Bamboula, Area B

To the members of the library committee

Romie Shapiro - Library Kolski - Library Bentinck - Library Hans Cohn - Library Henri Samuel - Library Mrs. Abramov - Library Rena Lewin - Library Mrs. Rodman - Library Corcos - Library Saul Weinberg - Library Walter Werner - Library Mme Lucienne Arpels - Library Mrs. Loeb - Library M/M Morris Pelavin - Library Professor Cohn Mrs. Schulhof - Library

The Israel Museum library has about 60,000 books and subscribes to 200 periodicals. It receives about 2500 books and catalogues a year. The books are bought with the money accrued from a fund of DM 100,000 donated by Dr. Henle from Germany, and the catalogues are obtained mainly through an exchange program with 200 museums in the United States and Europe.

The library is open to the public and serves, aside from the Museum staff, approximately 7000 people a year, including university teachers and students and high school pupils.

The library will open on 4 July. It will be devoted to art and illustrated books for children and will serve both children and the artists who illustrate for them. It will house the Ben-Yitzhak collection of distinguished illustrated children's books, which has over 300 books so far, and an additional 3,000 books bought with the aid of the Kallen Fund. Unfortunately, since we have no librarian, we cannot open the library to the public.

At the meeting of the library committee we would like to discuss the following plans and aims: 1. To increase the library stock by a) enlarging the acquisition fund and by b) looking for annual donations. 2. To approach owners of libraries who would be prepared to donate them total to the Museum. 3. To approach publishers and induce them to donate their new publications to the Museum. 4. To enlarge the circle of friends who are prepared to acquire particular books for the library. 5. To replace the library's photocopying machine which is unsuitable for reproducing plates. 6. The need for an annual fund of approximately $5,000 to staff the Youth Wing library with a trained librarian in a half-time position. 7. The acquisition of illustrated children's books from all over the world, with an emphasis on old (19th century) specimens, for the Youth Wing library.