In Libraries in Russia, the author, Valerii Leonov, pursues the history of the first Russian national library, the Library of the Russian Academy of Science (Bibliotheca Akademii Nauk, short: BAN), ...from the beginning of the 18th century to the present. The library was founded by Peter the Great in 1714 and served as a model for the foundation of further libraries during the 18th century. This historical description is based on extensive historical and bibliographic material, including unique archive material, which is edited here for the first time. The title will be of interest to all in the humanities and everyone interested in Russian history and culture.
Founded by Peter the Great in 1714, the Library of the Russian Academy of Sciences (BAN—Biblioteka Akademii Nauk) is the first library of Russia open to the public. At present it is the main ...scientific library of the Russian Academy of Sciences and due to the size and value of its collections, BAN is among the greatest libraries of the world including the Library of Congress (USA), the Russian State Library and the Russian National Library. Since 1783, it has received depository copies of all published works in the country.
This three-part article describes recovery efforts following a disastrous fire at the Academy of Sciences Library in Leningrad that destroyed 400,000 volumes and waterdamaged 3.6 million others. In ...her overview, Carolyn Sung provides the international context of the recovery efforts led by the Library of Congress. Valerii Leonov describes on-the-scene activities, in particular the innovative methods developed for mass disinfecting and drying. He also suggests the development of international measures to deal with disaster prevention and recovery. Peter Waters comments from his experience with the Florence flood. He praises the procedures used in Leningrad and the decision to implement a phased conservation program that advocates longer time frames for planning purposes and sequential treatments, the first of which is the fabrication of protective enclosures.
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