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National Library of Bulgaria

Written by Secil Uluışık

St. Cyril and Methodius National Library of Bulgaria (Natsionalna Biblioteka Sv Sv Kiril i Metodiy, hereafter, NBKM), located in Sofia, has one of the richest Ottoman archives with respect to the quantity and variety of materials. Founded in 1878, the NBKM’s holdings were significantly expanded in 1931 with the acquisition of millions of Ottoman documents from Turkey. Today, the NBKM’s Oriental Department Collection (Kolektsiya na Orientalski Otdel) contains more than 160 sijills, 1000 defters and registers, 1,000,000 individual documents, and countless registers of religious endowments (waqf/awqāf) from all provinces of the Ottoman Empire between the fifteenth and the twentieth centuries. In addition, it has a valuable Persian, Arabic, and Turkish manuscript collection. Apart from its Oriental Department, the Bulgarian Historical Archive (Bŭlgarski istoricheski arkhiv) houses materials dating mostly from the nineteenth century and written in both Ottoman Turkish and Bulgarian. In this sense, NBKM is a hidden gem for scholars of the Middle East and the Balkans.

The main entrance to the library
The main entrance to the library

History

The NBKM was first established in 1878 as the Sofia Public Library but quickly became the National Library in 1879. During 1870s and 1880s, NBKM officials collected various Ottoman materials from local waqfs and libraries throughout Bulgaria, and brought them to the Oriental Department of the NBKM. In 1944, the entire building was destroyed in the course of the war. While some materials were irreparably damaged during the attacks, much was saved. These surviving materials were transferred to local libraries in order to be protected from further destruction. All the transferred materials were eventually brought back to the NBKM’s main building in late 1940s. The NBKM’s current building was officially opened in 1953. The NBKM gets its name from St. Cyril and St. Methodius, the eponymous brothers who invented the Cyrillic alphabet in late ninth century. A monument of the two brothers holding the Cyrillic alphabet in their hands stands tall in front of the NBKM, and it is also one of the landmarks of the city.

The founders of the Cyrillic script and namesake's of the library.
The founders of the Cyrillic script and namesake’s of the library.

In 1931, as a part of its political agenda based on the rejection of the Ottoman past, the Turkish government sold a massive amount of Ottoman archival documents to a paper factory in Bulgaria to be as used as recycled waste paper. This event became known as the “vagonlar olayı” (the railcar incident) because the documents were transported in train cars and when the events were publicized in Turkey they triggered a heated debate among scholars and politicians of the time. Once Bulgarian customs officials realized the materials were actually Ottoman state documents and not waste, the papers were deposited in the NBKM. Today, these documents constitute more than 70% of the entire Oriental Department of the NBKM, which continues its tireless effort to catalog and preserve them.

Collections

The NBKМ has eleven collections varying from Slavonic and Foreign Language Manuscripts, to the Collection of Oriental Department. Information about each collection and the structure of the collections can be found here.

The Collection of Oriental Department has two main archives: the Ottoman Archives and the Oriental Manuscript Collection. The Bulgarian Historical Archive is also located in Oriental Department since it includes many documents in Ottoman and Bulgarian. The following are collections that might be of direct interest to historians of the Middle East:

Sijill Collection:

A sijill is an incoming-outgoing register, organized by the qadi (judge) or his deputy in a specific settlement. A sijill also includes copies of documents, written by the qadi. There are more than 190 sijills in this collection from the sixteenth to the late nineteenth centuries. They are catalogued based on their region such as Sofia, Ruse, Vidin etc.  The sijills from Sofia and Vidin have call marks beginning with “S”, while sijills from Ruse, Silistra, and Dobrich have call marks beginning with “R”.  Most of the sijills have card catalog entries in Turkish in either Latin or Ottoman script. The earliest sijill is from Sofia dated 1550, whereas vast majority of the sijills are from the eighteenth century. Most of them are from Vidin (71 defters), and then Sofia (59 defters.). Much of the sijill collection has been digitized and can be accessed through the official website of the NBKM.

Waqf Registers:

There are more than 470 separate waqf (endowment) registers from the fifteenth to the twentieth centuries in this collection. In addition, some other waqf registers can be found inside the sjill collection. Registers and series of waqf documents are compiled in the form of deste (separate register bunches) and waqf sijills. They are written primarily in Ottoman, while several of them are in Arabic. The earliest waqf register dates back to 1455; and the latest to 1886.

A comprehensive inventory of the waqf registers can be accessed here.

Miscellaneous Funds:

This collection includes the rest of the Ottoman documents in the Oriental Department. Many cadastral surveys (timar, zeamet and icmal defters) can be found in this collection. There are also various other types of registers and financial account books (ruznamces) here. In addition, all individual documents such as fermans, buyruldus, arzuhals, ilams and various individual correspondences and materials are located in these funds.

Most of these Ottoman materials in this collection are cataloged according to the region they are related to, and each region has a separate fund with a different number. For instance, documents related to Istanbul are cataloged as F1, Damascus as F 283, Iran as F 295, Hijaz as F283, Albania as F212, Austria as F290, Smyrna as F238, Skopje as F129, Malatya as F249 and so on. Most of the funds have sub-collections and they are cataloged separately. Most of the entries in fund numbers have dates, and some of them include keywords such as “military”, “church”, “taxation”, “timar” giving some basic clues about the type of the document. Unfortunately, there is no other information available to the researcher about the documents from the catalog. However, there are some publications, mostly written by the staff of the Oriental Department, such as inventories and catalogs of selected funds of Ottoman documents, which are helpful. So, it is vital to consult these published volumes, which are mostly in Bulgarian. All catalogs in this collection are also in Bulgarian and handwritten. The number of the documents in this collection exceeds 1,000,000 and none of them have been digitized. Their dates range from the fifteenth to the twentieth centuries.

An Ottoman document from NBKM
An Ottoman document from NBKM

Oriental Manuscript Collection:

This collection has about 3,800 volumes in Arabic, Turkish and Persian. Around 3,200 of these volumes are in Arabic, 450 are in Turkish and 150 are in Persian. The earliest manuscript is an eleventh-century copy of the hadith collection of al-Jami’ al-Sahih of Muhammad al-Bukhari (810-870). One of the most valuable manuscripts of this collection is a sixteenth-century copy of the work of the twelfth-century Arab geographer Muhammad ibn Muhammad al-Idrisi, Nuzhat al-mushtaq fi ikhtiraq al-afaq (Book for Entertainment of the One, Longing to Cross the Countries Wide and Far). Partial catalogs in English, Arabic, and Bulgarian exist for this collection and are available in the reading room.

Newspaper Collection:

This collection is located in Bulgarian Historical Archive section of the Oriental Department, and it includes the newspapers published between 1844 and the 1940s. The majority of the newspapers are in Bulgarian, but those published until the late 1870s are both in Ottoman and Bulgarian. The catalog of this collection is a reference volume written in Bulgarian that can be found at the reading room at the Oriental Department. Since 2014, the majority of materials in this collection have been digitized and now are available for researchers. Digitization efforts continue, so researchers should check the online catalogue research tool on a regular basis.

The Research Experience

Researchers should note that all administrative materials at the NBKM, including the catalogs and all paperwork needed for registration, reproduction of documents etc., are in Bulgarian. Likewise, all catalogs in the Oriental Department are also in handwritten Bulgarian. The cataloging system does not have a regularized format for the Oriental Department. Some of the catalog entries have Ottoman explanations in addition to Bulgarian, but they are very few in number. Most of the Ottoman materials are cataloged according to the region, and each region has a separate fond letter with a different number. Specific collections have their own cataloguing system as explained in previous section.

Materials can be requested from Monday to Friday between 9:00 and 15:30, and will be available the next day.  All staff members, both in the Oriental Department and in other sections of the library, are very helpful and supportive. The researcher should keep in mind that documents from a specific section needs to be requested in that section. However, for reproductions, the researcher must obtain approval of both the director of the Oriental Department and the general secretary of the Director of the NBKM. While this seems burdensome at first, it is a relatively comfortable process as all staff members try to help foreign researchers.

Access

There are two requirements to gain access to the Oriental Department. First, the researcher needs to fill out an application form to gain access to the NBKM. A passport, visa and a photo are needed for this process. As visa requirements vary by nationality, the researcher should consult the local Bulgarian embassy regarding the required documents. (North American citizens can stay in Bulgaria without a visa up to three months. Turkish citizens, and citizens of any country who are required to obtain a visa to enter the EU, however, must obtain a visa at their local consulate. I obtained a student visa as a Turkish citizen and fellow of American Research Center in Sofia, but a Schengen visa might be accepted to conduct research for shorter periods.)

This registration process takes around thirty minutes. Once registration is completed, the researcher receives an ID card, which must be shown every time she enters the NBKM. There are three, six or twelve-month registration options; the fee for three months is $18 while the rest costs $20, regardless of the duration. Researchers can access all departments with the issued ID card.

To access the documents in Oriental Department researchers must fill out another form that needs to be submitted to the director of the department. In addition to the form, graduate student researchers are asked to bring a letter from their supervisor explaining their aim, current affiliation, and academic status. The director, Stoyanka Kenderova, is very helpful and supportive. For foreign researchers, contacting her might be the only way to gain some guidance in the research process as she speaks Turkish, Arabic, French, and English. It must be noted that most of the staff working at NBKM in general, and the Oriental Department, in particular, do not speak English. As such, some knowledge of spoken Bulgarian or the friendship of a Bulgarian-speaking fellow researcher is definitely helpful when communicating with the staff.

The NBKM is open to researchers from Monday to Saturday, between 8:30-19:00 except on official holidays. The Oriental Department’s working hours are Monday to Friday, 9:00-18:00, and on Saturdays, 9:00-15:00. It is closed every August, and also every last Tuesday of the month for cleaning, and housekeeping purposes. All sections are wheelchair accessible, except for the cafeteria.

The reading room of the library
The reading room of the library

Reproductions and Costs

To request reproductions, researchers must fill out a form that needs to be approved by the General Secretary of the NBKM and the director of the Oriental Department. Copies of materials can be obtained either as a photocopy or digital photos. Researchers can also take their own photos. In all cases, the cost for a photocopy or photograph of a regular size document is 3 Bulgarian Leva ($2/ page.) The cost for a single page of illustrated or larger materials ranges from 4.5 to 6 Bulgarian Leva ($3 to $3.5)

Transportation and food

The NBKM is located in the heart of the city on Vasil Levski Blvd next to the Sv. Kliment Ohridski University of Sofia, and across from the Alexandr Nevski Square. Almost all city buses pass through the bus stop in front of the National Library. Lines 2 and 4 are the most frequent. Tickets for buses can be purchased at small kiosks at the corners of the intersection of major streets or on the bus. One can also take the metro since metro station is a three to four minute walk from the library. If you are staying at the city center or surrounding neighborhoods such as Hadji Dimitar, where the American Research Center in Sofia (ARCS) is located, or Vitosha Street, where many of the social events take place, it takes fifteen to twenty minutes to walk to the NBKM. A Metro or bus ticket costs 1 Leva (75 cents).

A variety of food options are available around the NBKM. The library also has its own cafeteria, which is a good option for a quick coffee, water, or snacks in cold weather. Yet it is not preferred by most researchers as there are better options available close by the library. There is also a small kiosk right next to the NBKM building selling snacks, pizza, sandwiches, and coffee throughout the day. Just across from the kiosk, there is a popular restaurant-café, Modera Café, which is usually preferred by Sofia University students and staff. There are also many various options for breakfast, lunch and dinner in small streets around the University and NBKM. Depending on your preference, a lunch can cost between $2 and $10 at these locations. You can also bring your own lunch and eat it at the outdoor garden of NBKM. However, it should be kept in mind the garden becomes crowded and finding a spot can be difficult, especially in nice weather.

