Regulations for the study room
Opening times: 8.00 am to 3.00 pm, from Monday to Friday. Closed on Sundays and public holidays.
In order to gain admission to consult the documents, scholars must be aged 18 or over and give a completed request form to the Management every year and every time they intend to change the aim of their research. The request must be presented with valid proof of identity, a photocopy of which must be enclosed. The Management has the right to grant, revoke or suspend consultation licences, as per the terms provided for by Ministerial Decree no. 495 of 13 June 1994.
For capacity and security reasons, no more than 12 (twelve) people can be admitted to the room at any one time.
Users must complete the presence register when they enter the study room. They must leave bags, briefcases and other containers with the member of security staff and in any case they may only keep equipment on the consultation table that is strictly essential for their work and authorized by the Management.
Users will in no way be able to introduce pens, markers, colouring materials, food, drink and any kind of objects and substances liable to damage documents into the study room. Only the use of pencils, computers and loose sheets is permitted.
There may be checks and inspections on the way in and out. Video surveillance systems are in operation.
The documents may be freely consulted for study purposes for no charge, with the exception of those that are declared to be of a confidential nature and those containing sensitive data, for which scholars must forward a request on normal paper to the Record Office Management in order to receive the relative ministerial authorization.
In order to consult the documents for administrative purposes or reasons which in any case are not related to study, the interested parties must make a request to the Record Office Management on normal paper to view documents. Requests for certified copies or excerpts of the documents must be made on stamped paper accompanied by a stamp to be affixed on the copy or excerpt (one stamp for every four sides)..
In accordance with ministerial instructions, scholars who use materials from the Record Office undertake to provide it with a copy of their publication or degree dissertation, for which they may establish the conditions of use.
The source must be mentioned (including the research supports, when the text or part of it is quoted). Scholars are reminded that they are responsible for respecting the author’s rights.
The inventories and other useful supports for research can be freely consulted by scholars.
Anyone who is entering the study room for the first time, and anyone who needs expert advice, must refer to the person in charge of the service.
Requests for materials from the archives must be made using the appropriate form, with a separate one for each item. For precise details on how to fill it in, users should ask the staff in the study room for information. The request will be effective once it has been endorsed by the person in charge of the service.
With the exception of cases of staff absence and research which proves to be particularly difficult and drawn-out, the withdrawal of materials from the archives takes place every day at 9.15 am and 12.00 am, with a total of 2 (two) items per withdrawal. Materials requested after 12.00 am will be included in the withdrawal at 9.15 am on the following day.
Requests for items already in charge to other users cannot be processed.
Materials stored in the Secondary Office will be made available to all those who have made a related request on the first working day of each month. Requests should be made no later than six days prior to the end of the month, to allow time for the identification and transport of the materials concerned (e.g. March has 31 days; last day for requests of April to be made: 26 March). The above time limit may be subject to variation during summer months and the Easter and Christmas holidays, for reasons connected with the organisation of the service. Any changes will be communicated in good time including on the Web site itself. The first 2 pieces requested (or in a number proportional to those stocked in the storage) will be made available on the first working day of the month subsequent to the request. Their distribution will have the priority over the material manufactured at the headquarters (no time restrictions). The next pieces, whose distribution has always the priority, fall within the normal distribution ranges and follow the normal counting of the goods in stock. The material will be available to the users up to the date of the subsequent pickup. Should the user not complete the consultation, they can request the extension of the stock period. Should it not be consulted at all, the material will be relocated and not picked up immediately.
It is possible to reserve materials by e-mail.
Only one item may be consulted at a time.
For simultaneous consultation of complementary pieces (e.g. headings and notarial acts), the consent of the person in charge of the service is required.
Authorization for consultation is strictly personal and it is absolutely forbidden to consult or reproduce material which is in charge to other users.
Users of the study room may fill in the appropriate forms and request – with a maximum of 2 items per withdrawal – to consult materials in the Institute’s internal library which are necessary for their research, though priority of use will be given to office-related reasons at all times.
Withdrawal of book materials is carried out in the same way as for items from the archives, as specified in point 5 of these regulations.
Theses and dissertations for degrees and doctorates can be consulted after 5 years, unless the author specifies otherwise.
More detailed rules on book materials can be found in the Library regulations.
Users are invited to take appropriate action to ensure the decorum and dignity of the place and to avoid behaviour that may be detrimental to the dignity of individuals.
