Borrow artefacts at the Archaeo-library.

Saturday, 21 June 2014, the first library opened in Vlaardingen, the Netherlands, where you can borrow authentic artefacts, between 5000 - 200 years old and excavated in the city Vlaardingen, instead of books! “Thanks to the archaeo-library people can now tell a tale about the history of Vlaardingen in their own living room, on the basis of an authentic artefact”, city archaeologist Eli van Toledo explained in an interview. She was asked whether the conservators didn’t protest vehemently against this idea, but refused to take the bait. However, she did state that it was also a step in the dark for the archaeologists, and that this will be a short-lived experiment if the borrowers don’t take good care of the artefacts.

One of the two display cases with artefacts that are up for
loan. Copyright: Omroepvlaardingen.nl

       The project is a joint undertaking between the Vlaardingse cultuur- en educatiecentrum KADE40 and the archaeological depot of the city Vlaardingen.  Its intended objective is to share archaeological artefacts with the public. Both organic as well as inorganic objects, such as a conserved bone ice skate, an inkwell, faience pottery and a 5000 year old flint axe, are on loan. Members of the archaeo-library are allowed to keep an artefact for up to 6 months.  As some of the artefacts are fragile,  they have to give evidence of their creditworthiness and sign a contract if they damage ‘their artefact’. However, becoming a member and borrowing artefacts is free...

One of the two display cases with artefacts that are up for
loan. Copyright: Omroepvlaardingen.nl

       A cute story was furthermore mentioned in the Algemeen Dagblad (a Dutch Newspaper) about a 66 year old female inhabitant of Vlaardingen (she became the first member of the archaeo-library) who nervously walked out of the building homewards, clutching her purse which held a 5.000 year old arrowhead (packed tightly in bubble wrap!).  “It’s going to receive a place at the front of my display cabinet,” she said. “I just hope no one breaks into my house and steals it”.

What do you think of this project?