Biblioteca Estense Universitaria, Renaissance archive and library in Palazzo dei Musei, Modena, Italy
The Biblioteca Estense Universitaria is located on the second floor of Palazzo dei Musei and holds over 500,000 printed books, 11,000 bound manuscripts, and 100,000 individual written pages. The collection includes religious texts, musical scores, and important Renaissance works available for research and public viewing.
The library was founded in the late 1300s under Marquis Niccolò III d'Este and relocated from Ferrara to Modena in 1598 when the Este family moved their capital. The transfer established it as a major repository for preserving works from the Renaissance period in its new location.
The collection shows how people in the Renaissance studied and created music through handwritten documents and religious texts. Visitors can observe the importance that scholars and rulers placed on preserving knowledge through carefully made books.
The reading room is accessible on weekdays with extended hours during the week and shorter availability on Friday and Saturday mornings. Visitors should plan their visit during regular opening times to examine the collection.
The exhibition room displays illuminated manuscripts with gold details and paintings created by hand on each page, representing extraordinary craftsmanship from medieval times. These individually made artworks show the labor and skill that went into producing each single volume.
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