Þingeyrar Abbey in Northern Iceland: A Benedictine Powerhouse of Cultural Heritage

Þingeyrar Abbey was founded in 1133 and dissolved in the wake of the Lutheran Reformation (1550), to virtually disappear with time from the face of the earth. Although highly promising archeological excavations are under way, our material points of access to this important monastic foundation are still only a handful of medieval artifacts. However, throughout its medieval existence Þingeyrar Abbey was an inordinately large producer of Latin and Icelandic literature. We have the names of monastic authors, poets, translators, compilators, and scribes, who engaged creatively with such diverse subjects as Christian hagiography, contemporary history, and Norse mythology, skillfully amalgamating all of this into a coherent, imaginative whole. Thus, Þingeyrar Abbey has a prominent place in the creation and preservation of the Icelandic Eddas and Sagas that have shaped the Northern European cultural memory. Despite the dissolution of monastic libraries and wholesale destruction of Icelandic-Latin manuscripts through a mixture of Protestant zealotry and parchment reuse, philologists have been able to trace a number of surviving codices and fragments back to Þingeyrar Abbey. Ultimately, however, our primary points of access to the fascinating world of this remote Benedictine community remain immaterial, a vast corpus of medieval texts edited on the basis of manuscript copies at unknown degrees of separation from the lost originals.

The History of Manuscripts Since 1500

This chapter surveys the history of medieval manuscripts and manuscript collections after the year 1500. It examines the role of individual collectors in the preservation of manuscripts, and the establishment of new libraries after the dissolution of monastic libraries. It traces the history of these manuscripts up until the twentieth century, and it also discusses the many dangers that have faced manuscripts over the years in addition to the current efforts to preserve manuscripts digitally.

Manuscript Fragments in Greek Libraries

A case study on fragments in Greek manuscript collections was conducted at the Center for History and Palaeography of the National Bank of Greece Cultural Foundation. The majority of the manuscripts for the study come from hard-to-reach monastic libraries and were microfilmed by the Center. The study focused on a selection of collections, including the library of the Monastery of Hozoviotissa (Amorgos Island, Cyclades), the Patriarchal library of Alexandria (Egypt), the library of the Monastery of Iviron (Mt. Athos), and a variety of collections from Cyprus. While research is ongoing, the current results show the potential contribution that fragments can make to the study of Medieval Greek manuscripts.

Library science in the Komi region in the second half of XIX – early XX Centuries and its impact on public consciousness

Introduction. The aim of this work is to examine librarianship in the Komi region, and its influence on the formation of public consciousness in the second half of XIX—early XX centuries. Currently, the history of libraries is considered in general and special papers. However, a number of questions remained outside the scope of researchers, namely the data on the history of librarianship in Komi region in the context of studying issues related to the impact of the development of librarianship on social consciousness Materials and Methods. To achieve the goal, the author used both unpublished historical sources, and published works. Archival documents are known to specialists, who studies the history of culture of the Komi people, as well as the history of Orthodoxy. However, for the first time they are considered from the perspective of the formation and development of civil society in the region. Results and Discussion. In the second half of XIX-early XX centuries in the region there were private, social, clerical, monastic libraries and libraries of educational institutions. Replenishment of the latter was at the expense of the Ministry of Public Education and donations, and of the clerical and monastic libraries through the Vologda spiritual Consistory, the Synod and the Ministry of Public Education. Private libraries were replenished independently, at the expense of personal funds. All of them allowed the population to meet cultural needs and interests, to build communication, as well as to form independent judgments. With the help of volunteers, the libraries carried out cultural and religious functions, educated the population of the region. All this led to the transformation of forms of social consciousness, which was an indicator of the development of civil society. The transformation of social identity has led to the development of civil society and the revitalization of its activities. Conclusion. The creation of a wide network of libraries contributed, to a certain extent, to the destruction of the cultural isolation of the Komi region and its inclusion in the intercultural communication of Imperial Russia.

