During the official visit of the President of Mongolia, Khurelsukh Ukhna, to the Holy See, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the National Museum "Chinggis Khan" and the Vatican Apostolic Library, also known as the Papal Secret Library.
According to information from the National Museum "Chinggis Khan," the agreement covers four main areas of cooperation:
Exchange of scholars and specialists, including conducting research focused on the history of the Mongol Empire;
Exchange of knowledge and information regarding the heritage of manuscripts, books, and documents, as well as their study;
Development of bibliography, library science, archives, and information technology systems;
Organization of joint conferences and scientific meetings, as well as facilitating joint research.
This cooperation will create opportunities for studying research materials, primary sources, and rare archival records related to the history of Mongolia, which are stored in the Vatican Library. It is expected that the exchange of scholars and experts will enhance the quality of scientific research.
The partnership will open new horizons for research based on historical documents about the Mongol Empire found in the Papal Secret Library.
Since its establishment, the National Museum "Chinggis Khan" has been actively involved in registering, jointly studying, training specialists, and reproducing documents and cultural artifacts related to the history of Mongolia, which are stored around the world. The signing of the Memorandum represents an important step in fulfilling this mission.
The Vatican Apostolic Library (Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana) is an institution in the Vatican with an outstanding collection of medieval and Renaissance manuscripts. Founded in the 15th century by Pope Sixtus IV, the library is continuously replenished and contains approximately 1.6 million printed books, 150,000 manuscripts, 8,300 incunabula, and over 100,000 engravings and geographical maps, as well as 300,000 coins and medals. The library includes the Vatican School of Librarians and a laboratory for manuscript restoration.
It is one of the oldest libraries in the world, possessing one of the most significant collections of historical texts. The library houses 75,000 codices from various historical periods, as well as 1.1 million printed books, among which are about 8,500 incunabula.
Pope Nicholas V, elected in March 1447, is considered the founder of the modern Vatican Library. Under his predecessor, Pope Eugene IV, 350 manuscripts in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew were discovered. These manuscripts and Nicholas V's personal collection formed the basis of the library, consisting of 800 manuscripts in Latin and 353 in Greek. The Pope significantly increased the collection by adding manuscripts from Europe and the East, including at his direction, grammarian Alberto Enoc d'Ascoli sought surviving collections from the imperial library of Constantinople.
The library was officially founded on June 15, 1475, by the bull of Pope Sixtus IV Ad decorem militantis Ecclesiae, when its collection numbered 2,527 works. By 1481, the collection had grown to 3,500 manuscripts, and that same year, new premises were built, named after the collections they housed: Greek, Latin, Secret, and Papal libraries. Access to the collections was strictly controlled. The first librarian was the humanist Bartolomeo Platina, appointed by Pope Sixtus IV.
Pope Leo X sent envoys throughout Europe in search of manuscripts. In his letters, he emphasized that he considered it his duty to increase the number of copies of ancient authors so that Latinism could be revived during his pontificate. During the sack of Rome in 1527, the library, which at that time housed 4,000 manuscripts, was devastated, and many manuscripts were damaged. In 1588, Pope Sixtus V commissioned architect Domenico Fontana to build a new building for the library. The new spacious building was located opposite the old library and was equipped with special cabinets for storing manuscripts. Pope Sixtus V compared himself to the founders of such famous libraries as the Alexandrian, Roman, and Athenian.
Tatar S. Maydar
Source: MiddleAsianNews
