The Gibraltar National Archives (GNA) will hold an exhibition to celebrate the first 50 years of Archives in Gibraltar. The exhibition, at the Fine Arts Gallery, will be formally opened by the Deputy Chief Minister Dr Joseph Garcia on Monday 4 November.

It will be open to the public as from Tuesday 5th November and will close on Saturday 23rd November.

The event will be the cumulative work of past and present Archivists. A selection of small representative samples from the GNA repository treasure-trove will be on display.

The exhibition, divided into seven sections, covers over 1,300 years, just before 711 to 2019.

Section 1: Pre-16th Century

Section 2: 16th Century

Section 3: 17th Century

Section 4: 18th Century

Section 5: 19th Century

Section 6: 20th Century

Section 7: 21st Century

The seven sections comprise 138 Panels, with 268 images on display.

The showpiece is a 19th Century oversized (265cm x 108cm) Ordinance Survey Map ‘Plan of the Fortress and Peninsular of Gibraltar including the Spanish Survey of 1865’ created by Royal Engineers Regiment Cartographer Lieutenant Charles Warren c1866.

There will also be a lecture series, which will include 45-minute talks with 15-minute questions and answers discussions, a Digitisation and Conservation station with daily demonstrations at 11am, 2pm and 5pm and a selection of Gibraltar films.

The Archivist, Anthony Pitaluga said:

‘The historical documents on display represent a very small sample of the materials held by the GNA. I hope that this exhibition will inspire and stimulate the public and researchers alike to visit us and learn more.

I have used the term ‘historical document’ even though I think the term is misleading. We give this label to documentation that has played a part in events we think of as history. However, the email or text message you wrote recently is past tense from the moment you wrote it.

Time passes, but well cared for documents change little. Evergreen recollections that belong to all of us!’

The Deputy Chief Minister, who is the Minister with responsibility for the Archives, said:

“I must once again commend the Archivist Anthony Pitaluga for the fascinating display that he has brought together for this exhibition. It is a testimony to his hard work and to that of his predecessors. Every person who has held the post of Archivist has contributed positively to the development of the Archives in a different way. Anthony has made great strides to move forward into the digital age in keeping with the times in which we live. This is the way forward.”

Lecture Series schedule

Starting at 6pm as per schedule below:

5/11/19 - Anthony Pitaluga – Digital Preservation for the 21st Century

6/11/19 - Tito Benady – The Story of Gibraltar: History or myth

7/11/19 - Juan Manuel Ballesta – El Cabildo de Gibraltar 1577

11/11/19 - Clive Finlayson – Mons Calpe: A journey to the end of the world

14/11/19 - Richard Garcia – Gibraltar at the end of the 19th Century

18/11/19 - Keith Sheriff – Freemasonry in Gibraltar

Gibraltar Films schedule

Monday to Friday at 6pm Saturday at 11:30am

NB Short film from the Vintage or Postcard series will precede the feature film of the day. (10 Minutes)

8/11/2019 – The Clue of Missing Ape 1953 (53 Minutes)

12/11/2019 - Gibraltar during WW2 Part 1 (45 Minutes)

13/11/2019 - Gibraltar during WW2 Part 2 (45 Minutes)

15/11/2019 - Inside the lines - During World War 1, German spies will stop at nothing to spy on the allied war plan stored at Gibraltar. (54 Minutes)

16/11/2019 – Royal Visit 1954 (40 Minutes)

19/11/2019 - Gibraltar £50,000,000 Fortress 1911 (35 Minutes)

20/11/2019 - WW1 Exploits of a German Submarine U35 Operating in the Mediterranean 1917 (14 Minutes) + Naval Monument at Gibraltar Dedication in 1937 (10 Minutes)

22/11/2019 – Teatro Royal ‘Fiesta en el aire’ 1953 (50 Minutes)

23/11/2019 - Honouring a Generation (20 Minutes) + Highlights of the 75th Anniversary of the Evacuation Live Event at Victoria Stadium September 2015 (30 Minutes)