AP -- Information Science, Archives, Libraries, Museums

1997

AP -- Information Science, Archives, Libraries, Museums

97-3/4-288

"Beutekunst": Materialien zu einer Bibliographie des neueren Schrifttums über das Schicksal des im Zweiten Weltkrieg von der Roten Armee in Deutschland erbeuteten Kulturgutes (Museums-, Archiv- und Bibliotheksbestände) = Trofeinoe iskusstvo = Looted Art [Subtitle: Toward a Bibliography of Recent Writings on the Fate of Cultural Property Looted by the Red Army in Germany during the Second World War]. Ed. Peter Bruhn. Berlin: Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin-Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Osteuropa- Abteilung, 1997. vi, 146 p.; 30 cm. (Veröffentlichungen der Osteuropa- Abteilung, Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin-Preußischer Kulturbesitz, 21) (Literaturnachweise zu aktuellen Russland-Themen, 1) ISBN 3-88053-065-3 (Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin-Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Allgemeine Verwaltung, Publikationen, D-10102 Berlin)

Ever since the fall of Communism, "looted art" from Germany that ended up in the former Soviet Union has been, in the German press, one of the most-discussed aspects of the relationship between the two states. This bibliography of writings on the topic is the first in a new series of reference works dealing with current Russian studies. The bibliography has 1,153 numbered entries that run chronologically according to their publication dates (from 1990 to May 1997) within the generic classifications of monographs (a total of 42), journal articles (171) and newspaper articles (over 900). The titles have short annotations as necessary. German-language titles predominate, but some English- and Russian-language materials are included as well. Even stricter selection criteria would have been desirable. The index references names of authors as well as of topical personalities (e.g., Helmut Kohl), but the individual art objects themselves are left unindexed. A further wish would be consideration of German cultural objects dispersed in other eastern European countries, not the least of which would be the library holdings of the State Library of Berlin-- publishing body of this bibliography--that are still held in Poland. [sh/rdh]

97-3/4-290

Guida alle fonti di informazione della biblioteconomia [Guide to Information Sources in Library Science] Alberto Petrucciani and Riccardo Ridi. Roma: Associazione Italiana Biblioteche, 1996. 204 p. 24 cm. ISBN 88-7812-036-7: Lit. 30,000. (Associazione Italiana Biblioteche, Viale Castro Pretorio 105, I-00185 Roma)

The great progress that Italian librarians have made in offering general guides to reference works was described in an earlier review (cf. IFB 97-1/2- 017). The present title is a specialized guide to library science worthy of note because it naturally brings Italian sources to the fore (many of which deserve attention outside that country), but it also includes countless Anglo- American and German ones. Its ten chapters cover: (1) guides to information sources and reference works; (2) general works (manuals, encyclopedias, dictionaries); (3) collections of rules and standards; (4) directories for institutions, libraries, and librarians; (5) bibliographies and databases; (6) guides to holdings and special collections; (7) reports on work in progress; (8) library science journals; (9) publishers; and (10) Internet publications. Those titles that are most important are described and evaluated in the text, at times very extensively. The descriptions and annotations are particularly valuable for students, but also of use to librarians--presupposing, of course, a knowledge of Italian. [sh/rdh]

97-3/4-292

Jahrbuch der deutschen Bibliotheken [German Libraries Annual]. Published for Verein Deutscher Bibliothekare. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz. 25 cm. ISSN 0075-2223

57^th ed. 1997/98 (1997). 670 p. ISBN 3-447-03865-9: DM 142.00

The Jahrbuch der deutschen Bibliotheken (last reviewed in RREA 1:107) can no longer be called the "green bible": In a radical departure from tradition, the Association of German Librarians has introduced for this 1997 edition a new multi-colored cover in an evident attempt to establish its unique corporate identity. The latest version is organized as follows: A. a selective list of library directories (with topical rather than the earlier alphabetical listing, which represents an improvement); B. a directory of academic libraries; C. organizations serving academic librarianship; D. German and E. foreign and international library organizations and consortia; F. the Association of German Librarians; G. a name index; and H. a (brand-new) index of institutions and abbreviations. New practical additions are telephone, telefax, and e-mail addresses in the personnel section. The data itself is stored in the reliable TUSTEP information system at Tübingen, which will be helpful when preparing future updates. The title itself, is still confusing: the association leadership could not find the courage to change it to something more descriptive of its specific focus on academic libraries, for example "German Academic Libraries Annual." As it is, prospective buyers will have to cast a glance in the table of contents to find out just what kind of German libraries are included. [sh/rdh]