It is forbidden to disturb other users in any way or to engage staff with problems not related to the professional qualification of the same or to the institutional activities carried out in the Institute.
It is forbidden to eat and drink in the study room, to speak and study aloud, to use noisy equipment (for example mobile phones), to occupy more than one consultation post, to enter without authorization the premises where the offices and storage rooms are located and use equipment and materials allocated to staff without proper authorisation.
To ensure maximum silence in the Study Room, interviews between scholars must take place outside the same.
The material obtained may not be moved from the working table. Scholars will need to consult the archivist at their table without moving documentation.
Scholars are forbidden from making any marks, even in pencil, on the documents, support tools and books, and from writing with their paper on top of the material in question, handling it with little care, causing any damage to it, and making copies or tracing without the permission of the Management.
Scholars are forbidden from changing the order of the documents, even when they believe it to be incorrect; if they notice any apparent disorder or have any doubts whatsoever, they must inform the person in charge of the service.
Inappropriate bookmarks must not be inserted in the materials and in any case all signs must be removed after the material has been consulted and reproduced.
The items from the archive and books which have been received for consultation must be returned to the security officer every day in the state in which they were provided and fully reconditioned. Should scholars temporarily leave the study room, they must close the files being consulted and replace them in their containers.
Should users also wish to consult the material in the following days, up to 4 items per user (2 pieces of archive material and 2 from the library) may be placed in the cupboard for this purpose, where they will be available for a maximum of 2 (two) weeks. Exceptions to the above can be allowed for particular reasons related to research, as long as they are in accordance with the requirements of the service.
The Management may prevent certain documents from being consulted and/or photographically reproduced if their condition makes such measures necessary.
Scholars must observe the control procedures established by the Management for the archive materials.
Anyone who does not respect the rules may temporarily or permanently lose the right to use the Record Office study room.
Materials from the archives and books may only be reproduced with cameras. The use of portable scanners and photocopiers is prohibited.
Photographs must be taken with personal means free of charge if shot directly by public or private parties for personal use, study purposes or cultural promotion purposes, provided this is done on a non-profit basis. In other cases photographs must be taken in return for payment in line with the applicable price list, following a request for authorization from the Management for reasons related to study, publication or other purposes. Any requests must be made by completing the appropriate form, which is available in the Study room.
Photographic reproduction is allowed in the study room without tripods, flashes and lighting equipment, or in the special areas designated by the Management.
Users may entrust the task to a photographer, subject to prior authorization.
The authorization for the use of the items requested in order to be photographed for a fee with personal means is valid until the scholar returns the items in question.
The Reggio Emilia Record Office reserves the right to ask for a copy of the reproductions of documents.
Images of cultural property, legitimately acquired, may be disseminated freely, by any means, in a way that prevents further reproduction for profit.
Should the users intend to use for other purposes reproduced images of archive material in publications, they must present a request for authorization, complete with a stamp for administrative purposes to the Management of the Record Office, following the procedure which can be explained by the person in charge of the service in the Study room. Authorization will be given with a stamp affixed. «... State, regional, provincial and municipal authorities and their consortia and associations, as well as Italian mountain communities,» are exempt from the payment of stamp duty (section 16, annex B, of Italian Presidential Decree no. 642 of 26/10/1972), as are non-profit organizations (section 18 of Italian Presidential Decree no. 641 of 26/10/1972). Authorization will also be given to these organizations without a stamp affixed.
Modern books and articles may not be reproduced in their entirety, with the exception of those published in daily newspapers.
Theses and dissertations for degrees and doctorates may only be reproduced if the request is accompanied by written authorization from the author, with an appropriately authenticated signature.
Those using the Record Office for reasons other than study must respect these regulations as applicable.
For any matters not covered by the above, refer to the applicable legislation concerning Record Offices (Royal Decree 1163/1911, Decree of the President of the Republic 1409/1963, Decree of the President of the Republic 854/1975, Legislative Decree 490/1999, Decree of the President of the Republic 441/2000, Legislative Decree 42/2004, Legislative Decree 146/2006).
Scholars shall be required to inspect and comply with this Regulation.
Violators will be invited to change their conduct and/or be wary and, in the most serious cases, may be removed from the Study Room and possibly, after informing the D.G.A., be temporarily or permanently excluded from the Record Office Study room.
Those who make themselves guilty of theft or damage will be referred to the judicial authority.
Latest update: 1 September 2019