2 November 2023 press release

The German National Library will be welcoming visitors to an "Open Day" in Frankfurt am Main on 12 November 2023. Since March 2023, the German National Library has been celebrating its foundation in Leipzig 111 years ago with stories and anecdotes, events and initiatives both on its premises and virtually on the web.

On the Open Day in Frankfurt am Main, guests wishing to take a look behind the scenes of a modern library can look forward to guided tours that will take in the whole building from the roof to the extensive underground stacks, the technical facilities, the data centre and our artworks. There will be guided tours, opportunities to get creative, tours for families and even a reading room rally. You will be able to spend the whole day finding out about the world of digital media, gaining insights into collection preservation, the book digitisation process and the special collections, and exploring the worlds of work for trainees and experienced professionals. The German Music Archive's music collection will be presented, and the exhibitions of the German Exile Archive 1933–1945 "Exile. Experience and testimony“ and "Frag nach! Just ask! Digital interactive eyewitness interviews with Kurt S. Maier and Inge Auerbacher" will also be open to visitors. The "Jewish periodicals" in the German Exile Archive are a major source of material for research into Jewish life. We will show you how we research the origins of cultural heritage and provide insights into a selection of provenance stories.

The folk rock band "The Flood" will be coming to us from Leipzig to give a concert with "Chamber Music". Scored for guitar, vocals, recorder, saxophone, piano, bass, percussion and recitation, "The Flood" provides a fitting musical tribute to James Joyce.

Last spring, we asked "What does Frankfurt sound like?". You can now explore our varied music collection in four listening stations as if you were visiting a sound-based themed exhibition – and find out what Frankfurts sounds like. "The sound of Frankfurt!" will be accessible all day – as well as the collection of curiosities from the German National Library's collection such as pop-up-books, literature in a suitcase, a novel written on index cards.

Admission to the German National Library is free of charge. Free tickets will be distributed for the guided tours.

The complete programme at www.dnb.de/tdot

Programmflyer (only available in German)

Background

In 1912, the Kingdom of Saxony, the City of Leipzig and the Börsenverein der Deutschen Buchhändler zu Leipzig (German Book Traders’ Association of Leipzig) signed a contract for the foundation of the “Deutsche Bücherei”. The location in Frankfurt am Main was established in 1946 following the dividion of Germany. The reunification of Germany also saw the libraries in Leipzig and Frankfurt am Main merge into one. The two locations have since developed into a single modern institution that serves the whole country and has a crucial role to play in Germany’s cultural memory.

Images for editorial use

Press image material is only available in German.