Engaging with colleagues in the Library and unlocking its treasures was core to the founding vision for the Institute and has been ever since.
Trinity College Library dates back to the establishment of the university in 1592 and is the largest library in Ireland. Today it has 5 million printed volumes with extensive collections of journals, manuscripts, maps and music reflecting over 400 years of academic development. It supports the learning and research needs across all disciplines of the university and is a major research library of international repute. Although an institution of great antiquity, the Library pioneers modern methods of resource discovery and developments in the teaching, learning and research processes.
The Manuscript, Book and Print Cultures research theme brings together colleagues from across the Arts and Humanities and the Library. Equally important the Library is the equivalent of a laboratory for many of our colleagues and for our Visiting Research Fellows. As a repository for ‘big content’ it is also a catalyst for research and some innovative Digital Humanities projects have been undertaken in partnership with the Library such as the projects on the 1641 Depositions, the Down Survey of Ireland and the Fagel Collection. Without doubt, our status as a legal deposit library and our historic, world-class collections of manuscripts, maps and printed books attract scholars of international repute to the Institute. Over the past decade 40% of our Visiting Research Fellows have come specifically to work on our collections especially the medieval, African, literary, scientific and music manuscripts and early printed books.
Its departments include:
- Collection Management
- Digital Resources and Imaging Services
- Early Printed Books and Special Collections
- Glucksman Map Library
- Information Service (Fee-Based Account)
- Manuscripts and Archives Research Library
- Official Publications & the European Documentation Centre
- Preservation and Conservation
- Readers' Services
- Research Information Systems and Services
The Trinity Long Room Hub takes its name from the iconic 'Long Room' in the Old Library and as a research institute is committed to promoting research on the Library's unique and vast collections, both catalogued and uncatalogued.
It is also home to the newest department in the Library, the Digital Resources and Imaging Services team. This unit is dedicated to the development of digital library collections, digital resources and imaging services to support academic research, scholarship and education. DRIS recently launched "Digital Collections", its new Digital Library Collections Repository. This easily accessible Internet-based resource provides free access to the university's digital library collections. For more information visit https://www.tcd.ie/Library/dris/digital.php
For more information please visit: www.tcd.ie/Library and also their facebook page: www.facebook.com/tcdlibrary
