Exhibitions at the J.R. Ritman Library
Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica
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The library in the Bloemstraat continually shows works from its own collections. Many of these exhibitions are accompanied by catalogues, all published by the library's own publishing house, some of which are still available (out-of-print catalogues will be marked with an asterisk * below). The library also travels abroad with special exhibitions. In the past, exhibitions have been mounted in New York, Moscow, St Petersburg, Wolfenbüttel, Amsterdam, Brussels and other cities. A survey of past exhibitions now follows.
Exhibitions in 1999
The BPH organized together with the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana in Florence an exhibition to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the death of Marsilio Ficino, physician, philosopher and humanist, whose translation of the Corpus Hermeticum at the behest of Cosimo de Medici reintroduced Hermes Trismegistus to the West. The exhibition, which ran from 1 October 1999 to 8 January 2000 under the title Marsilio Ficino e il ritorno di Ermete Trismegisto, concentrated on the person and work of Marsilio Ficino and on the (history of the) works attributed to the legendary figure of Hermes Trismegistus, 'pater philosophorum'. The rediscovery of Hermetism took place in Renaissance Florence in the circles of Ficino and Pico della Mirandola, making the Biblioteca Laurenziana a very apt location for this exhibition devoted to Ficino and Hermes.
Bi-lingual (Italian-English) exhibition catalogue: Sebastiano Gentile & Carlos Gilly. Marsilio Ficino e il ritorno di Ermete Trismegisto/Marsilio Ficino and the Return of Hermes Trsimegistus. Florence: Centro Di, 1999 (ISBN 88-7038-339-3). Ill., 326 pp.
The BPH in Amsterdam hosted from October to December the exhibition Geheimnisse der Alchemie, compiled by Egyptologist Dr Thomas Hofmeier and archeologist Dr Manuel Bachmann, founders of the Institut für Geschichte und Hermeneutik der Geheimwissenschaften (postal address: Postfach 406, CH-4003 Basel). The exhibition, which had earlier been on show in the University Library Basel and the Kantonsbibliothek (Vadiana) in St. Gallen, offered a survey of the history and iconography of alchemy, with special attention to Basel as a centre for alchemy in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Exhibition catalogue: Manuel Bachmann/Thomas Hofmeier. Geheimnisse der Alchemie. Basel: Schwabe & Co. Verlag, 1999. ISBN 3-7965-1368-9. Ill., 271 pp.
Exhibitions in 1998
In January the BPH mounted the exhibition which it had so successfully organized in September 1997 for the IAB (see below under 1997) in the Bibliotheca Wittockiana in Brussels, a library specializing in fine bindings. Visitors to the exhibition were shown 25 manuscripts from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, 40 incunables, 60 books printed in the period 1500-1800, and 10 bibliophile editions from the early 20th century..
Exhibitions in 1997
In September the BPH participated in the biennial meeting of the International Association of Bibliophiles, which in 1997 convened in the Netherlands, by hosting an exhibition of some 120 treasures from its own collections in the Dutch Maritime Museum in Amsterdam. A small English-language catalogue, compiled by the BPH's Amsterdam staff and produced with bibliophile care, accompanied the exhibition. The thematically arranged exhibition showed manuscripts and printed books from the 13th century through the 20th century.
Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica. J.R. Ritman Library.Compiled by J. Bouman, C. van Heertum and F.A. Janssen. Catalogue published for the 1997 congress of the IAB. 70 pp.
Exhibitions in 1996
The library opened a new exhibition in the last month of 1996 entitled 'Not for scholars: manuscripts in the vernacular from the Hermetic tradition'. The exhibition showed some 60 manuscripts ranging from the Middle Ages through the early 20th century, and included copies of printed works as well as original works in French, Dutch, German, Italian and English in the fields of Hermetic philosophy, alchemy, Rosicrucianism and mysticism. Some of the manuscripts were never printed, others were printed at a much later date than the manuscript on show, others still are careful copies of existing printed works. A modest, unillustrated guide to the exhibition is available in English and in Dutch.
Not for scholars. Manuscripts in the vernacular from the Hermetic tradition and Niet voor geleerden. Handschriften in de volkstaal uit de Hermetische traditie. Compiled by J. Bouman and C. van Heertum. 15; 16 pp.
Exhibitions in 1995
The BPH organized in cooperation with the Herzog August Bibliothek a major exhibition around the early Rosicrucians in Wolfenbüttel in the months March-May. A revised version of this exhibition then travelled to Amsterdam, where it was on show in the Amsterdam University Library from 31 August through 20 October. Both the exhibition and the catalogue were the work of librarian Carlos Gilly. In addition to the Rosicrucian manifestoes, the German-language catalogue, Cimelia Rhodostaurotica, offers a description of a large number of works in the ensuing controversy.
Cimelia Rhodostaurotica. Die Rosenkreuzer im Spiegel der zwischen 1610 und 1660 entstandenen Handschriften und Drucke.Compiled by C. Gilly. xii, 191 pp.
Exhibitions in 1994
In the summer the exhibition 'The Silent Language. The symbols of Hermetic philosophy', put together by Adam McLean, was opened. A catalogue, which sold out in the same year, also compiled by Adam McLean, accompanied the exhibition.
*The Silent Language. The symbols of Hermetic philosophy. Compiled by A. McLean. 92 pp.
