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Tag: rare

  • Rare old books at the National Archives of Romania

    Rare old books at the National Archives of Romania

    Old books are fascinating, both due
    to their vulnerability to the passage of time, and to the craftmanship of those
    who have illustrated them. The fragility of old paper, the language in which
    the texts have been written, often even a dead language, the unusual typefaces,
    are as many challenges to the contemporary reader. But it is precisely these
    barriers that attract, challenge and fuel our curiosity for these objects of
    the past, revered by those who thirst for knowledge.




    The National Archives of Romania and
    the Museum of Romanian Literature have joined efforts in organising an
    exhibition of rare old books from the Archives. The organisers put on display
    original items dating back as many as 600 years, to the times of the great
    inventor Johannes Gutenberg. Fifty-two highly valuable books from the
    institution’s collections are included. They were published in major European printing
    centres in Germany, Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands and Belgium in the 15th
    – 17th Centuries, while the ones published in the Romanian
    Principalities date back to the 17th – 19th Centuries.




    Most of them are religious books, atlases
    of the world, history books, books in Latin, Greek, German, French and Italian.
    The names of the authors are no less impressive: Terentius, Ammianus
    Marcellinus, Lucian of Samosata, Theodore Spandugino, Erasmus of Rotterdam,
    Nicolaus Olahus. Among the authors we also find the early 18th
    Century prince of Moldavia Dimitrie Cantemir, one of the most significant
    figures of early Enlightenment, featured in this exhibition with the English,
    German and Romanian editions of his History of the Ottoman Empire. Other Romanian
    books on display are a 1767 mineralogy book published in Cluj, the Șerban
    Cantacuzino Bible, the Romanian Book of Learning by Metropolitan Varlaam and
    the Romanian Psalter in verse by Metropolitan Dosoftei.




    Archivist Șerban Marin, a medieval
    studies specialist and the curator of the exhibition, says we cannot talk about
    distinctions between Romanian and foreign books:




    Șerban Marin: These are old books, both Romanian and foreign, although this
    distinction is not the most appropriate. Especially in this globalisation era,
    we cannot draw a line between foreign books and Romanian books. We have
    selected a number of books, among the oldest in our collection, including four incunabula,
    which are books published before the year 1500, which are exceptionally
    valuable.




    Șerban Marin also told us the not so
    pleasant story of how some of these books came into the possession of the
    National Archives:




    Șerban Marin: On the one hand, there
    were donations from various personalities, first and foremost Bogdan Petriceicu
    Hașdeu who was the director of the Archives for a long time. He donated a lot
    to the National Archives, including some of these books. But there are also
    books acquired more recently, namely in the communist decades, and this is a
    different story. These books were virtually stolen from their owners, who were
    thrown into prisons like Gherla, Aiud and so on, and died there. So we are
    basically talking about a theft by the Romanian government, against private
    property, against common people who valued books. Moreover, a small percentage
    of these books no longer have their title pages and their back pages, and I dare
    make the assumption that this is because on the title page, the name of the former
    owner appeared, whether a politician or an industrialist. So the brave members
    of our political police were fighting not only particular persons, but also the
    innocent books that those people owned. They tore that title page so that
    nobody could see the name of the former owner. This is an assumption I’m
    making, but it is worth considering.




    We also asked Șerban Marin about the
    four incunabula:




    Șerban Marin: First we have
    Gerardus de Vliederhoven, a 14th Century author, whose books were
    published in 1492, with a religious book entitled Quattuor nouissima. Then
    there is the second edition, the 1497 one, of Liber Chronicarum by Herman
    Schedel. This could be described as an extensive encyclopaedia, but also as a
    very interesting tourist guide. Schedel was for the 15th Century
    traveller what Michelin is for us today. The third incunabulum is Pomponio Leto’s
    work on the life of Marcus Antonius Coccius Sabellicus. He was born in
    Lazio-Latium region, and he also wrote a history of Venice. And last but not
    least, we have a late edition of Gesta Romanorum, the famous work about the
    deeds of the Romans published in 1497.




