Manuscript waste in reconstructing book collections of medieval Elbląg

Medieval manuscript collections on the territory of Teutonic Prussia have been particularly affected by numerous unfortunate events in modern history, such as Polish-Swedish wars and the turmoil after World War II. Still, the attempts to reconstruct the local collections may shed new light on the intellectual history of this historical region. To this date this kind of research was based mostly on the preserved manuscripts with Prussian origin or provenance, that is to say produced or used on the territory of Prussia, currently held in Polish or foreign libraries and on the evidence on the lost volumes derived from archival inventories. The article, taking as an example the history of collections of the city of Elbląg, discusses the potential of systematic studies of parchment waste used in bindings of manuscripts and printed books for reconstructing the intellectual landscape of the territory in question. It systematizes different types of provenance evidence that links the parchment waste to the territory of Teutonic Prussia by an analysis of content, script, musical notation, bindings and other material evidence.

Finding Hoards

In literature, folklore, and popular culture, coins have a powerful association with buried treasure. That association often includes, of course, a colorful array of dragons, elves, leprechauns, and pirates. This chapter examines coin hoards as they appear in the works of Aristophanes, Plautus, Sir Walter Scott, George Eliot, J.R.R. Tolkien, and others. Among historical hoards are those reported by Cicero, Samuel Pepys, and a curious testimonial involving a witch in a medieval manuscript from 1366. Modern discoveries of ancient and medieval coin hoards number in the tens of thousands; this chapter examines some notable examples from Pompeii, Herculaneum, Britain, and Afghanistan.

„Banderia Prutenorum”, czyli poczet chorągwi krzyżackich obalonych piórem Jerzego z Krakowa

The paper is dedicated to the volume of poems by Jerzy Harasymowicz, entitled 'Banderia Prutenorum' (1976). The author explores the dependence of this volume on a work of the same title, which was released in mid-15th century through the initiative of Jan Długosz. The medieval manuscript contains illustrations and short descriptions of 56 Teutonic flags captured by Polish troops in the battle of Grunwald (1410). The author of these pictures was Stanisław Durink, while the descriptions were made by Jan Długosz, among other authors. Using the illustrations of Teutonic flags from the medieval model, Harasymowicz added his own poems, showing in bad light particular troops (flags) of the Teutonic Order, as well as their great defeat in the battle against Polish‑Lithuanian forces. The author of the paper analyses the ideological‑persuasive meaning of these poems, as well as their language and depiction.