One of the biggest and most beautiful buildings in Sarajevo is the National and University Library of Bosnia and Herzegovina, also known as Vijecnica (City Hall). Unfortunately, the library is mostly famous for the tremendous damage it received during the Siege of Sarajevo. About 90% of the library holdings were lost. On the front of the National and University Library two memorial plaques (one in Bosnian language and one in English) commemorate the big loss:
On this place Serbian criminals
in the night of 25th-26th August 1992 set on fire
National and
University's library
of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Over 2 millions of books, periodicals
and documents vanished in the flame
Do not forget,
remember and warn!
"The National and University Library of Bosnia and Herzegovina is more or less known, by the great fire of August 1992, caused by bomb shelling. After a devastating fire that swallowed the Town Hall and 90% of the library holdings, remaining personnel collected shards of its library, trying to preserve what was rescued. Reconstruction and reconstitution of catalogues and collections and the existing structure of the total fund is based on those preserved collections. Following the technological development and requirements of users, the library has gradually transformed functions and services in the attempt to adapt towards modern library and information trends.
With library automatization, online access, electronic data interchange, document delivery, CDROMs, multimedia and e-publishing, the National and University Library of Bosnia and Herzegovina has seriously began to develop new technologies in the management & services of the library, virtual library concept, its systems, as well as to share library treasures with a broader community of users."
Source and further information: www.cenl.org/library/nacionalna-i-univerzitetska-biblioteka/