Munich Digitization Center
The Munich Digitization Center exists to make sure that rare and fragile materials held by the Bavarian State Library do not stay locked behind reading room doors. Known in German as das Münchener Digitalisierungszentrum, and shortened to MDZ, it was founded in 1997 under the leadership of Mark Brantl. Its mission reaches beyond Bavaria: the center serves other cultural heritage institutions as well, taking on the twin challenges of putting materials online and ensuring their survival over the long term. What does it take to preserve an entire library's holdings in digital form, and who built the institution that first asked that question in Germany?
Mark Brantl led the MDZ from its founding, and under that leadership the center developed three distinct but connected functions. The first is digitization itself: converting physical holdings into digital files. The second is online publication, making those files accessible to anyone with an internet connection rather than only to researchers who can travel to Munich. The third is long-term archival preservation, which addresses a problem distinct from simply scanning a page. A digital file can corrupt, become unreadable as formats change, or disappear when a server fails. The MDZ takes responsibility for guarding against all of those outcomes. Because it operates as a unit of the Bavarian State Library rather than as an independent body, its work feeds directly back into one of Germany's major research collections.
The Bavarian State Library is the MDZ's parent institution, and that relationship shapes everything about how the center functions. The MDZ does not operate in isolation from the library's broader collecting mission. Its remit also extends to other cultural heritage institutions, meaning that the expertise and infrastructure built for the Bavarian State Library's holdings can be applied to collections held elsewhere. Founded in 1997, the MDZ entered a moment when the internet was still young and the question of how libraries should adapt to digital networks was genuinely unsettled. Its creation placed the Bavarian State Library among the early movers in large-scale digitization, and the center has continued that work in the decades since.
Common questions
What is the Munich Digitization Center (MDZ)?
The Munich Digitization Center, known in German as das Münchener Digitalisierungszentrum (MDZ), is an institution dedicated to digitization, online publication, and long-term archival preservation of holdings from the Bavarian State Library and other cultural heritage institutions. It operates as a unit of the Bavarian State Library.
When was the Munich Digitization Center founded?
The Munich Digitization Center was founded in 1997 under the leadership of Mark Brantl.
Who founded the Munich Digitization Center?
Mark Brantl led the founding of the Munich Digitization Center in 1997.
What institution does the Munich Digitization Center belong to?
The MDZ operates as a unit of the Bavarian State Library in Munich, Germany.
What does the Munich Digitization Center digitize?
The MDZ digitizes holdings from the Bavarian State Library as well as materials from other cultural heritage institutions, publishing them online and maintaining long-term archival preservation.
What is the long-term goal of the Munich Digitization Center?
Beyond making materials available online, the MDZ focuses on long-term archival preservation, ensuring that digitized collections remain accessible and intact as formats and storage technologies change over time.