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The University of Valladolid has a magnificent historical library, the Santa Cruz library, of recognised national and international prestige. Located in the palace of the same name, it is the work of Cardinal Don Pedro González de Mendoza and houses a lavish bibliographic and documentary collection divided into four sections: the Manuscripts section, which contains 520 pieces, including the oldest and most valuable piece in the library, Los Comentarios al Apocalípsis de San Juan de Beato de Liébana, a Mozarab-style codex from the year 970. A second section includes the Incunabula and Rarities and is made up of 355 volumes, outstanding amongst which is its oldest book, a work by Bernardo Justiniano printed in Rome in 1471. It also has a section of Printed Matter, comprising 23,887 volumes from the 16th to the 19th centuries. Of particular value is the remarkable section of Papers, containing 4.000 booklets from the 18th and 19th centuries, mainly referring to the life of the university itself and 502 documents printed in Valladolid from the 16th to the 19th centuries.

Together, they form one of the largest collections of documents to be found in any Spanish university. It is well organised and is at the disposal of researchers from all over the world with the help of the latest technology. As well as being used by researchers and by the over 5,000 visitors it receives each year, thematic exhibitions are also held, parts of the collection are loaned for other exhibitions and facsimiles of pieces of exceptional value are published. The Santa Cruz library is not only the depositary of the historical memory of the University of Valladolid, but is also a dynamic institution, reflecting the respect this age-old institution holds for science and tradition.




 

The University of Valladolid Library System: 19 specialised and 2 general libraries
The University of Valladolid Library provides a support service for teaching, study and research, and is organised as a truly decentralised library system made up of nineteen specialised libraries and two general libraries: the Santa Cruz Library, entrusted with the conservation, processing and diffusion of the bibliographic heritage of the university, and the “Reina Sofía” General University Library, located in the building of the former Chancery prison, construction work on which began in 1675 and which was annexed to the university in 1965. Over 130 people administer the acquisition of more than 30,000 works each year and respond to the demand for information of around 40,000 potential direct users (lecturers, students and administration and service personnel), placing over 5,000 reading places at their disposal in the hall.

The University of Valladolid has a powerful library management system, the Integrated Millennium System, with a highly functional graphic interface, and a broad collection of library applications that range from cataloguing, consulting, loans and periodical publications to acquisition management and interlibrary loans. An integrated system provides knowledge and access to the rich bibliographic collection of the University of Valladolid, comprising over 800,000 works, 34,000 non-book materials, 16,000 periodical publications, of which 6,200 are current, and more than 2,000 electronic journals that are available through the UVA research network.

The University Library is actively involved in various library networks, including REBIUN (Network of Spanish University Libraries), DOCUMAT (Documentary and Library Network specialised in Mathematical Sciences), MECANO (Collective Catalogue of Engineering Journals), C17 (Collective Catalogue of Biomedicine Journals), BUCLE (University Libraries of Castilla y León) and GEUIN (Spanish Group of Users) and INNOPAC, since it was established in Palma de Majorca in October 2001.