the IMPERIAL LIBRARY of Vienna; its MSS. and printed books: its treasures
in the shape of _Fifteeners_ and _Sixteeners_: in short, be copious (say
you) in your description." The present letter will at least convince you
that I have not been sparing in the account solicited; and, in truth, I am
well pleased to postpone a description of the buildings, and usual sights
and diversions of this metropolis, until I shall have passed a few more
days here, and had fuller opportunities of making myself acquainted with
details. Compared with every other architectural interior which I have yet
seen, this LIBRARY is beyond doubt the most magnificent in its structure.
But if my admiration be thus great of the building, and of the _books_, it
is at least equally so of _those_ who have the _management_ of them. You
must know that I arrived here at a very unfortunate moment for
bibliographical research. The holidays of the librarians commence at the
latter end of August, and continue 'till the end of September. I had no
sooner delivered my letter of introduction to the well known Mons. ADAM DE
BARTSCH--an Aulic Counsellor, and chief Director of the Library--than he
stepped backward with a thoughtful and even anxious brow. "What is the
matter, Sir, am I likely to be intrusive?" "My good friend"--replied
he--taking my arm with as pleasant an air of familiarity as if I had been
an old acquaintance--"you have visited us at a most unlucky moment: but let
me turn the matter over in my mind, and you shall have my determination on
the morrow."
That "determination" was as agreeable as it was unexpected; and really on
my part--without the least affectation--unmerited. "I have been talking the
matter over with my brethren and coadjutors in the library-department,
(said M. Bartsch) and we have agreed--considering the great distance and
expense of your journey--to give you an extra week's research among our
books. We will postpone our regular trip to _Baden_,--whither the court,
the noblesse, and our principal citizens at present resort--in order that
you may have an opportunity of perfecting your enquiries. You will of
course make the most of your time." I thanked M. Bartsch heartily and
unfeignedly for his extreme civility and kindness, and told him that he
should not find me either slothful or ungrateful. In person M. Bartsch is
shorter than myself; but very much stouter. He is known in the graphic
world chiefly by his _Le Peintre Graveur_; a very skilful, and indeed an
invaluable production, in sixteen or eighteen octavo volumes--illustrated
with some curious fac-similes. He is himself an artist of no ordinary
ability; and his engravings, especially after some of Rubens's pictures,
are quite admirable. Few men have done so much at his time of life, and
borne the effect of so much strenuous toil, so well as himself. He is yet
gay in spirit, vigorous in intellect, and sound in judgment; and the
simplicity of his character and manners (for in truth we are become quite
intimate) is most winning.[110] Messrs. PAYNE and KOPITAR are the
Librarians who more immediately attend to the examination of the books. The
former is an Abbé--somewhat stricken in years, and of the most pleasing and
simple manners. I saw little of him, as he was anxious for the breezes of
Baden; but I saw enough to regret that he would not meet his brother
librarians at the hotel of the _Crown of Hungary_, where I had prepared the
best fare in my power to entertain them.[111]
M. Kopitar is an invaluable labourer in this bibliographical vineyard. I
had formerly seen him while he was in England; when he came with Mr. Henry
Foss to St. James's Place, to examine the _Aldine volumes_, and especially
those printed upon vellum. He himself reminded me of the chary manner in
which I seemed to allow him to handle those precious tomes. "You would
scarcely permit me (said he smilingly) to hold them half a minute in my
hands: but I will not treat you after the same fashion. You shall handle
_our_ vellum books, whether in ms. or in print, as long and as attentively
as you please." I felt the rebuke as it became a _preu_ chevalier in
bibliography to feel it. "I am indebted to you, M. Kopitar, (said I, in
reply) in more senses than _one_--- on this my visit to your Imperial
Library." "But (observed he quickly) you only did what you _ought_ to have
done." All power of rejoinder was here taken away. M. Kopitar is a
thoroughly good scholar, and is conversant in the Polish, German,
Hungarian, and Italian languages. He is now expressly employed upon the
_Manuscripts_; but he told me (almost with a sigh!) that he had become so
fond of the _Fifteeners_, that he reluctantly complied with the commands of
his superiors in entering on the ms. department.
