We are the national library of the UK. Our shelves hold over 170 million items – a living collection that gets bigger every day.
Although our roots extend back centuries, we collect everything written today, tomorrow, and decades into the future.
We have millions of books, but we have so much more. Our London and Yorkshire sites have everything from newspapers to sound recordings, patents, prints and drawings, maps, and manuscripts.
Why digitise with us?
We’ve been at the forefront of digitisation and digital preservation for nearly 30 years and, as guardians of the nation’s treasures, we are world-leading experts in handling rare, fragile material. We’ve digitised ancient manuscripts, 3D globes, complete archives of magazines and journals, diaries and scrapbooks, to name a few.
By digitising with us you’ll have access to our expert conservators, imaging specialists and high-spec studios in our London St Pancras and Boston Spa sites. Our team are on-hand to guide you through your bespoke digitisation project from start to finish.
What do we offer?
You can order digital images from our extensive collection or commission us to preserve your own precious archives, giving them a new lease of life as digital content and opening access to global audiences.
In addition to bulk digitisation and scanning, we offer a wide range of specialist digitisation services, including:
• Support with getting your digitisation project started, such as scoping, funding advice and prepping your items
• Multispectral assessment to see beyond the surface
• Location photography, so your precious items don’t have to travel
• Digitised images from our collection of over 170 million books, maps, manuscripts and more
• High quality printing
• Enhance user experience of your items with innovative 3D photography.
If you’ve got a digitisation project in mind, email us at [email protected]. We’d love to hear from you.
If you would like to join the British Library’s digitisation mailing list, sign up here.
