Behind the scenes tour of the Special Collections Research Center

 

This week, our class consisted of an exciting visit to the Special Collections Research Center at Temple University. This visit was organized at just the right moment in the course's content development. Firstly, it allowed us to examine in situ the concepts we have been developing in the seminar, especially those related to the internal administration and organization of an archive, which, moreover, houses a very extensive collection. 

I was also very interested in hearing the comments and explanations of Mr. Josue Hurtado, who kindly guided us through the intricacies of the building, a place that very few people have access to. Likewise, exploring the building was a unique experience. I had never before had the opportunity to be in such a modern archive. The storage system is controlled by a sophisticated system that links the database to the physical location of the materials. When we started the visit and were still in the room set up for researchers to work with collection materials, I was reminded of Umberto Eco's novel "The Name of the Rose," set in a medieval Benedictine monastery. Just like in the repository of the SCRC, the monks had access to manuscripts in the scriptorium, but the vast collection of texts was housed in the great tower. In the case of the SCRC, the tower is underground, and the collection is moved, as in a science fiction story, by a robot. What would the monks of the 13th century think if they could see the evolution of their profession?

Secondly, the visit to the SCRC allowed me to gain a better understanding of the collections held by the archive. Without a doubt, I am now very curious to explore the ancient archives and manuscripts in more detail. I am very grateful for this visit of such high academic value, and I feel better prepared for the upcoming visit I will make to the archives of the Catholic Church.