Before I lay my _Catalogue Raisonné_ of such books as I have examined,
before you, it is right and fitting that I make some mention of the
REPOSITORY in which these books are placed. In regard to the dimensions of
the library, and the general leading facts connected with the erection of
the building, as well as the number of the books, my authority is perhaps
the best that can be adduced: namely, that of Mons. de Bartsch himself.
Know then, my good friend, that the Imperial Library of Vienna is built
over a succession of arched vaults, which are made to contain the carriages
of the Emperor.
You ascend a broad staircase, to the left, which is lined with fragments of
Greek and Roman antiquities. Almost the first room which you enter, is the
Reading Room. This may hold about thirty students comfortably, but I think
I saw more than forty on my first entrance: of whom several, with the
invincible phlegm of their country, were content to stand--leaning against
the wall, with their books in their hands. This room is questionless too
small for the object to which it is applied; and as it is the fashion, in
this part of the world, seldom or never to open the windows, the effect of
such an atmosphere of hydrogen is most revolting to sensitive nerves. When
the door was opened ... which at once gave me the complete length view of
the GRAND LIBRARY ... I was struck with astonishment! Such another sight is
surely no where to be seen.[112] The airiness, the height, the splendour,
the decorative minutiæ of the whole--to say nothing of the interminable
rows of volumes of all sizes, and in all colours of morocco binding--put
every thing else out of my recollection. The floor is of red and white
marble, diamond-wise. I walked along it, with M. Bartsch on my right hand
and M. Kopitar on my left, as if fearful to scratch its polished
surface:--first gazing upon the paintings of the vaulted roof, and then
upon the statues and globes, alternately, below--while it seemed as if the
power of expressing the extent of my admiration, had been taken from me. At
length I reached the central compartment of this wonderful room, which is
crowned with a sort of oval and very lofty cupola, covered with a profusion
of fresco paintings. In the centre, below, stands a whole-length statue, in
white marble, of CHARLES VI., under whose truly imperial patronage this
library was built. Around him are sixteen whole length statues of certain
Austrian Marshals, also in white marble; while the books, or rather folios,
(almost wholly bound in red morocco) which line the sides of the whole of
this transept division of the room, were pointed out to me as having
belonged to the celebrated hero, PRINCE EUGENE. Illustrious man!--thought I
to myself--it is a taste like THIS which will perpetuate thy name, and
extol thy virtues, even when the memory of thy prowess in arms shall have
faded away! "See yonder"--observed M. Bartsch--"there are, I know not how
many, atlas folios of that Prince's collection of PRINTS. It is thought to
be unrivalled."
"But where (replied I) is the _statue_ of this heroic collector, to whom
your library is probably indebted for its choicest treasures? Tell me, who
are these marshals that seem to have no business in such a sanctuary of the
Muses--while I look in vain for the illustrious Eugene?" There was more
force in this remark than I could have possibly imagined--for my guide was
silent as to the names of these Austrian marshals, and seemed to admit,
that PRINCE EUGENE... _ought_ to have been there. "But is it _too late_ to
erect his statue? Cannot he displace one of these nameless marshals, who
are in attitude as if practising the third step of the _Minuet de la
Cour_?" "Doucement, doucement, mon ami ... (replied M.B.) il faut
considérer un peu...." "Well, well--be it so: let me now continue my
general observation of the locale of this magical collection." M.B. readily
allowed me; and seemed silently to enjoy the gratification which I felt and
expressed.
I then walked leisurely to the very extremity of the room; continuing to
throw a rapid, but not uninterested glance upon all the accessories of
gilding, carved work, paintings, and statuary, with which the whole seemed
to be in a perfect blaze. I paced the library in various directions; and
found, at every turn or fresh point of view, a new subject of surprise and
admiration. There is a noble gallery, made of walnut tree, ornamented with
gilding and constructed in a manner at once light and substantial, which
runs from one extremity of the interior to the other. It is a master-piece
of art in its way. Upon the whole, there is no furnishing you with any very
correct notion of this really matchless public library. At the further end
of the room, to the left, is a small door; which, upon opening, brings you
into the interior of a moderately sized, plain room, where the
_Fifteeners_ are lodged. The very first view of these ancient tomes
caused a certain palpitation of the heart. But neither this sort of
book-jewel room, nor the large library just described--leading to it--are
visited without the special license of the Curators: a plan, which as it
respects the latter room, is, I submit, exceedingly absurd; for, what makes
a noble book-room look more characteristic and inviting, than its being
_well filled with students_? Besides, on the score of health and
comfort--at least in the summer months--such a plan is almost absolutely
requisite.
