FAQ

This page gathers the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ); it is the part of the website that collects and answers the most common questions that users have asked or might ask. In practice, it is a kind of quick instruction manual aimed at clearing up the most frequent doubts.

What is it for?

• It offers immediate answers to visitors, who do not have to search at length or contact the help desk to resolve simple doubts.
• It can make things easier, improving navigation on the site and making the experience smoother and less frustrating.
• It can build trust, showing that users’ needs are cared for and that questions are anticipated.

Here are the main ones.

What kind of activity is the Archive currently oriented to?

The activity of the Central Salesian Archive (ASC) is oriented to (a) protecting the significant Salesian documentary and audiovisual heritage, fostering the conditions of preservation needed to safeguard its integrity, and to enhancing it as the historical memory of the work of the Salesian Society, by preparing research tools that make a large part of the archived holdings available to researchers and scholars.

The staff supports the requests of the Rector Major and of the General Secretariat for the General Council. It also proceeds progressively and gradually to (b) preserve and restore, catalogue and archive, acquire and digitise analogue documentation, and support particular projects.

The periodisation of the ASC?

The ASC essentially preserves documentation later than 1815, the year in which the founder Fr Giovanni Bosco was born. 1859 is the reference year for the foundation of the Salesian Society; the decree of approval dates from 1869 and the approval of the Constitutions by the Holy See from 1874. It may be useful to recall some basic and relevant sources for grasping the historical period involving the founder and the Society: the Bibliofilo cattolico (1875), later Bollettino Salesiano (1878); the Memorie Biografiche di don Giovanni Bosco (1898-1948) are a further reference for identifying references and dates, together with the Memorie dell’Oratorio and the Annali by E. Ceria (1. Dalle origini alla morte di S. Giovanni Bosco (1841-1888). 2. Il rettorato di Don Michele Rua: dal 1888 al 1898. 3. Il rettorato di Don Michele Rua: dal 1899 al 1910. 4. Il rettorato di Don Paolo Albera (1910-1921).

Which members have traditionally been responsible for looking after the ASC’s documentation?

The ASC is currently headed by the Secretary of the General Council (initially called the Superior Chapter and later the Superior Council), who, since the beginnings of the Congregation, has directly looked after the archival collections, and on whom the Director of the ASC depends. From 1961 (cf. General List SDB 1961), alongside the Secretary of the General Council, a Salesian was appointed as Head of Office of the Secretariat of the Superior Chapter, specifically responsible for the personal records of the Salesians, the statistics of the Congregation and the preservation of the archive papers: in that year this was Fr Tomás Bordas (1889-1968). Thus the figure of the Director of the ASC gradually acquired its identity: reporting to the Secretary General, he directly manages the administration of the archive and coordinates the work of the staff.

Over time, who are the main Secretaries General who have contributed to the archive, and the staff or Directors who have worked in it?

Among the members particularly associated with matters of secretariat and archives, and the Secretaries General to be remembered, are the following: Fr Gioachino Berto, secretary of Don Bosco (1847-1914) [1880-1885]; Fr Carlo Ghivarello, secretary and general bursar (1835-1913); Fr Giulio Barberis (1847-1927); Fr Giovanni Battista Lemoyne, secretary of the council (1839-1916) [1885-1909]; Fr Giuseppe Rinetti, secretary of Fr Rua (1854-1937); Fr Calogero Gusmano, secretary (1872-1935) [1910-1935]; Fr Salvatore Puddu (1874-1964) [1936-1961]; Fr Tiburzio Lupo (1901-2001) [1962-1971]; Fr Domenico Britschu (1932-2020) [1972-1984]; Fr Francesco Maraccani (1936-2020) (1984-2002); Fr Marian Stempel [from 2002-15]; Fr Stefano Vanoli [from 2015-22]; Fr Guido Garino [from 2022-…]

Where has the ASC’s documentation been kept over time?

