A. Printed catalogues
The printed catalogues of the Manuscript Collection are available in the Library’s reading room: three main volumes published 1918–1937 and four supplementary volumes published between 1947 and 1996. The catalogues have also been digitised and can be read at www.bækur.is.
To make the catalogues easier to search, an index of names and a subject index covering all the volumes have been prepared as word-processing documents. The numbers in these indexes are the catalogues’ serial numbers, not shelfmarks.
Links into the catalogues by serial number:
Lbs fol.
Lbs 1–372 fol:
Volume 1, serial numbers 1–351
Lbs 373–445 fol:
Volume 3, serial numbers 7940–8012
Lbs 446–524 fol:
Supplementary volume i, serial numbers i 1–81
Lbs 525–634 fol:
Supplementary volume ii, serial numbers ii 1–110
Lbs 635–750 fol:
Supplementary volume iii, serial numbers iii 1–116
Lbs 751–970 fol:
Supplementary volume iv, serial numbers iv 1–220
Lbs 4to.
Lbs 1–2029 4to:
Volume 1, serial numbers 352–2365
Lbs 2030–2500 4to:
Volume 3, serial numbers 8013–8490
Lbs 2501–2979 4to:
Supplementary volume i, serial numbers i 82–560
Lbs 2980–3566 4to:
Supplementary volume ii, serial numbers ii 111–697
Lbs 3567–4347 4to:
Supplementary volume iii, serial numbers iii 117–897
Lbs 4348–4960 4to:
Supplementary volume iv, serial numbers iv 221–833
Lbs 8vo.
Lbs 1–2344 8vo:
Volume 2, serial numbers 2366–4726
Lbs 2345–2454 8vo:
Volume 3, serial numbers 8491–8600
Lbs 2455–2856 8vo:
Supplementary volume i, serial numbers i 561–962
Lbs 2857–3369 8vo:
Supplementary volume ii, serial numbers ii 698–1210
Lbs 3370–3775 8vo:
Supplementary volume iii, serial numbers iii 898–1303
Lbs 3776–4432 8vo:
Supplementary volume iv, serial numbers iv 834–1490
JS
JS 1–172 fol:
Volume 2, serial numbers 4727–4893
JS 1–650 4to:
Volume 2, serial numbers 4894–5543
JS 1–520 8vo:
Volume 2, serial numbers 5544–6063
JS
JS 1–172 fol:
Volume 2, serial numbers 4727–4893
JS 1–650 4to:
Volume 2, serial numbers 4894–5543
JS 1–520 8vo:
Volume 2, serial numbers 5544–6063
ÍB
ÍB 1–110 fol:
Volume 2, serial numbers 6064–6161
ÍB 1–520 4to:
Volume 2, serial numbers 6162–6668
ÍB 1–980 8vo:
Volume 3, serial numbers 6669–7650
ÍBR
ÍBR 1–12 fol:
Volume 3, serial numbers 7651–7662
ÍBR 1–117 4to:
Volume 3, serial numbers 7663–7779
ÍBR 1–160 8vo:
Volume 3, serial numbers 7780–7939
Parchment leaves in the Manuscript Collection, catalogued in supplementary volume ii
Charters on parchment in the Manuscript Collection, catalogued in supplementary volume ii
More detailed instructions on using the catalogues are available here.
Electronic manuscript catalogue 1964–2013, a provisional catalogue of manuscripts drawn from the accessions register.
Catalogue records for manuscripts catalogued after supplementary volume iv was published (1996) are on handrit.is:
B. Special catalogues
Various special catalogues of manuscripts and documents are available to users in the reading room. Some of them are also available online. This list is not exhaustive.
- 1. Catalogue of autograph manuscripts. – Card catalogue in the Manuscript Collection.
- 2. Catalogue of poems. – Card catalogue in the Manuscript Collection.
- 3. Catalogue of the age of manuscripts in the National Library
- 4. Catalogue of letter collections in the Manuscript Collection
- 5. Catalogue of letters: writers and recipients. – Card catalogue in the Manuscript Collection.
- 6. Catalogue of grammatical manuscripts. – Duplicated typescript.
C. Finding aids for archives and manuscript collections
Here we publish finding aids for the archives and manuscript collections of individuals and institutions. They supplement what is already in the printed catalogues. For the time being the finding aids are PDF files, and they may change as the material is described in more detail. The finding aids differ in origin and layout, but the aim is to make the information available from one place. Each entry is built up as follows. First comes the name of the person or body that created the material. Then the kind of material it is, whether letters, papers and/or manuscripts, and the period it covers. Finally, in brackets, the shelfmark of the material.
Aðalgeir Davíðsson. Letters 1867–1890
(Lbs 1 NF)
Barði Guðmundsson
(Lbs 53 NF)
Einar H. Kvaran
(Lbs 42 NF)
Emil Jónsson
(Lbs 36 NF)
Erlendur Guðmundsson í Unuhúsi. Letters and papers 1875–1947
(Lbs 5 NF)
Finnbogi Guðmundsson. Papers 1937–2000
(Lbs 11 NF)
Gerd Bausch-Lilliehöök. Letters 1942–1970
(Lbs 22 NF)
Gerður Helgadóttir. Letters and papers 1928–1975
(Lbs 8 NF)
Guðmundur Finnbogason. Papers 1895–1947
(Lbs 12 NF)
Guðrún Jóhannsdóttir
(Lbs 258 NF)
Gunnar Gunnarsson. Papers and manuscripts
(Lbs 100 NF)
Guttormur Vigfússon. Papers 1873–1927
(Lbs 29 NF)
Hallbjörn Halldórsson and Kristín Guðmundardóttir
(Lbs 52 NF)
Halldór Laxness. Catalogue of his private archive
(Lbs 200 NF)
Hannes Thorsteinsson
(Lbs 365 NF)
Hannibal Valdimarsson
(Lbs 51 NF)
Haraldur Jónsson frá Gröf. Diaries 1934–1976
(Lbs 24 NF)
Hálfdan Jakobsson. Letters 1890–1903
(Lbs 2 NF)
Jakob Hálfdanarson. Letters and manuscripts
(Lbs 4 NF)
Jóhann Einarsson
(Lbs 359 NF)
Jón Baldvinsson
(Lbs 38 NF)
Jón Helgason. Letters 1922–1986
(Lbs 23 NF)
Lestrarfélag kvenna Reykjavíkur
(Lbs 102 NF)
Nína Sæmundsson. Letters 1956–1966
(Lbs 7 NF)
Ólafur Friðriksson
(Lbs 45 NF)
Pétur Jónsson. Letters 1846–1905
(Lbs 3 NF)
Ragnar Jónsson í Smára. Papers
(Lbs 9 NF)
Sigurður Róbertsson. Manuscripts
(Lbs 20 NF)
Stefán Pjetursson
(Lbs 37 NF)
Þórður Sveinsson. Letters 1895–1937
(Lbs 21 NF)
D. Union catalogue of private archives
A union catalogue of the private archives kept in the Manuscript Collection of the National Library, the National Archives of Iceland and the regional archives. The catalogue is a work in progress and is not exhaustive.
E. Other catalogues and databases
The Helgisiðastofa – Collegium Musicum database of Icelandic hymn and poetry manuscripts The Ísmús database – Icelandic music and cultural heritage