97-3/4-294

Die juristischen Bibliothekarinnen und Bibliothekare in Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz : einführende Darstellung und Verzeichnis der hauptberuflich bibliothekarisch tätigen Juristinnen und Juristen = Directory of Law Librarians in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland. Ralph Lansky. Regensburg. x, 122 p. 21 cm. (Recht, Bibliothek, Dokumentation 1997, special issue) DM 20.00. (Teilbibliothek Recht der Universitätsbibliothek, D-93042 Regensburg)

A companion to the Handbuch der juristischen Bibliotheken (Handbook of Law Libraries) compiled by Ralph Lansky, this volume identifies law librarians, with an emphasis on those in the former German Democratic Republic. Sections on professional organizations and professional education also describe the situation in what was formerly the DDR. There are entries for 235 librarians who are or were active in Germany, Austria, or Switzerland. A separate section lists people who came from one of these three countries but who are or were active in libraries in other countries. Besides birth date, education, telephone number, and address, only the current position of each librarian is listed, or in the case of a retired librarian, the last position held. For fuller descriptions of professional careers it is necessary to look in the Jahrbuch der deutschen Bibliotheken or in corresponding directories for the GDR, Austria, or Switzerland. Although an earlier version of this directory ("Verzeichnis der juristischen Bibliothekare in Deutschland," published in Recht, Bibliothek, Dokumentation 24 [1994], p. 97-115 and 149) included obituaries, this volume does not. It is necessary to look in the International Journal of Legal Information for obituaries from 1990 to 1997. [am/mrh]

97-3/4-296

Bayerische Staatsbibliothek: ein Selbstporträt [Bavarian State Library: A Self-Portrait]. Ed. Cornelia Jahn, Hermann Leskien, and Ulrich Montag. München: Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, 1997. 95 p. ill. 24 cm. ISBN 3-9802700-2-5: DM 19.80. (Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, D-80328 München, fax [49 89] 28638-293)

Founded in 1558, the Bavarian State Library acquired a number of extensive and valuable collections, such as the library of Johann Jakob Fugger and the Mannheim Court Library. Periods of growth were followed by periods of stagnation and even of destruction, as during World War II, when nearly half a million volumes (a quarter of the entire holdings) were lost, only one-third of which were eventually recovered. Today the BSB has a budget of 19 million DM, the largest of all German libraries. Moreover, it subscribes to 40,000 periodicals, has the largest manuscript collection in German-speaking Europe, and the largest holdings of incunabula. This guide to the library has many illustrations in the text, including 16 color plates. A chronology and a selected bibliography round out this attractive, well-made book. [gm/mrh]

97-3/4-297

Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin-Preußischer Kulturbesitz. Published for the Generaldirektor der Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin-Preußischer Kulturbesitz. Berlin, 1997. 28 p. ill. 21x30 cm. ISBN 3-88053-063-7: no price (Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin- Preußischer Kulturbesitz, Allgemeine Verwaltung, Publikationen, D-10102 Berlin)

The SBB-PK has, for the first time since the fusion of the two previously separate state libraries in Berlin, published a descriptive brochure for the public. Only 30 pages long (counting the inside of the covers), it has 14 chapters describing many facets of the library, its function, services and special collections, among which manuscripts, music, and maps are the most significant. Also notable are the collections of 11 million pictures and 140,000 children's books. The text of each chapter starts with large type, which then changes to rather small print. [gm/mrh]

97-3/4-298

Haus der Bücher, elektronisches Archiv: Die Deutsche Bibliothek [House of Books, Electronic Archive: Die Deutsche Bibliothek]. Ed. Renate Gömpel. Leipzig; Frankfurt am Main [et al.]: Die Deutsche Bibliothek, 1997. 48 p. ill. 25 cm. ISBN 3-922051-81-2: no price (Die Deutsche Bibliothek, Adickesallee 1, D-60322 Frankfurt am Main, fax [49 69] 1525-1010)

This brochure describes Die Deutsche Bibliothek (The German Library), which encompasses collections in three places: the Deutsche Bücherei in Leipzig, the Deutsche Bibliothek in Frankfurt, and the Deutsches Musikarchiv in Berlin. Thirty chapters are divided into five main categories, followed by a three-page list of bibliographic references and an index. The layout and printing of this guide to the library is modern in design, but for that not always easy or comfortable to use. [gm/mrh]

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