    The spectacular exhibition of Rare
    old books in the National Archives of Romania hosted by the Museum of Romanian
    Literature, takes us on a journey back in time. (AMP)

  • Rudimentorum cosmographicorum Ioan Honteri Coronensis libri

    Rudimentorum cosmographicorum Ioan Honteri Coronensis libri

    The Alba Iulia National
    Union Museum’s old books collection boasts a most precious item, a rather
    recent purchase made by the institution. It is a book titled     Rudimentorum
    cosmographicorum Ioan Honteri Coronensis     libri. The author is Transylvanian
    humanist Johannes Honterus. We recall Honterus was an iconic figure of the
    humanism and of the Lutheran Reformation in Transylvania in the 16th
    century. The first printed edition of the volume was brought out in 1546. The
    book has been reprinted many times ever since.


    Johannes Honterus was born in
    1498 in Kronstadt, which is the old German name of Brasov. Honterus died in
    Brasov also, in 1549, at the age of 51. His intellectual and editorial activity were
    intense, and so was his activity as a teacher. In 1522, Honterus earned his Magister
    Artium (Master of the Arts) degree from Vienna University. In 1530 Honterus had
    a teaching stint with the Krakow University, where he published his early
    works, a description of the world and a grammar of Latin. Honterus then relocated
    to Basel, where he learned the crafts of wood engraving and printing. In
    Switzerland, Honterus would print the famous Atlas of Transylvania, Chorographia Transylvaniae
    Sybembürgen in Latin. In 1533 Honterus returned to his native town where he was elected as a
    member of the local council. In Brasov, Honterus is the founder of one of
    Transylvania ‘s first printing presses. Then Honterus would print, among other
    books, The Reformation booklet for Brasov and the Barsa Country, The Apology
    and The Regulations for the use of the churches of all Germans in Transylvania.
    The three volumes stipulated the main tenets of the Evangelical reform for the
    Transylvanian Saxon churches under the influence of Lutheranism. In Brasov, in
    1546, due to Honterus’s endeavour, the region’s first paper factory was
    founded.


    The volume titled Rudimentorum
    cosmographicorum Ioan Honteri Coronensis libri has had quite an adventure,
    from an antiquarian in Wellington, in New Zealand, to Alba Iulia in Romania. Florin
    Bogdan is a museographer specializing in old rare books. Florin Bogdan:


    This book is in fact a pocket atlas. Everyone knows Honterus had a special
    interest in Geography, and not only in that. The first printed edition was
    brought out in Krakow in 1530. This one is a version of the book that was
    sensibly enriched by Honterus along the way, since several maps have been added
    to it. What we have actually is an unnumbered, 30-leaf book, that means 60
    pages, where the text proper of the book is laid out. Honterus describes the
    world as it was known at that time, in verse. The last part of the book is made
    of 14 leaves, unnumbered, they are actually plates with maps. First off, the Earth
    is being presented, just as cartographers and geographers used to know it in
    mid-16th century, then various regions are presented, with emphasis laid on Europe since it was the best-known part of the Globe at that
    time.


    Rudimentorum
    cosmographicorum has seen numerous printed editions. Florin Bogdan explains:


    Given that
    there are many editions that were brought out after the first printed edition,
    the one in Krakow in 1530, we can surmise the editions were somewhat limited, and
    so were the reprints of the book. It was also reprinted in Basel as well as in
    Zurich, in Brasov or in Bratislava, which means it was in fact extremely sought
    after. Nobody would print a book every two years unless that book is extremely
    sought after. In Zurich alone, the city where the copy was printed and which
    was purchased by the National Union Museum in Alba Iulia, from 1546, when the
    first printed edition was brought out, and until 1564, 7 editions of the book
    were printed. Now, speaking about this 1564 edition, according to the
    specialised Hungarian bibliography, there are 15 copies of the book. Similarly,
    the critical edition, if you will, of the work, which was brought out in 2017
    and which was based on the 1542 edition, printed in Brasov, provides a
    repertoire of all editions of Rudimentorum cosmographicorum.


