Abstract

Medieval manuscript collections in Teutonic Prussia have been particularly affected by numerous events in modern history, such as the Polish-Swedish wars and the turmoil after World War II. Still, the attempts to reconstruct the local collections may shed new light on the intellectual history of this historical region. To this date this kind of research was based mostly on surviving manuscripts with Prussian origin or provenance, that is, manuscripts produced or used in the territory of Prussia, supplemented by evidence on lost volumes derived from archival inventories. The article, taking as an example the history of collections of the city of Elbląg, discusses the potential of systematic studies of parchment waste used in bindings of manuscripts and printed books for reconstructing the intellectual landscape of the territory in question. It presents the range of provenance evidence that can link manuscript waste to the territory of Teutonic Prussia, including content, script, musical notation, binding and other material evidence.

Highlights

  • In such a situation, the study of manuscript fragments, those reused in the bindings of other books, can help recover part of the written cultural heritage and rebuild the intellectual landscape of the region

  • Conflicts between the Order and municipal authorities led to the Thirteen Years War, which ended with the Second Peace of Thorn in 1466, according to which the western part of the territory received the name of Royal Prussia and was subjected to the authority of Kingdom of Poland

  • This article aimed to use the preliminary results of research on medieval Elbląg to show the potential of studying manuscript fragments in bindings

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Summary

Research Notes

The Scribe and Provenance of Otto F. Ege’s Choir Psalter from the Abbey of St. Stephen, Würzburg, Dated 1499 (Gwara, HL 42) 79–93 Scott Gwara and Timothy Bolton. The Medieval Provenance of Otto Ege’s “Chain of Psalms” (FOL 4) 95–99 David T. Fragments of Jerome's Epistolae (Mainz: Peter Schoeffer, 1470) in the Utrecht University Library 101–113 Estel van den Berg

Project Report
Medieval Manuscripts in Teutonic Prussia
The Libraries of Medieval Elbląg
The Teutonic Castle Library and the Brigittine Convent
The Dominican Convent
Surviving Elbląg Manuscripts and Fragments
Fragments in Prussian Bindings
Fragment Text
Host Volume Evidence
Paleographical Indications
Contextual Fragments
Conclusion
Full Text
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