Contact Information

Address: Sofia 1037, 88 Vasil Levski Blvd
Tel.: (+359 2) 9183 /101
Fax: (+359 2) 843 54 95

Director of the Oriental Department: Stoyanka Kenderova

Assistant of the Director of Oriental Department: Milena Zvancharova

Resources and Links

Official website of the NBKM:

Further Readings

Binark, İsmet. Bulgaristan’daki Osmanlı Evrakı. Ankara: TC Başbakanlık Daire Müdürlüğü.1994.

Dobreva, Margarita. “Aya Kiril ve Metodiy Milli Kütüphanesine Bağlı Oryantal Bölümü’ndeki “Vidin” Ön Fonu Defterleri”. Osmanlı Coğrafyası Kültürel Arşiv Mirasının Yönetimi ve Tapu Arşivlerinin Rolü Uluslararası Kongresi Bildirileri 1. Ankara: TC Çevre ve Şehircilik Bakanlığı Tapu ve Kdastro Müdürlüğü Arşiv Daire Başkanlığı Yayınları. 2013, 183-223.

Kenderova, Stoyanka. “Catalogue of Arabic Manuscripts in SS Cyril and Methodius National Library, Sofia, Bulgaria” Hadith Sciences. Ed. by M. Isa Waley. London. 1995.

Özkaya, Yücel. “Sofya’da Milli Kütüphane Nationale Biblioteque’deki Şeriyye Sicilleri” Tarih Araştırmaları Dergisi (Ankara), c. XIII, № 24, 1980, s. 21–29.

Гълъб Гълъбов, Бистра Цветкова. Турски извори за историята на правото в българските земи. Състав.T Т. 1-2. София. 1962- 1971.

Ivanova, S. “The Sicills of the Ottoman Kadis: Observations over the sicill collections at the National Library in Sofia”. Bulgaria. Studies in Memoriam Prof. Nejat Göyünç. Ed. K. Çiçek. Ankara, 2001

***

I would like to thank Margarita Koleva Dobreva, Stoyanka Kendarova, Rossitsa Gradeva, and Milena Zvancharova for their valuable help and guidance at the archive. I benefited from works cited below.

 ***

Cite this: Seçil Uluışık, “National Library of Bulgaria,” HAZINE, 9 May 2015,  https://hazine.info/national-library-bulgaria/

Secil Uluisik is a PhD candidate in History Department at the University of Arizona. She works on provincial governance, politics of taxation, and networks of local power holders during the late eighteenth early nineteenth century in the Ottoman Empire.

 

 

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Malek National Library and Museum

by Gennady Kurin

Located on the grounds of the National Garden in the Topkhane district of Tehran, The Malek National Library and Museum (Ketābkhāna va mūza-ye melli-ye Malek) is a must-see not only for researchers but also anybody visiting Iran’s capital. While the museum holds an extensive collection of various artifacts, coins, artworks and carpets, the tens of thousands of Islamic manuscripts, many of which are rare and some unique, make the library one of the largest depositories of its kind in Iran.

Malek 1
The entrance to the Malek Library

History

The institution was established over seventy years ago on the initiative of Hosayn Malek, who died in 1972 at the age of 101. The center was initially located in his father’s house in Tehran, until 1966 when it was moved to a new building in what was then the central part of the city. In his twenties, Hosayn Malek, the grandson of a high ranking Qajar officer, traveled to Khorasan with his father, where he had a chance to get acquainted with some of the most beautiful art works of Islamic world. It was during this trip that he made a decision to acquire his own collection of manuscripts and establish a library. Hosayn Malek’s passion for other kinds of artifacts and artworks came in later years. In 1937 he decided to donate and endow his collection of precious objects and manuscripts to Astan-e Qods-e Razavi (a charitable foundation managing the shrine of Imam Ali Reza) for public use. It is a little difficult to determine when or how the different pieces from this extensive collection were acquired. What we do know is that at the time of Hosayn Malek’s death the value of his endowments was estimated to be over several million dollars. In recent years Hosayn Malek’s daughter, Ezzat Malek Soudavar, has made another significant donation to the center of arts works and Quranic manuscripts that further enriched the already extensive collection.

Collections

The center is divided into two sections: On the ground floor there is a museum and on the first floor there is a reference library and computer room.

The museum has well-presented collections of visual arts, paintings (European and Iranian), lacquered pen cases from the Qajar era, coins, an impressive collection of Qurans (including a part of Quran in Kufic script on a parchment leaf, ascribed to Imam Hassan Mojtaba), and other calligraphic masterpieces. The library has two reading rooms. One room has a number of volumes on subjects ranging from medicine and biology to geography, politics, history, and religious sciences. As of 2007, the library had approximately 70,000 printed books but this figure maybe slightly outdated. The library has been rapidly expanding and new books are constantly being added to the collections. At the time of visit stuff members regularly came in with trolleys stuffed with books. It is worth browsing through the shelves. The second reading room, also a computer room, holds all of the catalogs, periodicals, magazines, and a few shelves at the very back on subjects like mathematics, computer science, accounting or general English.

The center holds over 19,000 manuscripts dating from the tenth to the twentieth century. The manuscript collection is divided in two groups. The first includes philosophical, literary, historical and scientific works, most of which are either rare or unique. In particular, the staff members take great pride in the extensive collection of scientific works of Avicenna (Ibn Sina). The second group of manuscripts includes books from all over the Islamic world, many fine examples of Persian calligraphy and miniature (e.g. Shahnamas produced for the Safavid or Timurid kings) are kept here. The majority of works is in Persian, but one can also find works in Arabic and some in Ottoman Turkish.

The manuscripts in the collection are of great variety, but the overwhelming majority originate from Iran and its neighbors (i.e. do not expect to find many works related to North Africa, whereas there is quite a lot on Central Asia and India). At the same time one can easily find works by late Qajar intellectuals, medieval Islamic histories, as well as dynastic chronicles from the Ilkhanids to the Qajars, hermeneutics and other religious subjects as well as a lot of poetry. The oldest manuscript in the collection dates back to the fourth century of the Islamic era. Of particular interest are local histories of different provinces or cities of Iran (e.g. Kerman, Lorestan, Kordestan, Tabriz, Orumie…) and the travelogues (safarnama) of Hajj pilgrims and Persian and European travelers (inside and outside of Iran).

A coin from the Malek museum's collections
A coin from the Malek museum’s collections

Research Experience

The Malek Library is one of the easiest institutions to access and use in Iran. The library’s convenient and easy-to-reach location, friendly and helpful staff (some of who speak English), well-functioning software (albeit only in Persian), free WiFi, and very comfortable reading rooms make the Malek Library one of the best research institutions in Iran. The building has elevators and is relatively maneuverable in a wheelchair. The reading rooms are very spacious and never seem to be too crowded. The rooms, however, can get quite chilly as a consequence of the powerful air conditioning systems.

There is a fourteen-volume catalog of the library’s manuscript collection–thirteen volumes of which have been prepared by Iraj Afshar and Muhmmad Daneshpazhuh while the most recent volume is a work of Seyyid Muhammad Hussein Hakim–available for reference in the main reading room. Catalogs for other Iranian libraries and archives, as well as for research institutions in Turkey and Europe are also available. The catalog provides some details on the manuscripts in the collection, including the date of acquisition and place and date of copy. The catalog is well organized and easy to use. The entries appear accurate, but the librarian has informed me that there are occasional mistakes, which will be corrected in an updated version of the catalog to be at the end of this year (Since my visit to the library a new edition, plus a new volume (14th) have been published). There is no electronic catalog available on the library’s computer workstations yet. Ottoman and Arabic manuscripts are covered in the first volume of the catalog and are organized alphabetically, for the small number of works in these two languages. Volumes two to four contain descriptions of Persian manuscripts which are grouped according to subject, e.g. history, literature, science and medicine as well as law and fiqh, and within those groups are also arranged alphabetically. Volumes five to nine contain anthologies and collections while the rest, ten to fourteen are volumes of indices organized by authors, copyists, dates, manuscript names, etc.

Generally speaking, the whole collection has been cataloged and digitized. Researchers request to view manuscripts by submitting the appropriate catalog numbers to the librarian, who then uploads the manuscript to one of the library’s workstation computers. The whole process takes no more than an hour. The quality of the digitized documents varies, but is generally quite decent and the computer interface is user-friendly. Although the quality of the digitized documents is fair (with some variations), all of the manuscript images are slightly obscured in the lower-right (or lower-left) corner, where the library has placed a digital watermark. Viewing original documents is more complicated and one needs to negotiate with the different members of staff and make good use of personal charisma.

Depending on the number of manuscripts that a researcher requests, the process of obtaining a CD with the reproductions usually takes between two to five working days (the center is open 6 days a weeks). Personally, I’ve not experienced any inconvenience while working at this library except perhaps for the rather arbitrary opening-closing hours (it is better to call the library before leaving home).  Generally speaking the best tip is to wake up early, go to the library and stay there until it closes as opposed to trying to combine a visit to the library with something else. Tehran simply is the city where it is often difficult to plan things.

Malek Library Museum-001
The interior of the Malek museum

Access and Reproductions

The center is officially open Saturday to Thursday from 8.30 to 16.30 during summer, and 9.00 to 17.00 during winter. We recommend calling before every visit to confirm that it is open. The museum and library (including computer room and reading rooms) are open to the public and registration is required. However, those who plan to request reproductions on CD or a viewing of the manuscripts need to bring a passport and an introduction letter (ma‘rifatnama). Letters of introduction may be written by academic supervisors or departmental chairpersons (no specific format). They may also be obtained from the International Center for Persian Studies (ICPS), known as the Dehkhoda Institute. The Dekhoda letter of introduction is also accepted by all other major libraries, archives and research centers in Iran. As for the difficulty of the process, other than having to run around the premises getting signatures of different members of staff (takes no more than an hour) everything is pretty smooth and easily accessible. I have been told by a member of staff that taking pictures of manuscripts is not allowed. Reproductions of manuscripts cost 2,000 Rials per pdf page (approximately 7 U.S. cents) and generally take up to five days to be prepared.

Transportation and Food

The Malek Library and Museum is located in downtown Tehran, only five minutes away from Imam Khomeini metro station (Red metro line). Metro is by far the most convenient transportation option in Tehran (the traffic is pretty congested during most hours) and the center is best reached by metro. Tehran is certainly not known for its delicious street food but there a few places to have lunch or dinner around the center, including a couple of fast food places on Ferdowsi avenue and some decent cafes and lokma kebab on Mirza Kuchek Khan street, both are relatively cheap and within walking distance. Packing your own lunch might also be an option, as there are some really nice gardens and parks in the area. The archive itself is located inside a massive garden complex although there doesn’t seem to be too many places to sit in the garden.

