Vaticani ebraici
Item
Country
IT
Name of institution (English)
Vatican Apostolic Library
Name of institution (official language of the state)
Language of name of institution
ita
Contact information: postal address
Cortile del Belvedere V, 00120 Vatican City
Contact information: phone number
0039 0669879411
Contact information: web address
Contact information: email
bav@vatlib.it
Reference number
Vat.ebr.
Type of reference number
Archival reference number
Title (English)
Hebrew manuscripts
Title (official language of the state)
Vaticani ebraici
Language of title
ita
Creator / accumulator
Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana
Date(s)
11th century/19th century
Language(s)
heb
Extent
723 storage units
Type of material
Textual Material
Physical condition
Good
Scope and content
The Vaticani ebraici collection preserved in the Vatican Library is one of the most important collections of Hebrew manuscripts, although not the largest. Among its units, there are some Hebrew manuscripts produced in the Iberian Peninsula before the late-15th century expulsions of the Jews. It is the case of an aljamiado manuscript on surgery written by Samuel Esperiel in tribute to David de Jaén, produced in Portugal between 1450 and 1497 (Vat.ebr. 372). Other examples are two psalteries produced in Lisbon in 1485-1490 (Vat.ebr. 463) and 1495 (Vat.ebr. 473). Digital copies of these two volumes are available online.
Archival history
Already outstanding in the first century of the Vatican Library's existence, the Vaticani ebraici collection was organised autonomously since the mid-16th century, in the sequence of numerous acquisitions. By this time, the Vatican library already had 189 manuscripts in the Hebrew language. Most of them were Bibles with rabbinic remarks, but also commentaries to the Scriptures, such as those by Isaac ben Farhi (Vat. Heb. 177), donated to the library by Marcello Cervini (later Pope Marcellus II), who had received it from Cardinal Juan Álvarez de Toledo. In the mid-16th century, Hebrew books belonging to Cardinal Guglielmo Sirleto were also acquired. In the mid-17th century, 69 Hebrew books were bought by Abraham Pesaro, then a collaborator of the “scriptor hebraicus” of the Vatican Library, Ivan Paštrić (1636-1708). The current codes 79, 267, and 268 belonged to the convert Alessandro Franceschi (1543-1601), who held the position of “scriptor hebraicus” in 1558 and 1559, before being appointed bishop of Forlì.
According to documentary evidence, it is clear that the Hebrew manuscripts were not initially kept independently from others in the library. An explicit mention of Hebrew books kept in the Bibliotheca Magna Secreta can be found in the Index omnium librorum, written by Fausto Sabeo and Niccolò Maiorano, the custodians of the Vatican library, in 1533. When the Vatican library acquired the Hebrew codices from the Bibliotheca Palatina of Heidelberg in 1623 and the Urbinate collection in 1657, these manuscripts underwent different fates. Those from the Palatina joined two already existing in the Vaticani ebraici collection. The codices from Urbino, on the other hand, formed an autonomous collection, known as the Urbinati ebraici.
The "Index librorum omnium Hebraicorum, tam impressorum quam mss", written by the Cistercian monk Giulio Bartolocci, “scriptor hebraicus” since 1650, indicated the existence of 425 codices in the collection. In 1756, a first tome of the “Catalogus” ordered by the then prefect Giuseppe Simone Assemani was published, written by the “scriptor” Giovanni Antonio Costanzi. This “Catalogus” was strongly criticised for some errors and missing information by the following “scriptor”, Giovanni Giorgi (1812-1817), a former rabbi converted to Christianity. An appendix to the Assemani's catalogue was finally published by Angelo Mai in 1831. Finally, in the 1960s, the entire collection was microfilmed on behalf of the Institute of Microfilmed Hebrew Manuscripts of the Jewish National and University Library of Jerusalem. This was followed by the publication of a catalogue including the Vaticani ebraici collection and all Hebrew manuscripts belonging to other collections kept in the Vatican Library.
