Biblioteca Angelica
The Biblioteca Angelica (English: Angelica Library) is a public library located in Rome, Italy. In front of the Piazza Sant'Agostino square, adjacent to the church of Sant'Agostino, not far from Piazza Navona.
![](../I/S_Eustachio_-_piazza_s_Agostino_Arcadia_e_Angelica_1150281.jpg.webp)
The library holds about over 130,000 volumes of manuscripts[1] (among them Codex Angelicus) and 1,100 incunabula, which formerly belonged to the Augustinians. These works are important for our knowledge of the history of the Reformation and Counter-Reformation.
History
The library was established in 1604 by Angelo Rocca (1546–1620), and belonged to the Augustinian monastery.[2] Having been open to the public since 1609, it is considered the oldest public library in Europe along with the Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan.[3]
Since 1940, the library has housed the archives of the Academy of Arcadia. Since 1975, the library has been under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture.
References
- Marinelli, Anne V. (1955). "The State Public Libraries of Italy". The Library Quarterly: Information, Community, Policy. 25 (2): 163–170. doi:10.1086/618170. ISSN 0024-2519. JSTOR 4304402. S2CID 148074856.
- Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. .
- "Le biblioteche più belle e antiche del mondo - OndaDurso". Archived from the original on 2018-11-22. Retrieved 2018-11-21.
External links
![](../I/Commons-logo.svg.png.webp)
- Biblioteca Angelica - official website
- Direttori della Biblioteca Angelica di Roma