National Library of France

Professionals

Contact

Restoration department:
Isabelle Rollet
Head of department
58, rue de Richelieu
75084 Paris cedex 02
Phone : 33 (0)1 53 79 84 83
Fax : 33 (0)1 53 79 80 46
Documentation center
Catherine Dumas
Phone : 01 53 79 84 82 or 01 53 79 80 58 (secretary)
Fax : 01 53 79 80 46
Email : catherine.dumas@bnf.fr

Preservation at BnF : sites

Preservation at the Richelieu Library (Site Richelieu) (Paris, 2nd arrondissement)

Preservation activities at Richelieu Library consist of:

restoration workshops
a reproduction workshop
a laboratory
the documentation center on the preservation of graphic materials
training activities (emergency plan)

The restoration department, based at the Richelieu Library, is responsible for BnF’s restoration activities. It currently consists of:

workshops tasked with restoring ancient and modern bound documents, printed materials and manuscripts on all types of media and materials (5th to 20th centuries)
and a reproduction workshop responsible for creating digital or microfilm backups of the site’s valuable documents, often after they have been restored.

The workshops of the restoration department

The workshops of the restoration department within the Preservation Services Department work for all BnF’s so-called special collections departments, mainly on bound documents. Several special collections departments also have their own local workshops: the Maps and Plans Department, the Prints and Photographs Department, the Coins, Medals and Antiques Department, and the Eastern and Western Manuscripts Departments. The Arsenal Library (Bibliothèque de l’Arsenal) and the Opera Library also have a workshop mainly tasked with maintaining their collections.

The department’s reproduction workshop

The department’s reproduction workshop is involved in programs to create digital backups (permanent digital images) of BnF’s prestigious collections: daguerreotypes, glass plates, painted manuscripts, drawings, engravings, and old maps and plans.

Specific to this site is: the documentation center on the preservation of graphic materials

It carries out documentary monitoring in the various areas of preservation (preservation and restoration of printed, handwritten, graphic and photographic materials, deterioration agents, preservation policy, standards and recommendations...). it also publishes and promotes internally-produced documentation, and hosts specialist researchers and students.

Volumetry:

Monographs: about 3000 documents
Periodicals: about one hundred out-of-print and currently available (56) periodical titles

Monday, April 4, 2011