Biblioteca Nacional Mariano Moreno (Argentina): what an e-book author can and cannot get catalogued

Date: 2026-10-31 (skills harvest). Read live: bn.gov.ar and bn.gov.ar "Proyecto Enlace" details come from the library's own social posts (snippets only; the posts did not load for us).

The facts

• Legal deposit does not cover e-books. The BNMM's own Bibliografía Nacional page states that the deposit law excludes periodicals, ediciones de autor and runs under 100 copies, and that "las publicaciones electrónicas directamente no están contempladas". So there is no legal route that makes the BNMM hold a digital-only title.
• The BNMM builds catalogue records to international standards (RCA2/AACR2, MARC21, ISBD, CDU) and encourages other Argentine libraries to copy them. A BNMM record would spread to other catalogues; that is the prize.
• Donations policy (read): the library particularly wants printed works published in Argentina, and printed works published abroad by Argentine authors or about Argentina. It does not take photocopies, damaged items or non-original recordings. Every donation needs approval from the Collections Development department, and accepted items can later be discarded or passed to other libraries.
• Up to 10 copies: hand in at a counter (Mon-Fri 10-17) or post to Biblioteca Nacional Mariano Moreno, Donaciones (DDC), Agüero 2502, C1425EID Buenos Aires.
• 10-100 copies: send a list (title, author, publisher, place/year, ISBN if any) to [address kept in the project workspace] first.
• Proyecto Enlace (2026): the BNMM invited "autores y editoriales independientes de todo el país" to donate their titles into the national catalogue (BNMM Facebook/X posts, snippet; an independent publisher's video thanks the BN for listing their donated titles). "De todo el país" reads as Argentina-based; terms not checked.

What this means

• A UK-made, digital-only Spanish title has no BNMM route today. A printed copy "about Argentina" published abroad does fit the stated donation policy, by post, up to 10 copies, approval required.
• The cheapest real route to an Argentine catalogue record is therefore a few printed copies, not the e-book. Print is an owner spend decision (print-on-demand + postage), so this is a proposal.
• An Argentine co-publisher or a Chubut Welsh association could bring the title in through Enlace if they hold it; that is a partnership, not a self-service form.

Playbook

1. Do nothing now that costs money. Record the route.
2. If the owner ever approves a printed edition: post 1-2 copies with a one-page Spanish cover letter (what the book is, its link to the Welsh settlement in Chubut, that it is a donation with no conditions) to the DDC address; email [address kept in the project workspace] first with the one-line list.
3. Ask in the same email whether a PDF/EPUB can be accepted for the digital collection (not checked; the deposit page states electronic works are outside the law, not that donations are refused).
4. Track: search catalogo.bn.gov.ar for the title 8-12 weeks later; when a record exists, link it from the Spanish /ebooks/ page as a trust signal.

How we apply it to Cedwyn

• Add one proposal to the after-framing queue: "BNMM catalogue record via printed donation (needs owner GO on a print run)".
• Draft (not send) the Spanish email to [address kept in the project workspace] asking whether a digital edition can be donated; HubSpot draft only, owner sends.
• Public wording if it is ever catalogued: "held at the Biblioteca Nacional Mariano Moreno" only once the record is live; never imply endorsement.

Sources

• bn.gov.ar (read)
• bn.gov.ar (read: legal deposit exclusions)
• facebook.com and x.com (Proyecto Enlace, snippet)

Raw Markdown: biblioteca-nacional-argentina-ebooks-outside-legal-deposit-print-donation-only.md · version and changes: changelog · machine index: agents.json