Fundo Rivara
Item
Country
PT
Name of institution (English)
Évora Public Library
Name of institution (official language of the state)
Language of name of institution
por
Contact information: postal address
Largo Conde de Vila Flor, 7000-804 Évora
Contact information: phone number
00351 266769330
Contact information: web address
Contact information: email
bpevora@bpe.pt
Reference number
Cod.
Type of reference number
Archival reference number
Title (English)
Rivara fonds
Title (official language of the state)
Fundo Rivara
Language of title
por
Creator / accumulator
Biblioteca Pública de Évora
Date note
12th century/19th century
Language(s)
ara
deu
eng
fra
ita
heb
lat
spa
Extent
c. 140 linear metres (2,950 volumes)
Type of material
Textual Material
Physical condition
Good
Scope and content
The Fundo Rivara comprises a wide range of manuscript codices of different typologies concerning numerous subjects, including some items of Jewish origin or on Jewish-related topics.
A document that has attracted much interest from researchers is a ketubah written in Portuguese by Yuda Barceloní, notary of the Jewish "comuna" (commune) of Lisbon, regarding the marriage of two Jews from that community, Josepe Crespim and Rica, in 1483 (BPE, Cod. CXI/1-15, mç. 2, doc. 4). The collection includes the 15th-century original in parchment and an 18th-century transcription in a four-page booklet. According to Filomena Barros (2017-8), this is the only ketubah in a romance language known so far. Other characteristics such as the description of the marriage ceremony (information that is usually absent from ketubot) or the validation by a notary, instead of the two witnesses required by Jewish law, contribute to its uniqueness.
The collection also contains some Hebrew parchments used as book covers: a 14th-century fragment of the Talmud (MS Cod. CXXIV/2-47d, n.º 1) and a fragment of the Book of Samuel from the 12th or 13th century (MS Cod. CXXV/2-14, n.º 1), both probably of German provenance; a 15th-century fragment of the Ecclesiastes (MS Cod. CXXV/2-14, n.º 2) and another of the Exodus dated from the 14th century (MS Cod. CXXV/2-14, n.º 3), both of Iberian origin. There is also a six-folio fragment of the Mahzor dated from the 15th century (MS Cod. CXXIV/2-47d, n.º 2), together with a small manuscript booklet with a translation of the fragment into Portuguese, probably produced in the 19th century. According to Tiago Moita (2017), this Hebrew fragment must have been acquired by Frei Manuel do Cenáculo at the end of the 18th century or the beginning of the 19th century, and it must have been dismembered from the same manuscript of two fragments contained in the collections of the Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal (National Library of Portugal) (MS Iluminados 3) and the British Library (MS Add. 20747).
The Fundo Rivara also comprises some documentation from the Portuguese Inquisition, some directly related to New Christian defendants and trials of Judaism (see Pinto, 2020). Codice CXXXI/1-8 contains some extracts of trials against New Christians (n.º 56, 58), a resolution of the General Council of the Holy Office about giving the viaticum to dying prisoners accused of Judaism (n.º 64), and a set of 18th-century copies of letters related to the New Christian question and the Inquisition, originally written between 1608 and 1628 (n.º 90). Codice CXIII/1-23d. includes a response to "Notícias Recônditas e Póstumas", a polemical book on the Inquisition proceedings against New Christians by the Inquisitor António Ribeiro Abreu around 1738-40 (fls. 79-201v). This later text was published by Herman Prins Salomon (2014).
There are other items in the Fundo Rivara related to the history of Portuguese New Christians and the Portuguese Jewish diaspora. It is the case of a copy of a letter written by Dom Isaac Abravanel (1437-1508) to D. Afonso, the Count of Faro, on the occasion of the death of his father-in-law, D. Sancho de Noronha, the Count of Odemira, in 1470 or 1471, in which he reflects on the meaning of death (Cod. CIII/2-20, fol. 69v). There is another copy in the Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal (ALC. 475, fols. 110-111). This source was also published by Herman Prins Salomon (2002).
Other Jewish-related items can be found in the following codices:
Cod. CIII/2-22, fols. 108-108v: Letters from Pedro Moniz to Pedro Alvres Yzay, known as a Jew. Undated.
