More than one hundred works of art and some of the main bibliographic treasures (many of which are the only known copies) are part of GAUDEO, an innovative project for the dissemination heritage that has just been finished by the University of Oviedo. One year after the presentation of its first phase, the Gallery of the University of Oviedo has been completed and upgraded, both in contents and in design, with the novel incorporation of an impeccable digital library that allows the public to reach unique and otherwise inaccessible copies.

GAUDEO gives the public the chance to go on a virtual tour, produced with spherical photography, around the Historical Building of the University of Oviedo. Moreover, it grants access to an on-line gallery of high-definition pictures of each work of art and other objects of significance, accompanied all of them by a complete index card. It also lets the public check a digital library that contains the bibliographic treasures and special books of the Historical Library of the University of Oviedo.

The technology used follows the model used by the Museo del Prado for its on-line gallery or by the National Library of France —Gallica— for its digital library, while the virtual tour is on par with that of the National Gallery of London. GAUDEO makes the University of Oviedo the leading Spanish university in terms of heritage dissemination.

Through this gallery, experts can get to know every detail of some unique pieces, such as three carvings and part of the foundational altarpiece of the academic institution from 1607, saved from the fire that destroyed the University during the October Revolution of 1934, or the book El Baladro del Sabio Merlín con sus profecías, an incunabulum of extraordinary rarity and exquisite formal beauty, and the last copy known of the Burgos edition of 1498.

Unique pieces, out of the reach of the public

The digital library also offers some pieces that cannot be found elsewhere and that remain out of the reach of the public, such as Arte de herrar cavallos, a dialogue, the first Plan de estudios de la Real Universidad de Oviedo, Statutos de la Universidad de Oviedo (the first Statutes of the academic institution) and Llibre de menescalia (in Spanish:) Libro de albeyteria.

Works by Feijoo and Jovellanos are also included, and new volumes will be incorporated, such as a first edition of La Regenta, editions of El Quijote, as well as other incunabula and manuscripts.

Paintings and graphic works by Asturian authors

With respect to the rest of works, furniture and other objects, GAUDEO facilitates a detail study of 77 paintings and graphic works, 14 pieces of furniture and nine stained glass windows, thanks to both their index cards and the quality of the pictures. Names such as Nicanor Piñole, Dionisio Fierros, Joaquín Rubio Camín, Joaquín Vaquero Palacios, Paulino Vicente ‘El Mozo', Alejandro Mieres, Eduardo Úrculo, Álvaro Delgado, Bernardo Sanjurjo, Orlando Pelayo, Ruperto Álvarez Caravia, César Pola, Joaquín Vaquero Turcios, Pelayo Ortega, Ricardo Mojardín, Manuel García Linares or Carlos Sierra can be found among the authors of the paintings.

Due to its multidisciplinary nature and the work of numerous experts of the University of Oviedo for the last two years, this project constitutes an example of transfer of knowledge towards society and of heritage dissemination, and which, furthermore, has a bilingual version (Spanish-English) to ease its international propagation.