    Through this volume, Honterus
    travelled as far as New Zealand, just as he himself would have liked to do, since he was passionate about Geography. From that remote destination, here we are,
    with the volume travelling all its way back to Romania, to the author’s
    birthplace. Florin Bogdan:


    It was
    purchased from an antiquarian’s in Wellington. We identified the book in an
    antiquarians’ database and we had an intense exchange of messages with that
    antiquarian’s afterwards. In the old days, the circulation of a book was not
    that easy to trace, yet we can hypothesize that in various respects, based on
    some hand-written notes that can still be seen of the leaves of the book.
    Somewhere around the 18th century the book was in the possession of
    someone who was conversant in Greek, he left an ownership signature somewhere.
    Unfortunately, that ownership signature can only be seen partially since the
    last part of the name of that person was close to the book spine. The moment
    the book was bound for the second time around, at least two letters
    disappeared, from that person’s name. We can also hypothesize that, if we take
    into account the fact that there was another note in the book, telling us about
    the discovery of America by Columbus in 1492. It is a note made in English,
    which clearly leads us into thinking that at one point the volume was in an
    English-speaking milieu. We can surmise that the volume was in England, or in even
    in the USA, or, why not, even in Australia.


    The book’s conservation condition
    is satisfactory. According to Florin Bogdan, the volume does not need any
    restoration interventions. The exhibit will be put to good use also through
    digitization, and not only because it will be exhibited. Its conservation will
    not be affected, longer term.

  • Rudimentorum cosmographicorum Ioan Honteri Coronensis libri

    Rudimentorum cosmographicorum Ioan Honteri Coronensis libri

    The Alba Iulia National
    Union Museum’s old books collection boasts a most precious item, a rather
    recent purchase made by the institution. It is a book titled     Rudimentorum
    cosmographicorum Ioan Honteri Coronensis     libri. The author is Transylvanian
    humanist Johannes Honterus. We recall Honterus was an iconic figure of the
    humanism and of the Lutheran Reformation in Transylvania in the 16th
    century. The first printed edition of the volume was brought out in 1546. The
    book has been reprinted many times ever since.


    Johannes Honterus was born in
    1498 in Kronstadt, which is the old German name of Brasov. Honterus died in
    Brasov also, in 1549, at the age of 51. His intellectual and editorial activity were
    intense, and so was his activity as a teacher. In 1522, Honterus earned his Magister
    Artium (Master of the Arts) degree from Vienna University. In 1530 Honterus had
    a teaching stint with the Krakow University, where he published his early
    works, a description of the world and a grammar of Latin. Honterus then relocated
    to Basel, where he learned the crafts of wood engraving and printing. In
    Switzerland, Honterus would print the famous Atlas of Transylvania, Chorographia Transylvaniae
    Sybembürgen in Latin. In 1533 Honterus returned to his native town where he was elected as a
    member of the local council. In Brasov, Honterus is the founder of one of
    Transylvania ‘s first printing presses. Then Honterus would print, among other
    books, The Reformation booklet for Brasov and the Barsa Country, The Apology
    and The Regulations for the use of the churches of all Germans in Transylvania.
    The three volumes stipulated the main tenets of the Evangelical reform for the
    Transylvanian Saxon churches under the influence of Lutheranism. In Brasov, in
    1546, due to Honterus’s endeavour, the region’s first paper factory was
    founded.


