The books in the Royal Collections Gallery "turn over a new leaf".

From 4th December onwards, the books belonging to the Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo de El Escorial that are on display at the Gallery will be turned to a new page for visitors. José Luis del Valle, Director of the Regia Laurentina, has been in charge of executing this "preventive and conservation measure, in order to prevent the works from being damaged by exposure to light". 

Visitors to the Royal Collections Gallery will discover a new page of the “Breviarium Romanum”, the “Royal Catalogue of Castile and of all the Kings of Spain”, the “Book on the Uses of Animals”, the “Illustrated Book of the Apocalypse of the Dukes of Savoy”, the “Codex Escurialensis or Book of the Antiquities of Rome”, the “Chronicles of Michoacán' and the “Life of Saint Teresa of Jesus”. 

When choosing the new page to be displayed to visitors, it is essential to look for one that is equally attractive as well as “close to the one on display, so that the book remains perfectly placed on the stand that was designed for it”, explains José Luis del Valle.  

A third of the nearly 700 works in the Gallery will be rotated so that repeat visitors to the new museum of Patrimonio Nacional can explore new objects from the Royal Collections or, as is the case with certain exhibits such as books, read a different page than the one displayed six months ago.