The following policy operates under the Library's general
policy statements with respect to collection development.
Some of the material acquired under this policy is available for
loan or document supply through the Library's Document
Supply service.
The Modern Greek collections
The Library has one of the world's finest collections of Greek
and Cyprus imprints, as well as of material about these countries
published elsewhere, covering all periods of their history and all
aspects of their rich and varied heritage.
Printing came late to Greece as the country was under Ottoman rule
until 1829. Books in Greek were previously published in other printing
centres in Europe such as Venice, Florence, Rome, Paris, and London.
The vast majority of these were in classical Greek and consisted
of editions of the Bible or of the works of classical writers and
the Church Fathers with a small proportion in the vernacular. Greek
independence was won after an 8-year war which stirred considerable
philhellenic feeling among European liberals. In the years leading
up to the Greek War of Independence large numbers of patriotic propaganda
works were published in Paris, Vienna, and the Balkans. The first
presses were brought to Greece during the Greek War of Independence
for the printing of the official Government Gazette and the Constitution
of the new nation. The Library 's copy of the first issue of the
Constitution (1822) is believed to have belonged to Lord Byron as
the binding bears his initials. The newly-formed Kingdom of Greece
was later expanded by the annexation of the Ionian Islands (in 1864),
Thessaly and part of Epirus (1881), Crete (1911), and parts of Macedonia
and Thrace (1912).
The British Museum Library's already strong holdings of pre-19th
century books in Greek were greatly enriched in 1835 by the purchase
of 627 Greek printed books in one of the sales of the collection
of Frederick North, 5th Earl of Guilford (large numbers of manuscripts,
including Greek manuscripts, had already been acquired in the main
auction of the collection, in December 1830). Guilford was a great
devotee of Greek and Italian culture. By 1844 the British Museum
was buying recent Modern Greek books through Adolph Asher, its agent
in Berlin.
The Library's holdings of material published in the Ionian Islands
and Cyprus, two former British dominions, are of exceptional richness
and importance. All works published while they were under British
rule were acquired through Colonial Deposit regulations. The Ionian
Islands were a British protectorate between 1815 and 1864 having
previously been under Venetian and French rule. Ionian imprints
are particularly rich and interesting as they reflect the culture
of the different rulers of these islands since the dissolution of
the Byzantine Empire. The first literary academy (the Accademia
degli Assicurati) in Corfu was founded in 1656 and the foundation
of an Ionian University was promoted by the Earl of Guilford who
became its first Chancellor when the university was inaugurated
in 1824.
Collection development policy
The Modern Greek Section seeks to acquire monographs and serials
published in Greece and Cyprus. Material is selected in the humanities
and social sciences subject areas to serve the research needs of
academic researchers and also, more generally, those of anybody
with an interest in these countries. When available, English language
editions of works are preferred.
The following subjects are collected extensively:
Greek and Cypriot archaeology and antiquities; Ancient Greek history
and literature (translations of classical texts are acquired only
if accompanied by substantial critical commentaries or if there
is no other translation in the British Library collections); Byzantine
and Modern Greek studies; Classical and Byzantine art and architecture,
Modern Greek and Cypriot art and folk art; Modern Greek language
and dialects; Modern Greek literature;Ancient Greek and Byzantine
history; Modern history especially works on the Greek War of Independence
(1821-1829), Second World War and the Civil War, the Greek dictatorship
(1967-74), the Macedonian question; the history and politics of
other Balkan countries and their relations with Greece, relations
between Greece and Turkey, and Cyprus history; books on politics
and international studies are acquired when their subject is the
role of Greece in the Balkans, the Mediterranean, as a member of
the European Union, and its relations to Turkey. Works on the Cyprus
question; Social history and folklore; library history (especially
catalogues of library collections in Greece and Cyprus); ancient
and modern Greek theatre and cinema; Greek and Cypriot folk music;
the history of education in Greece and Cyprus and its role during
the Ottoman rule; English culture and civilization.
Works in the social sciences, including economics and economic
history, sociology and education are acquired selectively and preference
is given to works related to Greece and Cyprus.
Theology and religious studies are also acquired selectively, preference
being given to those examining Greek Orthodox Church history and
dogma.
The following types of material are generally excluded: science
and technology, practical books, especially manuals; low level treatment
of any subject; children's books (unless they are reworkings of
folk tales or include illustrations of merit); general theology.
Primary texts of Modern Greek literature are acquired selectively.
Modern Greek material elsewhere in the British Library
The above statement applies to material primarily made available
through the Humanities Reading Rooms in St Pancras. Other Modern
Greek material is held by the Manuscript
Collections. Newspapers are held at British Library Newspapers
Library. Official and government publications are held at the
Social Policy Information
Service, Social sciences and scientific serials and conference
proceedings are held at the Document
Supply service. Scientific monographs are held by Science
Technology & Business. Recorded sound is held by the National
Sound Archive. Other Modern Greek material is held in the Map,
Music and Philatelic
Collections.
Collection strengths
The Library has a comprehensive collection of the publications
of the Academy of Athens and its various Research Centres, the Institute
for Balkan Studies, the Archaeological Society of Athens, and the
Cyprus Department of Antiquities.
Other areas of strength include: the Greek War of Independence
(1821-1829); the Civil War (1946-1949) and the political history
of post-War Greece; Modern Greek literature-there are excellent
collections of works by /on all the major authors notably Nikos
Kazantzakis, Constantine Cavafy, Giannes Ritsos, and the two Nobel
prize winners George Seferis and Odysseus Elytes.
Material printed in two former British dominions, the Ionian Islands
(1814-1864) and Cyprus (1878-1960). The collection of printed books
from the library of the Earl of Guilford is one of the lesser-known
treasures in the Library. The Library also has possibly the best
collection in the world of Cypriot folk poetry (the work of the
poietarides), acquired during the colonial period (1878-1960) and
a unique collection of anti-British propaganda pamphlets distributed
clandestinely during the 'troubles' in 1955-59.