Malek Sign-001

Contact information

Managing Director:

Seyed Mohammad Mojtaba Hosseini 

Mailing address:

Melal-e Mottahad Street, Bagh-e Melli, Imam Khomeini Avenue, Tehran, P.O. Box: 111555/547

Internet site and email:

www.malekmuseum.org (The Persian site has more options and information than the English version)

info@malekmuseum.org

Phone:

0098 21 66726613, 53 (operator)

0098 21 66751291 (Public relations)

Fax:

0098 21 66705974

Resources and Links

Online catalog

An article about the library’s collections and history, a little outdated but still useful

Some information on the compilation of catalogs

Catalogs:

فهرست نسخه‌های خطی كتابخانه و موزه ملی ملك (14 ج)، نگارش سیدمحمّدحسین حكیم، قم، كتابخانه تخصّصی تاریخ اسلام و ایران، 1393 خ

 فهرست کتابهای خطی کتابخانه ملی ملک وابسته به آستان قدس رضوی (1-13 ج)، زیر نظر ایرج افشار، محمد تقی دانش پژوه؛ با همکاری محمد باقر حجتی و احمد منزوی، تهران:کتابخانه ملی ملک، 1380 – 1352 خ  

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Gennady Kurin is currently a doctoral student at Cambridge University researching Ottoman-Safavid relations and borderlands

Citation: Gennady Kurin, “Malek National Library and Museum”, HAZINE, 3 Nov 2014, https://hazine.info/maleklibrary/

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Bosniak Institute

Written by Sanja Kadrić

The Bosniak Institute (Bošnjački institut – Fondacija Adila Zulfikarpašića) is a foundation established to promote the development and preservation of the cultural wealth, history and identity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Institute offers a large, multi-themed library, a manuscript and rare books collection, an archive, and various special collections such as those of postcards and audio records. Such wide-ranging efforts to preserve the cultural and historical heritage of Bosnia are quite significant, particularly in light of attempts to destroy Sarajevo’s libraries and archives during the war between 1991 and 1995. This institution will be of great interest to all those researching Bosnia and Herzegovina, the former Yugoslav republics and the Balkans at large, as well as the various peoples, empires, religions and cultures that interacted with this region.

 

The entrance of the Bosniak Institute. The tomb of the founder-Adil Zulfikarpasavic--is located right at the entrance.
The entrance and courtyard of the Bosniak Institute. The tomb of the founder-Adil Zulfikarpasic–is conveniently located next to the front door.

History

Bošnjački institut – Fondacija Adila Zulfikarpašića is a vakuf of the late Adil-beg Zulfikarpašić, a prominent and well-esteemed Bosnian politician, philanthropist, intellectual and patron of the arts. He and his wife Tatjana Zulfikarpašić devoted decades to meticulously collecting and cataloging literary, artistic and archival materials on the cultural heritage and history of Bosnia and Herzegovina, former Yugoslavia, and the surrounding region. Originally established as the Bosniaken Institut of Zürich in 1988, the institute’s purpose was to promote and preserve the cultural, religious and linguistic wealth of the many peoples living in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Bosniaks in particular. The Institute opened a branch in Sarajevo in 1991 and moved there completely in 1998, officially opening in 2001. Its many collections continue to grow and expand through private donations as well as new acquisitions on the part of the Institute and vakuf.

 

Collection

The Institute offers researchers monographs, reference works, periodicals (newspapers and magazines), a rare books collection, a map collection, a photographs-and-postcards collection, an archive, audio-visual records and an Oriental manuscripts collection.

The library holds over 150,000 works dating from the sixteenth century to the present day. These holdings are divided into the departments of Bosnika, Kroatika, Serbika, Jugoslavika, Emigrantika, Islamika, Balkanika, Turcica, and Judaica (Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian, Yugoslavian, Emigrant, Islamic, Balkan, Turkish and Judaic) with special sections devoted to the Bogumils, agrarian reform, the War of 1991-1995, the Sandžak region and reference materials. The Bosnika department is the library’s largest and contains works on Bosnia and Herzegovina and its peoples and history in a wide array of languages and themes. The Emigrantika department features works published by the region’s diaspora throughout the world following World War II. The department of most interest to the readers of HAZINE, however, will probably be that of Islamika which contains works in Arabic, Turkish and Persian on various themes such as history and natural sciences as well as encyclopedias and commentaries on the Qur’an.

The Institute’s collection of oriental manuscripts is digitized and holds over 1,125 works (743 codices) in Arabic, Turkish, Persian and Bosnian dating from the thirteenth century to the start of the twentieth century. The manuscripts pertain to a wide array of subjects from law and politics to music and rhetoric. The earliest dated work is from 742 AH/1341-2 CE. Many of these manuscripts are especially valuable because they originated in Bosnia and were donations from the private collections of notable families. The manuscript catalog can be accessed here.  In addition to this collection, one can also access facsimiles of the Oriental manuscript collection of the Goethe Institute in Frankfurt with materials from Morocco, Iraq, Egypt and other medieval Islamic cultural centers.

The institute’s archive holds original documents and copies from various periods relevant to this region’s history, in particular a collection of materials from the recent war in Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1991-1995 (periodicals, documents, photographs, video and audio material). The cartographic collection includes maps of various themes, from the historical and topographic to the touristic and climatic, and from various centuries and points of origin in Eurasia. The collection includes about 2,000 maps, mainly of Bosnia and Herzegovina but also former Yugoslavia, Europe and the world. It may be of interest to students of art and art history that the institute also has an extensive art collection numbering 1,500 pieces and containing works by 200 Bosniak, former Yugoslavian and Austro-Hungarian artists. The collection is displayed throughout the institute (galleries in the main library building, the institute club and the former bath house (hamam) and includes paintings, graphic art, sculptures, and tapestries.

 

Research Experience

The library’s holdings are cataloged electronically and may be accessed via the institute’s website or at computers on-site. The catalog navigation site is in English. An additional catalog of new additions to the library as well as a catalog of Goethe University’s holdings may be found in the reading rooms. Although the library catalog may be accessed electronically, requests to view the library’s holdings are filled out by hand and submitted on-site. Order slips and submission boxes may be found at the two computers located in the lobby of the Institute. Users cannot order nor hold more than five books at one time. The five-a-day limit also applies to manuscripts even though only their digital copies may be viewed. Orders placed by 15:00 on any business day are usually ready by the start of the next day.  For researchers interested in the manuscript collection, a PDF catalog of the holdings may be found on the Institute’s website or in the published edition edited by Fehim Nametak and Salih Trako. A PDF catalog of the institute’s cartographic collection is also available on its website. Because the ordering and holding limit is five items, it is recommended that you consult the catalog ahead of time, determine what is available and prioritize what you need to order. This will also expedite the process of ordering your items in person at the institute.

The institute’s staff is incredibly warm and friendly; it is generally a very welcoming place to work. Along with BSC (Bosnian-Serbian-Croatian), some of the staff also speaks English and tours for large groups may be arranged in various other languages. The librarians can be approached with questions about the library and the various collections as well as the process of ordering books, using the reading room, and paying for copies. Because the institute’s archive is not open to the public, if you plan to utilize it, ask the librarians to notify the correct staff who can answer your questions regarding its holdings. The reading rooms are cozy and warm with large windows and a wonderful view of the Gazi Husrev-beg bath house (hamam) and Sacred Heart Cathedral. The reading room used most often holds eight spacious desks, one of which is equipped with a computer that can be used to access the library catalog and view ordered manuscripts. If there is another researcher viewing manuscripts, you will to arrange separate times for each of you to use the computer. The entire institute is equipped with wireless internet which is available to users. Usernames and passwords can be obtained in the reading rooms. Some of the library holdings may be found shelved in this room and can be used freely. While the reading room is rarely crowded, especially in the mornings, unoccupied electrical outlets may occasionally be difficult to find later in the day.

 

Access

The Bosniak Institute is open to all academic researchers who work on Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosniaks and the surrounding regions and peoples. After providing a valid identification document (I.D. card if a Bosnian national, otherwise passport) and filling out a basic information and research project information form, you will receive a membership card. Researchers present this card and their valid identification document every time upon entering the institute. The membership card is also used to obtain any book or reproduction orders. Upon returning the books ordered or paying for your reproductions, your valid identification and user card will be returned. The overall process is very painless and simple. If you take a break during your work and plan to exit the building, you must return your holdings to the front desk for safekeeping. They should not be left unattended in the reading room.

The entry is wheelchair accessible and the building has easy-access elevators. The institute is usually closed for state and religious holidays, but apart from this, there are no other long-term closures.

 

Institute working hours:

Monday – Friday 8:00-16:30

 

Library working hours:

Monday – Friday 9:00-16:00

Wednesday 9:00-19:00

 

Reproductions

The institute will photocopy materials (books, magazines, newspapers) produced in the year 1945 or later for you, but the maximum amount of pages is ten. Personal digital photography of any material can only be done with permission. Materials produced before 1945 cannot be photocopied and will be scanned by the institute and provided to you in electronic form on a USB drive.

Photocopies: BAM .20 (regular 8.5×11) – BAM 1.00 (varied sizes, double-sided)

Scans: BAM 2.00 per page scan (regular) – BAM 4.00 per page scan (rush delivery)

CD: BAM 1.20

DVD: BAM 1.50

(Manuscripts are charged by the page, not by the folio, as is the case in most manuscript libraries. This means that prices are actually a pricey 4 BAM or around 2 Euros a folio. You can find other versions of some, though not all, of the institute’s manuscripts holdings at the Gazi Husrev Beg Library which charges less for digital copies.)

 

Transportation and Food

The institute is located in the Old Town municipality of Sarajevo in the very heart of the city and is surrounded by many famous, well-preserved Ottoman architectural remnants such as the Gazi Husrev-beg medresa and mosque. The building which houses the institute is built alongside the Gazi Husrev-beg bath house (hamam) which was restored by and remains in the care of the institute. Because of its central location and placement on one of Sarajevo’s main streets, it is easy to reach via city or commercial bus (31A), tram (Line 3) or on foot from anywhere within the city limits. However, cabs are affordable for most transportation budgets and the plethora of private companies (residents will recommend private companies due to their accountability and fair practices: Crveni Taxi, Kale Taxi, Samir & Emir Taxi, Holland Co., amongst others) make its location very expedient and relatively affordable to reach.

The institute does not have a cafeteria or a café, but the entrance floor does have an automated coffee machine which produces anything from cappuccinos to tea. Numerous cafes (some with coffee-to-go, which is unusual in Bosnia), bakeries, pizzerias and restaurants surround the Institute, so researchers have their pick and will have no issues tailoring their dietary needs to their budgets. One exclusively vegetarian and vegan restaurant is within short walking distance of the institute, but most bakeries, restaurants and sandwich shops will offer meatless options. The institute is also a thirty meter walk from a large local market where researchers can find fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as other shopping.

 

The lobby of the Bosniak Institute
The lobby of the Bosniak Institute

Miscellaneous

The institute takes a holistic approach to achieving its mission of preserving, promoting and developing the study of Bosnia and Herzegovina, former Yugoslavia and the Balkans. It is simultaneously a place of research, offering a library and an archive, and a museum in its own right. It also often coordinates and hosts academic conferences, cultural events and variously-themed seminars.  Information on current and upcoming events and exhibitions can be found at the front desk. The institute also publishes and co-publishes various books and periodicals, and a list of these publications may be found on its website. Lastly, it provides scholarships to university and graduate students in various fields from Bosnian universities.

The institute has its own galleries which house over 1,500 works of regional origin from the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. As the posters throughout the institute boast, new gallery exhibitions are organized regularly and are open to all. As an integral part of the institute, the Gazi Husrev-beg bath house (hamam) is also used as an art gallery and for various exhibitions on the cultural heritage of Bosnia and Herzegovina and is open for visitation by researchers as well as the general public. Alongside the on-going process of digitalization, the Institute has partnered with the Elektrotehnicki Fakultet (University of Sarajevo’s College of Electrical Engineering) to begin a multimedia project of digital preservation and reconstruction of various cultural artifacts which can be accessed through the Institute’s website (see Resources and Links).

