Archival and primary sources are almost never loaned and many owners are reluctant to photocopy. If the material has not been filmed or reproduced in some other format more amenable to handling, it can be almost impossible to obtain such materials even within one's own county. However there are sources that will help us identify owners with which we may be able to make arrangements for some sort of access to such material. One example of the type of intiative that will help us better meet this need in the future is RLG's Cultural Materials Initiative.
Enhancing Access to Primary Sources Internationally: A Joint RLG-CURL Symposium Held at University College London on September 24, 1996 --offers an interesting discussion, but few specific aids.
Primary Source Symposium: Providing International Integrated Access to Primary Research Materials: An RLG Symposium held at Yale University Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library Thursday, May 13, 1999
Archives In the World : A UNESCO webworld site that includes pages on international cooperation, but with no discussion on off site access to collections of primary documents.
The University of Idaho maintains a list of links to Repositories of Primary Sources worldwide.
The archival holdings of many U.S. libraries and archives can be found inRLIN (sel fil amc).
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