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September 10, 2014 | 15:25 Vatican librarian's visit "historic" Source: Tanjug BELGRADE -- Archivist and librarian of the Vatican Apostolic Library Archbishop Jean-Louis Brugues has met with his host, Serbian Minister of Culture Ivan Tasovac. Speaking on Wednesday in Belgrade, they pointed out to the historic dimension of this visit, which is the first ever visit to Serbia by a representative of the Vatican Library. Archbishop Brugues arrived on his first official visit to Belgrade on Monday, September 8, at the invitation of the Serbian government. During the visit, Brugues signed the Protocol on Cooperation between the Vatican Apostolic Library and the National Library of Serbia, visited the Archive of Serbia, and met with Serbian Orthodox Church (SPC) Patriarch Irinej. After the meeting at the Ministry of Culture and Information, Brugues expressed his satisfaction with the visit, referring to it as historic. The protocol signed with the National Library opens the door to cooperation between the two institutions, and I believe that the exchange of experts and researches will start very soon, Archbishop Brugues said. He pointed out that the Vatican Library has always attached great importance to international cooperation, and welcomed scientists from South America, Japan, even the Communist China, despite the fact that the Vatican has not established diplomatic relations with this country. All the more reason to welcome researchers from the Balkans, particularly from Serbia, said the current archivist and librarian of one of the oldest and most significant cultural heritage institutions in the world. The Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana was established in the 15th century. Along with the national libraries of London and Paris, it holds the world's largest collection of ancient books and documents, and has a long tradition of expertise in the area of restoration of old manuscripts, illuminations and miniatures. Tasovac said that this historic visit opens the door for Serbian researchers to explore the unique holdings of the Vatican Library and take a new step on their path to knowledge and to better understanding. The Protocol on Cooperation between the Vatican Apostolic Library and the National Library of Serbia envisages an exchange of publications, knowledge and experts in the fields of storing, processing and safeguarding of the library material, as well as exchange of digitization experts.
