The patrimonial education as a tool for recognition and appreciation of the cultural and informational patrimony at the Benedito Leite Public Library of São Luís, Maranhão

Abstract

Investigation that aims to analyze the role of Patrimonial Education in the protection, recognition and appreciation of Benedito Leite Public Library (BLPL). It is an exploratory and descriptive study, with qualitative approach, based on the theoretical assumptions of authors as Horta, Grunberg e Monteiro (1999), Nora (1993), Choay (2006) and Flores e Perez (2013) about the Patrimonial Education allied to the reality of public libraries. It characterizes the BLPL, its history and its collection as a patrimonial institution in the city of São Luís, state of Maranhão. It demonstrates the Patrimonial Education as a methodology that enables the identification of elements that explain the changes made in the individual, collective, cultural patrimonial perception and in people’s lifestyle, which the preservation and appreciation is necessary. It reveals the relation between the patrimony hosted in the BLPL and the society, materialized in educational actions that raise patrimonial awareness and reconstruct the identity of the population of Maranhão. It reinforces the importance of interdisciplinary work of the professional librarian, in the protection and conservation of the collection, aiming its dissemination for the future generations. It highlights the need for the integration of history, memory and cultural patrimony as keystones for the reconstruction of identity and patrimonial awareness about the BLPL in the state of Maranhão.