Archive and special Collections

The archive contains documentation relating to the Institute’s rich history spanning almost the entire twentieth-century. The special collections of nineteenth-century and twentieth-century material are devoted to individuals or families with a particular connection to Florence: some of these were English travellers passing through the city on tour, others became those residents known as the Anglo-Florentines.

Florence in the Nineteenth CenturyA new guide by archivist Alyson Price available for researchers.
Florence in the Nineteenth Century: A Guide to Original Sources in Florentine Archives and Libraries for Researchers into the English-Speaking Community. For purchase details please contact Alyson Price.

The Grand Tour Digital Resource
An incomparable on-line resource of manuscript, visual and printed works developed by Adam Matthew Digital. Sources come from the Beinecke Library, the Paul Mellon Centre, the Chaney Library, the British Library, our own archive and others. The resource includes manuscripts of prominent figures, rare and essential printed sources, visual material including paintings and sketches of Italy and the Continent, and a searchable version of Ingamell's Dictionary of British and Irish Travellers in Italy, 1701-1800. www.grandtour.amdigital.co.uk The database is only accessible to British Institute Library members in the Library.

Donations and support.

The British Institute welcomes gifts to its archive: the Waterfield Collection, for example, was donated by the Beevor family in 2001. We are particularly interested in developing holdings relating to the Anglo-Florentine community in Tuscany.

We are most grateful to all who have supported our archive and special collections, in particular:

  1. Ente Cassa di Risparmio di Firenze
  2. Beevor family
  3. The Prince of Wales Charitable Foundation
  4. Ministero per i Beni e le Attività Culturali - Soprintendenza Archivistica
  5. The Rayne Foundation
  6. Comune di Firenze
  7. The John S. Cohen Foundation
  8. The Trusthouse Charitable Foundation

 

If you wish to consult the archive or would like further information please contact the Archive or telephone 00 39 055 2677 8270.