The MANUSCRIPTS are contained in a room, to the right, as you enter:
connected with the small room where M. Bartsch, as commander-in-chief,
regularly takes his station--from thence issuing such orders to his
officers as best contribute to the well-being of the establishment. The MS.
room is sufficiently large and commodious, but without any architectural
pretensions. It may be about forty feet long. Here I was first shewn, among
the principal curiosities, a _Senatus consultum de Bacchanalibus
coercendis_: a sort of police ordonnance, on a metal plate--supposed to
have been hung up in some of the public offices at Rome nearly 200 years
before the birth of Christ. It is doubtless a great curiosity, and
invaluable as an historical document--as far as it goes. Here is a _map_,
upon vellum, of the _Itinerary_ of _Theodosius the Great_, of the fourth
century; very curious, as exhibiting a representation of the then known
world, in which the most extraordinary ignorance of the relative position
of countries prevails. I understood that both _Pompeii_ and _Herculaneum_
were marked on this map. One of the most singular curiosities, of the
antiquarian kind, is a long leather roll of _Mexican hieroglyphics_, which
was presented to the Emperor Charles V., by Ferdinand Cortez. There are
copies of these hieroglyphics, taken from a copper plate; but the solution
of them, like most of those from Egypt, will always be perhaps a point of
dispute with the learned.
But the objects more particularly congenial with _my_ pursuits, were, as
you will naturally guess, connected rather with _vellum MSS._ of the
_Scriptures_ and _Classics_: and especially did I make an instant and
earnest enquiry about the famous fragment of the BOOK OF GENESIS, of the
fourth century, of which I had before read so much in Lambecius, and
concerning which my imagination was, strangely enough, wrought up to a most
extraordinary pitch. "Place before me that fragment, good M. Kopitar," said
I eagerly--"and you shall for ever have my best thanks." "_That_, and every
thing else (replied he) is much at your service: fix only your hours of
attendance, and our treasures are ready for your free examination." This
was as it should be. I enter therefore at once, my good friend, upon the
task of giving you a Catalogue Raisonné of those MSS. which it was my good
fortune to examine in the nine or ten days conceded to me for that purpose;
and during which I seemed to receive more than ordinary attention and
kindness from the principal librarians.
FRAGMENT OF THE BOOK OF GENESIS--undoubtedly of the end of the fourth
century, at earliest. This fragment is a collection of twenty-four leaves,
in a folio form, measuring twelve inches by ten, of a small portion of the
Book of Genesis, written in large Greek capital letters of gold and silver,
now much faded, upon a purple ground. Every page of these twenty-four
leaves is embellished with a painting, or illumination, coloured after
nature, purposely executed _below_ the text, so that it is a running
_graphic_ illustration--as we should say--of the subject above.
There is too small a portion of the TEXT to be of much critical importance,
but I believe this Greek text to be the _oldest extant_ of sacred writ: and
therefore I rejoiced on viewing this venerable and precious relic of
scriptural antiquity. Lambecius and Mabillon have given fac-similes of it;
and I think Montfaucon also--in his _Palæographia Græca_. At the end of
this fragment, are four pages of the _Gospel of St. Luke_--or, rather,
figures of the four Evangelists; which are also engraved by Lambecius, and,
from him, by Nesselius and Kollarius.[113]
SACRAMENTARIUM, SEU MISSA PAPÆ GREGORII, an oblong large octavo, or small
folio form. I own I have doubts about calling this volume a contemporaneous
production; that is to say, of the latter end of the sixth century. The
exterior, which, on the score of art, is more precious than the interior,
is doubtless however of a very early period. It consists of an ivory figure
of St. Jerome, guarded by a brass frame. The character of the interior, as
to its scription, does not appear to be older than the tenth century.
