Research room rules
of the Central archive of SAS

In accordance to the paragraph 7(e) of Act No. 395/2002 Coll. on archives and registries and on amending and supplementing certain acts I hereby issue these Research room rules for the use of the Central archives of SAS:

Article 1

Rules of entry to the research room

1. Researcher may conduct research and study archival documents in the research room of the archive.
2. Researcher shall make an entry in research room’s visitor log book at each visit.
3. Access to research room will be enabled only to researchers, who are not under influence of alcohol or drugs and whose behaviour is in accordance to the standards of behaviour.
4. Researcher may enter the research room with laptop computer and other devices according to Article 3 paragraph 8 of these rules and/or with pencil, notebook or loose leaf paper. For reasons of necessary identification of the items he must tolerate signing of loose leaves of paper with one of the archive’s stamps. These measures shall be taken by authorised staff member responsible for research room’s supervision (from now on as „staff member“).
5. With previous agreement of staff member researcher may enter the research room with books, newspapers or magazines, if he needs them while he conducts research. Entry with tuned on mobile telephone will be enabled only if the researcher is given permission to use reprographic equipment.
6. Before the beginning of the research session researcher shall fill out a Researcher’s form and Request form for access to archival documents. Researcher may ask staff members for consultations about the searching for an archival document and information about it regarding the topic of his research.
7. Researcher is not permitted to enter research room with food, drinks, sharp objects, correction fluid or tape nor any other objects that are capable of damaging the archival document.

Article 2

Rules of access to information about archival documents

1. Researcher is enabled to access basic information about archival documents with the help of register, which consists of register pages to archival fonds, of finding aids (guide to archival fonds, inventories, catalogues and registries) and of other databases either issued in physical form or online on the archive’s webpage.
2. Researcher must return the finding aids to a staff member in their original condition.
3. In the research room researcher has access to fixed Internet connection or to Wi-Fi connection by means of his own devices (laptop computer, smartphone etc.).

Article 3

Rules of access to archival documents

1. Researcher shall lodge his request for access to archival documents before his visit in person by mail or e-mail. Researcher may gain access to archival documents requested on the day of his visit only if the technological and operational conditions enable it.
2. The archive shall provide access to requested documents up to an amount of five storage units (boxes, (log)books, files or microfilm rolls) or five items (deeds, maps, plans, audio-visual archival documents) or five inventory items up to an amount of five boxes unless agreed otherwise.
3. Researcher has to follow the instructions of the staff members. Staff members are obliged neither to help the researcher read the documents nor translate the documents to Slovak.
4. Researcher has to keep silent in the research room. He may not use his phone in the research room.
5. Researcher is held responsible for preservation of archival documents provided to him for study. He must not change the content or form of archival documents by writing notes, underlining, striking out or erasing words. He must not crease them by any means, tear them, fold them or staple pieces of paper together. He must not use them as desk pad or writing mat. He must not directly copy them (maps, plans etc.). He must not wet his fingers to turn the pages. He must not lean on the documents or place his laptop computer, notepad or leaf paper on top of them. He must not change the arrangement of archival documents.
6. Researcher may place archival documents on the desk only and never shall place them on the floor. Researcher may have opened only one box of archival documents or one (log)book at a time.
7. Researcher may not leave his notes in the research room between his study sessions.
8. Researcher may use own reprographic devices (camera, photocopier, scanner etc.), laptop computer or other technical devices facilitating research of archival documents provided he has a permission of the archive’s director.
9. After each study session researcher has to return the documents to a staff member in their original condition and number while preserving their original arrangement. The staff member will always check the returned documents in the researcher’s presence. If the staff member finds out a disruption of the original arrangement, researcher shall remedy the problem on the spot. If the staff member finds out about theft or damage of documents or change in their number, the archive will consider it a severe violation of Research room rules according to paragraph 15(4) of Act No. 395/2002 Coll. as amended.
10. Researcher takes note that use of some types of archival documents is subjected to special legislation regulations (e.g. Act on personal data protection, Act on intellectual property protection etc.).
11. Researcher is obliged to fully and properly cite the information obtained from study of the archival documents and finding aids in publications in which it is a norm. In case of other use of the information, he is obliged to mention the original source by some means.
12. If the researcher doesn’t come to study the requested documents during a period of thirty days after he has gained access to them, the archive may provide access to them to other researchers.

Article 4

Repeal clause

Research room rules issued for the Central Archives of SAS on 1^st July 2013 are hereby repealed.

Article 5

Entry into force

These Research room rules are brought into force from 1^st January 2018.

In Bratislava, 6^th December 2017.

Jana Gubášová Baherníková