Page:Catholic Encyclopedia, volume 15.djvu/340

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VATICAN


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VATICAN


number can be pointed out in the Vaticana to-day. The succeeding popes added smaller collections, and Sixtus IV gave a permanent basis to the hbrary by the construction of its glorious halls. On the ground floor of the palace in the Cortile del Papagallo and under the Appartamento Borgia he had four halls painted by Melozzo da Forll and his pupil Ghirlan- dajo, with coloured windows by Hermannus Teu- tonicus. In tliree of these halls stood work tables, to which (as was then customary) the manuscripts were fastened with chains, while in the fourth were twelve chest-like receptacles and five presses filled with codices; the furniture of inlaid wood adorns to-day the Appartamento Borgia. The pope purchased the library of Gaspare da Sant'Angelo in 1482, employed numerous copyists, and encouraged his hbrarian Platina (appointed in 147.5) to restore the Vaticana to its former position of renown. The Hbrary had a pubUe division for the Latin and Greek languages, and a private section (afterwards transferred to Sant' Angelo), in which the documentary treasures of the Roman Church were preserved. Under Sixtus the collection giew to 2.527 codices, of which 770 were Greek and 1757 Latin. (Cf. Fabre, "La Vaticana de Sixte IV" in "Melanges d'archeol. et d'hist.", XV.)

The great growth of the Libreria Palatina, as it was called, continued, and under Innocent VIII it included 36.50 manuscripts and printed works. Besides other acquisitions, Alexander \l secured forty Bobbio codices from Tommaso Inghirami; Julius II added new rooms to the four halls to provide sufficient space for the collection. Leo X donated to the library his own Greek codices (cf. Heiberg, "Les premiers manu- scrits grecs de la Bibliothcque Papale", Copenhagen, 1S92), so that under him the library contained 4070 books and manuscripts — a number imexampled at that time. The first cardinal librarian and protector of the library, which office had previously been man- aged only by prelates, was Marcello Cervini, who was appointed in 1.548. Cai-dinal Cervini (afterwards Marcellus II) presented to the library more than 240 codices and many books; about 250 others were added before the reign of Gregory XIII (1572-85), who conceived the plan of a new library building. This plan was realized by Sixtus V (1585-90) in 1588, through the instrumentality of Fontagna. The new building divided the huge court of the Belvedere into two parts, and thus originated the famous Salone Sistino della Libreria Vaticana — giving to the library the name by which it was henceforth known. Cesare Nebbia and Giovanni Guerra painted the hall, which accommodated in elegant cases the treasures of the Vaticana. (Cf. Pansa, "Delia Libreria Vaticana Hagionamenti", Rome, 1.592; Roccha a Camerino, "Bibliotheca .\postolica Vaticana a Sixto V P. M. . . . tran.slata", Rome, 1.591; Miintz, "La Biblio- theque du Vatican au XVI* siecle", Paris, 1886; Idem, "La Bibhotheque du Vatican au XV" siecle", Paris, 1887; Stevenson, "Topografia o Monumenti di Roma nelle pitture di Sisto V della Bibhoteca Vati- cana", Rome, 1898.)

Sixtus V had a work-room erected beside the Salone, and this was decorated with the paintings of the sibyls by Marco da Facnza and the landscapes of Paul Brill. Hither were transferred (he wooden panel- ling and furnisliings of the Palatina, carved by Gio- vannino dei Dolci. The brothers Gughelmo and Tommaso Sirleto, Antonio Carafa, and Marcantonio Colonna transferred their entire collections of manu- scripts and prints to the Vaticana. The renowned scholar Orsini, who possessed the greatest private collection of the sixteenth century, was corrector (,=srriplnr) griFnis of the Vaticana, and in 1000 bequeath('<l io it 4i:{ manuscripts i'M Italian, 270 Latin, and 113 (ircek) with many printed works (cf. De Nolhac, "La Bibliothcque de Fulvio Orsini", Paris, 1887). The number of the Greek Codices Vati-