The archival material of the Congregation, as can be seen in the General Lists of the Society of St Francis de Sales, was kept from the beginning in the Mother House of Valdocco (Direzione Generale Opere Don Bosco) until 1972, when, with the transfer of the Rector Major Fr Luigi Ricceri, his Council and the Salesian members involved in the councillors’ work, from Turin-Valdocco to Rome in Via della Pisana 1111 (the new seat of the Direzione Generale Opere Don Bosco and of the General House), all of the said material was brought to this new seat. Since October 2017 the ASC has been in a new seat at the Salesian Pontifical University, Piazza dell’Ateneo Salesiano 1, Rome. Moving all the precious documents was a very demanding task. At present (2023) the ASC is housed in temporary premises, awaiting its arrangement in the new seat in the area of the UPS campus.

How can one go about consulting the ASC?

To consult the ASC it is necessary to (a) MAKE A REQUEST by filling in the Form (b) SEND the completed form by email to the Director of the ASC (archivio@sdb.org) (c) await a reply to the email (d) MAKE ARRANGEMENTS with the director and the staff (e) CONSULT the Regulations for scholars and researchers.

How many people make up the working group currently operating at the ASC?

Leaving aside the Secretary General, who deals mainly with the current archive, two Salesians and two lay people.

Does the ASC follow a set of Regulations?

In 1985 the Rector Major Fr Egidio Viganò promulgated the ASC Regulations, which consist of 39 articles and set out the rules concerning the governance and administration of the archive, the archivists, consultation and organisation (cf. Acts of the General Council no. 314 – year 1985).

What kinds of updates have been made at the ASC in the recent past?

At the end of the 1980s work began, with the help of the new equipment, to code the archival material according to a methodology conforming to the current criteria of the archival discipline and to the ASC Classification Scheme, starting with the Don Bosco fonds. This work has already produced satisfactory results and continues with criteria that can be improved.

Then, in the period 1990-92, the archive in Via della Pisana, 1111, in Rome, was upgraded and improved in terms of structures and working equipment. Rooms necessary for the work of the archivists and for the preservation of the archival material were created: the staff working room (a large, bright room provided with suitable equipment and aids); the consultation room, adjacent to the previous one (to welcome scholars and researchers consulting ASC documents for theses, studies, or personal or institutional research); and the large deposit room, into which the archival material was transported and where it was kept and guarded in special archival cabinets, divided into about 7,000 containers. The air-conditioned and dehumidified deposit was kept under control. For this work of arrangement, technical reorganisation and methodological setup, it is natural to express heartfelt gratitude to the members Fr Tarcisio Valsecchi and Fr Vendel Fenyö (director of the ASC from 1968 to 1987); from 1985 to Fr Raffaele Farina until 1992; Fr Ugo Santucci 1980-81… Other directors and collaborators have also made significant contributions: Fr Mieczyslaw Kaczmarzyk (director of the ASC from 1992 to 1999), Ms Elena Moretti and Ms Carla Riccioni. The most recent directors of the ASC have been Francisco Hurtado Castellanos (from 1999 to 2008), Fr Luigi Cei (from 2008 to 2019) and Fr Petr Zelinka (from 2019 to 2023)

When did consultation of the archive records begin to move from paper to computer?

In 1988 - according to Cardinal R. Farina - the foundations were laid for the computerisation of the catalogue. The current records date back to the early 1990s.

Does the ASC hold the issues of the Acts of the General Council of the Society?

Yes. They are available in bound paper form and also in digital copy as *.pdf in the various languages: Italian, English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, German.

How do you search the archive database?

You can carry out a simple search by typing the key words of interest in the corresponding box; or you can carry out an advanced search using the page that allows advanced queries on specific fields with the classic logical operators such as AND, OR…

What is the Dublin Core standard? Why is it important for the ASC?

Although an archive is by its nature clearly different from a library, the ASC has decided to use a very widespread international standard to encode the archiving of archival units, and Dublin Core Metadata - according to the AIB - «is proposed as a standard for describing resources in electronic format and consists of 15 descriptive elements. It was conceived to enable authors to describe resources made available on the network directly and in a standardised way, without the mediation of a cataloguing agency. Dublin Core was developed starting from the Metadata Workshop of March 1995, held at the headquarters of the Online Computer Library Center in Dublin (Ohio), sponsored by OCLC and the National Center for Supercomputing Applications (NCSA). The essential features of Dublin Core are intended to be: simplicity, since the standard is addressed both to expert cataloguers and (above all) to non-experts in cataloguing; semantic interoperability, which should enable Dublin Core to become a lingua franca for searching resources on the network; flexibility, which should make it possible to encode resource descriptions also in a more formal way; international consensus, since Dublin Core was prepared by experts from various countries and numerous projects using the standard are under way.

