About the Collection

The Philosophy Library houses an extensive and continually updated specialist collection, most of which is available on open shelves. The majority of volumes are organised into two major collections, one dedicated to the history of philosophical thought and the other to the main schools of contemporary philosophy. The library’s holdings also include subscriptions to numerous current journals (both in print and digital editions), reference materials, critical editions, philosophy texts for and about children, and a substantial multimedia collection.

The library also preserves an important collection of rare books, archives, and personal collections belonging to prominent figures in the field of philosophy, either linked to the Department of Philosophy’s history or of particular relevance to the study of Italian philosophical thought.

Open-shelf Collections

Most of the library’s holdings are located in the basement and arranged on open shelves, meaning they are freely accessible and available for consultation. The collection is divided into two main sections: History of Philosophy and Contemporary Philosophy. Each section is further organised into smaller subject areas to facilitate systematic browsing. Some special collections are also housed in the same space and are freely accessible.

History of Philosophy (Shelfmarks 3L.01 to 3L.19)

This collection spans from the origins of philosophy to the late 19th century and is arranged chronologically. Each section contains original texts, critical studies, and general works covering a specific historical period:

01 – Eastern Philosophy
02 – 6th and 5th centuries BC
03 – 4th century BC
04 – 3rd to 1st centuries BC
05 – 1st to 3rd centuries AD
06 – 4th to 6th centuries AD
07 – 7th to 9th centuries
08 – 10th and 11th centuries
09 – 12th century
10 – 13th century
11 – 14th century
12 – 15th century
13 – 16th century
14 – 17th century: 1600–1650
15 – 17th century: 1650–1700
16 – 18th century: 1700–1750
17 – 18th century: 1750–1800
18 – 19th century: 1800–1850
19 – 19th century: 1850–1900

Contemporary Philosophy (Shelfmarks 3L.20b to 3L.20z)

This collection comprises works published from the 20th century onwards, arranged either by linguistic-geographical origin or by thematic research field. Each section, marked by a specific letter, contains works by contemporary authors, studies dedicated to them, and general reference materials:

20b – Italian philosophy
20c – Chinese philosophy
20d – Philosophy of language
20e – Aesthetics and art
20h – French philosophy
20i – German philosophy
20k – Communication and media
20l – Anglo-American philosophy
20m – Russian philosophy
20n – Philosophy of other countries
20o – Philosophy of science
20p – Physics
20q – Sciences and psychology
20r – Mathematics
20s – Logic and epistemology
20u – Philosophy of history
20v – Computer science and artificial intelligence
20w – Ethics and bioethics
20z – Anthropology

Special Collections on Open Shelves

In accordance with agreements made with donors or original owners, certain special collections are also freely accessible:

Mario Dal Pra Collection (3L.DP) – This collection of approximately 5,000 volumes was part of the personal library of Mario Dal Pra, a professor of the History of Philosophy at the University of Milan and a prominent figure in Italian philosophy. The volumes cover a wide range of areas within the history of philosophical thought, and, in accordance with the donor’s express wishes, they are available for consultation and loan.
Biblioteca di Judaica (3L.JUD) – Affiliated with the Goren-Goldstein Centre for Judaica, this collection of approximately 1,500 monographs focuses on Jewish philosophical thought, mysticism, critical editions, Jewish philosophy texts, liturgy, and history. All volumes are available for consultation and loan.
Guido Davide Neri Collection (3L.GDN) – This collection reflects the research and philosophical contributions of Guido Davide Neri, a professor of Theoretical Philosophy and a key figure in the Milan School. All volumes are available for consultation, though those containing the donor’s annotations are not for loan.
Dino Formaggio Collection, Open-Shelf Volumes (3L.DF.C) – Part of the larger Dino Formaggio collection, this section comprises volumes from his personal library that do not contain the donor’s annotations.

Additional Collections

Certain materials within the library are subject to specific usage policies to ensure their preservation and availability.

Reference Collection (Shelfmark 3L.A)

This section includes reference works such as study and research support texts, dictionaries, bibliographies, and volumes with a specific thematic focus. These items are freely accessible but not available for loan (with some exceptions).

A.01 – Philosophy bibliographies
A.02 – Encyclopaedias
A.03 – General histories of philosophy
A.04 – Supplementary texts
A.05 – Thesauri
A.06 – Linguistic dictionaries
A.07 – Thematic dictionaries
A.08 – Library science books (located on the ground floor, available for loan)
A.09 – Exhibition catalogues
A.10 – Philosophy books for or about children (available for loan)

Textbooks (Shelfmark 3L.MF)

This section comprises textbooks on philosophy, history, pedagogy, and related disciplines, as well as study guides and exam preparation materials. All volumes are available for consultation and may be borrowed for up to 15 days.

