Civic Library Angelo Mai, Municipal library in Città Alta, Bergamo, Italy
Civic Library Angelo Mai is a public collection housed in a historic palazzo on Piazza Vecchia in Bergamo's Old Town. It holds manuscripts, books, and historical documents from various centuries that are available for research and study.
The library was founded in 1768 by Giuseppe Alessandro Furietti as a center for knowledge preservation in northern Italy. Over the centuries, the collection grew and came to reflect the intellectual history of the Bergamo and Lombardy regions.
The library takes its name from Angelo Mai, a 19th century scholar, and preserves collections that tell the story of the region's literary and artistic heritage. Visitors find works that reflect how central this institution became to Bergamo's cultural life.
The building sits on Piazza Vecchia, a central square in the Old Town, and is easily reached on foot from the city center. Plan time to browse the collections, and check opening hours before scheduling a research visit.
The collection contains nearly one million items, including rare manuscripts that are hardly known and offer deep insights into regional history. These documents let visitors discover less-known stories from Bergamo and Lombardy.
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