 

Contact information

Mula Mustafa Bašeskije 21

71000 Sarajevo

Bosna i Hercegovina

Tel: (011) 387 33 279 800

Fax: (011) 387 33 279 777

Amina Rizvanbegović Džuvić, Mr., Director

biblioteka@bosnjackiinstitut.ba

info@bosnjackiinstitut.ba

www.bosnjackiinstitut.ba

 

 

Resources and Links

On-line library catalog

Manuscript collection catalog (PDF)

Published catalog: Nametak, Fehim and Salih Trako. Katalog Arapskih, Perzijskih, Turskih i Bosanskih Rukopisa iz Zbirke Bošnjačkog Instituta. Sarajevo and Zürich: Bošnjački institute, 2003.

Cartographic collection catalog PDF:

Multimedia project

 

25 September 2014

Sanja Kadrić is a doctoral candidate at Ohio State University working on the history of the Ottoman Empire in the Balkans. Specifically, she studies the Ottoman institution of the devşirme, a levy of young men trained and educated as elite military and bureaucratic servants. 

 

Citation Information

Sanja Kadrić, “Bosniak Institute – Foundation Adil Zulfikarpasic” HAZINE, 25 Sep 2014, https://hazine.info/bosniak-institute/

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Archivo General de Simancas

Written by Claire Gilbert

The Archivo General de Simancas (AGS) is the primary central archive of the Hispanic Monarchy for documents from the sixteenth to eighteenth centuries, although it also holds documents dating from the medieval period. It is located in the fifteenth-century castle of Simancas in a small village of the same name, ten kilometers from Valladolid. It is a valuable repository not only for the study of early modern Iberian empires, but also for North Africa and the Mediterranean.

Simancas Castle
Simancas Castle

History

The history of the AGS has its precedents in the consolidation of the royal archival depository in the first part of the sixteenth century, first on the orders of Ferdinand II of Aragon and then under his grandson Charles V in the 1540s. Charles’s son, Philip II, made the founding of a permanent physical repository of state documents a priority, not long after founding a permanent capital in Madrid and the royal library in El Escorial (which included a collection of Arabic texts). The site was renovated throughout the sixteenth century in order to transform it from a state prison to the royal state archive, and for several decades the two functions coexisted. In 1599 the military head of the prison-fortress was permanently replaced with the head archivist. All documents pertaining to the business of the Hispanic monarchy were thereafter deposited and preserved in the archival fortress, where historians requested special permission to consult them. The archive was partially relocated during the War of Spanish Succession (1701-1714), but the documents were subsequently returned to Simancas. In the eighteenth century most documents pertaining to Spanish possessions in and trade with the Americas were moved from Simancas to the Archivo General de las Indias in Seville. During the Peninsular War and Napoleonic occupation (1807-1814), many state papers from Simancas were captured and transported to France, including many papers relating to Spanish enterprises in North Africa, although almost all have since been returned. While most documents pertaining directly to royal administration remained in Simancas, other state documents (including those pertaining to the Inquisition, which confiscated Arabic documents) began to be deposited in or were transferred to the Archivo Histórico Nacional in Madrid. Today the AGS is part of a modern network of Spanish state archives, run by the Ministerio de Educación, Cultura, y Deporte (Ministry of Education, Culture, and Sport, MECD), formerly Ministerio de Cultura. This network also includes the Archivo Histórico Nacional, the Archivo de la Corona de Aragón and the Archivo General de Indias, among several others. A complete list may be found on the MECD website.

Collection:

The AGS houses many documents related to the history of diplomatic and commercial relations between the Hispanic Monarchy and different Muslim powers and communities. Most documents are in Spanish, Italian, and other European languages, but there are documents in Arabic and Ottoman Turkish, and possibly in Persian —as part of the Habsburg-Safavid diplomatic correspondence—as well as translations from those languages into Spanish or Italian. These are likely to be found interpolated with diplomatic correspondence and reports. After the eighteenth century, complementary collections concerning diplomatic relations with the Ottoman Empire were to be found in the Archivo del Ministerio de Asuntos Exteriores (AMAE) in Madrid. The AMAE was closed last year, and although the documents have been transferred to the Archivo Histórico Nacional in Madrid and the Archivo General de la Administración in Alcalá de Henares, the AMAE collections are not currently accessible for researchers. Arabic documents produced in or sent to Valencia and Catalunya are more likely to be found in the rich Arabic collections of the Archivo de la Corona de Aragón in Barcelona, where they may be accessed, in part, online via PARES.

The holdings of Simancas, which are vast, are divided into twenty-eight broad collections, within which there are many subdivisions. Collections of particular interest for scholars of North Africa, the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and Islamic Spain are Patronato Real, Secretarías del Consejo de Estado, Secretarías de los Consejos de Flandes, Italia y Portugal, and Guerra y Marina, although there are documents relating to Islamic Spain, North Africa, and the Mediterranean to be found throughout the archive. The bulk of Patronato Real documents, including treaties between Castile and Nasrid Granada dating from 1406, are digitized and available online at PARES. The other collections must be consulted at Simancas. The most common method of cataloging across the collections is by individual name, place name, and date range, so scholars will want to formulate their research questions in this particular archive following these kinds of keywords through the different collections. There is no standard catalog across the archive, although the online database (PARES) is a good place to start and can support keyword searches other than name, place, and date. The online search is useful if you are not at Simancas but it can only take you so far. The real map to the holdings is to be found in the paper catalogs in the AGS reading rooms, which correspond to specific collections and which are quite heterogeneous in organization and layout.

simancas 1
An interior hall in Simancas archive

The AGS also holds a rich collection of maps and drawings, including of sites in North Africa. The entire maps and drawing collection (Mapas, Planos y Dibujos) has been digitized. More information about the collection and how to consult it can be found here:

The Research Experience:

Researchers can bring only pencils, laptops, and half sheets of paper (provided) into the reading room.  All other belongings are left in lockers in the break room. There are spaces for at least twenty researchers in the reading room, with additional space in a neighboring room, and it is rarely full, except in the summer months.

Since 2013, document requests are now made from one of two computer terminals in the reading room, as part of a now standard practice across state archives. You use the username and password that are issued to you with your research ID (carné de investigador). Document requests are fulfilled as they are received, and it usually takes about 15-20 minutes for the documents to be brought to the reading room. A researcher may request three legajos at a time and there is a limit of 10 legajos per day.

There is an active program of digitization across the Spanish state archives, including Simancas. However, by far the bulk of the materials remain available in manuscript format only. There is no single catalog of the AGS, although the Simancas holdings are partially described online as part of the main archive bibliographic database, PARES. Some of the documentary collections have published catalogs, which may be available in university libraries. The entire catalog collection may only be consulted completely in the Simancas reading rooms. Most catalogs are available for consultation on the reading-room shelves. Some of the collections still rely on seventeenth-century catalogs, which must be requested from the archivist.

The archivists at the AGS provide outstanding research help and can help guide researchers to the right collections and catalogs based on their topics and questions. The best place to start for any researcher is with a copy of the guide, Archivo General de Simancas: Guía del investigador (1962), sadly out of print but available in many university libraries and in several well-worn copies in the AGS reading room. This guide gives a detailed overview of the collections, their subdivisions, and the date ranges in each. The guide is not a substitute for the catalogs, but is an important first step to understand the possible research directions one may take in the AGS.

The AGS also houses a respectable research library collection with books and articles related to early modern Spanish history and in particular related to research topics that may be done from Simancas. The library catalog can be found here. Users should specify “Biblioteca: Archivo General de Simancas.” Researchers can request books to be delivered to the reading room, and this can be a valuable compliment to manuscript research. There are also a range of dictionaries on the shelves that researchers may use as they wish.

The archive staff is kind, professional, and thoroughly knowledgeable about the collection. New researchers will have a chance to speak with the Jefa de sala  (Head of the Reading Room), who will help orient you in the catalogs and give guidance about which collections to search based on your research topic. Spanish is the primary language of communication, and is recommended, although the archivists are scholars themselves and thus possess a range of fluency in other languages. The researchers are also an international group, so for those researchers who do not speak Spanish, it may be possible to find someone to help translate in a pinch. The most prudent strategy would be to arrive with a version of your primary research topic in Spanish, although there will likely be a multilingual and friendly group in the reading room who can help facilitate communication.

Last Will and Testament of Queen Isabella, from the Simancas Archive
Last Will and Testament of Queen Isabella, from the Simancas Archive

Reproductions:

Reproductions are available on CD or in paper, and the format depends on the collection. Some collections have not been digitized, and are only currently available in paper copies. Other collections have been digitized and are only available in digital copies on CD. Prices vary but are reasonable (e.g., 0.15 Euros/page for a black and white A4), and there is a small cost for the CD if digital copies are requested. There are different reproduction-request forms for either digital or paper copies, and both are available in the reading room. It is best to consult one of the archivists or technicians about which form to use since they have an immediate sense of whether a document is available for digital or paper reproduction. Digital reproductions are made much more quickly than the paper copies, for obvious reasons. Because the archive is so well used, the wait for paper reproductions can take between a few weeks to a few months, but the staff does its best to complete reproduction orders as quickly as their resources allow. Reproductions can be sent internationally for the cost of postage and it might be possible to request them from abroad as well.

Access:

The AGS is open Monday through Friday from 8:15 until 14:30 only. In practice, the archivists begin to collect materials by 14:15, meaning that research ends at that time. The Valladolid-Simancas bus arrives around 8:30, meaning that researchers who stay in the village of Simancas have the advantage of an extra half-hour in the archive. There are no long-term closures, and the AGS remains open in August, when some Spanish libraries and archives close. Holidays fall throughout the year, however, and a list of holiday closures (días festivos) is available on the main archive web page.

Entrance to the AGS and any Spanish state archive is open to all. However, a recent change in policy means that you do need to apply for a research ID (carné de investigador) when you arrive, which is applicable at all state archives. If you already have an ID from another state archive, you simply present it at the AGS. In Simancas, as in any of the state archives, obtaining a research ID requires a passport and a short interview, which can best be facilitated if you have a letter of affiliation on hand. It is not a difficult process, but it is important to bring the required materials and be able to explain briefly your interest in the collections. If you are not Spanish, you must bring your passport to the archive each day in order to gain access to the site.

The archive also houses a small museum and exhibition space, which is open in the morning and afternoon, including Saturdays (the archive is not open on Saturdays). Tourists may visit on weekdays from 10:00-14:00 and 17:00-19:00 and Saturdays from 11:00-14:00 and 17:00-19:00.  See the website for more information about guided tours.

Transportation and Food:

Simancas is not far from Valladolid, which serves as the main base for researchers who are not staying in the village. Transportation to and from the archive can be complicated for the uninitiated. If you do not have your own car, you must use the medium-distance bus service, which departs from the Valladolid Bus Station, and the fare is just over a Euro each way (though prices may change). Researchers based in Madrid should take the Alvia train from the Chamartín train station (an early train allows you to catch the 10:00 bus to Simancas, but verify current transportation schedules), or the ALSA bus from either the Moncloa or South Bus Stations. There is also a bus that goes straight from the Barajas International Airport just outside Madrid to Valladolid. Once in Valladolid, the train and bus stations are about a 15-minute walk from one another. The Simancas bus (La Regional) leaves from one of the central bays, and you may buy your ticket from the window inside or from the bus driver. There has been in the past a bono-card which allows you to purchase ten journeys for a slightly cheaper fare. The bus leaves Valladolid at 8:00, but then not again until 10:00, (especially important for researchers coming from Madrid who need to coordinate train schedules). Subsequently the bus leaves every hour. The bus returns from Simancas to Valladolid around 14:15 and 15:15, but the next bus back to Valladolid is not until 17:15. If you miss the 14:15 bus, you should stay and have lunch in the village. An online bus schedule can be found here.

There are several bars and restaurants in Simancas, in addition to a coffee and snack machine in the archive break room. Researchers are generally very friendly and sociable, and will gather for a coffee break at the machine or one of the bars around 11:00, and/or for lunch once the archive closes.

