About Archives
The archives of the Indian Institute of Astrophysics contain significant holdings, some dating back more than 200 years. Much effort has been put into compiling, organizing, preserving, and digitizing these materials over the last few years. The collections are displayed in a separate room adjacent to the library on the IIA campus in Bangalore.The archival descriptions of the items in the IIA archives can be found on the IIA Archive Site.
The archive houses the inherited records of the library from the Madras and Kodaikanal observatory. Going back to 1786, the collection has grown in parallel to include more than 5000 items in various formats such as manuscripts, photographs, maps, films, awards, framed materials, hand-drawn sketches, pictures, and instruments. Most of these items are of historical importance and environmentally sensitive.Digitalization has been done on a number of handwritten, unusual observations made between Goldingham and Pogson's times (1796–1805, 1812–1830, and 1861–1891).
Certain old handwritten manuscripts and scientific data sheets required lamination and an encapsulating process that adhered to the reversible process principle in order to maintain their individuality while also offering reinforcement. We receive assistance in preserving a few rare documents from the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH). All of these documents have been meticulously indexed by the library staff, and users of the archive will soon have access to the finding tool.
