The European Library

The earliest origins of the papal library are lost in antiquityand little remains of the successive centuries. The modern period begins with Nicholas V (1447-1455), humanist and founder of a notable private collection which would have been the first nucleus of the present BAV. The initiative of Nicholas V was reinforced by his successors, in particular, by Sixtus IV (Francesco della Rovere, 1471-1484) with the papal bull Ad decorum militantis ecclesiae issued on June 15, 1475. In the same bull, Bartolomeo Platina was named custos and gubernator of the library. Sixtus V (1585 - 1590) commissioned Domenico Fontana to construct the Salone Sistino the walls of which are lined with the cabinets in which the manuscripts were kept until the reign of Leo XIII (1878-1903).

The humanistic character of the library was enhanced over the centuries by many important acquisitions: the personal library of Fulvio Orsini, of the dukes of Urbino (1657), of Christina of Sweden (1690), the private libraries of a number of Roman Pontiffs, still in the possession of their families (Ottoboni, 1748; Borghese, 1891; Barberini, 1902; Chigi, 1923; Rospigliosi, 1929-1935).

Today the BAV is a library for scholars with large worldwide collections in the field of the humanities, and, though to a lesser extent, the social sciences. As a member of the URBS network the library carries out special tasks relative to the information infrastructure, library cooperation, library research and the application of technology in information services.

The printed books current catalogue has been accessible online since 1985.