The Dissolution of the Monasteries and the Democratisation of Magic in Post-Reformation England

The dissolution of the monasteries in England (1536–1540) forced hundreds of former inmates of religious houses to seek livelihoods outside the cloister to supplement meagre pensions from the crown. Among the marketable skills these individuals possessed were Latin literacy, knowledge of liturgy, sacramental authority and a reputation for arcane learning: all qualities desirable in magical practitioners in early modern Europe. Furthermore, the dissolution dispersed occult texts housed in monastic libraries, while the polemical efforts of the opponents of monasticism resulted in the growth of legends about the magical prowess of monks and friars. The dissolution was a key moment in the democratisation of learned magic in sixteenth-century England, which moved from being an illicit pastime of clerics, monks and friars to a service provided by lay practitioners. This article considers the extent of interest in magic among English monks and friars before the dissolution, the presence of occult texts in monastic libraries, and the evidence for the magical activities of former religious in post-dissolution England. The article considers the processes by which monks, friars and monastic sites became associated with magic in popular tradition, resulting in a lasting stereotype of medieval monks and friars as the masters of occult knowledge.

Libraries of the Komi Region as an Element of Civil Society Formation in Ethnical Regions of Imperial Russia. The Second Half of the 19th — Early 20th Century

The article considers the activities of libraries in the Komi region as an element of the civil society formation in the second half of the 19th – early 20th century. Published and unpublished historical sources are used to reconstruct the libraries’ activities. They are well known to experts, and yet some issues have never come to the researchers’ notice. The author proposes to include materials on the history of librarianship in the Komi region in the context of studying issues of everyday life and civil society formation in the region. In the studied period there were libraries of various types in the region: public, clerical, monastic, and those of educational institutions. The latter were replenished at the expense of the Ministry of National Education or by donation. Clerical and monastic libraries were sponsored by the Vologda Spiritual Consistory, Synod, and Ministry of National Education. In the second half of the 19th – early 20th century the libraries of the Komi region catered cultural needs of the population, organizations and unions and promoted civil society formation.

Introduction

Reformers in England saw losses as well as gains in the Reformation. John Leland and John Bale recorded the contents of monastic libraries. Matthew Parker recovered manuscripts from the past. The Elizabethan Society of Antiquaries, comprised of lawyers, scholars, and country gentlemen, developed methods of ascertaining accurate information about the past. William Camden, the author of Annals of Elizabeth (1615, Latin) and Britannia (1586, Latin), wrote a new kind of history: dispassionate, based on reliable evidence, and concerned with changes in society. Fifty years after Camden’s lifetime, Thomas Fuller followed methods and approaches that the antiquaries and their successors employed, while developing ideas very much his own.

Several Words on Fragments from Earlier Book Collections in the Library of the Monastery of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin in Roudnice nad Labem

The monastery of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin was founded in Roudnice by members of the Roudnice branch of the Lobkowicz family at the beginning of the 17th century, when also its library was established. With its approximately 1,800 volumes, it ranks among smaller, unexplored monastic libraries. Nevertheless, it contains a number of interesting and valuable fragments of earlier private book collections, coming from early modern aristocratic libraries as well as libraries of clergymen from nearby parishes. This article presents the most important of them. Particular attention is devoted to the fragment of the library of Ladislav Zejdlic of Schönfeld, originally placed at Encovany Castle in North Bohemia, and to book donations by members of the Roudnice branch of the Lobkowicz family, the main sponsors of the monastery.

Les biblioteques dels carmelites descalços de la província de Sant Josep de Catalunya (1586-1835)

Resum: El present treball pretén oferir una primera panoràmica sobre les biblioteques del Carmel descalç català. Teresa de Jesús, la fundadora, a partir de la seva pròpia experiència lectora, donà unes primeres normes sobre les llibreries conventuals, que serien desevolupades en el futur per les autoritats de l’Orde, tant pel que respecta a la seva composició, com pel que fa a la seva cura i manteniment. Els diversos tipus de fons bibliogràfics conventuals es veurien sovint enriquits per les donacions de devots, tant laics com eclesiàstics, que establien un seguit de condicions en els seus llegats. Finalment, exposem la valoració que els erudits feren d’algunes d’aquestes biblioteques i algunes dades del seu estat i destinació ran la Desamortització dels béns de regulars. Paraules clau: Biblioteques, llibres, donacions, lectura, Carmel descalç Abstract: This paper aims to provide an initial overview of catalan discalced libraries. Teresa of Jesus, the founder, based on his own reading experience, gave some initial rules monastic libraries, which would desevenvolupades in the future by the authorities of the Order, both with regard to its composition, as as for its care and maintenance. The different types of library convent would often enriched by donations from devotees, both secular and ecclesiastical, which established a series of conditions on their legacies. Finally, we present the assessment made by scholars of some of these libraries and some information of their status and destiny ran regular confiscation of property . Keywords: Libraries, books, donation, lecture, Discalced Carmel.