Vatican Secret Archives

Vatican Secret Archives (Latin: Archivum Secretum Vaticanum), located in Vatican City, is the central repository for all the actions announced by the Holy See. These archives also contain a state paper, correspondence, account books pope, and many other documents that the church has accumulated over the centuries. In the 17th century, under Pope's command. Paul V, separated Secret Archives of the Vatican Library, where scholars have some very limited access to them, and remain completely closed to outsiders until 1881, when Pope Leo XIII opened them for research, including now more than a thousand checks documents every year.

The word "secret" in the title "Vatican Secret Archives"does not have the modern meaning: this indicates that the archive is not the Pope himself, not those of a department of the Roman Curia. The word "secret" is used in this sense also in phrases such as "confidential servant, ""secret cupbearer, " "secret sculptor. "

Vatican Secret Archives have been estimated to contain 52 miles (84 km) off the shelf, [4] and there are 35,000 volumes in the catalog only selectively. "The index should be consulted in Room Index and replaced in their original locations Publications index., in part or in whole, is prohibited." Archive support their own studio photography and conservation.

According to the Archives site, which is the oldest document dates back to the late eighth century. "Transfers and political upheavals caused almost total loss of all archival material before Innocent III." From 1198 onwards, more complete records exist, although there is little documentation is a little before the 13th century. Since then, documentation includes items such as Henry VIII of England the demand for cancellation of marriage, and letters from Michelangelo.

The entrance to the Archives, adjacent to the Vatican Library, is approached through the Porta di S. Anna in via the Porta Angelica (rione of Borgo). New underground storage space added in 1980.

There is no generic browsing, and researchers should request the appropriate documents they want to see, identify it either by consulting an index or from some other source.

The archiver now is Cardinal Raffaele Farina. Cardinal Jorge Maria Mejia and Luigi Poggi is "Archivisti Emeriti" (former archivist).

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