UIN Jakarta showcases Treasures of the Asian Library in Leiden University

UIN Jakarta showcases Treasures of the Asian Library in Leiden University

  • 15 April 2019
  • 2 min read
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Central Library, UIN News Online – Central library of UIN Jakarta, in collaboration with Leiden University Library, holds Treasures of the Asian Library in Leiden exhibition on April 15-May 3 2019. The event showcases several collections from the Leiden University Library, such as manuscripts, maps, and photographs.

The exhibition was opened by Vice Rector for Cooperation, Andi Faisal Bakti, and witnessed by the Head of the UIN Jakarta Library Center Amrullah Hasbana and Director of KITLV-Jakarta and the Permanent Representative of Leiden University in Indonesia Marrik Bellen.

Andi in his speech hoped that this exhibition could be accessed by the all academic community of UIN Jakarta and the general public.

“This exhibition introduces the richness of Asian library heritage, especially the archipelago, which has been successfully stored by one of the world's best library centers to the public,” he said.

On the same occasion, Bellen also explained that the Archipelago's literary heritage, such as the La Galigo script, Diponegoro Chronicle, Panji Story and the like, have been digitized by Leiden University. La Galigo is as thick as 6000 pages of folio size, Diponegoro chronicle, photographs and maps have been successfully digitized.

“All the works that have been digitized can be accessed through https://digitalcollections.universiteitleiden.nl/. Through this page, the public can access various collections such as Aceh Books, Oral History Archive Indonesia, I La Galigo in Context, and so on,” said Bellen.

The entire manuscript, he continued, will continue to be digitized by the Leiden University Library. Digitalization is also expected to help researchers in researching various heritage works.

For information, Leiden University Library is a library founded in 1575 in Leiden, Netherlands. The library manages the largest collections worldwide on Indonesia and the Caribbean. Furthermore, Leiden University Library is the only heritage organization in The Netherlands with three registrations of documents in UNESCO's Memory of the World Register. (usa)