The Historical Archives, built in 1326, was housed first in the Church of St. Lucia in Castello and from the end of the 1500s in the City Hall, the old municipal seat, which can still be visited in the small square in front of the Cathedral. With the birth of the new City Hall in Via Roma at the beginning of the 20th century, the Archives was also moved to the new premises, where it remained until 1946, and was then housed in the building of the Public Gardens. Cagliari’s historical archives is, with good reason, the most important in Sardinia: it consists of a conspicuous collection of parchments and royal papers, membranous and paper codes dating back to the 1300s, acts of the Sardinian parliaments, municipal resolutions, and numerous other administrative acts of the various articulations of the Municipality of Cagliari. Alongside these documents are funds of private provenance: documents of the Aymerich family’s fiefs (14th-19th centuries), 19th-century papers of Gaetano Cima, Filippo Vivanet and Felice Giordano. The Library of Sardinian Studies specializes in the collection and preservation of publications by Sardinian authors or printed on the island or otherwise pertaining to Sardinia: it has more than 65,000 units including monographs (editions of the 55th and 17th centuries), periodicals and the Amat collection (musical and theatrical collection). Of great interest is the manuscripts and rare books section with pieces of great value. With the final transformation of the Gallery into a museum, the Historical Archives and the Library of Sardinian Studies were moved to the new and spacious premises in Via Newton. These historical institutes have recently been joined by the General Multimedia Library in order to offer an information, reading and leisure service open to all. In addition to books and periodicals on various fields of knowledge and topical issues (about 3,500 units), the new library makes available videotapes, CD-Roms, and music CDs for consultation on the premises or to borrow at home. Multimedia stations provide access to the Internet, the National Library Service and the library’s online catalog.
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