---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Everett Wilkie <ewilkie(a)ix.netcom.com>
Date: Fri, May 16, 2008 at 9:31 AM
This message appeared on another list today. --ECW
+++++++++++++++++++++++
Last Tuesday 13 May a big cloud was hanging over my hometown of Delft
when I was returning home from Utrecht.
There was a big fire in the Faculty of Architecture (Faculteit
Bouwkunde) of the Technical University Delft. It started in the
morning, and around 5 PM a part of the building collapsed. All people
were in time out of the building, so there are no persons injured.
The Faculty has (or must I sadly write: had) one of the most
important libraries in the field of Architecture, with 40,000 books
including several atlases (Blaeu, Braun & Hogenberg), and a map
collection of 12,000 maps (topographical maps of the 19th century,
soil maps, planning maps of the Noordoostpolder, Berlage's plans of
the new parts of Amsterdam and The Hague, and the plans for the
rebuilding of Rotterdam after WW II). The older maps (pre-1850) were
stored in the University Library.
The fate of the library is not known yet. The map curator, Addie
Ritter, wrote that his depot is almost certainly destroyed, since it
was in the part of the building that collapsed. The library, which
was on the ground flour of a different wing of the building, is not
accessible because the building is instable. It can take three to
four weeks before it may be entered (the building of 14 stories has
to be demolished first). The older books were in a safe, but if that
saved them is unknown (the fire lasted for about 24 hours).
There was also a collection of chairs of famous designers and
maquettes of architects - there would be an exhibit opened yesterday
15 May. That collection is saved for the major part.
Report (in Dutch naturally) and photos of this fire at the Technische
Universiteit Delft, with links to newspaper articles:
http://www.historischecartografie.nl/Logboek/Nieuws/Brand-TU-Delft-vernietig
t-kaartencollectie.html
Peter
--
June Samaras
KALAMOS BOOKS
(For Books about Greece)
2020 Old Station Rd
Streetsville,Ontario
Canada L5M 2V1
Tel : 905-542-1877
E-mail : kalamosbooks(a)gmail.com
www.kalamosbooks.com