Archival and Book Collections

These collections, which include archives and personal libraries, are kept in closed stacks but can be consulted upon request for study or research purposes. Further details can be found on the relevant collection pages.

Rare Books (Shelfmark 3L.ANT) - This collection consists of volumes and manuscripts published between 1541 and 1899, primarily focusing on the history of scientific thought (particularly astronomy) and Western philosophy.
Antonio Banfi and Daria Malaguzzi Valeri Collection (3L.AB)
Alfredo Civita Collection (3L.AC)
Dino Formaggio Collection – Non-Lending Volumes (3L.DF.A, 3L.DF.B, 3L.DF.D)
Guido Lanaro Collection (3L.GL)
Giulio Preti Collection (3L.GP)
Giovanni Vailati Collection (3L.GV)
Giuseppe Rensi Collection (3L.20b.T.0038)
Rare Editions - Certain particularly valuable or rare texts are available for consultation upon request.
Loeb Classical Library (COLL.LOEB) – A collection of Greek and Latin classics with the original text and English translation, published by Harvard University Press.

Serials

The library houses a collection of key Italian and international philosophy journals. The latest issue of each journal is displayed on the serials stand in the basement, while previous volumes are arranged alphabetically by title on shelves.

To check the availability of print journals in the library or to verify access to digital versions, users can consult Minerva, the University’s online catalogue, where journals can be searched by title or ISSN, selecting the relevant library.

To determine access to digital journals, users can perform a search in Minerva via the “Journal Search” tab or consult the subject-specific list of e-journals.

Another extensive collection of philosophy serials is available in the Sala Sottocrociera of the Law and Humanities Library - BSGU.

Multimedia Materials

The library provides an extensive collection of multimedia materials, housed in the ground-floor room dedicated to the memory of Professor Corrado Mangione:

CD-ROMs (3L.CD) – Encompassing encyclopaedias, historical and philosophical works, introductory materials, and academic courses.
DVDs (3L.DVD) – Covering philosophy teaching resources, in-depth studies, and films related to philosophical themes.

All these resources are catalogued in Minerva, available for consultation and loan upon request.

Exam Texts

The library collection includes exam texts for undergraduate and postgraduate degree courses in Philosophy, held by the academic staff of the “Piero Martinetti” Department of Philosophy.

All exam texts are shelved in their respective sections, freely available for consultation and can be borrowed for a period of up to 15 days. This borrowing policy remains in place for two academic years following the inclusion of a book in an exam reading list.

The collection is updated annually based on the publication of course syllabi. To report any missing texts or request updates, please contact biblio.filo@unimi.it.

New acquisitions

The library continuously updates its collections in response to user needs and developments in the field. Once received, catalogued, and indexed, newly acquired volumes and the latest issues of serials are temporarily displayed in the serials stand in the basement. These materials can be freely consulted and, in most cases, borrowed.

A list of new accessions is updated monthly and published in Minerva.

To suggest a new acquisition, users can submit a request via the designated form in Minerva, the University’s online catalogue, logging in with their credentials.

Shelfmark System

A shelfmark identifies a resource’s location on the shelves, allowing for precise organisation, grouping of related works, and easy retrieval. The shelfmark of each volume is an alphanumeric string displayed on its label and in the corresponding bibliographic record.

The shelfmark system used in the Philosophy Library was developed in the 1960s by Professor Corrado Mangione (Professor of Logic) and Professor Maria Assunta Dal Torre (Professor of the History of Philosophical Historiography). While still in use today, it has been adapted and updated over time.

With the exception of serials and certain special collections, the shelfmark of a volume always consists of the following elements:

3L Code – Identifies the library.
Section – Indicates historical period (e.g., 02, 03…), language or discipline (e.g., 20b, 20c…), or a special collection (e.g., DP, GDN…).
Type – T for texts by authors and S for studies on them.
Author Chain Number – A unique identifier for each author within a section, applied to both texts and studies. The number 0000 is reserved for general works on a specific historical period, linguistic-geographical context, or discipline.
Specification – A unique number corresponding to the order in which the volume was added to the library.

Books are shelved according to a precise order:

Within each collection, sections are arranged numerically (History of Philosophy) or alphabetically (Contemporary Philosophy).
Within each section, all Texts (T) are placed before Studies (S).
Within both categories (T and S), books follow their Author Chain Number.
Books within the same Author Chain Number are then arranged according to their Specification.