Apor Éva (szerk.): Magyar Tudományos Akadémia Könyvtára Keleti Gyűjtemény.

The Kégl Library

The Kégl Library T

aught by Ignác Goldziher and Ármin Vámbéry, Sándor Kégl (1862-1920), a corresponding member of the Academy, was the first professor of Persian language and literature at the Budapest University of Sciences. A highly versatile scholarlandowner with a wide spectrum of interests, he had close ties with the Library of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences: he was the one to write the first and still valid catalogue of the Oriental manuDSELAL ED-DIN RUMI NÉGYSOROS VERSEI KÉGL SANDOB /Feloldatta a H. Tud Akadtrm. 19Q. deetemhee S-l die, BUDAPEST. KIADJA A MAGYAR TUDOMÁNYOS AKADÉMIA. 22 mmmmmmsmtmrnmim scripts and describe Turkish, Persian and Arabic manuscripts that were preserved by the Academy at that time. After his death his large library of some 11,000 volumes was donated to the Academy by his brother János Kégl (1925). The Kégl library is among the largest single donations in the history of the Academy Library, being only rivalled by the 30,000-tome Teleki library which laid the foundations of the entire Library, and by the Ráth collection which founded the old Hungarian book collection of the Library dating prior to 1711. The books on Oriental topics in the bequest were transferred to the Oriental Collection when it was organized, together with the many manuscripts of relevance to the East. The stock of Persian manuscripts so far numbering some 60 and catalogued by Kégl earlier, was enlarged by another 59 pieces from the Kégl collection. Several outstanding works of the classical Persian literature are among the manuscripts, such as the divans of Háfiz (Perzsa 0. 68)', Anvari, (Perzsa O. 86), Amir Khosrou Dihlavi (Perzsa 0. 79), Nizámi's Khosrou va Shirin in two copies (Perzsa 0. 58 and 0. 73), several works in lexicography, grammar, astrology and medicine. The earliest Persian manuscript of the Oriental Collection Kalila va Dimna (Perzsa 0. 57) copied in 1319 also comes from the Kégl library. Kalila va Dimna, MS Perzsa O. 57