Last updated on 12 May 2026
The World Digital Library is still a disproportionate project that wishes offer freely on the web historical documents and cultural references from all countries of the world.
It is also UNESCO that is at work here to disseminate digitised versions of the wealth stored in libraries around the world. Obviously a good and beautiful idea. As for OpenCulture or Gallica Labs of which we have already spoken here, the selection of documents presented in the World Digital Library has been carefully chosen and meets indisputable quality criteria.
The site already offers more than 11 000 articles from around 200 countries for the period from 1200 BC to the 2000s.
The project was born only six years ago and the work done is considerable even if it is only a drop in the ocean of knowledge. Walk through the shelves of this world digital library, you will discover real treasures. Interactive maps, incredible manuscripts from the Middle Ages, old photos, rare books, recordings, films, … prints all in high definition accessible from any computer.
The Library team did not translate the documents. Their content is not translated. All the basic documents – books, maps, manuscripts and others – appear in their original language. What has been translated is the metadata for searching and navigating the site, in seven languages.
We enter this huge library through a fast and powerful search engine. You can also choose to explore its content via categories, timelines or interactive maps that are particularly successful.
A real happiness. We hope that the shelving will continue to grow in the coming months for all of us to enjoy.
Link: World Digital Library
English