According to documentary evidence, it is clear that the Hebrew manuscripts were not initially kept independently from others in the library. An explicit mention of Hebrew books kept in the Bibliotheca Magna Secreta can be found in the Index omnium librorum, written by Fausto Sabeo and Niccolò Maiorano, the custodians of the Vatican library, in 1533. When the Vatican library acquired the Hebrew codices from the Bibliotheca Palatina of Heidelberg in 1623 and the Urbinate collection in 1657, these manuscripts underwent different fates. Those from the Palatina joined two already existing in the Vaticani ebraici collection. The codices from Urbino, on the other hand, formed an autonomous collection, known as the Urbinati ebraici.
The "Index librorum omnium Hebraicorum, tam impressorum quam mss", written by the Cistercian monk Giulio Bartolocci, “scriptor hebraicus” since 1650, indicated the existence of 425 codices in the collection. In 1756, a first tome of the “Catalogus” ordered by the then prefect Giuseppe Simone Assemani was published, written by the “scriptor” Giovanni Antonio Costanzi. This “Catalogus” was strongly criticised for some errors and missing information by the following “scriptor”, Giovanni Giorgi (1812-1817), a former rabbi converted to Christianity. An appendix to the Assemani's catalogue was finally published by Angelo Mai in 1831. Finally, in the 1960s, the entire collection was microfilmed on behalf of the Institute of Microfilmed Hebrew Manuscripts of the Jewish National and University Library of Jerusalem. This was followed by the publication of a catalogue including the Vaticani ebraici collection and all Hebrew manuscripts belonging to other collections kept in the Vatican Library.
Administrative / Biographical history
The official history of the Vatican Apostolic Library is commonly indicated by scholars as starting around the middle of the 15th century. In fact, it was Pope Niccolò V (1447-1455) who made the Latin, Greek and Hebrew manuscripts collected during his pontificate (1,200 manuscripts in 1455) available to scholars, so that they could consult and read them. Niccolò V’s project was not completed, and was only resumed by Sixtus IV (1471-1484). The opening date was decreed in the bull “Ad decorem militantis Ecclesiae” on June 15, 1475. It was followed by the appointment of a first librarian in the person of the humanist Bartolomeo Platina. The headquarters of the new institution was located on the ground floor of a building near the Belvedere courtyard. The consultation rooms were established in four and decorated by the best painters of the time. Such rooms were: “Bibliotheca Latina” and “Bibliotheca Graeca” (for manuscripts in both languages), “Bibliotheca Secreta” (for manuscripts not directly available to readers, including some valuable codes), “Bibliotheca Pontificia” (for the consultation of the papal archives and registers). Meanwhile, the collection of manuscripts continued to increase, rising from a total of 2,527 codices in 1475 to 3,498 codices in 1481. In the 16th century, the Library continued to develop with the research and purchase of manuscripts and the acquisition of printed books. During the pontificate of Gregory XIII (1572-1585), the book material began to be separated from the archival material. This latter material will form one of the collections that formed the "Archivum Novum" established by Paul V (1605-1621) and which will become the Vatican Apostolic Archive. Finally, Sixtus V (1585-1590) decided to build a new location for the Library following the significant increase of the books preserved, and commissioned the architect Domenico Fontana with the project. The building is the one that still houses the Library today. On the top floor, the large hall with two naves, the Salone Sistino, was decorated and has recently been reopened after a long restoration. In the 17th century, the aggregation of entire libraries of princely or private origin – which in many cases remained distinct from other open collections – began, creating special closed collections of manuscripts and printed matter: the Palatine library of Heidelberg (1623), the library of the Dukes of Urbino (1657) and the collection of Queen Christina of Sweden (1690), etc. During the 18th century, a project was also planned in order to catalogue all the preserved manuscripts. Conceived by Giuseppe Simonio Assemani and his nephew Stefano Evodio, the project was to consist of 20 volumes, but only the first three and the incomplete fourth came to light.
Access points: locations
Access points: persons, families
Access points: subject terms
Access points: document types
Access, restrictions
Digital copies of Vaticani ebraici manuscripts are available online:
Finding aids
Links to finding aids
Author of the description
Andrea Cicerchia, 2022
Bibliography
Linked resources
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