A Contribution to the History of the Former Library of Count Ignác Karel of Šternberk († 1700). An Attempt to Reconstruct the Shelf-Mark Section B on the Basis of a Newly Discovered Catalogue

Milada Svobodová

Pages	37–49
DOI	10.37520/amnpsc.2022.006
Keywords	library history – aristocratic libraries – Bible reading and study – 17th century – Ignác Karel of Šternberk
Type of Article	Peer-reviewed
Citation	SVOBODOVÁ, Milada. A Contribution to the History of the Former Library of Count Ignác Karel of Šternberk († 1700). An Attempt to Reconstruct the Shelf-Mark Section B on the Basis of a Newly Discovered Catalogue. Acta Musei Nationalis Pragae – Historia litterarum. Prague: National Museum, 2022, 67(1-2), 37–49. DOI: https://doi.org/10.37520/amnpsc.2022.006. ISSN 2570-6861 (Print), 2570-687X (Online). Also available from: https://www.nm.cz/en/periodicals/acta-musei-nationalis-pragae-historia-litterarum/67-1-2/a-contribution-to-the-history-of-the-former-library-of-count-ignac-karel-of-sternberk-1700-an-attempt-to-reconstruct-the-shelf-mark-section-b-on-the-basis-of-a-newly-discovered-catalogue

Acta Musei Nationalis Pragae – Historia litterarum | 2022/67/1-2

One of the most extensive and interesting aristocratic libraries in early Baroque Bohemia was built by Count Ignác Karel of Šternberk (Ignaz Karl von Sternberg) in his family seat at Zelená Hora Castle near Nepomuk in the last third of the 17th century. A large part of the defunct Zelená Hora library later somehow found its way to the National Library of the Czech Republic in Prague, where it now forms the largest extant collection of aristocratic libraries. This study deals with a recently discovered volume from the fragmentarily preserved series of library catalogues of the count’s library. The 1684 catalogue covers the shelf mark B ‘Ex Classe Scripturistarum’, which contained an impressive collection of literature necessary for reading and studying the Bible. The vast majority of the books date from the 17th century and were published abroad, mostly in Paris, Lyon and Antwerp. The study presents an edition of the catalogue and attempts to identify extant copies. Out of the total of 149 shelf marks, it has been possible to find 18 books, including three binder’s volumes, which means 22 books printed abroad in 1605–1684. It is worth mentioning the presence of Jansenist and anti-Jansenist works in the count’s library.

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