Publications and Research
Document Type
Presentation
Publication Date
Fall 9-2015
Abstract
Numismatic libraries have been in existence for centuries. Yet, very little has been written about them and very few studies have been conducted. This paper presents a comprehensive and informative study on international numismatic libraries. Numismatic libraries play a vital and essential role in supporting numismatic research. Their collections usually consists of all the essential books, periodicals, catalogues, including auction catalogues, manuscripts, and other resources needed for numismatic research. But these libraries often remain hidden behind the parent organization.
This presentation focuses on a recent study of thirty-eight international numismatic libraries from national coin cabinets, museums, independent national organizations, specialized collector organizations, and general research collections with numismatic collections. Surveys were sent between 2011-2013 to gather information about the libraries including staffing, history, research holdings and collections, policies, usage, accessibility, automation, classification systems and cataloging, and overall organization of their collections.