Wienbibliothek im Rathaus

The Wienbibliothek im Rathaus (English: Vienna Library in City Hall), formerly known as the Wiener Stadt- und Landesbibliothek (English: Vienna City and State Library), is a library and archive containing important documents related to the history of Vienna, Austria. Founded in 1856, the library, which also contains a large collection of local memorabilia, is located in the Rathaus (City Hall) in the Innere Stadt first district of the city, and is the official library of the city and state of Vienna. The Wienbibliothek preserves 500,000 books, 2,000 newspapers and magazines, 300,000 posters, 500,000 autographs, notable bequests and legacies, and one of the most important music collections in the world. History In 1856, the city parliament, led by Mayor Johann Kaspar Freiherr von Seiller, agreed on reinstalling a city library. In the beginning, it was accessible to officers of the city only. Therefore, it consisted mainly of juridical literature and Viennensia. These guidelines are still valid today. In 1889, shortly after the transfer from the old to the new city hall, the city parliament decided to separate the city archives from the library and to create an own archive department. At the same time, the library was merged with the Historical Museum of the City. Collections The library holds collections of literature ( Druckschriftensammlung ), autographs ( Handschriftensammlung ), music ( Musiksammlung ), posters ( Plakatsammlung ), and documentation. The library's Schubert collection, which originated from a bequest of the contractor and art sponsor Nicolaus Dumba , has grown systematically over the years and is today "the world's largest collection of Schubertiana". Important authors have donated their manuscripts to this library. It is as well noteworthy for its collection of historic newspapers published in Vienna. The library holds the art database of the National Fund of the Republic of Austria.