Miscellaneous:

The archive runs small temporary exhibitions based on its collections, which are uniformly excellent and certainly worth visiting. There is no charge associated with visiting the exhibition. Overall, Simancas is an exceptional place to do research, given the richness of the collections, the kindness and professionalism of the staff, and the pleasant reading room and efficient document delivery.

Contact information:

Telephone:

(34) 983 590 003

Address:

Calle Miravete, 8

47130 Simancas (Valladolid)

SPAIN

Website and Email:

http://www.mcu.es/archivos/MC/AGS/

ags@mcu.es

Resources and Links:

The “Guide” to Simancas, a thorough though not detailed overview of the collections, their contents, histories, date ranges and shelfmarks: Angel de la Plaza Bores, Archivo General de Simancas: Guía del Investigador, Valladolid: Dirección General de Archivos y Bibliotecas, 1962.

A recent collection of scholarly essays about the AGS and the work which has been done using its collections: Alberto Marcos Martín (ed.), Hacer historia desde Simancas, Valladolid: Junta de Castilla y León, 2011.

________________________________________________________________

Claire Gilbert is a doctoral candidate in the Department of History at UCLA working on translators between Spain and Morocco in the sixteenth century.

Cite this: Claire Gilbert, “Simancas”, HAZINE, https://hazine.info/2014/03/13/simancas/, 13 Mar 2014

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Chester Beatty Library

Written by Melis Taner

The Chester Beatty Library (Leabharlann Chester Beatty) contains Oriental and Western books and manuscripts bequeathed by the private collector Sir Alfred Chester Beatty (1875-1968).  Located on the grounds of Dublin Castle, the library houses one of the finest manuscript collections of Islamic and East Asian material in Europe and is especially well known for its illustrated manuscripts.6144718-Chester_Beatty_Library_Dublin

History

Sir Chester Beatty was a mining magnate who at an early age began to collect stamps and Chinese snuff bottles. Over time he began to collect European and Persian manuscripts. Following a trip in 1914 to Egypt, he became interested in Arabic materials and acquired several copies of the Quran. His collection grew and came to include Japanese and Chinese paintings after a trip to Asia in 1917. Sir Chester Beatty moved to Ireland in 1950 and there he built a library. His personal collection was bequeathed to the public after his death in 1968. The collection boasts manuscripts, single folios, scrolls, textiles and decorative objects from East Asia, Armenia and Western Europe in addition to over 4,400 Islamic manuscripts. The library’s aim is to preserve and display rare materials belonging to the collection of Sir Chester Beatty and to make them available to the public.

Chester Beatty, collector
Chester Beatty, collector

Collection

The Islamic manuscripts in the collection range in production date from the eighth century to the twentieth century. The majority of the collection is made of some 2,650 Arabic manuscripts, most of which are unillustrated and range in topic from history, religion, jurisprudence to astronomy and medicine. There are 260 Qurans in the collection, which boasts an illuminated Quran copied in Baghdad in 1001 by the famed calligrapher Ibn al-Bawwab. In addition, there is a large collection of Mughal manuscripts and paintings, produced during the reigns of Akbar, Jahangir and Shah Jahan. The smaller collection of over 300 Persian manuscripts represents fine examples of illustrated literary works, including a luxurious copy of the Gulistan of Saʿdi (MS 10) made for the Timurid ruler Baysunghur. The collection of Turkish manuscripts comprises the smallest group among the Islamic materials and consists of around 160 manuscripts in Ottoman Turkish and Chaghatay. While a small collection in general, the quality of material preserved is very fine in terms of condition and decoration, and is a great resource for art historians in particular.

Funeral of Suleyman
The procession for Sultan Suleyman’s death, from the collection of the Chester Beatty Library

An e-book version of the guide to the collections is available for download on iTunes for $12.99. Printed catalogs of the Islamic collections are available for study in the reading room. The main sources for the field of Islamic history and art are the catalogs of Turkish and Persian manuscripts by Vladimir Minorsky and A. J. Arberry. Arberry’s eight-volume catalog of the Arabic collections are available electronically on the library’s website. Thomas Arnold produced a catalog of the collection’s Indian manuscripts. For the collection of Qurans, one can consult A. J. Arberry’s handlist of Qurans held at the Chester Beatty Library (please see below for references to all of catalogs cited here). While unpublished, researchers may also consult a folder that includes recent acquisitions.

Vladimir Minorsky’s 1958 catalog of the Turkish manuscripts and miniatures is organized with an eye to the style of painting as well as the language of the text. Thus, the illuminated Persian Mathnawi of Rumi is included in the catalog of Turkish manuscripts on account of the style of its illumination. On the other hand, a manuscript made for a Turcoman ruler, with a text in a Turcoman dialect, and paintings that are closer to Persian art than Turkish art, has also been included in this catalog on account of its language. The Turkish collection includes early works such as the Sulaymannama (T.406) composed and transcribed for Bayezid II (not to be confused with the late sixteenth-century History of Sultan Sulayman (Tetimme-i Ahval-i Sultan Suleyman, T.413), a late fifteenth-century deluxe copy of the Divan of Hidayat (T.401), and the fourth part of the late sixteenth-century Siyer-i Nebi (T.419). In addition, there are several manuscripts that contain maps and paintings of holy places, astrological manuscripts, as well as single folios and albums. There are several eighteenth-century copies of Dalail al-Khayrat; a late eighteenth-century illustrated account of El-Hacc Muhammed Edib Efendi b. Muhammed Derviş’s pilgrimage between 1779 and 1780. Along with illustrated and illuminated manuscripts, there are also several waqfnamas, such as that of Davud Ağa, former chief eunuch, or that of the princess Fatima Sultan, daughter of Murad III.

Minorsky’s catalogs are quite accurate and provide a detailed description of the manuscripts, including information about the author, codex size, folio number, binding, script, the name of the scribe, copy date, and provenance, whenever possible. When dealing with anthologies and albums, Minorsky provides information on individual sections and their folio numbers. The catalogs also include an index of personal names, places and tribes, as well as a selection of images. In addition to these catalogs there are dictionaries and reference materials relating to book collecting, bookbinding, calligraphy, Islamic art, East Asian art, Christianity and Buddhism in the reading room.

In 2011 the Chester Beatty Library launched an online and interactive Islamic Seals Database of seal impressions found in the library’s collection of Arabic manuscripts, set up as part of the library’s Arabic Manuscripts Project. The project is still in progress and will include images of seals from the library’s Islamic collection. The researcher or the visitor to the site may contribute by adding information, thus enlarging the database.

Research Experience

The collection is not digitized but researchers may view the originals in the reading room. The reading room operates on an appointment basis so it is most often quite empty and very pleasant to work in, with a large desk and cradles provided for manuscript support. As the reading room works on an appointment basis, the manuscripts are already on reserve for the researcher when he or she arrives. Should the researcher wish to see other manuscripts, they are brought out a few minutes after the request. There is no need to fill out any forms. In the reading room there are two librarians on duty and they have to be present while the researcher views the material. Should one or both librarians have to leave, a guard takes their place. In general, the researcher is not required to use gloves but cradles are suggested when necessary.

Access

Aurangzeb hunting nilgai
Aurangzeb hunting, one of the illustrated miniatures from the collection of the Chester Beatty Library

The reading room is on the second floor of the library and is open from 10:00 to 13:00, and 14:15 to 17:00 Monday to Friday. The library is closed between December 24 and 26, as well as New Year’s Day, Good Friday, and any public holiday that falls on a Monday. From October to the end of April it is also closed on Mondays. It is important to contact the curator, Dr. Elaine Wright, well in advance as the reading room works on an appointment basis. While there is some flexibility in scheduling further sessions, it is best if the researcher contacts the curator for each session in advance in order to avoid any problem that may arise if the reading room is used for another event. One may contact the curator via e-mail with a description of one’s research and background as well as at least some of the manuscripts he or she would like to see. Once the researcher has an appointment through correspondence with the curator, it is quite easy to access the reading room. The guards at the entrance to the library will point the researcher in the right direction. There are lockers at the entrance (which require a 1 euro deposit), where one can leave personal belongings. There is no internet access in the reading room. The library is wheelchair friendly but it must be noted that currently there are problems with the lift service.

Reproductions

Photography is not allowed but digital reproductions for publication purposes are available on request. Reproductions for publication tend to be quite pricey at 17 euros per image. For a new photograph, it is 50 euros. There is also a handling fee of 21 euros if the images or microfilms are sent to the address. However, the curator is kind enough to provide lower quality images for free (up to 20 images) for study purposes only, if they are readily available.

Transportation and Food

The library is located very centrally, within Dublin Castle, close to Dame Street and Christchurch Cathedral. Dublin is quite small and walkable but bus routes are also available (lines 13, 40, 123, 27, 77a and 150). As the reading room closes for lunch, one may need to pack a lunch or go to one of the many nearby restaurants and cafes. The Silk Road Café, located within the library/museum, provides Middle Eastern and Irish food and has a good selection of vegetarian dishes.  There are plenty of options nearby as well, from fish and chips stands to cafes, especially on Dame Street. The library also regularly holds exhibitions, which make for pleasant lunchtime perusing. The entrance to the library and museum is free. While the collection is quite small in comparison to some other manuscript libraries, the quality of materials is very high and it is a great place to work with the very obliging librarians and curators.

Contact information
Chester Beatty Library
Dublin Caste, Dublin 2
Phone: (+353 1) 407 07 50

Chester Beatty Signage
Chester Beatty Signage

Resources and Catalogs
Chester Beatty Library main site

Islamic Seals Database

Arberry, A.J. The Chester Beatty Library: A Catalogue of the Persian Manuscripts and Miniatures. V.Minorsky. Dublin: Hodges Figgis & Co. Ltd. 1959-1962.

Arberry, A.J. The Koran Illuminated: A Handlist of the Korans in the Chester Beatty Library. Dublin: Hodges Figgis & Co. Ltd. 1967.

Arberry, A.J. The Chester Beatty Library, A Handlist of the Arabic Manuscripts, Dublin, 1955-64. Volume 1, Ar 3000-3250.Volume 2, Ar 3251-3500. Volume 3, Ar 3501-3750. Volume 4, Ar 3751-4000. Volume 5, Ar 4001-4500. Volume 6, Ar 4501-5000. Volume 7, Ar 5001-5500. Volume 8, Indices.

V. Minorsky. The Chester Beatty Library: A Catalogue of the Turkish Manuscripts and Miniatures. Dublin: Hodges Figgis & Co. Ltd. 1958.

Wilkinson, J.V.S.. The Library of A. Chester Beatty, a Catalogue of the Indian Miniatures. London: Oxford University Press, 1936.

__________________________________________________________________

Melis Taner is a doctoral candidate in the History of Art at Harvard University

Cite this: Melis Taner, “Chester Beatty Library,” HAZINE, 21 Feb 2014, https://hazine.info/2014/02/21/chester-beatty-library/

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Oriental Collections at Leiden University

Written by Aslıhan Gürbüzel

The rich Oriental collections of the Leiden University contain some 6,000 Middle Eastern manuscripts, about 120,000 rare books printed before 1950, and photographs of interest to the scholars of the region. The collection is located at the Special Collections section of the main library of the university at Leiden, the Netherlands.

This print depicting Leiden University Library in 1610 is rather well known as a representation of an early modern scholarly library at work. The cabinet on the right is for Scaliger’s Oriental acquisitions (and reads so in better and larger reproductions of the print), displayed separately with a sense of institutional pride for housing such rare and exotic books.
This print depicting Leiden University Library in 1610 is rather well known as a representation of an early modern scholarly library at work. The cabinet on the right is for Scaliger’s Oriental acquisitions (and reads so in better and larger reproductions of the print), displayed separately with a sense of institutional pride for housing such rare and exotic books.

