National Library of Venezuela
| Biblioteca Nacional de Venezuela National Library of Venezuela | |
|---|---|
| Location | Caracas, Venezuela |
| Established | 1833 |
| Branches | 685 |
| Collection | |
| Size | 7,131,660 Books |
| Other information | |
| Director | Ignacio Barreto |
| Website | http://www.bnv.gob.ve/ |
The Biblioteca Nacional de Venezuela (in English: National Library of Venezuela), located in Caracas, is the legal deposit and copyright for Venezuela. It was established on July 13, 1833, by decree of General José Antonio Páez. Diego Bautista Urbaneja, a Minister of Foreign Affairs, was designated as the first director.
The current headquarters of the library was designed by architect Tomás Sanabria from 1981 to 1989 in the style of Brutalist architecture, featuring a range of design elements and distinctive construction techniques.
The library contains several special collections:
- Automated Catalog
- Orientation and Reference
- CEDINBI (Library Information and Documentation Center)
- General Bibliographic Collection (CBG)
- Hemerographic Collection (CH)
- Collection of Official Publications (CPO)
- Old Documentary Collection (CDA)
- Arcaya Collection (CA)
- Sound and Cinema Collection and Flat Works Collection (CSCCOP).
According to their website, "The institution aspires to be an active organization in the generation of knowledge through the publication of various titles, printed or virtual, specialized or of collective interest, which are a contribution to the formation of a citizenry committed to building a better society."