Los manuscritos griegos del Cardenal Zelada: una biblioteca romana en la Catedral de Toledo

Preview this chapter:

Los manuscritos griegos del Cardenal Zelada: una biblioteca romana en la Catedral de Toledo, Page 1 of 1

< Previous page | Next page > /docserver/preview/fulltext/10.1484/M.BIB-EB.6.09070802050003050305020003/M.BIB-EB.3.4555-1.gif

[

In September 2008, the seventh edition of the International Colloquium of Greek Palaeography (Madrid-Salamanca, 15-20 September 2008) celebrated the 300th anniversary of the Palaeographia Graeca, the pioneer work of the Benedictine Bernard de Montfaucon that established the fundamentals of the discipline. Papers by renowned specialists in the field contributed to the methodology of study and to our knowledge of Greek manuscripts, and opened new perspectives for the study of the Greek manuscripts preserved mostly in European libraries, taking into account new methodological approaches, the possibilities of online resources and the results of ongoing research projects.

The Proceedings published here include contributions by specialists from over ten different countries, dealing with palaeographical issues such as ancient capital and lower-case lettering, writing and books in the Macedonian, Comnenian and Palaeologan periods, and Greek scribes and ateliers in the Renaissance (especially in manuscripts from the Iberian Peninsula). Many contributors also take a codicological approach and consider the material aspects of the codex, as well as other new research techniques. Finally, some papers deal with the book as object and how this relates to its content, as well as with the history of texts.

The International Colloquia of Greek Palaeography are organized by the International Committee of Greek Palaeography, presided by Prof. Dieter Harlfinger. The seventh edition payed tribute to the memory of the late Jean Irigoin, who died in 2006.

On the basis of documents found in Rome, Madrid, and Toledo, this contribution explains the reasons for which Cardinal Zelada (Rome 1717-1801) donated the 1540 manuscripts of his library (45 of them Greek) to the Cathedral of Toledo, instead of to the Vatican Library, which was the usual procedure for cardinals’ libraries and where his printed books were in fact incorporated. The donation can be explained by the Spanish origin of Zelada and his intense relationship with the Spanish crown, especially during the years he collaborated in the abolition of the Society of Jesus as a mediator between the Pope and the king Charles III, who rewarded him with rich endowments from different bishop and archbishop sees. But it was Cardinal Lorenzana, archbishop of Toledo, who convinced him to keep his books safe in Spain, away from a Rome held by the Napoleonic troops during the destructive years of 1798-1814. After arriving in Toledo in 1799, the Augustinian friar Lorenzo Frías began their inventory, but soon he had to request help, being unable to describe the manuscripts not written in Latin or Romance languages. The Chapter tried to find the inventory (now preserved in Bologna) previously made by the former librarian of Zelada, Angelo Battaglini, but they did not reach an agreement about the price of the inventory, which indeed did not describe the Greek manuscripts.