Israel's National Library on Tuesday announced plans to sort and catalog some 35,000 Hebrew books in Italy, as part of its task of collecting the cultural treasures of Israel and of Jewish heritage.
Italy has been sitting on a trove of Hebrew books written down centuries ago, as Jewish communities have maintained an ongoing presence in the country over the past two millennia and have been heavily involved in its manuscript production and printing industries.
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Thousands of uncatalogued and rare Hebrew books can be found in collections of Jewish communities, state-owned libraries, the Italian Church Institutions, and the Vatican.
Now, the National Library has taken it upon itself the task to categorize some 35,000 of those books. The initiative, named I-TAL-YA BOOKS, will use technology developed especially for this project.
The state-owned library said the project aims is to have all books integrated into a unified listing, making it easier for scholars and historians to find books.
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The project is a joint effort by The Union of Jewish Communities in Italy, the Rome National Central Library, and the National Library of Israel, and supported by the Rothschild Foundation Hanadiv Europe. The National Library believes it will take three years to conclude.
Israel's National Library holds more than 5 million books and owns the world's largest collections of Hebraica and Judaica, and is the repository of many rare and unique manuscripts, books, and artifacts.
This article was originally published by i24NEWS