GERMAN BIBLE of the EMPEROR WENCESLAUS, in six folio volumes. This too was
another of the particularly curious MSS. which, since the account of it in
my Decameron, I had much desired to see. It is, upon the whole, an imperial
production: but as extraordinary, and even whimsical, as it is magnificent.
Of these six volumes, only three are illuminated; and of the third, only
two third parts are finished. The text is a large lower-case gothic letter,
very nearly a quarter of an inch in height. The ornamental or border
illuminations have more grace and beauty than the subjects represented;
although, to the eye of an antiquarian virtuoso, the representations of the
unfortunate monarch will be the most interesting.
I should notice by the way, on the competent authority of M. Kopitar, that
this German version of the Bible is one of the most ancient extant. These
books have suffered, in the binding, from the trenchant tools of the
artist. The gold in the illuminations is rather bright than refulgent.
I now proceed with an account of some other MSS. appertaining to Scripture;
and hasten to introduce to your notice a magnificent folio volume, entitled
EVANGELISTARIUM, with a lion's head in the centre of the exterior binding,
surrounded by golden rays, and having a lion's head in each corner of the
square. The whole is within an arabesque border. There can be no doubt of
the binding being of the time of Frederick III. of the middle of the
fourteenth century; and it is at once splendid and tasteful. The book
measures nearly fifteen inches by ten. The inside almost surpasses any
thing of the kind I have seen. The vellum is smooth, thin, and white--and
the colours are managed so as to have almost a faëry like effect. Each page
is surrounded with a light blue frame, having twisted flowers for corner
ornaments: the whole of a quiet, soft tint, not unlike what appears in the
Bible of Wenceslaus. Every line is written in a tall, broad gothic
letter--and every letter is _gold_. But the illuminations merit every
commendation. They are of various kinds. Some are divided into twelve
compartments: but the initial L, to the first page, _L_[_iber
Generationis_] is the most tasteful, as well as elaborate thing I ever
saw.[114] The figures of angels, on the side, and at bottom, have even the
merit of Greek art. A large illumination of our Saviour, with the Virgin
and Joseph below, closes the volume: which really can hardly be
sufficiently admired. The date of the text is 1368.
I shall now give you an account of a few MISSALS of a higher order on the
score of art. And first, let me begin with a beautiful FLEMISH MISSAL, in
8vo.: in the most perfect state of preservation--and with the costliest
embellishments--as well as with a good number of drollerries _dotted_ about
the margins. The frame work, to the larger subjects, is composed of gothic
architecture. I am not sure that I have seen any thing which equals the
_drolleries_--for their variety, finish, and exquisite condition. The
vellum is not to be surpassed. What gives this book an additional value is,
that it was once the property of Charles V.: for, on the reverse of fol.
157, at bottom, is the following memorandum in his hand writing: _Afin que
Ie Ioye de vous recommandé accepté bonne Dame cest mis sÿ en escript vostre
vraÿ bon mestre._ CHARLES. A lovely bird, in the margin, is the last
illumination. In the whole, there are 179 leaves.
The next article is a LARGE MISSAL, in letters of gold and silver, upon
black paper: a very extraordinary book--and, to me, unique. The first
illumination shews the arms of Milan and Austria, quarterly, surrounded by
an elaborate gold border. The text is in letters of silver--tall stout
gothic letters--with the initial letters of gold. Some of the subjects are
surrounded by gold borders, delightfully and gracefully disposed in circles
and flowers. At the bottom of the page, which faces the descent of the Holy
Ghost, is a fool upon horseback--very singular--and very spiritedly
touched. The binding is of red velvet, with a representation of the cloven
tongues at the day of Pentecost in silver-gilt.
A third MISSAL, of the same beautiful character, is of an octavo form. The
two first illuminations are not to be exceeded, of their kind. The borders,
throughout, are arabesque, relieved by _cameo gris_,--with heads,
historical subjects, and every thing to enchant the eye and warm the heart
of a tasteful antiquary. The writing is a black, large, gothic letter, not
unlike the larger gothic font used by Ratdolt. The vellum is beautiful. The
binding is in the Grolier style.