    The volume titled Rudimentorum
    cosmographicorum Ioan Honteri Coronensis libri has had quite an adventure,
    from an antiquarian in Wellington, in New Zealand, to Alba Iulia in Romania. Florin
    Bogdan is a museographer specializing in old rare books. Florin Bogdan:


    This book is in fact a pocket atlas. Everyone knows Honterus had a special
    interest in Geography, and not only in that. The first printed edition was
    brought out in Krakow in 1530. This one is a version of the book that was
    sensibly enriched by Honterus along the way, since several maps have been added
    to it. What we have actually is an unnumbered, 30-leaf book, that means 60
    pages, where the text proper of the book is laid out. Honterus describes the
    world as it was known at that time, in verse. The last part of the book is made
    of 14 leaves, unnumbered, they are actually plates with maps. First off, the Earth
    is being presented, just as cartographers and geographers used to know it in
    mid-16th century, then various regions are presented, with emphasis laid on Europe since it was the best-known part of the Globe at that
    time.


    Rudimentorum
    cosmographicorum has seen numerous printed editions. Florin Bogdan explains:


    Given that
    there are many editions that were brought out after the first printed edition,
    the one in Krakow in 1530, we can surmise the editions were somewhat limited, and
    so were the reprints of the book. It was also reprinted in Basel as well as in
    Zurich, in Brasov or in Bratislava, which means it was in fact extremely sought
    after. Nobody would print a book every two years unless that book is extremely
    sought after. In Zurich alone, the city where the copy was printed and which
    was purchased by the National Union Museum in Alba Iulia, from 1546, when the
    first printed edition was brought out, and until 1564, 7 editions of the book
    were printed. Now, speaking about this 1564 edition, according to the
    specialised Hungarian bibliography, there are 15 copies of the book. Similarly,
    the critical edition, if you will, of the work, which was brought out in 2017
    and which was based on the 1542 edition, printed in Brasov, provides a
    repertoire of all editions of Rudimentorum cosmographicorum.


    Through this volume, Honterus
    travelled as far as New Zealand, just as he himself would have liked to do, since he was passionate about Geography. From that remote destination, here we are,
    with the volume travelling all its way back to Romania, to the author’s
    birthplace. Florin Bogdan:


    It was
    purchased from an antiquarian’s in Wellington. We identified the book in an
    antiquarians’ database and we had an intense exchange of messages with that
    antiquarian’s afterwards. In the old days, the circulation of a book was not
    that easy to trace, yet we can hypothesize that in various respects, based on
    some hand-written notes that can still be seen of the leaves of the book.
    Somewhere around the 18th century the book was in the possession of
    someone who was conversant in Greek, he left an ownership signature somewhere.
    Unfortunately, that ownership signature can only be seen partially since the
    last part of the name of that person was close to the book spine. The moment
    the book was bound for the second time around, at least two letters
    disappeared, from that person’s name. We can also hypothesize that, if we take
    into account the fact that there was another note in the book, telling us about
    the discovery of America by Columbus in 1492. It is a note made in English,
    which clearly leads us into thinking that at one point the volume was in an
    English-speaking milieu. We can surmise that the volume was in England, or in even
    in the USA, or, why not, even in Australia.


    The book’s conservation condition
    is satisfactory. According to Florin Bogdan, the volume does not need any
    restoration interventions. The exhibit will be put to good use also through
    digitization, and not only because it will be exhibited. Its conservation will
    not be affected, longer term.

  • February 29, 2020

    February 29, 2020

    COVID19 Romania has 3 confirmed cases of COVID-19 infection, with the patients current state reported as good. Another 52 people are quarantined across the country, and 8,796 under home monitoring. The healthcare authorities in the counties Timiş in the west and Maramureş in the north-west are running investigations to establish the people who were in contact with the 2 persons who tested positive for the coronavirus on Friday. Both of them had travelled to Italy recently. The first patient in Romania, a 25 year old man from Gorj County, in the south, is feeling well, and Fridays tests came out negative, doctors say. If the next test is also negative, the patient will be discharged. In Europe, Italy remains the most affected country. As the epidemic spread, stock exchanges across the world reported total losses of over 5 trillion US dollars. The BBC says the US financial markets have not been hit so hard since the 2008 financial crisis. Investors fear that the growing number of coronavirus cases outside China may turn the disease into a pandemic.



