The Manuscripts Oskar Rescher Sold to the Berlin State Library Between 1913-1936

Abstract

Born in Stuttgart in 1883, Oskar Rescher was a prolific Orientalist of the 20th century. He spent his life between Germany and Istanbul from 1909 to 1925 and settled down in Turkey in 1925. He studied many manuscripts found in private collections, libraries, and second-hand bookstores and sold thousands of manuscripts to various libraries and second-hand bookstores in Europe and America. Although the details have not been uncovered, Rescher’s manuscript sales are still being voiced in certain circles; however, his manuscript trade has not been the subject of any study until ours. This article constitutes the second phase of a series of studies. The first article, titled “Oskar Rescher – Biographical Finds around Manuscripts, Books, and Libraries” and the product of a collaborative effort, focused on Rescher’s life and his trade activities with the Berlin State Library. The current study draws attention to two issues. The first involves the 1,722 volumes sold to the Berlin State Library after Rescher’s death. According to our determinations, these manuscripts did not belong to Rescher. The second issue involves the manuscripts Rescher sold to the Berlin State Library between 1913-1936. This article provides a detailed list of these manuscripts after mentioning the sales process. Thus, this study intends to direct attention to the 1,192 manuscripts one Orientalist scholar had personally selected, studied, and sold. The title, author name, and language are specified for each work on the list that has been organized with respect to the date and identification order by which the manuscripts were recorded in the acquisition journal at the library; this includes majmuas, and the manuscripts’ shelf numbers are also given. The list additionally includes the catalogue reference where detailed information about the related manuscript can be found; manuscripts not yet catalogued have been also noted.