Republic of San Marino – Pic of the Week

The following is a guest post by Megan Lulofs Kuhagen, a Legal Information Analyst in the Public Services Division.  Meg has previously posted on a variety of topics including States in the Senate, House Committee Hearings Video, the Cardiff Giant, the Canadian Library of Parliament, football blackouts, and librarian services.

I recently visited the Republic of San Marino, a tiny, landlocked nation located entirely inside Italy. I was in the capital, the city of San Marino, where three towers dominate the skyline.

Then (around 1918), from below the city:

Now, from above the city, but just below the first tower:

San Marino is a constitutional republic. Its constitution, from October 8, 1600,  is the oldest still in use in the world. Here at the Law Library, we collect the official government gazette of San Marino (called Bollettino ufficiale della Repubblica di San Marino), as well as its laws and decrees (Leggi e Decreti) and court reports (Giurisprudenza sammarinese).

I popped into the National Library…

…but they were quite busy, and my Italian skills are sorely lacking, so I decided against asking a reference question. Of course, if I have a question, I can always Chiedi Al Bibliotecario (Ask A Librarian–just like here at the Law Library).

To learn more about San Marino from a legal perspective, check out the Law Library’s Guide to Law Online and Global Legal Information Catalog. For a broader look at the Republic, try browsing LC subject headings, and searching the Prints & Photographs Catalog.