Brenthurst Library Visit 13 July 2018

On Friday the 13^th of July 9 staff members from the Department of Library Services visited the Brenthurst Library in Parktown, Johannesburg. The Brenthurst is a private specialised Africana library, which was started—and is still owned—by the Oppenheimer family. The collections include books, art works, manuscripts, maps and ephemera related specifically to southern Africa.

The enthusiastic library staff took us on a very detailed tour of their facilities, discussing their cataloguing system, showing us their small art gallery, the main stacks, the rare books section, and the climate controlled storage area where the most valuable manuscripts are kept. This section is kept at an optimal low temperature and all lights are kept off when no one is in the area.

We were also taken to see the conservation facility where Solander boxes are made as well as various other protective housing for books and manuscripts. Restoration work is done here if it is deemed necessary and will not detract from the value of the book. We were shown many wonderful volumes and manuscripts, including the original handwritten manuscript of Cry the Beloved Country by Alan Paton, which is kept in a specially made binding with Melinex sleeves for each page in order to ensure that researchers can access the manuscript without handling the pages.

The Library is open to researchers and visitors by appointment only and there are ongoing exhibition and lecture programmes as well. All of us had a wonderful time and another visit may be arranged for later in the year. For more information on the Brenthurst Library, visit their website at http://www.brenthurst.org.za