What is the Omeka software for the ASC?

The software used experimentally for publishing a selection of the ASC’s database of records (items) is “Omeka S”. Omeka is a Digital Scholar project (https://digitalscholar.org/), originally launched at the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media (Department of History and Art History, George Mason University, 4400 University Drive, MSN 1E7, Fairfax, Virginia 22030 USA) and funded by several organisations. The Omeka name and logo are registered trademarks of Digital Scholar. What does Omeka mean? “Omeka” is a Swahili word meaning to display or layout wares; to speak out; to spread out; to unpack. The team chose this name, because it signifies the practices that Omeka helps its users to do with digital content and through building digital projects for online communities … The software manages open-source web publishing platforms for sharing items and digital collections and for creating online virtual exhibitions rich in multimedia content, and it is available on GitHub.

Can a visit to the archive premises be booked?

Not at present. In these months, in fact, the archive is carrying out a very demanding restructuring of its premises and a reorganisation of its sections to make the sources easier to find. The archive is closed to the public until the works are completed. The ASC is also restructuring its database.

Where are the archive premises?

They are on the campus of the Salesian Pontifical University, on the ground floor of the Don Bosco Library building, next to the offices of CeSIT (Centro Servizi Informatici e Telematici)

What types of documents are found in the archive?

The archival units proper are many and come in various formats. In summary, they fall into the following groupings:

• Documents, mostly on paper. The most important documentation, arranged according to a classification scheme.
• Essential biographical references of deceased SDB members whose date of death is known, from the beginnings to 2022, any letters “in memoriam” in digitised copy, booklets or texts describing the person’s profile
• Images. A static visual representation. Examples include photographs on various media (glass photographic plates, slides, prints of positives and negatives, films, etc.), paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps.
• Books, booklets, pamphlets (published and unpublished works). Specific works produced by the founder and by members, especially in the early life of the Society. Most of these are also, and above all, held in the Don Bosco Library of the University and in the Library of the Salesian Historical Institute.
• Objects or inanimate three-dimensional substances (painting, sculpture, work of art, …: ring, purse, inkwell, chalice, candelabrum, frame, rosary, cross, ex-voto, jewel, banner, icon, medal, coin, spectacles, monstrance, relic, commemorative plaque, …)
• Video (moving images). A series of visual representations that give an impression of movement when shown in succession. Examples include animations, films, television programmes, videos, zoetropes or the visual output of a simulation in various formats (video cassettes, discs, files)

How are the ASC premises laid out?

The current restructuring of part of the ground floor of the UPS Don Bosco Library building provides for an office area for the working group and for consultation, and a new document deposit area which, moving from the temporary one located in the basement, air-conditioned and dehumidified, will be set out on the same floor as the offices, next to the silo of the Don Bosco Library

Is the ASC linked to other consultation structures?

Yes. In particular with the Don Bosco Library of the University and, on the campus, with the Library of the Salesian Historical Institute. Through the Portal of the Libraries of the Roman Pontifical Universities and Institutions (PARSIFAL), which cooperate with one another through the network of the Unione Romana Biblioteche Ecclesiastiche (URBE), the online resources and OPACs of the libraries of the Roman pontifical universities can be reached very easily

Are there Salesian Study Centres linked with the ASC?

