Jan Peter Balkenende (prime minister of the Netherlands) said in 2005, on his acceptance of the first copy of the Atlas of European Values: "This atlas shows us the soul of the Europeans. It is a treasure-trove of information on the wealth of opinions about Europe and the forces that bind us in spite of our differences. It advances the dialogue about what Europe stands for, a dialogue which is fundamental to European Culture. For as Vitrubius said: 'There is nothing more essential than what we carry in our minds'.