cani thus mounted from 1287 to 1400. Paul V transferred to the library 212 Greek and Latin Codices, 30 Bobbienses (presented by Silvarezza), and 100 manuscripts from the Bibhoteca Altemps. He also purchased for 1974 scudi (S2000) 83 manu- scripts from the effects of Prospero Podiani (1616), 25 Coptic from the effects of Raimondo (1614), the whole library of Cardinal Pole, and many other col- lections (see Batiffol, "La Vaticane de Paul III et Paul V", Paris, 1890; Idem, "L'abbaye de Rossano. Contribution a I'histoire de la Vaticane", Paris, 1891). Under Urlian \'I1I the Latin codices grew to (3026 in 1627, and to 64.58 in 1640; the number of Greek inl630 was 1566. This pontiff added a room to the Salone Sistino, and in 1630 separated the office of prefect of the Archives from that of custodian of the hbrary. He made great purchases of books, and, owing to the pressure brought upon him by the Ethiopian Hospice behind St. Peter's, donated his thirty-nine parchment manuscripts and some printed works to the Vaticana. In 1622 the Vaticana was presented with the Heidel- berg Library (called the Palatina) by Elector Maxi- milian of Bavaria. This was accommodated in a newly-erected side wing of the palace, to the left of, and adjacent to, the Salone Sistino. To-day this collection contains 1996 Latin and 432 Greek codices, besides numerous printed works. (Cf. the inven- tories mentioned above; Theiner, "Schenkung der Heidelberger Bibliothek durch Maximilian I. an Gregor XV. und ihre Versendung nach Rom; mit Originalschriften", Munich, 1S44; Mazzi, "Leone Alaeci e la Palatina di Heidelberg", Bologna, 1893; Wilke, "Gesch. der Heidelberger Buchersamm- lungen", 1817; Bahr, "Die Entfiihrung der Heidel- berger Bibliothek nach Rom", 1845; Wille, "Aus alter und neuer Zeit der Heidelberger Bibliothek", 1906; " Kirchl. Handlex.", s. v. "Heidelberg".)

Less than forty years after this great acquisition followed a second, when Alexander VII added to the Vaticana the manuscripts of the valuable hbrary of the dukes of Urbino; the printed works were used as the nucleus for the library of the university founded by the popes (Sapienza), which consequently is oven to-day known as the Alessandrina. The codices of the Urbino collection included 1767 latiiii et vulgares, 165 gro'ci, and 128 hehraici et arabici. For the polem- ics concerning this amalgamation and an estimate of the value of the Bibliotheca urbinas consult RatTaelli, "La imparziale e veritiera Istoria della Unione della Bibhoteca di Urbino alia Vaticana", Fermo, 1877; Valenti, "Trasferimento della Bibhoteca Ducale d'Urbino a Roma", 1878. The valuable library of Christina Alexandra (q. v.) of Sweden, which passed from her heir Cardinal Decio Azzolini to his nephew Pompeo Azzohni, was purchased from the latter by Alexander VIII (1689-91) and added to the Vaticana. The duplicates were donated to the pope's neplicw Cardinal Otioboni, and the codices transferred to the Vatican archives. To the Vaticana th(-n accrued 2102 Latin and 190 Greek manuscripts, which were placed in the gallery to the right of the Salone Sistino. In the same collection .are st ill found 45 "Codices grsci Pii Papa- H", added in 1754. (Cf. Manteyer, "Lesmanu- scrits do la Reine Christine aux archives du Vatican" in "Melanges d'archeol. et d'hist.", XVII, 1897.)

.Mthough a number of Orientalia were formerlv to be foimd in the Vaticana, Clement XI (1700^21) may be regarded as tlie real founder of the very exten- sive Oriental section of the library. He procured for it several hundred of these manuscripts, which he had purchased throughout the entire East through Orien- tal scholars si)ecially commissioned for this task (see Carini, op. cit. sui>.). Clement XIII added the whole collection of manuscripts belonging to the brothers Assemani and consisting of 202 Syro-Chaldean, ISO Arabian, and 6 Turkish manuscripts. Nimierous smaller acquisitions were made, amounting in all to