Journal of Documentary and Archival Studies
Scientific Journal

The creation and evolution of the Filmtech section in the Astan Quds Razavi Library(1969 - 2005)

Articles in Press

Document Type : Original Article

Author

mostafa farzaneh

Manuscript Expert at the Organization of Libraries, Museums and Documentation Center of Astan Quds Razavi

10.30481/psa.2025.504117.1075
Abstract
Contrary to the common practice in the world, where microfilm was first considered for commercial-military purposes, in Iran microfilm was used for cultural purposes from the very beginning. The first non-governmental religious institution to take serious measures in this regard by using cultural figures and seeking their opinions was Astan Quds Razavi. The beginning of this goes back to the late 1969s. Advanced and up-to-date equipment was purchased in a short period of time, but there was no solid support for the continuation of microfilming manuscripts, documents, and endowments. This field becames more abandoned the closer to the end of the Pahlavi period. The Islamic Revolution created a turning point in this process by fundamentally changing cultural attitudes. This section, which was dedicated to a limited number of researchers or visiting personalities, provided its services to a very wide range of people after the revolution. Meanwhile, the preparation of microfilms of manuscripts, documents, and endowments was pursued with greater seriousness. From the opening of this department until early 2002, a total of 35 to 40 thousand microfilm rolls were produced. Using interviews, documents, and other research sources, this article attempts to examine the process of creating and changing the microfilm section of the Astan Quds Library.

Keywords

Library
Astan Quds Razavi
Microfilm
Filmtech

Subjects

Journal of Documentary and Archival Studies

Articles in Press, Accepted Manuscript
Available Online from 09 December 2025

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