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The 2nd Rare Works Conference was held on December 16, 2025, at Ibn Haldun University, in collaboration with Istanbul Medeniyet University, Ibn Haldun University, and Istanbul University Library and Documentation Departments. With the theme "From Roots to Codes: Rare Works and Artificial Intelligence," the conference synthesized approaches to rare works and digital transformation. It aimed to carry forward the opportunities offered by artificial intelligence technologies in the preservation and digitization of rare works, addressing them from both academic and practical perspectives.

Our Vice Rector Prof. Dr. Yaşar Bülbül, Prof. Dr. Alpaslan Hamdi Kuzucuoğlu, faculty member of the Department of Information and Document Management, Archival Science Division, and İsmail Ramazanoğlu, Head of the Library and Documentation Department, participated in the conference.

The conference began with opening speeches, in which our Vice Rector Prof. Dr. Yaşar Bülbül drew attention to how bridges between civilization and science are built. Prof. Dr. Alpaslan Hamdi Kuzucuoğlu stated that the academic community, along with all segments of society, is responsible for the preservation of rare works. As part of the opening speeches, Sönmez Çelik, Prof. Dr. Yahya Güldiken, Prof. Dr. Özcan Erkan Akgün, and Prof. Dr. Alparslan Açıkgenç also shared their views with the participants.

During the event, Mr. Ayhan Tuğlu, Director of Libraries at the Presidency General Secretariat's Directorate General of Support and Financial Services, was presented with the "2025 Rare Works Service Award." In addition, plaques were presented to the session chairs, and participation certificates were presented to the authors of the papers and participants.

A total of 37 papers were presented by researchers from 29 different institutions at the conference, and 6 workshops were held. The workshops provided participants with practical information on the digitization and restoration of rare works and their analysis using artificial intelligence. The event was held for the first time with an international character, with participants from Azerbaijan, Uzbekistan, Germany, India, Kazakhstan, and Romania.

During the eight separate sessions organized as part of the event, assessments were made regarding the acceleration and increased efficiency of digitization processes due to technological developments. With contributions from expert speakers in their fields, the sessions comprehensively evaluated current developments in digitization and practical methods for implementation. Throughout the program, a wide range of topics were covered, from technological innovations used in the digitization of rare works to historical and contemporary approaches to the preservation of cultural heritage.

The sessions included in the program were held under the headings of Digital Transformation and Historical Framework, Digitization and Artificial Intelligence in Rare Works, Institutional Collections and Case Studies, Restoration, Preservation and Bookbinding, Management, Cataloging and Education, International Perspectives, Literature and Digital Analysis, and Turkish-Islamic Arts.

Within the framework of the event, an exhibition titled "Turkish Archivists Association: Tracing Rare Works from Past to Present in the Light of Documents" was also presented to visitors. In addition, workshops sharing knowledge and experience on traditional bookbinding arts, restoration, and digitization of rare works attracted great interest from participants.

The conference, which was closely followed by students from our university's Information and Document Management Department, offered our students the opportunity to gain field experience on the future of rare works and artificial intelligence technologies.