The Viscardi Collection

The Malta College of Arts, Science and Technology is presently working on plans to establish a new library and learning resource centre on its main campus on Corradino Hill and linked branches at its other institutes and centres in Malta and Gozo.

The library's collection development programme, besides a healthy regular injection of new stock, includes selections inherited from other library collections built up by previous technical institute libraries, now closing down. One such collection is that at the Michelang Technical Institute Library also on Corradino Hill, Paola.

This collection has what is labelled as "The Viscardi Collection", consisting of several hundreds of specialised technical books which were the personal collection of a certain John E. Viscardi. Mr Viscardi, a mechanical engineer born in New York city in 1904, sometime after 1959 donated his collection to the old MCAST library, later on inherited by the Michelang Technical Institute Library. The latest available (1959) printed biographical information makes no reference to any connection to Malta so it is not clearly known under which circumstances the Viscardis (John and his wife Naomi) chose to donate this collection to a Maltese technical library.

The MCAST library and learning resource centre intends to keep and house this collection for its historical value. Any information about the role that Mr Viscardi had in Malta and his connection to technical education, most probably during the '60s, will be appreciated.

Documented information would be preferred but anecdotal information, too, would be useful. All sources will be acknowledged.