Between the 6th and the 8th of October 2022, the German Gesellschaft für Universitätssammlungen held its annual conference in Vienna. The „Collection is in focus. University collections as places of critical discussion” was organised by the collection coordination staff at the University of Vienna in the university's main building.

The Gesellschaft für Universitätssammlungen was established with the aim of supporting the wide dissemination and preservation of educational and research collections at universities in Germany. This year, „sensitive objects” came to the fore in the presentations of the conference. This sensitivities can appear in several aspects, but their common feature is that these collections represent a significant problem in handling. The aim of the conference was to bring these problematic collections into focus, as they include human remains (which in some cases also include the management of colonial heritage), objects at risk from the point of view of protection and long-term preservation (e.g. glass slides, glass negatives); digitalisation as the question of access (accessibility) may also arise.

Since its inception, the University Collection Coordination under the leadership of the ELTE University Library and Archives has maintained a relationship with the collection coordination within the university library of the University of Vienna. The ELTE’s collection organization is very similar to the society’s member institutions in Germany and Vienna, they provided an opportunity to present our university. Archivist Krisztina Tóth Ph.D. and museologist Georgina Schlay participated in the conference on behalf of the coordination. On the afternoon of the 7th of October, the background and activities of the University Collection Coordination were summarized in the poster section.

At the third quarterly report of the K21 Quality Coordination Committee 2022, the leaders of the working groups reported on the results of the past quarter, ongoing work and changes.

The K21 Quality Management Coordination Committee thanked Ilona Bodnár PhD for her outstanding work as library manager and wished her a prosperous retirement.

The Accessibility Working Group sent a reminder about the availability of the documents in EDIT to assist special needs students with library services.

Members of the Primary Research Working Group are actively working on the analysis of the 2022 Student Needs and Satisfaction Survey, and preparation of a survey on the use of electronic content has begun.

A key task of the Process Management Working Group is the revision of the process inventory for the Quality Management Handbook. In preparation, a task list has been prepared. The document also includes faculty submissions with comments and suggestions on the text.

News were published on our website and a short summary film entitled 3 months – 3 minutes was sent out on the results achieved by the K21 working groups. We also contributed to the publication of news about sensitisation training to support students with special needs and about the success of the ELTE Librarian Day. We welcomed students at the beginning of the autumn semester with a presentation of the University Library Service on our website and on the Neptun platform, promoting the services offered by our libraries. In website news, we congratulated our distinguished staff and provided information on the changes to the bibliography requirements for doctoral theses.

Work on the collection and organisation of materials for the development of the „virtual Green Library” is in progress.

In their meetings, the library directors discussed the process of book acquisition with the support of the Humanity Foundation, the procurement of RFID devices, the process of student debt settlement following the change in the Student Requirements System, the publication of user training courses organised by the faculties, the journal ordering and EISZ subscription for 2023, as well as the provisions and measures expected due to the energy emergency.

During the meeting, the analytical groups for the preparation of the new strategy reported on the the work in progress.

We will update you on the results of the K21 Quality Coordination Committee and our new developments on our website soon.

Our mini exhibition „Book, Robe, Science – Symbols from the Past of Eötvös Loránd University” is open until the 11th of November 2022 as part of the Autumn Festival of Museums.

The exhibition presents the major turning points in the history of Eötvös Loránd University, with the help of memorabilia from the University Library and Archives. Through symbols, our guests can follow the development of the Jesuit-founded institution serving Catholic education, from its transformation into a state and royal university to the 300th anniversary of its foundation. After the university reform in 1949, many traditions were ceased to be practised and the related representative objects were transferred to museums. The fate of these objects in the 20th and 21st centuries is explored in the virtual space of the exhibition.

For a detailed programme, please, visit our homepage. All visitors are welcome!

Venue:

University Library and Archives, Eötvös Loránd University, Boardroom

1053 Budapest, Ferenciek tere 6.

More information:

The exhibition is open to the public during the Autumn Festival of Museums until the 11th of November 2022, on weekdays between 10.00 and 15.00. Registration is possible at titkarsag@lib.elte.hu.

In the frame of the Autumn Festival of Museums, our temporary exhibition entitled Janus Pannonius from Humanism to the Baroque – A Selection from the Collection of the University Library and Archives is open until the 11th of November 2022.