The last and not the least, in the estimation of a competent judge of
MSS.,--is, a German version of the HORTULUS ANIMÆ of S. Brant. The volume
in question is undoubtedly among the loveliest books in the Imperial
Library. The character, or style of art, is not uncommon; but such a series
of sweetly drawn, and highly finished subjects, is hardly any where to be
seen--and certainly no where to be eclipsed. I should say the art was
rather Parisian than Flemish. The first in the series, is the following;
executed for me by M. Fendi. It occurs where the illuminations usually
commence, at the foot of the first page of the first Psalm. Observe, I
beseech you, how tranquilly the boat glides along, and how comfortable the
party appears. It is a hot day, and they have cut down some branches from
the trees to fasten in the sides of the boat--in order to screen them from
the heat of the sun. The flagon of wine is half merged in the cooling
stream--so that, when they drink, their thirst will be more effectually
quenched. There are viands, in the basket, beside the rower; and the
mingled sounds of the flageolets and guitar seem to steal upon your ear as
you gaze at the happy party--and, perhaps, long to be one of them!
[Illustration]
A hundred similar sweet things catch the eye as one turns over the spotless
leaves of this snow-white book. But the very impressive scene of Christ
asleep, watched by angels--(with certain musical instruments in their
hands, of which M. Kopitar could not tell me the names,) together with
another illumination of Mary, and Joseph in the distance, can hardly be
described with justice. The Apostles and Saints are large half lengths. St.
Anthony, with the devil in the shape of a black pig beneath his garment, is
cleverly managed; but the head is too large. Among the female figures, what
think you of MARY MAGDALENE--as here represented? And where will you find
female penance put to a severer trial? I apprehend the box, in front of
her, to be a _pix_, containing the consecrated elements.
[Illustration]
I now proceed to give you some account of MSS. of a different character:
_classical_, _historical_, and appertaining to _Romance_--which seemed to
me to have more particular claims upon the attention of the curious. The
famous Greek DIOSCORIDES shall lead the way. This celebrated MS. is a
large, thick, imperial quarto; measuring nearly fifteen inches by twelve.
The vellum is thin, and of a silky and beautiful texture. The colours in
the earlier illuminations are thickly coated and glazed, but very much
rubbed; and the faces are sometimes hardly distinguishable. The supposed
portrait of Dioscorides (engraved--as well as a dozen other of these
illuminations--in Lambecius, &c.) is the most perfect.
The plants are on one side of the leaf, the text is on the other. The
former are, upon the whole, delicately and naturally coloured. At the end,
there is an ornithological treatise, which is very curious for the
colouring of the birds. This latter treatise is written in a smaller Greek
capital letter than the first; but M. Kopitar supposes it to be as ancient.
We know from an indisputably coeval date, that this precious MS. was
executed by order of the Empress Juliana Anicia in the year of Christ 505.
There is a smaller MS. of Dioscorides, of a more recent date, in which the
plants are coloured, and executed--one, two, or three, in number--upon the
rectos of the leaves, with the text below, in two columns. Both the
illuminations and the text are of inferior execution to those of the
preceding MS. Montfaucon, who never saw the larger, makes much of the
smaller MS.; which scarcely deserves comparison with it.
PHILOSTRATUS; Lat. This is the MS. which belonged to Matthias Corvinus--and
of which the illuminations are so beautiful, that Nesselius has thought it
worth while to give a fac-simile of the first--from whence I gave a portion
to the public in the Bibliog. Decameron.[115] I think that I may safely
affirm, that the two illuminations, which face each other at the beginning,
are the finest, in every respect, which I have seen of that period; but
they have been sadly damaged. The two or three other illuminations, by
different hands, are much inferior. The vellum and writing are equally
charming.
VALERIUS MAXIMUS. This copy has the name of _Sambucus_ at the bottom of the
first illumination, and was doubtless formerly in the collection of
Matthias Corvinus--the principal remains of whose magnificent library
(although fewer than I had anticipated) are preserved in this collection.
The illumination in the MS. just mentioned, is very elegant and pleasing;
but the colours are rather too dark and heavy. The intended portrait of the
Roman historian, with the arms and supporters below, are in excellent good
taste. The initial letters and the vellum are quite delightful. The
scription is very good.