The nearly 600 years old Vatican library will be closed for the next three years for rebuilding. The shutdown was made without warning and scholars will be greatly impacted.
The library will close for its summer break in mid-July and only re-open in September 2010. The library will be renovated to install air conditioning and dust protection as well as improve its fire exits.
During the closure, scholars would still be able to obtain access to the Vatican library via the digital copies of the ancient manuscripts. However, the reading room in the Vatican library would be occupied by the Vatican’s book restorers as they will have look after more than a million printed volumes and 75,000 priceless manuscripts.
The Vatican library was founded by Pope Nicholas V nearly 600 years ago.
(via BBC News)
Technorati Tags: libraries, vatican library
