Vittoriano
Archaeology and Art History Library
The history of BiASA in nine acts
I
The origins
A library for ministerial officials
II
For Italian scholars, and thus for the nation
When World War I began, the library opened its collections to Italian academics that had been ousted by the German Institute of Rome (Istituto Germanico di Roma), considering them to be enemies
III
Palazzo Venezia
Assigned to the newly-formed National Institute of Archaeology and Art History, the library was moved to the Renaissance palace of Pope Paul II (Pietro Barbo)
IV
The arrival of the Rodolfo Lanciani Archive
The library made a qualitative leap forward with the acquisition of the books and materials belonging to the great Roman archaeologist Rodolfo Lanciani
V
The war and a return to normalcy
After the dark years of WWII, the library thrived and its collections continued to grow
VI
Not only for specialists
Once it became a State-run library, BiASA opened its doors to the general public
VII
The search for more space: the Roman College
With increased acquisitions and a larger user base, the library was in dire need of additional space
VIII
In-person and online visitors
The library’s desire to meet users where they are led to cutting-edge projects, including the Digital Italian Periodicals archive
IX
The future
The new BiASA headquarters will be a building located in the heart of Rome, renovated just for this purpose by starchitect Mario Botta