Yes. The Central Salesian Archive essentially invites those undertaking Salesian studies and (historical) research on Don Bosco to take into consideration the following Italian institutional resources, which can be found through their websites:

• the Istituto Storico Salesiano and the Associazione Cultori di Storia Salesiana. For institutional information ISS ACSSA
• the Centro Studi Don Bosco. For institutional information CSDB
• the Don Bosco Library of the Salesian Pontifical University: Library, UPS
• and other international ones such as: the Institute of Salesian Studies Don Bosco Hall (Berkeley, California USA); the Associazione Biblica Salesiana; Towarzystwo Naukowe Franciszka Salezego (Francis de Sales Scientific Society) (Warsaw, Poland); the Centro Salesiano de Documentação e Pesquiza (Barbacena, Brazil); the CES Don Bosco Centro Universitario Salesiano (Madrid, Spain); the Centro Salesiano Regional de Formación Permanente América; the Salesian Center for Faith and Culture (Center Valley, PA); the Institut für Salesianische Spiritualität…
• In addition, since 2013 the website https://www.donboscosanto.eu/, a project of the Salesians of Don Bosco of the province of north-east Italy, has been a reference whose purpose is the online publication of Don Bosco’s writings, writings on Don Bosco and other Salesian writings.
• Recently a collaborative project of the Centro Studi Don Bosco (Salesian Pontifical University, Rome) and the Centro Studi sulle Figlie di Maria Ausiliatrice (Pontifical Faculty of Educational Sciences “Auxilium”, Rome) gave rise to Salesian OnLine Resource.

Does the ASC have a classification scheme?

Certainly. It was updated in October 2023. The classification scheme is of fundamental importance in an archive. It sets out the «classification framework, organised into categories (classes) and possibly into further subdivisions, according to which the documents of the archive are grouped in a logical order».

What are the main headings of the archive’s classification scheme?

The headings (subject) of the main categories of the ASC are the following:

A. Società Salesiana; B. Don Bosco; C. Case Salesiane; D. Consiglio Generale; E. Opere e Attività; F. Formazione e rispettivo Dicastero; G. Capitoli Generali; H. Istituto delle Figlie di Maria Ausiliatrice; I. Ispettorie, Visitatorie, Delegazioni; J. Famiglia Salesiana e rispettivo Dicastero; L. Stampa e Comunicazione Sociale e rispettivo Dicastero; M. Missioni e rispettivo Dicastero; N. Maria Ausiliatrice; O. Procura Generale e Causa dei Santi; P. Vicario Generale (Prefetto Generale); Q. Pastorale Giovanile; R. Rettor Maggiore; S. Segreteria Generale; T. Economato Generale; U. Casa Madre e Casa Generalizia; V. Consiglieri Regionali; X. Fondi diversi

Are there particular fonds in the archive?

The archival units are kept divided into “Fonds” according to a logical arrangement determined by the classes of the classification scheme indicated above. They are kept in archival cabinets and in special containers. An indicative, non-exhaustive overview of the main Fonds is the following: Fondo Don Bosco, Fondo Cause dei Santi, Fondo Segreteria Generale, Fondo Missioni, Fondo Comunicazione Sociale, Fondo Maria Ausiliatrice, Fondo Rettori Maggiori, Fondo SDB defunti e usciti, Fondo Vescovi SDB defunti, Fondo Istituto FMA, Fondo Famiglia Salesiana, Fondo Consiglieri Generali e Regionali, Fondo Pratiche Particolari, Fondo Società Salesiana, Fondo Procura Generale, Fondo Capitoli Generali e Ispettoriali, Fondo Settori Operativi dei SDB, Fondo Oratorio-Valdocco, Fondo Ispettorie Salesiane, Fondo Case Salesiane (Documenti, Cronache, Nuove Fondazioni), Fondo Capitoli Ispettoriali, Fondo UPS, Fondo Don Bosco 88, Fondo Economato Generale, other various fonds of SDB, events, etc.

What types of documents are found in the fonds?

This is textual documentation, for example: Letters, Documents relating to Houses and Provinces, or Chronicles of Houses and Provinces, Personal documents and personal records of Salesians, or Papers of various content, Documents of Provincial Chapters and General Chapters, or Periodicals, Magazines, Newsletters… Other archival units are found in the other sections.

Does the ASC hold documentation on microfiches?

Yes. On the occasion of the Bicentenary of the birth of Don Bosco (1815-2015), to make this resource easier to consult, the digital version was produced of the microfiches of some Fonds of Salesian interest: Don Bosco, Fr Rua, documents concerning Maria Domenica Mazzarello (process of beatification and canonisation) and the beginnings of the FMA Institute.

