====== CERL Seminar 2025 encore ======

**Engaging with Founding Collections in the 21st century**\\
Large research libraries of Europe are typically proud of their founding collections, and still have a vivid interaction with them.

The founding collections mirror the lives, interests and relationships of the individuals who amassed them, they are a witness of the social and personal biases of the times, they reflect political geography and instances of preservation and loss.

The founding collections may be products of chance encounters, wealth, discovery, acts of generosity, or even acts of theft or looting. The process of collecting and transformation into a founding collection is thus partly deliberate and partly ruled by chance. Founding collections can shape the identities of the institutions they belong to for a very long time – perhaps even permanently - which is the theme of this conference.

**One event, two days, two venues**\\
- The first day of this two-day conference takes place the National Library of Scotland, Edinburgh on 21 October 2025. The programme is available [[https://www.cerl.org/services/seminars/presentations2025|here]].\\
- The second day of this two-day conference takes place at the Guildhall Library in London, on 5 December 2025. The programme is available [[[https://www.cerl.org/services/seminars/presentations2025ii|here]].\\
The events are free, but we ask that your register your attendance, by writing an e-mail message to secretariat@cerl.org, indication whether you plan to join us in Edinburgh, London or both.