History

The study of Arabic at Leiden goes back to the late sixteenth century, when the university was established. The major figure of the earliest generation is Joseph Scaliger (1540-1609), the versatile and esteemed scholar who, through his fondness of collecting rare books, left a valuable collection behind that formed the nucleus of the Oriental Collection.  Academic study of Arabic was soon to follow.  The first scholar of Arabic was Franciscus Raphelengius (d. 1597), followed by two prominent scholars of the language: Thomas Erpenius (d. 1667), who wrote a grammar of Arabic and Jacobus Golius (d. 1667), who wrote an Arabic-Latin dictionary. The grammar book and dictionary of Erpenius and Golius remained widely read all over Europe up until the nineteenth century. The main driving force behind the pursuit of Semitic and Middle Eastern studies from this early period on was the study of the Bible and exegesis.

In addition to Arabic, Persian and Turkish were soon to become preferred languages of study due to Dutch political and economic interests in the Ottoman Empire, hence broadening the scope of the pursuit of knowledge of the Orient. In the second half of the nineteenth century, Arabic and Islamic studies were to be transformed by merging with the study of Indonesian languages and culture, a rapidly burgeoning field due to the colonial engagements of the Netherlands in the area.

Collection

Leiden’s large Oriental collection is divided into five sub-sections. The Hebraica, Judaica and Semitics collection consists of manuscripts and rare prints mainly in Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac, but also the languages of Ethiopia, Old South Arabic, Coptic and Armenian. The South and Central Asian Collections comprise material in Sanskrit, Tibetan and Lepcha. This collection is remarkably rich in maps and visual material. The South and Southeast Asian Collections with its rich textual and visual Malay-Indonesian collection forms an especially strong component of the entire Oriental collection. Although the acquisition of manuscripts for this collection goes back to the sixteenth century, the real explosion took place in the second half of the nineteenth century, thanks to the needs of the colonial rule in the Netherland East Indies. The Japanese and Chinese collections, similarly, owes its strongest part, the Tokugawa era manuscripts and blockprints, to Dutch explorations on the Pacific ocean: the Dutch were the only European community permitted to reside on Japanese territory, though restrained to one island, the island of Deshima on Nagasaki Bay.

The Middle Eastern Collection houses the largest acquisition of the entire Oriental collections. This is the collection of 1,000 manuscripts inherited from Levinus Warner (d.1665), after whom the collection is sometimes referred to as Legatum Warnerianum, “Warner’s Bequest”.  Levinus Warner started out as a student of oriental languages at Leiden. He then moved to Istanbul and lived there from 1645 until the end of his life, first as secretary and translator to a trading Dutch resident, Nicolaas Ghisbrechti, and as a diplomat afterwards. From the beginning all through his years of consular work, he never lost his bookish interests and formed a large personal collection including works on poetry, history, theology, medicine, and folk literature. His collection brings together material in Arabic, Persian, and Turkish, oftentimes annotated in Latin.  A remarkable acquisition of his is the private library of Haji Khalifa (Katib Çelebi), obtained through a local friend at an auction after the Ottoman scholar’s death in 1657.  The Leiden collection currently holds manuscripts from the collection of Warner as well as his extensive personal notes, which touch upon Turkish proverbs, the intricacies of Persian poetry, daily events in Istanbul and many other topics. These notes are mostly in Latin, though occasional snippets are to be found in Turkish or Arabic.

The acquisitions of the library continued throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, mostly through the library’s purchases of individual collections or the bequests of individual benefactors. One remarkable example is the bequest of the Dutch businessman and diplomat A.P.H. Hotz (1855-1930). The bibliophile’s collection was obtained in 1934 and includes many travel books and early photographs, as well as well-preserved early modern manuscripts.  Mention should also be made of the large collection that was bought in the 1960s, which presumably belonged to Sultan Murad V (1840-1904) and his heirs.

The Leiden University library on Witte Singel.
The Leiden University library on Witte Singel.

Research Experience

The catalog of special collections is helpful for navigating the oriental collection, although it is far from complete. The online catalog should not be ignored, since it will yield results likely not covered in the print catalogs. For best results, researchers should use the online catalog in consultation with the following printed catalogs.

Jan Schmidt’s three volume Catalog of Turkish Manuscripts is a gem of thorough scholarship, containing detailed information on each manuscript included. For works in Arabic, Petrus Voorhoeve’s Handlist of Arabic Manuscripts in the Library of the University of Leiden and Other Collections in the Netherlands is still indispensable. For Persian works, the researcher should refer to J.J. Witkam’s catalog of Persian manuscripts which is available in the reading room. Professor Witkam’s online cataloging project lists in digital format the library’s holdings acquired not only from the Middle East, but also from the South Asia and Southeast Asia, without regional division.

As the library has only recently begun to digitize its collection, only a small percentage of manuscripts have been digitized. In most cases, the reader will work with the original manuscript or print. The manuscripts and rare printed books are to be studied within the Special Collections reading room, using the necessary props. The reading room personnel are helpful, friendly, and knowledgeable. They all speak fluent English.

The collection is impressively user friendly. The reader places their requests online. The manuscripts then become available for pick-up within half an hour before 16:00, and the next morning if the request is placed after 16:00. Although there are no limits to the number of requests made, the reader is allowed to examine no more than two manuscripts at a time. This latter limitation does not apply to printed works.

Access

The Special Collections is open weekdays, 9.00 to 17.30 during the term and 9.00 am to 17.00 during the summer recess. To work at the collections, the reader must acquire a Leiden University guest card. The card can be acquired at the reception desk of the library in person, and is issued immediately. To acquire the card, the reader’s passport is required together with a fee of 30 Euros. Special discounts apply to the fee if the reader is a Dutch citizen or affiliated with a university in the Netherlands.

An important opportunity to keep in mind is the fellowships offered through the Scaliger Institute. The institute grants many research fellowships, in connection with the Brill and The Elsevier publishing houses, to researchers who want to explore the library’s holdings. For information, please visit the institute’s website.

Reproductions

The reader is allowed to photograph any material for free. For the purpose of use in publications, formal copies should be ordered through the library’s website. Online requests in this manner also stand as a viable option for readers who cannot visit the collection in person. Bear in mind that if the work has not been digitized yet, this process may take up to four weeks. The cost of a digital copy is 1 Euro per page.

Transportation, food, and other facilities

The library is located on Witte Singel, the main area where humanities buildings are located. It is a fifteen minute walk from Leiden’s Central Station, the hub of Leiden’s transportation. In terms of accommodation, finding short-term sublets in Leiden is easy during the summer months yet might prove difficult during the term. The Hague, which is a fifteen minute train ride away, is the next best option.

The library has a café which provides tosti (toasted sandwich, the staple lunch), baked goods and drinks. Richer lunch options are available, such as at the cafeteria of the Lipsius building right across the canal. The prices are reasonable in both cafes.

Contact Information

University Library (Main library and Humanities)

Witte Singel 27

2311 BG  Leiden
Special Collections Reading Room:
Tel: 071 – 5272857
email: specialcollections@library.leidenuniv.nl

Resources and Links

The website of the Special Collections department

Online Catalog, with links for ordering digital images

Aslıhan Gürbüzel is a doctoral candidate at Harvard University working on the cultural and intellectual history of the early modern Ottoman Empire, currently focusing on Sufism in seventeenth-century Istanbul.

Cite this, Aslıhan Gürbüzel, “Leiden Rare Books Library,” HAZİNE, https://hazine.info/2013/12/13/oriental-collections-at-leiden-university/, 13 December 2013.

 

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Open-access Digitized Archival Materials

Last week HAZİNE posted a list of libraries with open-access digitized manuscripts. This week we would like to present a list of institutions and websites with freely accessible archival material. As with the manuscript list, we will continue to add and modify this page.

Screenshot of Genizah document at Cambridge University Digital Library.
Screenshot of Genizah document at Cambridge University Digital Library.

Asnad.org

Asnad.org at Philips-Üniversität Marburg  has collated and presented in digital format more than 1,000 Persian documents related to the history of Persian lands between the ninth and nineteenth centuries. Most of these documents are reproductions of documents published in academic publications. In addition to the images of the documents, the site offers full bibliographic information on the document’s location and previous citation in scholarly volumes.

The Cairo Genizah (Cambridge University)

Cambridge University’s Taylor-Schechter Cairo Genizah Collection, along with the Mosseri Genizah Collection are available through the university’s library website. The Cairo Genizah, in addition to preserving a vast collection of medieval Jewish manuscripts, contains thousands of documents relevant to the social and economic history of the Mediterranean and the Middle East from the tenth to thirteenth century. In addition to the large archive digitized at Cambridge, the Bodleian Library at Oxford, the John Rylands Library in Manchester, and the Jewish Theological Seminary of America also have significant portions of the Cairo Genizah.

The General State Archives (Greece)

The General State Archives has an extensive online catalog with a number of documents digitized and freely available for viewing. The archive contains a number of Ottoman era court registers and cadastral surveys in addition to all of the archival material accumulated since the foundation of the Kingdom of Greece.

The National Archives (United Kingdom)

There are a number of collections at the National Archives which are digitized and available for download. Several of these collections may be of interest to scholars of the Middle East, especially the correspondence of the Arab Bureau between 1911 and 1920 (FO 882).

The National Archives (United States)

Through Access Archival Databases, the National Archives has made available online transcriptions of a number of collections, some of which will be of interest to historians of post-1945 Middle East. For instance, see the Central Foreign Policy Files which include State Department electronic telegrams between 1 January 1973 and 31 December 1976.

The Venetian State Archives

The Venetian archives have made freely available online one of its most important collections of Ottoman documents, Miscellanea documenti turchi. For background on this collection, as well as details on how to navigate the archive’s site, see HAZİNE’s review.

29 October 2013

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Topkapı Palace Museum

Topkapı Palace Museum: Archive and Library

The Archive and Library of the Topkapı Palace Museum (Topkapı Sarayı Müzesi) contain some of the most important documents and manuscripts pertaining to Ottoman and Islamic history. The Library (TSMK) and Archive (TSMA) are both located on the grounds of Topkapı Palace in the Sultanahmet district of Istanbul.

Bağdat Pavilion, the original home of the Bağdat collection of the Topkapı Library.
Bağdat Pavilion, the original home of the Bağdat collection of the Topkapı Library.

History

Since the establishment of the palace in the fifteenth century, archival records and books have always been stored on the palace grounds. The initial storage of these materials varied over time until the establishment of the Topkapı Palace Museum in 1924. Since then, the archival materials and books of the palace have been gathered and stored in two locations on the palace grounds.

The palace archive preserves some of the oldest and most important archival records concerning the history of the Ottoman dynasty. In the earliest centuries of the dynasty’s existence, the palace (dergah-i padişahi) functioned as a movable institution constituted around the sovereign. As such, the palace’s property (including written records) often travelled with the sultan. With the establishment of Topkapı Palace at the end of the fifteenth century, the palace as institution began to assume a greater sedentary character and the records of the institution, as maintained by the Imperial Treasury (Hizane-i ‘Amire) were permanently stored on the palace’s grounds. In subsequent centuries the vast majority of these archival records were transferred to various offices of state outside of the palace. The process accelerated in the eighteenth century, so that by the time of the mid nineteenth-century establishment of a state archive (Hazine-yi Evrak), the majority of archival material was located offsite. It is this material which constitutes the historical core collections of the Ottoman Archives of the Prime Minister’s Office (Başbakanlık Osmanlı Arşivi). Today it is often difficult to discern why the material that remained at Topkapı was never transferred to various offices of state in the eighteenth century. One possible explanation is to consider the Topkapı Palace archive as the family archive of the Ottoman dynasty. In many respects this approach makes sense when we consider the large numbers of documents related to members of the ruling family and palace officials. Those records which seem more unrelated to the business of the dynasty may make some sense if we consider the ruling family’s acquisition of its servants’ property upon their death (muhallefat).

