
of the River Arno. It suffered great damage from the flood of 1966.
Today it holds nearly five million volumes and is completely automated.
The librarr in Rome, officially known as the Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale Vittorio Emanuele II, collaborates with its sister Central Library in Florence to produce bibliographies of Italian and foreign materials. It has about 4.5 million volumes. The two libraries have different strengths: Rome specializes in lending; Florence serves as a major national archive.
Other national libraries are in Bari, Milan. Naples, Palermo, Turin, and Venice. The newest are those in Potenza (founded 1974) and Cosenza (founded 1990).
Sources:
World guide to libraries. New York: Saur, 1998.
World encyclopedia of library and information services. 3rd ed.
Chicago: American Library Association,c1993.