Cod. CVI/2-17, n.º 5: Letter from rabbi David ben Zimra about the sale of a farm in Évora, written in aljamiado.
Cod. CIX/2-16-2: “Coleção Hebraica ou Compendio de varias materias pertencentes ao prezente estado da Nacão Judaica Refugiada nos Reinos da Gram Bretanha, e Estados da Holanda” by Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo: account on Jewish subjects composed by Carvalho e Melo when he was envoy extraordinary of the Portuguese Crown in London. Other partial copy in Cod. CVI/2-15. Another version is kept in the Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal (PBA. 684). Published by Carla Vieira (2022).
A document that has attracted much interest from researchers is a ketubah written in Portuguese by Yuda Barceloní, notary of the Jewish "comuna" (commune) of Lisbon, regarding the marriage of two Jews from that community, Josepe Crespim and Rica, in 1483 (BPE, Cod. CXI/1-15, mç. 2, doc. 4). The collection includes the 15th-century original in parchment and an 18th-century transcription in a four-page booklet. According to Filomena Barros (2017-8), this is the only ketubah in a romance language known so far. Other characteristics such as the description of the marriage ceremony (information that is usually absent from ketubot) or the validation by a notary, instead of the two witnesses required by Jewish law, contribute to its uniqueness.
The collection also contains some Hebrew parchments used as book covers: a 14th-century fragment of the Talmud (MS Cod. CXXIV/2-47d, n.º 1) and a fragment of the Book of Samuel from the 12th or 13th century (MS Cod. CXXV/2-14, n.º 1), both probably of German provenance; a 15th-century fragment of the Ecclesiastes (MS Cod. CXXV/2-14, n.º 2) and another of the Exodus dated from the 14th century (MS Cod. CXXV/2-14, n.º 3), both of Iberian origin. There is also a six-folio fragment of the Mahzor dated from the 15th century (MS Cod. CXXIV/2-47d, n.º 2), together with a small manuscript booklet with a translation of the fragment into Portuguese, probably produced in the 19th century. According to Tiago Moita (2017), this Hebrew fragment must have been acquired by Frei Manuel do Cenáculo at the end of the 18th century or the beginning of the 19th century, and it must have been dismembered from the same manuscript of two fragments contained in the collections of the Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal (National Library of Portugal) (MS Iluminados 3) and the British Library (MS Add. 20747).
The Fundo Rivara also comprises some documentation from the Portuguese Inquisition, some directly related to New Christian defendants and trials of Judaism (see Pinto, 2020). Codice CXXXI/1-8 contains some extracts of trials against New Christians (n.º 56, 58), a resolution of the General Council of the Holy Office about giving the viaticum to dying prisoners accused of Judaism (n.º 64), and a set of 18th-century copies of letters related to the New Christian question and the Inquisition, originally written between 1608 and 1628 (n.º 90). Codice CXIII/1-23d. includes a response to "Notícias Recônditas e Póstumas", a polemical book on the Inquisition proceedings against New Christians by the Inquisitor António Ribeiro Abreu around 1738-40 (fls. 79-201v). This later text was published by Herman Prins Salomon (2014).
There are other items in the Fundo Rivara related to the history of Portuguese New Christians and the Portuguese Jewish diaspora. It is the case of a copy of a letter written by Dom Isaac Abravanel (1437-1508) to D. Afonso, the Count of Faro, on the occasion of the death of his father-in-law, D. Sancho de Noronha, the Count of Odemira, in 1470 or 1471, in which he reflects on the meaning of death (Cod. CIII/2-20, fol. 69v). There is another copy in the Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal (ALC. 475, fols. 110-111). This source was also published by Herman Prins Salomon (2002).
Other Jewish-related items can be found in the following codices:
Cod. CIII/2-22, fols. 108-108v: Letters from Pedro Moniz to Pedro Alvres Yzay, known as a Jew. Undated.
Cod. CVI/2-17, n.º 5: Letter from rabbi David ben Zimra about the sale of a farm in Évora, written in aljamiado.
