The Early Printed Books Department of the University of Warsaw Library, created on February 1949, contains publications printed between the 15th and the 18th century. The collection holds over 130,000 volumes, books and pamphlets, among which are 5,000 periodicals and calendars. Gradually, early printed books still held by the faculty libraries are being moved to the department.

The collection is considered one of the oldest repositories of early books in Poland. This also includes nearly 7,000 volumes of reference works containing monographs about the history of books and libraries, and historiographic subjects.

The collection is steadily enlarged through acquisition. The origin of the book is important, because one of the main purposes is the completion of our historical collections. The basic tasks of our department, aside from acquisition, are preservation, conservation, digitalisation and scientific description of the collection with special regard to provenance. Editorial work has started (among others the catalogue of the 15th–16th c.

books, albums of the supralibros, monographs on particular collections). Lectures and exhibitions are prepared for students interested in the history and the special significance of early books. The most precious works are lent to exhibitions organised in Poland and abroad.

History

The origin of the collection dates back to 1816, the year when the University of Warsaw was established. The library was created in the same year and was called the Public Library of the Royal University of Warsaw. Thanks to the efforts of Samuel Bogumił Linde, the Library’s first director, numerous valuable collections were acquired. Among them were: the Warsaw Lyceum collection (containing selections from the 18th century Cadets’ School Library), the Law Library, the Library of the Appellate Court and various monastic libraries which were being dissolved. After the collapse of the November Uprising in 1831, the majority of this collection, which also contained about 6,000 books published before 1536, was transferred to the Russian Imperial Public Library in St Petersburg. In the 1830’s the University Library received part of the valuable collection of the Warsaw Society of Friends of Science.

In 1862, with the recreation of the Main Library, the collection continued to grow, partially thanks to acquisitions from church institutions which were being secularised. Additional volumes were acquired at the end of the 19th century. These included works from the private library of bibliophile Arkady Toločanov, as well as the precious collection of the Bank of Poland, which had been closed. These book collections, especially those from monasteries, convents, and churches, were richly represented by some of the earliest works. They were donated by both church officials and important lay people, who had inherited them in earlier times.

In 1915 the Russian authorities had transferred some priceless books and incunabula to Rostov-on-Don. These treasures were subsequently given back in the 1920’s. Fortunately, the 1939 military campaign did not cause further losses to our collection. Soon thereafter, however, the local Nazi authorities ordered the transfer of the most valuable part of our collection to the Krasiński Library. Unfortunately, following the Warsaw Uprising of August 1, 1944, the Nazis torched the Krasiński Library, which meant that the incunabula – 218 works in 156 volumes – were utterly destroyed.

Collections

The history of the entire collection and of individual volumes can be traced through a careful study and analysis of signatures and inscriptions. The University of Warsaw Library has a number of book collections from various monastic orders. Among them are: the Benedictine Order (Łysa Góra, Sieciechów), the Bernardines (Opatów, Piotrków), the Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre of Miechów, the Cistercians (Koprzywnica, Ląd, Sulejów, Wąchock), the Dominicans (Piotrków, Warszawa, Sandomierz), the Franciscans (Piotrków), the Jesuits (Kalisz, Łomża, Poznań, Warszawa), the Camaldolese Order (Bieniszewo, Szaniec), the Canons Regular of the Lateran Congregation (Czerwińsk, Kalisz, Mstów), the Capuchins (Warszawa), the Carmelites (Kraków, Warszawa), the Cartusians (Gidle, Kartuzy), the Norbertine Order (Hebdów, Witów), the Paulinian Order (Brdów, Pińczów, Warszawa, Wielgomłyny), and the Piarists (Warszawa). Some books from convent libraries were also included. In addition, fragments from a few royal libraries were included, among them from the kings: Zygmunt August, Michał Korybut Wiśniowiecki, Zygmunt III Waza, and Stanisław August Poniatowski. Also in our collection we have books from private libraries of several well known people devoted to Polish culture, such as Archbishop of Gniezno Stanisław Karnkowski and Ignacy Krasicki, Stanisław Iłowski – lawyer and Hellenist, the Strzembosz family, and the Royal Instigator – Andrzej Lisiecki. A few items come from the collections of Archbishop of Gniezno Jakub Uchański, bishop and poet Jan Dantyszek and from political writer Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski.
Among former owners of the books were several very important people connected with Warsaw, such as Wojciech Oczko, a physician to kings Stefan Batory and Zygmunt III Waza. Other book owners included mayors of Warsaw, Stanisław Baryczka and Karol Zabrzeski, as well as Royal Chamberlain and political writer Kajetan Kwiatkowski, and Marshal Franciszek Bieliński. The former Załuski Library is represented by about 12,000 items. Post-war acquisitions contain book collections from the Synod of the Evangelical-Reformed Church and from the library of the Schoenaich family. This family lived in Carolath-Beuthen (now Siedlisko and Bytom Odrzański). The most precious part of the collection contains the oldest imprints – 145 items of incunabula in 119 volumes – and over 12,000 books printed in the 16th century. The collection of Polonica is widely represented by authors of Old Polish literature (Renaissance and Baroque), with examples of the most important editions from that period. The most interesting is the collection of Reformation works and many unique editions from 17th century bourgeois literature. Primary sources and political tracts from the Age of Enlightenment in Poland are broadly represented. Moreover, foreign books printed from the 16th through the 18th centuries (about 75% of the entire collection) give special character to our collection. They were brought to Poland, preserved and read, confirming Poland’s frequent early contacts with other European countries.