Invisible Library: biblioclasm in the Bosnia and Herzegovina War (1992-1995)

ABSTRACT Libraries and books have been a constant target of attacks and destruction throughout history, especially in situations of social and cultural tension and armed conflict. Nevertheless, the phenomenon of biblioclasm, strictly understood as the destruction of books and libraries, is not usually perceived as a purposeful gesture. Understanding this theme is necessary for the protection of the bibliographic heritage both by information professionals and by establishing policies to protect cultural assets. The present study presents some acts of biblioclasm that took place in the context of the Bosnia and Herzegovina War, which occurred between the years of 1992 and 1995. It uses as methodology the analysis of specialized bibliography in the fields of History of Books and Libraries, Memory and Bibliographic Heritage (notably books, journalistic articles and documents), also from Báez (2006), Battles (2003) and Polastron (2013) - which highlights the bibliographic and exploratory nature of the research. It highlights the relationship between memory, bibliographic heritage and identity. It defines the term invisible library as a metaphor for an untouchable collection because of destruction. It dismembers the concept of biblioclasm, understanding it as recurrent and, as demonstrated in this study, purposeful and systematic. It describes the context and reasons for the outbreak of the Bosnia and Herzegovina War. It concludes that the motivations for the practices of biblioclasm that occurred in the War of Bosnia and Herzegovina are four: the erasure of memory, the historical-cultural revival, the ethnic purification and the domination. Biblioclasm is expressed in different ways, in different territories and in multiple temporalities, therefore, understanding its motivations is fundamental to the compression of memory and preservation practices that determine the maintenance and/or destruction of cultural goods over time.