Rare Book Department: European Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts
Item
Country
US
Name of institution (official language of the state)
Language of name of institution
eng
Contact information: postal address
1901 Vine Street, Third Floor, 19103 Philadelphia, PA
Contact information: phone number
001 215 686 5416
Contact information: web address
Contact information: email
erefrbd@freelibrary.org
Title (official language of the state)
Rare Book Department: European Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts
Language of title
eng
Creator / accumulator
Lewis, John Frederick
Date note
10th century/15th century (bulk: 14th century/15th century)
Language(s)
eng
heb
lat
Extent
ca. 250 books and scrolls, ca. 3,000 documents
Type of material
Textual Material
Graphic Material
Physical condition
Good
Scope and content
The Rare Book Department is one of the largest public library special collections in the United States. It comprises thousands of illuminated medieval manuscripts and cuttings; first editions; letters and manuscripts of eminent writers, such as Charles Dickens and Edgar Allan Poe; among other handwritten and printed books and documents. The Rare Book Department includes a European Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts collection, comprising more than 250 handwritten books and scrolls and over 3,000 single pages (known as "leaves") and cuttings. Digital copies of part of this collection are available online.
An illuminated Hebrew Bible of Sephardic production, composed in Lisbon in 1496 (MS Lewis Or. 140), is part of this collection. According to Tiago Moita (2017), the scribe was probably Isaac, son of Ishai Sasson, whose name appears erased in the colophon. For more information on this Bible, see Arbit (2012).
An illuminated Hebrew Bible of Sephardic production, composed in Lisbon in 1496 (MS Lewis Or. 140), is part of this collection. According to Tiago Moita (2017), the scribe was probably Isaac, son of Ishai Sasson, whose name appears erased in the colophon. For more information on this Bible, see Arbit (2012).
Archival history
Most of the manuscripts of the Rare Book Department were collected by John Frederick Lewis, who was interested in the global history of writing. His widow, Anne Baker Lewis, donated several of his collections to the Free Library in 1933.
The aforementioned illuminated Bible was purchased in Constantinople in 1840, according to an inscription in the volume. It is not known when it was acquired by John Frederick Lewis.
The aforementioned illuminated Bible was purchased in Constantinople in 1840, according to an inscription in the volume. It is not known when it was acquired by John Frederick Lewis.
Sources:
Administrative / Biographical history
John Frederick Lewis (1860–1932) was a Philadelphia lawyer, philanthropist and collector of rare books and fine art.
Lewis studied Law and was admitted to the Pennsylvania bar in 1882. In 1925, he received his A.M. and LL.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. Lewis was an active member of the Law Association of Philadelphia and the Law Academy and was a regular guest lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.
An active member of St. John's Lutheran Church and involved with the Young Peoples' Lutheran Association, Lewis long supported the Pennsylvania Institute for the Deaf and Dumb.
Over the years, Lewis assembled a remarkable collection of rare books and fine art. His interest in early forms of writing and books led him to collect cuneiform tablets and cones, as well as European and Oriental manuscripts. He was often asked to give talks to art classes at the University of Pennsylvania and other groups in the city on topics such as oriental art. Most of Lewis's collections were donated to Philadelphia museums and libraries, including the Rare Book Department of the Free Library of Philadelphia, where he had served on the Board of Trustees.
Lewis was the author of several books that reflect his wide-ranging interests, including History of the Apprentices' Library of Philadelphia, 1820-1920, the Oldest Free Circulating Library in America (1924), The Redemption of the Lower Schuylkill: the River As It Was, The River As It is, The River As It Should Be (1924), Thomas Spry, Lawyer and Physician (1932), and The History Of An Old Philadelphia Land Title, 208 South Fourth Street (1934).
Lewis studied Law and was admitted to the Pennsylvania bar in 1882. In 1925, he received his A.M. and LL.D. from the University of Pennsylvania. Lewis was an active member of the Law Association of Philadelphia and the Law Academy and was a regular guest lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.
An active member of St. John's Lutheran Church and involved with the Young Peoples' Lutheran Association, Lewis long supported the Pennsylvania Institute for the Deaf and Dumb.
Over the years, Lewis assembled a remarkable collection of rare books and fine art. His interest in early forms of writing and books led him to collect cuneiform tablets and cones, as well as European and Oriental manuscripts. He was often asked to give talks to art classes at the University of Pennsylvania and other groups in the city on topics such as oriental art. Most of Lewis's collections were donated to Philadelphia museums and libraries, including the Rare Book Department of the Free Library of Philadelphia, where he had served on the Board of Trustees.
Lewis was the author of several books that reflect his wide-ranging interests, including History of the Apprentices' Library of Philadelphia, 1820-1920, the Oldest Free Circulating Library in America (1924), The Redemption of the Lower Schuylkill: the River As It Was, The River As It is, The River As It Should Be (1924), Thomas Spry, Lawyer and Physician (1932), and The History Of An Old Philadelphia Land Title, 208 South Fourth Street (1934).
Access points: locations
Access points: subject terms
Access points: document types
Access, restrictions
Prior appointment is required.
Finding aids
Many, but not all, of the Rare Book Department's holdings have been cataloged or inventoried. Consult the Free Library's online catalogue.
Links to finding aids
Author of the description
Carla Vieira, 2022
Bibliography
Linked resources
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