Flanders Heritage Library

BibliothecairErfgoed.be or LibraryHeritage.be is a nonprofit organisation in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It supports organisations with a collection of library heritage such as manuscripts, early printed book, modern editions, newspapers or journals.

Origins

The organisation was founded in 2008 as Vlaamse Erfgoedbibliotheek (Flanders Heritage Library) ^[1] and was authorised as a heritage organisation for Flanders in 2012 ^[2] , changing its name to Vlaamse Erfgoedbibliotheken (Flanders Heritage Libraries) in 2019. It originated as a library consortium, bringing together six institutions with considerable holdings of manuscripts and old printed books. ^[3]

The libraries associated in the network are:

• Hendrik Conscience Heritage Library in Antwerp
• Antwerp University Library
• Bruges Public Library ^[4]
• Ghent University Library
• Hasselt Limburg Library (the former provincial library for Limburg)
• KU Leuven University Library

Since 2026 the organisation is known as BibliothecairErfgoed.be (LibraryHeritage.be), signaling a shift from network organisation to an organisation providing support and services to all organisations with library heritage. ^[5]

Databases

The organisation is involved in building and maintaining the Digital Heritage Library ^[6] , with subsections for:

• Belgian newspapers (1830–1950), with many partner libraries across Flanders and Brussels
• Library Gems, an online repository of material from and about the area that is now Flanders
• Manuscripta, a catalogue of manuscripts preserved in Flanders
• Early Printed books (Short Title Catalogue Flanders (STCV)), which aims to create a short-title catalogue of everything printed in the Southern Netherlands before 1801, with special attention to the earliest printed books

LibraryHeritage.be is also the Flemish partner of the Digital Library for Dutch Literature.

References

1. Steven Van Impe, "Kroniek van de Antwerpse erfgoedbibliotheken (2008–2015)", HistoriANT: Jaarboek voor Antwerpse geschiedenis, 4 (2016), pp. 175-190.
2. Flemish Government (6 July 2012). "Decreet houdende het Vlaams cultureel-erfgoedbeleid". Belgisch Staatsblad (in Dutch).
3. "De Vlaamse Erfgoedbibliotheek". vvbad.be. Vlaamse Vereniging voor Bibliotheek, Archief & Documentatie. Archived from the original on 2018-03-31. Retrieved 2020-05-02.
4. "Openbare Bib Brugge blijft erkende erfgoedbibliotheek". Krant van West-Vlaanderen/Brugsch Handelsblad. 30 June 2017. p. 28.
5. "BibliothecairErfgoed.be, een nieuwe bladzijde voor onze organisatie". Bibliothecair Erfgoed (in Flemish). Retrieved 2026-02-24.
6. "Digitale Erfgoedbib". Bibliothecair Erfgoed (in Flemish). Retrieved 2026-02-24.

External links

• vlaamse-erfgoedbibliotheken.be/en