MUSEC has owned since 2006., a Documentation Center consisting of a Library open to the public by appointment and an Iconographic Archive attached to the Museum’s Research Center.

The library is highly specialized and offers first and foremost support for the research and studies of the museum’s researchers and collaborators, subject specialists and enthusiasts in the field.

The founding core of the library is the Paolo Morigi Book Collection, which was acquired by the City of Lugano in June 2006. Since then, the library has been enriched year by year with new targeted acquisitions and bequests, as is the case with the Ritsema Fund (Chinese art, philosophy and culture, Lo Bue Fund (art and culture of Tibet), Raum Fund (general ethnology and of Africa) and the Bellasi Fund (sociology, art and anthropology of art). To date, the library holdings amount to more than 20,000 volumes and journals of ethnic art, art anthropology and cultural anthropology, which are constantly increased through thematic augmentation plans. The museum also owns numerous journals in the field, as well as the entire system of tribal art catalos published by world’s leading auction houses. The library regularly operates book exchanges with other anthropological museums. It is associated with the Ticino Library System (Sbt), whose catalogue can be consulted online. Consultation is open to the public by appointment. The museum’s scientific staff can also offer the public a free documentary consultation service on the main topics of its expertise.

For further information:
Tel. +41 (0)58 866 69 60
biblioteca@musec.ch