The Central Salesian Archive offers an adaptation of the catalogue of the microfiching of the documents concerning Don Bosco and the beginnings of the Salesian Congregation. With this work it intends to give scholars direct access to the sources and at the same time to ensure the preservation of the originals. In the 1980s the microfiche method was preferred to the microfilm, since microfiche is easier to consult, duplicate, store and send, avoiding deterioration of the material. Each fiche, measuring 105x148 mm, contains 60 frames. The patient and meticulous work was carried out by Fr Alfonso Torras (1927 Vigo Pontevedra - 2011 Arévalo, Spain) with the attention and affection of one who knows he holds in his hands «the birth certificates» of the Salesian Congregation and the irrefutable proof of the historicity of the rich Salesian heritage contained in extended, narrative form especially in the Memorie Biografiche (from the Presentation).

How many microfilmed documents are available?

There are 4,813 microfiches, for a total of 293,000 images of pages/documents converted into files. Work on converting the indexes is in progress.

Is the ASC in contact with the Salesian Museums?

Not directly. In Salesian houses there are permanent and temporary exhibitions of documents, objects, etc. that belonged to Salesians, members, saints, people… who over time have kept alive the tradition and the memory of the origins. Below are some relevant Museums: Museo Casa Don Bosco (Italy, Turin, Valdocco); Museo Etnografico Missioni Don Bosco (Italy, Turin, Valdocco); Museo Etnologico Missionario del Colle Don Bosco (Italy, Asti, Castelnuovo Don Bosco, Frazione Morialdo); Museo della Civiltà Contadina dell’Ottocento (Italy, Asti, Castelnuovo Don Bosco, Frazione Morialdo); Museo di Mamma Margherita (Italy, Capriglio); Centro visite Don Bosco (Chieri, To, Italy); Museo di Storia Naturale Don Bosco di Valsalice (Italy, Turin, Valsalice); Museo Martí-Codolar (Spain, Barcelona); Museo Regional Salesiano of Rawson (Argentina); Missionary museum (India, Dimapur); Museum (India, Shillong, theologate); International Museum of the Nativity (Palestine, Bethlehem); Missionary museum (Poland, Warszawa Som); Museum (Argentina, San Nicolás de los Arroyos); Museum (Argentina, Buenos Aires, Fortín Mercedes); Museo Don Bosco (Brazil, Campo Grande); Museum (Chile, Puerto Natales); Regional Museum (Chile, Punta Arenas Magallanes); “Mons. Cimatti” Museum (Japan, Tokyo); Memorial Hall of Fr John Lee (Korea, Seogo Busan); Museum (Peru, Huancayo); Historical museum (Uruguay, Montevideo (Villa Colón)); Historical museum (Uruguay, Paysandú Rosario)

What other archives of interest can the ASC point out?

The ASC highlights the online references of some archives of men’s and women’s institutes. Institutes of consecrated life are associations made up of those faithful who, in response to a particular vocation, dedicate themselves to God and to the service of their neighbour through the profession of the evangelical counsels of poverty, chastity and obedience, taken by vow or other sacred bond.

These Institutes, considered in themselves, can be divided into religious Institutes, which are the majority, and secular Institutes. A further category, not yet fully defined in many of its aspects, includes the so-called mixed Institutes and the new forms of consecrated life. To these Institutes accedunt, as can. 731 § 1 states, the Societies of apostolic life, since their common and apostolic lifestyle and, for some of them, the profession of the evangelical counsels (can. 731 § 2) make them very similar to religious Institutes. Like the Institutes of consecrated life, the Societies of apostolic life are also divided into clerical and lay (can. 732).

• Augustinians
• Centro Studi Antoniani
• Barnabites
• Benedictines
• Camillians
• Canossians
• Capuchins
• Carmelites
• Somascan Clerics Regular
• Cistercians
• Claretians
• Archivio Congregazione Oratorio S. Filippo Neri
• Dehonians
• Franciscans
• Jesuits
• Guanellians
• Redemptorists
• Archivio Generale Storico della Congr. del SS. Redentore
• Rosminians
• Xaverians
• Scalabrinians

Is the ASC in contact with other Salesian archives?

Not directly. The online references of some websites of Salesian archives in some provinces are the following:

• Argentina
• Ecuador
• Italy