Do you know that....?

• The Vilnius University library (VUL) was founded in 1570, nine years earlier than Vilnius University.
• VUL is still in the same premises, where it was founded. The historical place of the Library is the General Reading Room.
• VUL holdings are 5,4 mln. documents. The overall shelf length is 166 kilometres. It equals the distance from Vilnius to Rokiškis.
• 212, 2 publications per one library user in average; it is 3,3 times more than the common average of Lithuania.

The Vilnius University Library collections include the following items:

• University alumnus engineer Kazimieras Semenavičius‘ book „Didysis artilerijos menas“ [Great Art of Artillery] (1650), it presented the idea of multi-stage rocket and rocket artillery for the first time.
• The smallest book „475 to Lithuanian printing houses“ (1997), size 10x11 mm.
• One of the two known copies of the first Lithuanian book by Martynas Mažvydas „Catechism".
• The Vilnius or Rybiškės hoard – the largest collection of middle XIII c. silver alloys, Lithuanian long bars.
• The collection of autographs of eminent figures of Lithuanian and world science and culture, royal families and rulers of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

The oldest documents in VUL collections:

• The earliest document – land donation – dated 1209.
• Illuminated manuscript book in Lithuania [Psalterium Mariae], including texts and hymns devoted to Holy Virgin Mary. XIV c. In Latin. Parchment.
• Printed book – incunabulum Rabanus Maurus. Opus de universo (Strassburg, 1467). 

- At present the library serves about 27.000 users. This equals the whole of Vilnius at the end of XVIII c.

- In 1753,the observatory was founded in Vilnius University, one of the oldest in Europe and the first in Lithuania. At present, its premises house Vilnius University Library (VUL White Hall).

- In 2006,music manuscripts of the composer M. K. Čiurlionis (11 pages) were found, no one knew they even existed.

- Each year more than 9 thousand tourists from Lithuania and other countries of the world visit the Library, among them from the Republic of South Africa, Sri Lanka,Taiwan, Argentina, Australia, China, India, Chile, Korea, etc.

- Rulers of different states as well as spiritual leaders of the world have visited the Library - presidents, kings, princes, among them – Belgian royal family, Charles, Prince of Wales, Laura Bush, wife of the US President, the Pope John Paul II, Tibet spiritual leader Dalai Lama, Queen of Netherlands and many others.

Statistics

Holdings
As of January 1, 2012 VUL holdings consisted of 5 382 344 items.

Old collections:
168 000 old and rare books,
315 incunabula,
10 000 maps,
700 atlases,
291 392 manuscripts,
92 593 item of graphic arts.

VU library electronic catalogue
As of January 1, 2012 VUL electronic catalogue included 502 839 bibliographic entries and 1 249 418 storage items.
 
VU library database
As of January 1, 2012 VUL created databases included:
VU staff publications database – 41 904 entries;

Services
28 411 registered users;
619 531 visits;
941 workplaces for visitors, 163 computerized places among them;
515 718 items delivered;
189 056 items available in open stack.

Events
In 2011 VUL organized 86 events, of them 46 exhibitions.