Discover online the extraordinary historic collections found in these ancient monastic libraries in a journey over the centuries through the stories and episodes which have marked the existence of some of the most important monasteries in Italy – places which have been vital for the transmission of culture and knowledge since medieval times. A journey which will show you how these libraries developed from being places when they preserved the knowledge inherited from classical Antiquity and were centres of manuscript production to more recent centuries when the invention of printing meant they again played a leading role in the transmission of culture and helped, directly and indirectly, to introduce the revolutionary new technology and ensure its diffusion in Italy.