An archeological excavation site in Jerusalem. The Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation of Cleveland announced a funding gift to establish the Mandel National Library for the Archaeology of Israel and Mandel National Archaeological Archives. Photo: Wikimedia Commons.

JNS.org – The Jack, Joseph and Morton Mandel Foundation of Cleveland announced a funding gift to establish the Mandel National Library for the Archaeology of Israel and the Mandel National Archaeological Archives.

The library and archives will be part of the authority’s Schottenstein National Campus for the Archeology of Israel, currently under construction in Jerusalem. Opening of the 35,000-square-meter campus is scheduled for April 2016, according to a prepared statement the foundation released on March 19.

“We hope the Mandel National Library for the Archaeology of Israel and the Mandel Archives will serve as a source of inspiration and learning for the public at large and for today’s leaders as they explore the past of the Land of Israel,” Morton Mandel said in a statement. The foundation did not disclose the amount of the gift.

Designed by renowned architect Moshe Safdie, the campus will be the authority’s new headquarters and serve as its education, research, conservation, and illumination center.

The complex, on Museum Hill adjacent to the Israel Museum and overlooking the Hebrew University Givat Ram Campus, will house nearly 2 million archaeological objects, among them 15,000 Dead Sea scrolls, viewable conservation and restoration laboratories, an auditorium, special study galleries, an archaeological education center, rooftop exhibition gardens and a café.

The Mandel National Library for the Archaeology of Israel will house nearly 150,000 volumes, including 500 rare books and more than 1,000 periodicals. The adjacent Mandel National Archaeological Archives will contain the Israel Antiquities Authority Archive; the British Mandatory Archive; and maps, permits, plans, and publications of excavations from the Mandatory Period through today.