The British library Introduction: The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and the largest national library in...
The British library
Introduction:
The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and the largest national library in the world by number of items catalogued. It is estimated to contain 150–200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British Library receives copies of all books produced in the United Kingdom and Ireland, including a significant proportion of overseas titles distributed in the UK.
British library at a glance:
Country | United Kingdom | ||
Type | |||
Established | 1973 (45 years ago) (1753) | ||
Location | |||
Branches | 1 (Boston Spa, West Yorkshire) | ||
Collection | |||
Items collected | Books, journals, newspapers, magazines, sound and music recordings, patents, databases, maps, stamps, prints, drawings and manuscripts | ||
Size | 150–200 million+ items 13,950,000 books 824,101 serial titles 351,116 manuscripts (single and volumes) | 8,266,276 philatelic items 4,347,505 cartographic items 1,607,885 music scores 6,000,000 sound recordings | |
Yes, provided in law by: *Legal Deposit Libraries Act 2003 (United Kingdom) *Copyright and Related Rights Act, 2000 (Republic of Ireland) | |||
Access and use | |||
Access requirements | Open to anyone with a need to use the collections and services | ||
Other information | |||
Budget | £142 million | ||
Director | Roly Keating (chief executive, since 12 September 2012) | ||
Website | |||
Historical Background:
The British Library was created on 1 July 1973 as a result of the British Library Act 1972. Prior to this, the national library was part of the British Museum, which provided the bulk of the holdings of the new library, alongside smaller organizations which were folded In 1974 functions previously exercised by the Office for Scientific and Technical Information were taken over; in 1982 the India Office Library and Records and the HMSO Binderies became British Library responsibilities. In 1983, the Library absorbed the National Sound Archive, which holds many sound and video recordings, with over a million discs and thousands of tapes.
The core of the Library's historical collections is based on a series of donations and acquisitions from the 18th century, known as the "foundation collections".
Legal deposit:
In England, Legal Deposit can be traced back to at least 1610. The Copyright Act 1911 established the principle of the legal deposit, ensuring that the British Library and five other libraries in Great Britain and Ireland are entitled to receive a free copy of every item published or distributed in Britain.
The British Library is the only one that must automatically receive a copy of every item published in Britain
The Library also holds the Asia, Pacific and Africa Collections (APAC) which include the India Office Records and materials in the languages of Asia and of north and north-east Africa.
Electronic collections:
Explore the British Library is the latest iteration of the online catalogue. It contains nearly 57 million records and may be used to search, view and order items from the collections or search the contents of the Library's website. The Library's electronic collections include over 40,000 e-journals, 800 databases and other electronic resources.
Exhibitions:
A number of books and manuscripts are on display to the public in the Sir John Ritblat Gallery which is open seven days a week at no charge.
In addition to the permanent exhibition, there are frequent thematic exhibitions which have covered maps, sacred texts, history of the English language, and law, including a celebration of the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta
Sound collection:
The British Library Sound Archive holds more than a million discs and 185,000 tapes. The collections come from all over the world and cover the entire range of recorded sound from music, drama and literature to oral history and wildlife sounds, stretching back over more than 100 years. The Sound Archive's online catalogue is updated daily.
Newspaper:
The Library holds an almost complete collection of British and Irish newspapers since 1840. This is partly because of the legal deposit legislation of 1869, which required newspapers to supply a copy of each edition of a newspaper to the library.
Moving image services
Launched in October 2012, the British Library's moving image services provide access to nearly a million sound and moving image items onsite, supported by data for over 20 million sound and moving image recordings. It provides three services: such as-
1. The three services,
2. BBC Pilot/Redux
3. Broadcast News
Television & Radio Index for Learning & Teaching (TRILT):
The British Library Philatelic Collections are held at St Pancras. The collections include postage and revenue stamps, postal, stationery, essays,
proofs, covers and entries, "Cinderella" material, specimen issues, airmails, some postal history materials, official and private posts, etc., for almost all countries and periods.
Conclusion:
The British library is the national library of United Kingdom and the largest library of the world. It holds well over 150 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library the British library receives copies of all books produced.
