National Library activated preventive protection plan for its documentary heritage

Published at: 13/07/2026 09:24 AM

The National Library and Library Services Autonomous Institute (IABNSB) activated a preventive plan to protect the documentary assets in its custody, after the evaluations carried out after the double earthquake of last June 24.

According to information from the Ministry for Culture, the measure seeks to guarantee the preservation of this heritage while work progresses to recover the organization's main headquarters, located in the Liberator Forum, in Caracas.

The director general of the IABNSB, Jorge Enrique Berrueta, reported that the inspections carried out by the Presidential Commission for the Evaluation and Habitability of Housing and Infrastructure determined that the collections of the National Library and the General Archive of the Nation were not damaged.

However, he noted that the National Library building had repairable damage to the columns that support the elevator machine room, so it will undergo shoring and stabilization work before resuming its face-to-face activities.

In this regard, he indicated that while these works are being carried out, public service at the headquarters of the Liberator Forum will remain suspended until further notice. However, he specified that users will be able to access the institute's digital services, including the “César Rengifo” Digital Library of Venezuela, the Online Catalog and the Legal Deposit system.

Berrueta stressed that the historical collections remain in optimal condition, as there are no fires or water leaks in the protected areas. Even so, he explained that a special protection plan was put in place, adjusted to international conservation protocols, to guarantee the integrity of documents of high patrimonial value, including funds declared World Heritage Sites and other collections of historical relevance.

Among the protected materials are the Photographic Collection of Latin America and the Caribbean from the 19th and 20th centuries, copies of The Orinoco Post, manuscripts by Teresa de la Parra, works by Alejandro de Humboldt, the original manuscript of the Carreño Manual, the complete collection of The Illustrated Lame, documents on the Essequibo, the various Venezuelan constitutions since 1811 and the writings of Doctor José Gregorio Hernández, among other documentary collections that form part of the historical and cultural heritage guarded by the institution, which this July 13 celebrates 193 years since its founding.

Mazo News Team