The palace’s book collection likely developed along similar lines. From the earliest periods of the dynasty’s history, learned men donated and dedicated their works to the Ottoman sultans. These works were supplemented by acquisitions from conquest and the deaths of the dynasty’s servants (whose books subsequently became the property of the ruling family). Initially these books were stored at a number of locations throughout the palace grounds. In the eighteenth century, Sultan Ahmed III established a library in the interior courtyard of the palace for the benefit of his family and the palace servants. Collection headings such as Bağdat, Revan, and III. Ahmet all refer to the original location of these works in the palace grounds.

With the establishment of Topkapı Palace Museum in 1924, the archival and library collections of the palace were entrusted to the museum. In 1925, the Ağalar Camii of the interior courtyard was converted to the New Library (Yeni Kütüphane) and the books of the various sections of the palace were moved to the new facility. In 1966, the books of the Ahmet III Library were added to the Topkapı Library in Ağalar Camii. Between 2006 and 2013 the library was closed for a number of significant renovations to Ağalar Camii. These included the construction of a new climate-controlled book depot and the restoration of the İznik tiles which decorate the walls of the library’s reading room. In August 2013, the library was re-opened and made accessible for researchers. Currently, the archive remains closed, but its staff assures us that the archive will also open in a short time.

Collections

Archive

The Topkapı collection is an indispensable source for historians concerned with Ottoman history prior to the nineteenth century. With few exceptions, the archival collection of the Topkapı Palace Museum contains the only extant official records of the Ottoman dynasty for the first two hundred years of its existence.

The archive consists of two classifications of documents: registers (defter), which range from a single sheet to several hundred pages, and loose papers (evrak), which include everything from elaborately produced letters from foreign sovereigns to scribbles on scraps of paper produced by low level palace officials. With approximately 153,000 loose papers and 10,775 registers, TSMA is the largest Ottoman archive after the Ottoman Archives of the Prime Minister’s Office (BOA). Researchers should note that the defters of the palace archive are digitally available at BOA.

In 1937 the museum invited the Hungarian historian and archivist Lajos Fekete to survey the palace archive and make recommendations for the collection’s classification. With his recommendations, the museum staff produced a two volume guide to the collection organized alphabetically according to the subject of the document (usually the document’s creator or addressee). Unfortunately this published guide only covered the archive’s collection up through the letter H. Between 1949 and 1951 M. Çağatay Uluçay described the remainder of the collection in five handwritten notebooks which were kept at the archive for researchers’ use. Beginning in 1957 İsmail Hakkı Uzunçarşılı and subsequently Şefi Ülkü Altındağ produced a catalog of the 153,000 loose papers of the archive on small notecards. These notecards and the published and unpublished guides from the first-half of the twentieth century remain the only resources which describe the full extent of the archive’s collection. Since 2006, the archive has been closed to facilitate a number of changes, foremost of which is the development of a completely new and thorough catalog of the archive’s collections. As of autumn 2013, the Archive under the direction of Sevgi Ağca has produced four volumes of a planned fifteen volumes. The volumes have been published and are available at the Archive for consultation.

As the archive of the Ottoman dynasty, the collection provides the best material for researchers concerned with the activities of the royal family, as well as the functioning of the palace and central state administration. The loose papers include all manner of official documents including edicts (ferman), titles of investiture (berat), reports (arıza), and petitions (arzuhal). The majority of the registers include finance records such as salary registers of palace officials, inventories of the Imperial Treasury, and surveys of religious endowments (evkaf) established by one of the royal family members.

Although the majority of the documents are in Ottoman Turkish, the collection also includes a fair amount of material produced in other languages. This is particularly true for the earlier periods in which much of the state correspondence was composed in Persian. The collection even includes an example of an extremely rare edict (yarlığ) in Uyghur-script Eastern Turkish (Chaghatay) composed by order of Sultan Mehmed II in the aftermath of the Ottoman victory over the Aqquyunlu confederation at the Battle of Otlukbeli in 1473.

While the vast majority of the archive’s collection consists of documents produced by the Ottoman state, the archive also includes an exceptionally important collection of documents produced by other Muslim dynasties. The majority of these documents were produced in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries by Iranian dynasties such as the Timurids, the Qaraqoyunlu, the Aqqoyunlu, and the Safavids. In all likelihood these ‘foreign’ archival documents arrived in Istanbul with other spoils of war in the wake of one of the victorious Ottoman campaigns waged against the Aqqoyunlu or Safavid polities.

Library 

The collection of the palace library contains approximately 13,400 manuscripts. The majority of these manuscripts are in Arabic (approximately 8,500), although the library has a sizable collection of manuscripts in Turkish (3,081 including works in Chaghatay and Kipchak), and Persian (904). While the library is not even the largest collection in Istanbul, its holdings are distinguished by many rare and, in some cases, unique manuscripts, including many early copies of important works and a number of autographed manuscripts. Beginning in 1961, Fehmi Edhem Karatay produced a seven-volume catalog of the library’s Arabic, Persian, and Turkish collections organized according to the language and literary genre of each work. In addition to works in these languages, the library also has a sizable uncataloged collection of material in European languages. For those interested in the Greek, Latin, Armenian, and Syriac holdings of the library, we suggest consulting D. Adolf Deissmann’s Forschungen und Funde im Serai (Berlin-Leipzig, 1933).

The majority of the library’s collection consists of works related to Islamic religious sciences along with many works of history, grammar, poetry, belles lettres, and other sciences. Its Arabic works are distinguished by a large number of early copies of the Quran, including a few which were reportedly copied by ‘Uthman bin ‘Affan and ‘Ali bin Abi Talib. The library’s Turkish works include a large number of histories of the Ottoman dynasty, many of which are preserved solely through the library’s copy.

While the library is certainly of great importance to historians and scholars of Islamic studies, the library’s significant collection of finely produced volumes and illustrated manuscripts mark it as one of the great libraries in the world for art historians. Most of the volumes with miniatures were produced in the palace painters’ atelier (nakkaşhane) or in Iran and subsequently acquired by the dynasty. In addition to the illustrated volumes, the library also has an important collection of calligraphy (hat) and other art forms.

Research Experience

Topkapı’s library is a pleasant place to work. The library’s reading room is located in the anteroom of the former Ağalar Camii. The room consists of two large tables at which researchers may examine manuscripts. The reading room has sufficient natural light for reading and is enclosed on four side by walls of beautifully decorated seventeenth-century İznik tiles. As library patrons work in the library after making an appointment (see Accessibility section below for details on this procedure), the reading room is never crowded. Researchers request manuscripts from the library staff by submitting a short request form. Generally the staff make requested manuscripts available within ten minutes of a request. Researchers are asked to wear gloves while examining any of the library’s manuscripts.

The reading room has a complete copy of Karatay’s seven-volume catalog of the collection. The reading room’s copy of the catalog is more accurate than other copies, as it includes a number of marginal notes and corrections which detail the actual location and state of the library’s collection. In addition to these catalogs, the reading room also has a catalog key which converts the collection shelf mark number to Karatay’s catalog accession number. This catalog key is an extremely useful tool for locating references to manuscripts in Karatay’s catalogs. Aside from these materials, the library has no readily accessible reference material.

The only difficult aspect of working at the Topkapı library is negotiating the crowds of tourists on the palace grounds. As the palace is one of the most popular tourist sites in Turkey, researchers must contend with the thousands of tourists who enter the palace every day. When entering the palace grounds at the Gate of Salutation (Bab-i Selam), we advise researchers to head straight to the guard booth at the gate and present themselves as a researcher at the library. The guard will ask you to pick up a visitor’s card (ziyaretçi kartı) from the guided tours ticket sales booth. With this card, researchers may enter the palace grounds without purchasing a ticket.

While the archive is currently closed, researchers may request to purchase digital archival material if they know the archival reference number and the material has already been digitized. Requests for purchase are submitted to the archive’s director and are generally approved and ready for pick up within one week (see Reproduction section below).

The staff of the library and archive are quite friendly and willing to help. Some of the staff speak English, so researchers without Turkish should be able to manage.

Accessibility

Researchers must obtain permission to conduct research at Topkapı from the Museum Directorate. The research request application consists of a request form, a research statement produced by the researcher which describes his or her research and specifies the material at the archive or library the researcher requests to consult, a letter of affiliation with a research institution, and a photocopy of the researcher’s identification (passport or Turkish national id card). The research statement should include 1) a description of the current project on which the applicant is working, 2) mention of the purpose of the study (doctoral dissertation, academic article, etc.), 3) enumeration of the specific works or archival materials to be examined, and 4) the contact information and signature of the applicant. These applications are processed within a few days. The museum offers research permission valid for a single calendar year; each January permission must be renewed with a new application.

The library is open Monday through Friday between 9:00 and 16:00 with a one hour break for lunch between 12:00 and 13:00. After obtaining permission, those who wish to work at the library should make an appointment by telephone or in person. Researchers in wheelchairs will have some difficulty navigating the palace ground and the three steps at the library entry.

Reproduction Requests and Costs

Researchers working in the library may request digital reproductions of material upon submission of a short request form. In general, if these requests are for non-commercial scholarly use, they are quickly approved within one or two days. Reproductions of non-illustrated pages cost 2 TL for foreigners per photographic exposure and half as much for Turkish nationals. Reproductions of illustrated material cost more.

Digital reproductions of archival material may be obtained in a similar manner. As with the library, these reproductions also cost 2 TL per photographic exposure. As the archive is currently closed, researchers must know the defter or evrak reference number of their documents in order for their requests to be processed. After researchers have obtained research authorization, they may request reproductions remotely. Once the museum receives payment via bank transfer, the staff will mail copies of the requested material on CD.

Transportation and Food

The museum is in the very center of Istanbul and easily accessible by tramway. Researchers can disembark at either the Sultanahmet or Gülhane tramway stop and then proceed to the palace on foot. The approach from Sultanahmet is a bit further but is on relatively level ground, whereas the Gülhane approach necessitates a short walk up a hill.

There are few options for food on the grounds of the palace. Konyalı is the only restaurant on the grounds of the palace. It has a beautiful terrace with views of the Bosphorus, but meals here are relatively expensive. Researchers may find many options for lunch outside of the palace, but they will need to re-enter the palace grounds—and contend with the masses of tourists—when they return. We recommend packing a lunch and finding a bench to eat in one of the palace’s gardens.

Contact Information

T.C. Kültür ve Turizm Bakanlığı Topkapı Sarayı Müzesi Müdürlüğü

Sultanahmet, Fatih / İSTANBUL

Tel: +90 212 512 04 80 / Fax: +90 212 528 59 91

Email: topkapisarayimuzesi@kulturturizm.gov.tr

Resources and Links

http://www.topkapisarayi.gov.tr/

The English version of this site only includes tourist information. We recommend that researchers use the Turkish version of the site to learn more about developments at the archive and library.

