Collections in the spotlight (NINO & Leiden Papyrological Institute)

The collections of the NINO have undergone a transition period over the past two years. Following the relocation of the NINO to the Herta Mohr Building in 2024, all NINO collections – including the clay tablets and objects as well as the paper archives – were integrated into the Special Collections of the Leiden University Libraries. Parts of the collections were also transferred to and are now on display at other institutions, such as the National Museum of Antiquities. During this transition period, the collections were researched, preserved, and partially digitized. Many colleagues, student assistants, and guest researchers contributed to various aspects of this work.

The Leiden University Library is also home to the Leiden Papyrological Institute. The collection of the Leiden Papyrological Institute consists mainly of Greek papyrus documents from Graeco-Roman Egypt, but also contains other written objects – from potsherds to wax tablets – in various languages. A significant part of the collection has not be published yet and work on the deciphering and interpretation of the papyrus documents is ongoing.

During this event, we aim to showcase our ongoing projects and present the results of recent studies on materials from these two collections.