One of the most amazing treasures of humanity is kept in the Secret Archives. More than a thousand years’ history, an enormous store of knowledge contained on the shelves lined up along the endless corridors.

The Vatican Secret Archives is the central store for all the deeds and documents that are used to govern the Universal Church: the richest and most valuable collection of documents in the world. The documents of the past where historic testimony is combined with artistic beauty are the Seals: sometimes simple red wax, but very often authentic works of art in precious metals.

The most important and richest collection of seals in the world is kept in the Archives: to protect these precious fragments of history, a workshop has been set up to restore the documents and binding and another

highly specialised workshop in the recovery and restoration of the precious seals that make the Vatican Secret Archives the most professional reference centre in the world for these.

The publishing activities of the Vatican Secret Archives are developed here and in 2000 the important EXEMPLARIA PRAETIOSA project was inaugurated, special limited editions were made in the Archives, following the ancient goldsmith, graphic and textile arts, under the supervision of expert technicians, who focused on getting the best possible artistic and aesthetic result. The project intends producing a facsimile of some of the most important and precious treasures, including the seals, which will be chosen from time to time for the documentary importance or special theme, and they will be exact copies of the originals in all their details.

This project will enable safeguarding the heritage from the past, making it known and admired, with the chance of owning something very rare and precious.