Cod. CIX/2-16-2: “Coleção Hebraica ou Compendio de varias materias pertencentes ao prezente estado da Nacão Judaica Refugiada nos Reinos da Gram Bretanha, e Estados da Holanda” by Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo: account on Jewish subjects composed by Carvalho e Melo when he was envoy extraordinary of the Portuguese Crown in London. Other partial copy in Cod. CVI/2-15. Another version is kept in the Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal (PBA. 684). Published by Carla Vieira (2022).
Archival history
The Fundo Rivara is the general fonds of the Biblioteca Pública de Évora (Évora Public Library). It was named after Joaquim Heliodoro da Cunha Rivara (1809–1879), the first no-ecclesiastical director of the library. During his time as director (1838-1855), Rivara undertook the first effort to organise and catalogue the library's collection of about 2,000 codices. His work resulted in the production of a catalogue in four volumes, of which three were published only after Rivara's death. The Catalogo de Manuscriptos da Bibliotheca Pública Eborense remains the only printed catalogue of this collection. After Rivara’s death, the collection increased with the incorporation of other manuscript codices and files from several provenances. Thus, the Fundo Rivara essentially gathers three collections: the original collection of the Biblioteca Pública de Évora, mainly collected by its founder, archbishop Frei Manuel do Cenáculo (see above, Administrative/Biographical History); Rivara’s acquisitions for the library during his time as director; and manuscripts later incorporated in the collection, especially items belonging to the religious orders extinguished by the liberal regime (1834) and, later, as a consequence of the Implantation of the Republic (1910).
Administrative / Biographical history
The Biblioteca Pública de Évora was founded by the archbishop Frei Manuel do Cenáculo Villas Boas (1724-1814) in 1805. Its early years were turbulent. The French invasion of 1808 led to the loss of part of the library collection and caused a delay in its organisation. Only in 1811 were the library's by-laws issued, confirming its donation to the Igreja Metropolitana (Metropolitan Church) de Évora, under the condition of keeping the library open to the public.
The death of Frei Manuel do Cenáculo (1814) and the Liberal Wars (1828-34) brought about difficulties to the Biblioteca Pública de Évora, only surpassed after the implantation of the liberal regime and the incorporation of the library into the public sphere. Following the decree of dissolution of the monasteries in 1834, the library collection grew with the incorporation of collections that had belonged to extinguished convents (see Fontes et al., 2017).
In 1916, the Biblioteca Pública de Évora became part of the newly created Arquivo Distrital de Évora (Évora District Archive) and both institutions were only separated in 1997. Ten years later, in 2007, the library organically integrated the Direção-Geral do Livro e das Bibliotecas (at present, Direção-Geral do Livro, dos Arquivos e das Bibliotecas, i.e. Directorate-General for Books, Archives and Libraries) and, since 2012, the Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal (National Library of Portugal).
Sources:
The death of Frei Manuel do Cenáculo (1814) and the Liberal Wars (1828-34) brought about difficulties to the Biblioteca Pública de Évora, only surpassed after the implantation of the liberal regime and the incorporation of the library into the public sphere. Following the decree of dissolution of the monasteries in 1834, the library collection grew with the incorporation of collections that had belonged to extinguished convents (see Fontes et al., 2017).
In 1916, the Biblioteca Pública de Évora became part of the newly created Arquivo Distrital de Évora (Évora District Archive) and both institutions were only separated in 1997. Ten years later, in 2007, the library organically integrated the Direção-Geral do Livro e das Bibliotecas (at present, Direção-Geral do Livro, dos Arquivos e das Bibliotecas, i.e. Directorate-General for Books, Archives and Libraries) and, since 2012, the Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal (National Library of Portugal).
Sources:
Access points: locations
Access points: persons, families
Access points: corporate bodies
Access points: subject terms
Access points: document types
Links to finding aids
Existence and location of copies
Author of the description
Carla Vieira, 2021
Bibliography
Published primary sources
Linked resources
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| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Códices Alcobacenses | Existence and location of originals |
| Title | Alternate label | Class |
|---|---|---|
| Biblioteca Pública de Évora | Collections (official language of the state) |