János Csezmicei, bishop of Pécs, known as a poet by pen-name Janus Pannonius (1434–1472), was one of the first humanists and book collectors in Hungary. During his study years in Italy, he not only acquired a wide knowledge of Greek and canon law, but also wrote many of his poems. He got acquainted with a number of other humanists, with some of whom he maintained relations also after having returned to Hungary. From the early 16th century onwards, his poems were published, and enabled Janus Pannonius to become more widely known throughout Europe than ever before. In addition to a precious treasure from his library, an eleventh-century Greek-language Gospel Book from Byzantium, the University Library preserves a wealth of documents directly or indirectly associated with Janus Pannonius. Our chamber exhibition displays several printed books and a manuscript relating to the poet’s Italian acquaintances (Galeotto Marzio, Marsilio Ficino) and the first researchers of his literary legacy (Péter Váradi, István Brodarics), as well as five different foreign and Hungarian editions of his works from the 16th and 18th centuries. Registration is possible via e-mail at titkarsag@lib.elte.hu. For a detailed programme, please, visit our homepage. All visitors are welcome!

Venue of the event:

ELTE University Library and Archives, Second Floor, Director General’s Office and Old Repository

1053 Budapest, Ferenciek tere 6.

Date and time:

The exhibition is open to the public during the Autumn Festival of Museums from the 3rd of October to the 11th of November 2022, on weekdays between 10.00 and 15.00.

István Ádám will give a concert at the ELTE University Library and Archives (1053 Budapest, Ferenciek tere 6.) on the 7th of October 2022 from 18.00.

Detailed programme:

Johann Sebastian Bach - BWV 998 - Prelude
Fernando Sor - Op. 6 - No.12
Agustin Barrios - El ultimo tremolo
Emilio Pujol - El abejorro
Heitor Villa Lobos - No. 3
Heitor Villa Lobos - No. 6
Dilermando Reis - Se Ela Perguntar
Leo Brouwer - Estudios Sencillos - X

All visitors are welcome!

At the beginning of the year 2022, the librarians of ELTE Trefort Ágoston High School asked for help in the cataloguing of the school library’s rare and old books. In 2022, two librarians from the University Library, Júlia Rédey-Keresztény and Márk Vrabély processed these books, and now these are accessible in the online catalogue of the library.

The collection, which contains 288 volumes, is a unique treasure of our nation. The collection contains textbooks and reference works used in primary education from the 16th until the 19th century. Several donators are named in these volumes, e.g. Béla Finy (1856–1910), and former teachers of the institution: Gábor Szarvas (1832–1895) and Dezső Vértesy (1881–1917).

On the 17th of September 2022, as part of the Cultural Heritage Days, the University Library and Archives’ new exhibition was opened, presenting the most important documents and symbols of our university’s history.

The exhibition includes documents, pictures and objects ranging from Péter Pázmány’s founding charter to the ornate article of law issued for the university’s 300th anniversary. A virtual exhibition on a tablet in the room traces the history of the university's symbols up to the present day. The ELTE Alumni Centre supported the event by providing a stand for the tablet displaying the virtual exhibition.

Dr. Kulcsár Szabó Ernőné Gombos Annamária, Director General of the University Library and Archives, welcomed the participants of the opening ceremony, and then Csilla Pataky, Head of the Alumni Centre, briefly described the importance and the functioning of the Alumni organisation. The exhibition was opened by Dr. László Szögi, the former director general of the University Library and Archives, who emphasized in his speech, that every institution needs to explore its past and preserve its tangible memories, therefore it is of particular importance, that the university’s founding charters, emblems and symbols of the university are on display in the exhibition.

We would like to inform our visitors that due to the ongoing storage cleaning work, the following stock sections will be unavailable or only partially available in the coming weeks:

• shelfmark: between P 1 and P 6000 (from the 19th of September to the 8th of October);
• shelfmark: between 400.000 and 440.000, 535.000and 560.000 (expected in the second half of October);
• shelfmark: between 700.000 and 713.121, 448.000 and 452.725, furthermore complete collection of books starting with zero (expected in the first half of November).

We apologise for the inconvenience and thank you in advance for your understanding.