    ARREST The former healthcare minister in the Social Democratic government Sorina Pintea, currently the manager of the Baia Mare Emergency Hospital in the north-west of the country, was detained on Saturday by the National Anti-Corruption Directorate for continuing bribe taking. According to the DNA, between December 2019 and February 28, this year, Pintea received 10,000 euros and 25,000 euros from a business operator, in 2 instalments, accounting for 7% of the value of a public procurement contract concerning the design and building of a cardiovascular and thoracic surgery unit. The contract was signed in 2019 by the hospital with the company in question. Pintea allegedly received the money in exchange for completing some of her duties as a manager and authorising officer, anti-corruption prosecutors say. They requested the Bucharest Court to approve a 30-day pre-trial arrest order against Pintea. Sorina Pintea was a healthcare minister in Viorica Dancilas left-wing government dismissed last October.



    DISEASE Romania has too few doctors able to diagnose rare diseases, experts warn today, the International Rare Disease Day. They say investments in medical equipment in the field of genetics, which are vital for accurate diagnoses, are scarce. Physicians also warn that rare disease patients and their families face severe challenges in terms of access to care. So far more than 6,000 different rare diseases have been identified, most of which are without treatment across the world. In Romania, such diseases are underdiagnosed.



    MIGRANTS Greece prevented 4,000 migrants to enter its territory “illegally from Turkey, a spokesman for the Greek government announced on Saturday after an emergency meeting chaired by PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis, AFP and Reuters report. On Friday, the country faced a mass, organised and illegal border crossing attempt, but it managed to overcome it, the government spokesperson explained. He added that Greece protected its borders and the borders of the EU. Also on Saturday, in an address in Istanbul, Turkeys president Recep Tayyip Erdogan said his country will open its borders to enable migrants to leave, and criticised the EU for not helping Ankara enough. Turkey says it was forced to ease border controls for the refugees trying to reach the EU from Turkey, because of the pressure of the refugees coming from Syria amid clashes in the rebel stronghold of Idlib.



    SLOVAKIA Slovakia is voting on Saturday for a new Parliament, hoping to fight corruption, frequently linked to the populist, left-of-centre ruling party Smer-SD. The vote may be crucial for the history of the country, which is still outraged by the murder of anti-corruption journalist Jan Kuciak and his fiancee in 2018, AFP reports. His killing, ordered by a businessman with political connections, mobilised the public, and polls suggest that the ruling party Smer-SD is running shoulder to shoulder with the centre-right opposition party OLaNO, which turned the fight against corruption into its rallying call. The double murder in 2018 triggered massive street protests against the government, and prime minister Robert Fico had to resign.



    RUSSIA Hundreds of Russian opposition supporters gathered in Moscow on Saturday to protest the constitutional reforms initiated by president Vladimir Putin and to pay tribute to opposition leader Boris Nemtsov, murdered 5 years ago near Kremlin, AFP reports. In Sankt-Petersburg, nearly 2,000 people rallied in the centre of the city. The authorised march is the first important public gathering since Putin announced a Constitution review set to strengthen the role of the president and of the State Council. The killing of Boris Nemtsov in February 2015 had huge echoes in Russia and abroad. Nemtsov was in the middle of an investigation into the involvement of the Russian Army in the east Ukraine war.



    HANDBALL Romanias womens handball champions, CSM Ramnicu Valcea, play today at home against the Swedish side Savehof, in the Champions League Main Group 2. In Main Group 1 in the same competition, vice-champions CSM Bucharest play away from home on Sunday against the French team Metz. The Romanian teams are ranking 4th in their respective groups and CSM is the only one having secured a place in the quarter-finals. In mens handball, champions Dinamo Bucharest take on Sporting Lisbon, on Sunday night, after a 26-25 win away from home. If they go past the Portuguese team, Dinamo move into the Champions League round of 16.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)