Treść książki
Przejdź do opcji czytnikaPrzejdź do nawigacjiPrzejdź do informacjiPrzejdź do stopki
40
JolantaTalbierska
Organisation.ForWhatPurposeDoWeSeparateCollections?
Anotherdifcultproblemtosolveisthequalificationandfinalassigna-
tiontoaspecificsection(inthecaseoftheUniversityofWarsawLibrary-the
Department)ofobjectsthathavebeenstoredintheclosedstacksuforages”,
sharingspacewithcontemporaryprintedbooksandperiodicals.Aseparate
19th-centurycollectioncouldconsist,forexample,ofindividuallithographs,
wood-engravings,andsteelengravingspublishedatthattime,orillustratedvol-
umesmadeupofsuchmaterials,butalsographicportfoliosofrenownedauthors
consistingofimpressionsoftheirworks,i.e.strictlyartisticobjectsthatbelong
ratherinthegraphiccollectionsandnotamongtheseparateprintedbooksand
periodicalsformingthe19th-centurycollection.
Teanswertothefundamentalquestions:whatobjectsconstitutethe
19th-centurycollectionandwhatcriteriacanbethebasisforestablishingitas
aseparatedepartment,dependsmostlyonthesubstantivecontentofsuchacol-
lectionandtheinstitutionwhereitislocated.Teseproblemsaremuchlessfre-
quentinmuseums,whereartisticorhistoricresourcesinanartisticsettingare
assignedtoappropriatesections.Conversely,inmostlibrariesthatcollectvarious
contemporaryandhistoricalmaterialsinadditiontothemainbookcollection,
divisionsarebasedonatraditionalperceptionofresources,andalmostallvisual
objectsareclassifiedunfortunatelyasiconographicdocuments.
7
Establishing
newdepartmentsforresearch,conservation,ororganisationalreasonsentails
manyproblemsofspatial,formal,andfinancialnature.Teseparationofasin-
glecollection,especiallyifitisnottoolarge,ismucheasier(thoughnotalways).
Acollectionisdefinedasasetofobjects,mostlyofonetype,e.g.printed
books,manuscripts,worksofart(paintings,weapons,numismaticitems,antiques,
culturalmemorabilia),gatheredbecauseoftheirparticularhistorical,scientific,
artistic,orculturalvalue,wheretheseobjectsusuallylosetheiroriginalfunc-
tion,becomingsemiophores,carriersofnewcontentsormeanings.
8
Tiscate-
goryalsoincludessuchunusualandcomplexobjectsasBibliothèquePortative
duVoyageur-atravellinglibraryconsistingof32volumesinawoodenbox
coveredwithredleather,imitatingavolume(33×21cm).Tecoverandspine
aredecoratedwithagildedornament(Fig.1).Eachvolume(9×7cm)isbound
inredgoatskin;thecoversandspinesaredecoratedwithgilding,asaretheedges
ofthepages.Teendpapersarelemon-coloured,andeachvolumehasablue
silkribbonsewnintoittoserveasabookmark.Tevolumes,printedinupetit”
fontonthinlaidpaper,werepublishedbyadistinguishedParisiancompany
7Talbierska,op.cit.,pp.20-23.
8KrzysztofPomian,uHistoireculturelle,histoiredessémiophores”,in:Pourunehistoireculturelle,
ed.byJean-PierreRioux,Jean-FrançoisSirinelli,Seuil,Paris,1996,pp.73-100.
