The Care of Books Part 34

The compiler of the catalogue goes through the library case by case, noting (at least in the Latin Library) the position of the case, the subjects of the books contained in it, and their t.i.tles. This is succeeded by an enumeration of the number of volumes, so as to shew, in a couple of pages, how many the whole Library contained. MM. Muntz and Fabre print this enumeration, but, so far as I know, the catalogue itself has not as yet been printed by any one. For my present purpose I shall combine the headings of the catalogue, the subjects, and the number of the volumes, as follows:

Inventarium Bibliothecae Palatinae Divi s.e.xti Quarti Pont. Max.

[I. LATIN LIBRARY.]

Ad sinistram ingredientibus

In primo banco. [_Bibles and Commentaries_] 51 In secundo banco. _Hieronymus. Augustinus_ 55 In tertio banco. _Augustinus. Ambrosius. Gregorius_ 47 In quarto banco. _Ioannes Chrysostomus_ 50 In quinto banco. _Thomas_ 47 In s.e.xto banco. _In Theologia. In divino officio_ 54 In septimo banco. _Ius canonic.u.m_ 43 In octauo banco. _Ius canonic.u.m_ 41 In nono banco. _Ius civile_ 42 ----430

In primo banco ad dextram ingredientibus. _Philosophi_ 53 In secundo banco. _Astrologi. In Medicina_ 48 In tertio banco. _Poetae_ 41 In quarto banco. _Oratores_ 43 In quinto banco. _Historici_ 33 In s.e.xto banco. _Historici ecclesiastici_ 48 In septimo banco. _Grammatici_ 47 ----313

[II. GREEK LIBRARY.]

In primo banco Bibliothecae Grecae. _Testamentum vetus et novum_ 42 In secundo banco. _Auctores clariores [Fathers]_ 31 In tertio banco. _Auctores clariores_ 46 In quarto banco. _Auctores clariores_ 49 In quinto banco. _Ius civile et canonic.u.m_ 58 In s.e.xto banco. _In Philosophia_ 59 In septimo banco. _Oratores et Rhetores_ 57 In octauo banco. _Historici. Poetae et Grammatici_ 58 ----400

[III. INNER LIBRARY.]

[A. BANCHI.]

In primo banco Bibliothecae Secretae. [_Bibles, Fathers, etc._] 29 In secundo banco. _In Theologia_ 37 In tertio banco. _In Philosophia_ 41 In quarto banco. _Ius canonic.u.m_ 20 In quinto banco. _Concilia_ 34 In s.e.xto banco. _In Astrologia. In Hebraico. In Dalmatico. In Arabico_ 29 ----190

[B. ARMARIUM.]

In primo armario Bibliothecae Secretae. _Libri sacri et in divino officio_ 173 In secundo armario. _Ius canonic.u.m. Ius civile_ 148 In tertio armario. _Expositiones. In sententiis. Poetae Grammatici et Historici Greci_ 242 In quarto armario. _In medicina. Mathematici et Astrologi. Ius canonic.u.m et civile. Oratores et Rhetores. Platonis Opera. In Philosophia_ 186 In quinto armario. _Auctores clariores_ 89 ----938

[C. CAPSae.]

In prima capsa primi banchi Bibliothecae Secretae.

_In Theologia_ 107 In secunda capsa primi banchi. _Diversa facultas_ [_Miscellanea_] 66 In prima capsa secundi banchi. [_Privileges and Royal Letters in_ 3 _volumes_] 3 In secunda capsa secundi banchi. [_Miscellanea_] 124 In prima capsa tertii banchi. _Philosophi_ 90 In secunda capsa tertii banchi [00]

In prima capsa quarti banchi. _Historici_ 65 In secunda capsa quarti banchi [00]

In prima capsa quinti banchi. [_Official forms_] 43 In secunda capsa quinti banchi. _In Arabico_ 23 In prima capsa s.e.xti banchi. _In Historia ecclesiastica. Ceremonialia_ 67 In secunda capsa s.e.xti banchi. _Libri sine nomine ad quinquaginta parvi et modici quidem valoris_ 50 ----638

[D. SPALERA.]

In prima capsa spalerae Bibliothecae Secretae. _In Poesi. Oratores Rhetores_ 69 In secunda capsa. _In divino officio et sermones_ 59 In tertia capsa. _Concilia et Canon. De potestate ecclesiastica_ 54 In quarta et ultima capsa. _In Medicina. In Astrologia_ 34 ----216

[IV. BIBLIOTHECA PONTIFICIA.]

