B. Gál Edit – Veres Gábor szerk.: Agria 47. (Az Egri Múzeum Évkönyve - Annales Musei Agriensis, 2011)

Löffler Erzsébet: Főpapi könyvtárak a XVIII. századi Magyarországon

Kalocsa or Eger Library. In line with the customs of that era, nearly every library was accompanied by an observatory as well as other collections. The prelates, who founded a library during this period of time, were mostly students of the 'Collegium Germanicum et Hungaricum' in Rome, who completed their studies at the Pontifical Gregorian University. Their experience acquired in Rome compelled them to establish the libraries upon their return home. St. Charles Borromeo (1538-1584) the late Bishop of Milan should eminently be mentioned as their ideal, who was also a University and Library founder himself, as well as the contemporary Pope Benedict XIV (1675-1758), whom they may have also known personally. Various deviations appeared only in regard to the extent the founding prelate was a bibliophil ist person, in other words to what extent he was interested in peculiarities: codices, ancient publications and rarity manuscripts. In this regard Ignác Batthyány was the most outstanding, there were over a thousand codices and ancient publications in the Gyulafehérvár 'Batthyaneum', even the number of pre Mohács manuscripts approached three hundred. The library's most significant piece is a fragment of the Golden (Lorsch) Codex, which is part of the Holy Scripture made in 812 on the order of Frankish Ruler Charlemagne. During their collection work they thoroughly explored the parish libraries under their jurisdiction, made purchases on European auctions, and got in touch with every significant book publisher of the continent. The work of many was aided by Giuseppe Garampi (1725-1792) the Viennese Nunciate, who operated an entire network of agents in order to promote the work of bishops. Bishop Károly Eszterházy was less interested in rarity books, he was collecting bibliography adequate to the standards of that era for the university library he had planned for. To this end, books to teach theology, philosophy, jurisprudence and medicine were necessary. Yet, there is a good deal of rarity books in his library too. These libraries, mainly within their original settings, with their contemporary facilities are at the disposal of those interested in the history of culture rarities. 203