We have already stressed the possibilities and limits of our collection. To fill in the gaps systematically would be excellent if so far unrealistic. In these times there is no money available for the 'preciosa', including maps. There is only one way to remedy this situation, i.e. by procuring gifts from private collections. This is not realistic, either, as state universities like ours, seldom have a clear-cut ideological image and hence do not attract legacies.
Most heirs prefer to sell, rather than donate their collections.
Nevertheless there is another way of enlarging the collection, if not a fundamental one. I mean by more thorough contacts with other University Departments. Many of them in fact have maps, use maps, make maps, eventually throwing them away when they lose their immediate interest. I am thinking of the Faculty of Letters, of Economics, of Science, of Engineering and of Agriculture. Better arrangements could lead to more centralization and to more adequate preservation of their maps in the Map Room.