Scientific legacy and manuscript culture: The scientific manuscripts collection of the Biblioteca Nacional

Description

This project, a partnership with the Rare Books and Manuscripts Division of the Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal (BNP), aimed to survey, analyse and catalogue a collection of scientific manuscripts, from the Middle Ages to the late 17th Century. During this project more than 3.000 manuscripts were examined, and detailed catalogue entries were produced for nearly 1.500 of these documents. This new cataloguing system replaced earlier formulas, considered lacking or incomplete. The majority of the new records was included in the BNP's online catalogue. As a result of the project many unpublished or poorly known scientific manuscripts were located. A considerable number of these manuscripts was scanned and they are now openly accessible via the National Digital Library. An exhibit was also organized.