Dr Josep Fontana has donated his library to UPF. The University is committed to safeguarding the donation and making it available to the university community in such a way as to ensure integrity and to guarantee it is kept together as a whole. At the same time, this collection is enhanced by the purchases made by the library and other donations.
 
This collection is available to users of the Jaume Vicens i Vives University Institute of History (IUHJVV) library on Ciutadella Campus, and it may be consulted in the catalogue.
 
The main topic area of the collection is modern and contemporary history of Europe and, specifically, of Catalonia.
 

 

 

Special collections:

Crònica: fullets històrics en el mapa

 

Water's deposit building

The Library of the IUHJVV is located in "The water's deposit" building

The Water Tower building was designed in 1874 by master of works Josep Fontserè, who took charge of the whole of the old military garrison area. A then young student of architecture, Antoni Gaudí i Cornet, did the static calculation of the tower and support elements. It was conceived as a traditional structure and the modern technique –at those times– of iron pillars was ruled out, given the huge loads that the tower had to bear together with its great height. The building dates from 1876, but it wasn’t until 1880 that it was inaugurated as a water tower, with the purpose of regulating the flow of water of Ciutadella park’s waterfall and watering its gardens.

The construction is a copy of a Roman prototype comprising a labyrinth of parallel arches of 14 metres in height, which cross over in a barrel vault and extend as if by mirror effect along its 65 metres of depth. After over a hundred years of different uses –as a municipal asylum, fire service store, changing room and garage of the Municipal Police force, justice archive...–it became UPF property in 1992.

The works to renovate the Water Tower, which was joined by subway with the Jaume I building, were begun in 1993. However, it wasn’t until 1999 that it started to work as the University Central Library. Today, three quarters of the building is in working order.

The surface area of the plot is 4,558 m2, 4,320 m2 of which are occupied and a renovated surface area of 14,850 m2. The architects who undertook the work of renovating were Lluís Clotet and Ignacio Paricio.

Location

To consult the photographic galleries go to Flickr of UPF.