Written by Christopher Markiewicz

10 October 2013

Cite this: Christopher Markiewicz, “Topkapı Palace Museum: Archive and Library,” HAZİNE, 10 October 2013, https://hazine.info/2013/10/10/topkapiarchiveandlibrary/

 

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Süleymaniye Library

Süleymaniye Library (Süleymaniye Kütüphanesi) is the largest manuscript library in Turkey and preserves one of the world’s most extensive collections of Islamic manuscripts. Since its establishment in 1918, the library’s vast collection of manuscripts has made it one of the most important centers for researchers working on all periods and regions of the Islamic world. The library is located within the Süleymaniye Mosque complex in the Fatih district of Istanbul.

A view of Süleymaniye Camii from the courtyard of the reading room.
A view of Süleymaniye Camii from the courtyard of the reading room.

History

The library is situated in two of the medreses built in the mid-sixteenth century as part of the mosque complex commissioned by Sultan Süleyman and designed by the Ottoman architect Sinan. The libraries of the mosque and medrese have existed since the complex’s establishment, but only in the early twentieth century did they become a public research library. The establishment of the Süleymaniye Umumi Kütüphanesi was an outgrowth of the First World War. Established in 1918, it consolidated the collections of the medrese and mosque along with manuscripts from the provinces that had been transferred to Istanbul for safekeeping for the duration of the war. With the closing of traditional institutions of religious learning in 1924, the library’s collection was supplemented by the considerable holdings of various mosques, Sufi lodges, and medreses in Istanbul. Since that time, the library’s collection has grown through the further consolidation of the manuscript libraries of Turkey and today the library continues to add new works primarily through private donations. Between 2002 and 2011 the library digitized its entire collection of manuscripts, which are now all accessible from computer stations in the reading room, but not online. Today this work continues with respect to the library’s printed works.

Collection

As one of the largest collections of Islamic manuscripts in the world, Süleymaniye Library provides researchers enough material to research for a lifetime. Currently, the collection consists of approximately 100,000 manuscript volumes and 50,000 printed books. It is impossible to describe thematically the extent of the collections, but one can say that they touch heavily upon topics such as law and jurisprudence, belle lettres, morality texts and sermons, sciences such as logic, rhetoric and grammar, as well as a wide array of other bodies of knowledge. In many ways, the books reflect the diverse and varied interests of the generations of scholars who spent their lives in the medreses, libraries, and palaces of Istanbul and beyond. It is a treasure trove not just for Ottomanists, but also for researchers working on all periods of Islamic history both within the Ottoman Empire and beyond. Manuscripts range in copy date from the eleventh century to the twentieth century, with the majority produced in the seventeenth to the early nineteenth centuries. In terms of a rough estimate, we believe that perhaps sixty percent of the manuscripts are in Arabic, thirty percent in Turkish, ten percent in Persian and a smattering of manuscripts in other languages. Süleymaniye Library also holds an extensive collection of printed material in Ottoman Turkish, Arabic, and Persian as well as in European languages. In addition, the private notes and archives of some twentieth-century historians, like Süheyl Ünver, are also kept in the library. Finally, the collection contains significant examples of hat, levha, and ebru.

All of the manuscripts and many of the printed works are digitized. All books are viewed through the library’s computer terminals but one may request special permission in order to view the physical manuscript. Materials are organized according to the original collections to which they belonged, i.e. the mosque, dervish lodge or private library from which they came. The main catalog is electronic and only accessible at the library. However, the researchers can access a partial electronic catalog of Süleymaniye Library’s materials through the Türkiye Kütüphaneleri Veri Tabanı at ISAM. (See our review of ISAM.) Researchers can still consult the earlier card catalog, the Union Catalogue of Manuscripts in Turkey, and photocopies of the nineteenth-century catalogs, both printed and hand-written in rıka script—all available in the library’s reading room. While the electronic catalog is much more efficient, the older catalogs provide different information on the manuscripts often excluded in later catalogs. While such information is usually useful, it is not necessarily more or less reliable than later catalogs. For those who prefer reading in the Arabic alphabet, in 2010 a three-volume catalog in Arabic of the original Süleymaniye collection’s holdings was published. Of course, this Arabic-language catalog only covers a small portion of the library’s overall collection.  The library’s computer catalog also includes the collections of other manuscript libraries in Istanbul. Some of these can be viewed electronically at Süleymaniye (Nuruosmaniye, etc.) while others must be consulted—whether digitally or physically—at their respective libraries (Beyazıt and Millet). For other collections, such as Kandilli Rasathane or Edirne Selimiye, the library provides an incomplete list of digitized manuscripts in the computer catalog.

Research Experience

Süleymaniye Library’s computer catalog is a wonderful resource on its own but requires some practice to master. First, users should know that they can only enter their queries using the conventions of modern Turkish transliteration rather than traditional Arabic transliteration or the original Arabic (e.g. şeyhülislam rather than shaykh al-islam or شيخ الاسلام). Researchers can search by author name, title, date, subject, etc. though one must keep in mind that the catalog is not entirely reliable. Titles and names are often transliterated in multiple ways, texts are routinely mislabeled, and many texts and marginal works are left out of the catalog if the cataloger decided that it was not important. Copy dates are usually accurate and present on perhaps one fourth of the texts in the catalog, though if one examines the undated texts, about half of those will actually have copy dates as well. Of course, readers, commentators, and copyists throughout the centuries did not give a text the exact same title and so researchers should be prepared for variant author names and titles. Finally, the vast majority of titles that are displayed in the search results are actually in mecmuas (compendia or miscellanies). Researchers must access these by first looking up the manuscript volume containing the text by the accession number (demirbaş) and then going to the first work in the mecmua to open the digital copy. While these obstacles might be discouraging, they also provide researchers opportunities to discover many unexpected treatises.

(Read our article on how to conduct research in digitized manuscript libraries)

The quality of the digitized manuscripts varies widely. Süleymaniye was one of the first libraries in the world to begin a systematic digitization of its collections and therefore many of the electronic copies have significant quality problems. In the initial stage of digitalization, the library digitized manuscripts in an ad hoc manner, using researchers’ cameras and whatever equipment that was available at hand. Most of the problems in the digital copies are the result of poor lighting or image quality and affect a researcher’s ability to comfortably read the text, such as: poor resolution and image quality that make it impossible to read small text and notes; text on the margins and spine being cut off or poorly photographed; pages being blurred due to movement. Other problems, such as the exclusion of a manuscript’s bindings, sides, and blank pages within the volume render the digital copies of a manuscript of limited value to researchers interested in the codicological aspects of the volume. Those manuscripts that were digitized at a later date are of much higher quality and include photographs of the binding, etc. Since Süleymaniye houses such a large collection of manuscripts, it is often possible to see other copies of the same work. Researchers who need to consult the physical manuscript can request access from the director.

The library’s current reading room is a bit underwhelming as it consists only of twelve computers and a few books on the shelves of a poorly lit room. The computers are a bit buggy and tend to start displaying portions of the screen in black after a while. Researchers can fix this by logging out and reopening the catalog, though they will most likely lose any open documents in the process. If one’s computer does not work or refuses to log-in, try using another one first. Given the small number of computers, the reading room can become crowded, especially in the afternoon, but is generally empty during the mornings and evenings. Turkish students also tend to use the library desks to study for their standardized exams at certain times of the year. The librarians are helpful and are happy to show researchers how to use the catalog, but only read and speak Turkish. Turkish tourists often come in and start pulling books from the shelves in the mistaken belief that the reference books are the manuscripts and groups of Arab tourists also wander in to try to conduct genealogical research or read random works. Most researchers only stay for a few hours, so the long-term users often befriend each other.

The library also has a rather extensive reference collection on the shelves. This consists of the most important bio-bibliographcial works, encyclopedias, and dictionaries for conducting research. The reference section’s collection of bio-bibliographical works is relatively extensive and includes copies of Haji Khalifa/Katip Çelebi, Brockelman, and Sezgin; a notable lacunae in this regard is the absence of any bio-bibliographical work of Persian literature, such as Storey or Munzavi. Arabic, Ottoman, and Persian dictionaries as well as catalogs of other manuscript libraries and topical catalogs. Sets of the Encyclopedia of Islam, 2nd ed.; Diyanet Vakfı Islam Ansiklopedisi; and Islam Ansiklopedisi (Milli Eǧitim Basımevi) are also available for consultation. Biographical dictionaries for the Ottoman period are on the shelves along with other classic reference works on the Ottoman period (in Turkish mostly). Some of the books may be in the depository and therefore need to be specially requested.

One of the main courtyards of Süleymaniye Library
One of the main courtyards of Süleymaniye Library

Accessibility

The great advantage to researching at Süleymaniye Library is its working hours. While the library’s official hours are Monday-Friday 9:00 – 17:00 excluding holidays, researchers may make free use of all of the resources of the library’s reading room between 9:00 – 23:00 every day of the year, including all holidays. Copies can only be obtained during official hours, however.  Researchers in wheelchairs might have trouble accessing the current reading room as there are some steep marble stairs at the entry. If they can get into the reading room, they should be able to use the computer terminals without any issues.

Researchers must provide an official government ID in order to enter the reading room. For Turks, this means their national identity card and for foreigners their passport or residency permit (ikamet tezkeresi). Researchers do not need to register in order to conduct research and the library is the most open and friendly research institution in Istanbul.

Transport and Food

Süleymaniye Library is most easily reached by tramway, bus, or foot. If you take the tramway, get off at the Beyazıt stop and then walk to Beyazıt Square. Take the street that is to the left of the monumental Istanbul Üniversitesi gate and follow it until it ends. Bear right, walk 30 meters and the library is on one’s left. Coming from Taksim Square, one can take any bus that passes through Aksaray. Make sure to get off at the Müze stop (the one next to the aqueduct, before Aksaray) and make your way through Unkapanı until you reach Süleymaniye Library from behind. (This route is poorly lit and may not be safe for women walking alone at night.) You can also walk up to Süleymaniye from Eminönü by following the signs after the bazaar ends. Needless to say, the library is directly across from the mosque.

There are a number of eating options around Süleymaniye Library. The most famous are the kuru fasulye restaurants in front of the library building, though one can also find pide, mantı, and other options close by. There are a variety of tea gardens nearby, including one in a historic courtyard. Dostan provides homemade mantı and pizzas and such.

Reproductions

All reproductions are provided as PDFs on a CD. The cost per exposure (i.e. a photograph of two pages) is fifty kuruş for Turkish citizens and one lira for non-citizens as of October 2013. The librarians can provide CDs within a few minutes or an hour, depending on the number of reproduction requests they are processing. Librarians take time off for lunch and Friday prayers, so researchers should wait patiently if the librarians are not present. Researchers should check the contents of the CDs and load them onto more secure devices as soon as possible. Occasionally the CDs are written with corrupt data which prohibit their transfer to other devices. If this happens, ask the staff for a new copy on a different CD.

Miscellaneous

Süleymaniye Library also offers classes on traditional Islamic subjects, like calligraphy, tafsir, etc.

Future Plans and Rumors

The Süleymaniye Library is currently undergoing a major renovation. When completed sometime in 2014, the reading room will be greatly expanded and modern offices installed in many of the old buildings. Plans for the renovation also include a new exhibition space, which should minimize the interruptions of tourists in the reading room.

Contact Information

Süleymaniye Yazma Eser Kütüphanesi

Ayşe Kadın Hamam Sok. No:35 Fatih  İstanbul

Telephone: 212 520 64 60

Süleymaniye Library does not have an official website. The collections are not listed on the official Yazmalar website but a partial catalog can be accessed through the İSAM Türkiye Kütüphaneleri Veri Tabanı. It is best to simply show up in person if you need to conduct business with the library.

Written by Nir Shafir and Christopher Markiewicz

10 October 2013

Cite this: Nir Shafir and Christopher Markiewicz, “Süleymaniye Library”, HAZİNE, 10 October 2013, https://hazine.info/2013/10/10/suleymaniye-library/