[A. BANCHI.]

In primo banco Bibliothecae Pontificiae. _Testamentum vetus et novum_ 19 In secundo banco. _Expositores_ 22 In tertio banco. _Augustinus_ 14 In quarto banco. _Hieronymus_ 23 In quinto banco. _In Theologia_ 22 In s.e.xto banco. _In Theologia_ 18 In septimo banco. _Thomas_ 23 In octavo banco. _In Philosophia_ 29 In nono banco. [_Greek and Latin Cla.s.sics_] 25 In decimo banco. _Ius canonic.u.m_ 28 In undecimo banco. [_Civil Law_] 17 In duodecimo banco. [_New Testament. Fathers_] 19 ----259

[B. SPALERA.]

Regestra Pontific.u.m hic descripta in capsis Spalerae Bibliothecae Pontificiae per Platinam Bibliothecarium ex ordine recondita et in capsa prima 21 In secunda capsa Spalerae Bibliothecae Pontificiae 47 In tertia capsa Bibliothecae Pont. Regestra recondita par Platynam Bibliothecarium 16 In quarta capsa Spalerae Bibliothecae Pontificiae Regestra recondita 16 In quinta capsa Spalerae Bibliothecae Pontificiae Regestra recondita 15

These lists give the following results:

Latin Library, left hand, 9 seats 430 " " right " 7 " 313 ----743

Greek Library 8 " 400 Inner " 6 " 190 Armaria 938 Capsae 638 Spalera 216 ----1982

Bibliotheca Pontificia 12 seats 259 5 Capsae (Regestra) 115 ----374 ---- Total 3499

Before proceeding farther, it should be noticed that, on a rough average, each seat in the Latin Library, left hand, contained 47 volumes, and in the same Library, right hand, 43 volumes. In the Greek Library, each seat contained 50 volumes; in the Inner Library, 31 volumes; in the _Bibliotheca pontificia_, 21 volumes.

In the next place I will give the results of the examination of a catalogue[394] of the Library, which M. Fabre, with much probability, a.s.signs to the year 1512[395]. It begins as follows with the Latin Library:

Ad sinistra' Pontificis bibliothecam introeuntibus In primo scanno supra [27]

" " infra [27]

Finis primi scanni sub et supra [54]

The nine seats (_banchi_) of the left side of the Latin Library are gone through in the same way as the first, with the result that each is shewn to have two shelves. The total number of books is 457, or 27 more than in 1481.

On the opposite, or right-hand side of the Library, the first two seats have three shelves, and are described as follows:

In primo scanno supra [22]

" " infra [27]

" eodem scanno inferius siue sub infra [26]

Finis primi scanni sub et subter [75]

On this side of the Latin Library the number of books has risen to 360 as against 313 of the previous catalogue.

In the Greek Library there are similarly two shelves to each seat, and the total number of volumes is 407 as against 400.

The account of the Inner Library begins as follows:

In secretiori bibliotheca In iij^o. scanno supra. [16]

" " infra [17]

" " inferius siue sub infra [21]

Three of the seats have three shelves; the rest two; and the total number of volumes has become 222 as against 190: or, an average of 37 to each seat.

The _Bibliotheca pontificia_ is introduced with the following heading:

In intima et ultima secretiori bibliotheca ubi libri sunt pretiosiores.

Each seat has two shelves, and the total number of volumes is 277 as against 259 in 1481. Among the MSS. occurs "Virgilius antiquus litteris maiusculis"--no doubt the Vatican Virgil (_Codex roma.n.u.s_), a volume which fully justifies its place among those termed _libri pretiosiores_.

This catalogue closes with the following sentence:

Finis totius Bibliothece Pontificie: viz. omnium scamnorum tam Latinorum quam Grecorum in prima, secunda, tertia, et quarta eius distinctione et omnium omnino librorum: exceptis armariis et capsis: et iis libris, qui Graeci ex maxima parte, in scabellis parieti adherentibus in intima ac penitissima Bibliothece parte sunt positi. Deo Laudes et Gratias.

The increase between 1481 and 1512 in the number of volumes in the parts of the Library defined in the above catalogue will be best understood from the following table, which shews that 131 volumes had been added in 31 years.

1481 1512