The BPH was one of the libraries to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the birth of the Swiss nature philosopher Paracelsus with an exhibition compiled by Carlos Gilly under the title 'Parcelsus in der Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica', which opened at the beginning of 1994. Carlos Gilly also wrote the accompanying catalogue, which was soon out of print. These catalogues will be made available by the BPH on the Internet in the future.
*Paracelsus in der Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica. Ausstellung zum 500. Geburtsjahr des Theophrastus Bombast von Hohenheim, Paracelsus genannt. Compiled by C. Gilly. 85 pp.
Exhibitions in 1993
In March and May the BPH organized together with the Rudomino Library for Foreign Literatures in Moscow an exhibition under the title '500 Years of Gnosis in Europe'. This exhibition, with the accompanying English-Russian catalogue compiled by Carlos Gilly, re-introduced to the Russian audience a spiritual tradition which had been suppressed since the late 18th century. The majority of loans from the BPH concerned copies of printed books, supplemented by various Russian libraries with manuscript or printed translations of these German, English, French or Latin works. The exhibition opened in Moscow in the presence of the Dutch ambassador and delegates from the Russian Ministry of Culture, and travelled to St Petersburg in May of the same year. The accompanying catalogue (sold out) will be made available on the Internet in the future.
*500 Years of Gnosis in Europe. Exhibition of printed books and manuscripts from the gnostic tradition. Compiled by C. Gilly. 312 pp.
Exhibitions in 1992
The exhibition 'Splendor Solis', showing drawings made by the American artist Laurie Lipton on the basis of a manuscript of the famous 16th-century alchemical series Splendor Solis in the British Library, was presented in the library in October. A brief guide to the exhibition was compiled by José Bouman.
Splendor solis. Een 16e-eeuwse alchemistische traditie verbeeld in 1992. Compiled by J. Bouman. 18 pp.
Exhibitions in 1991
The library's major acquisitions in 1990 were the subject of 1991's in-house exhibition.
Exhibitions in 1990
On the occasion of the publication on 13 December of the Dutch translation of the Corpus Hermeticum (see under Activities in 1990), the library opened an exhibition entitled 'Hermes Trismegistus, Pater Philosophorum', compiled by Frank van Lamoen, who also wrote the accompanying catalogue with the same title. This exhibition, which included a number of foreign loans, received wide media coverage and was one of the most successful exhibitions in the library.
The library presented its incunables in an in-house exhibition which opened in April to mark the publication of Christ, Plato, Hermes Trismegistus. The dawn of printing (see under Activities in 1990). The exhibition, which was opened by one of the British Library's incunable experts, Dr Lotte Hellinga, travelled to New York in June, where it was housed in the Grolier Club. The New York exhibition was opened by the American incunabulist Dr Paul Needham.
Hermes Trismegistus. Pater philosophorum. Tekstgeschiedenis van het Corpus Hermeticum. Compiled by F. van Lamoen. xix, 152 pp.
Exhibitions in 1989
Three exhibitions were held in the library this year on the following themes: 'The spiritual symbols of alchemy', 'Highlights from the collection' and 'Kabbala and hermetic philosophy'. The first and last exhibitions had earlier been on show in Carcassonne on the occasion of the festival de l'Ésoterisme and were accompanied by catalogues; only the latter catalogue is still available, in a Dutch translation.
*Les symboles spirituels de l'alchimie. Exposition à l'occasion du Festival International de l'Esotérisme. Compiled by H.M.E. de Jong. 143 pp.
*Kabbale et philosophie hermétique. Exposition à l'occasion du Festival International de l'Esotérisme. Compiled by F. Secret. 119 pp.
Kabbala en hermetische filosofie.Compiled by F. Secret. 147 pp.
Exhibitions in 1988
The library participated in the Festival International de l'Ésoterisme in Carcassonne with an exhibition on the spiritual symbols of alchemy, compiled by Dr H.M.E. de Jong. In the library in the Bloemstraat the following exhibitions were shown in succession: the revised exhibition 'De hermetische gnosis', compiled by Frank van Lamoen, and a choice from the sources of Western esotericism.
The Hermetic gnosis. Compiled by F. van Lamoen. 88 pp. Revised editon of De Hermetische Gnosis.
Exhibitions in 1987
The major exhibition organized in 1987 was 'Johann Valentin Andreae. Die Manifeste der Rosenkreuzerbruderschaft', showing works in the Rosicrucian tradition, which was continued from 1986.
Exhibitions in 1986
Three exhibitions were held in the library this year, two of which were compiled by Frank van Lamoen: 'Abraham Willemsz van Beyerland', an exhibition (with a number of foreign loans) on the Dutch mecenas and follower of the German mystic Jacob Böhme, responsible for publishing the majority of Böhme's works in Amsterdam, and 'De hermetische gnosis', a survey of works related to gnostic Hermeticism, an exhibition which was to be revived on several occasions.
The third exhibition, 'Johann Valentin Andreae. Die Manifeste der Rosenkreuzerbruderschaft', was compiled by Carlos Gilly, who also wrote the accompanying exhibition catalogue. This exhibition was opened by Prof. Dr Martin Brecht, a German expert on 17th-century pietist movements, to great acclaim.
Abraham Willemsz van Beyerland. Jacob Böhme en het Nederlandse hermetisme in de 17e eeuw. Compiled by F. van Lamoen. 40 pp.
De Hermetische Gnosis. Compiled by F. van Lamoen. 88 pp.
Johann Valentin Andreae. Die Manifeste der Rosenkreuzerbruderschaft 1586-1986. Compiled by C. Gilly. 144 pp.