24.04.2024

A sensational discovery at the University Library in Poznań

Twenty seven new items from the Grimm brothers' private library have been found in the University Library. The works were believed to be lost since the end of the Second World War. The discovery may help advance research into the work of the authors of the famous collection of fairy tales. The books that have been found in many cases contain notes made by the hand of Jacob and Wilhelm, who often annotated the motifs of interest on the end-sheets of books.

photo of an open old damaged book with visible handwritten notes - grafika artykułu — The discovery may help advance research into the work of the authors of the famous collection of fairy tales. In many cases, the books include notes made by the hand of Jacob and Wilhelm, who often annotated the motifs of interest on the end-sheets of books.

photo of an open old damaged book with visible handwritten notes

The discovery was made by Prof. Eliza Pieciul-Karmińska from the Faculty of Neophilology at The Adam Mickiewicz University and Renata Wilgosiewicz-Skutecka from the University Library. The search lasted almost six months.

As early as 2002, Prof. Wiesław Wydra included information concerning six volumes (eight incunabula and one old print from the 16th century) from the private library of Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm in the "Katalog inkunabułów Biblioteki Uniwersyteckiej w Poznaniu". In February 2023, Prof. Eliza Pieciul-Karmińska and Renata Wilgosiewicz-Skutecka decided to undertake a search and see if there might be other books from the Grimms' book collection in the university's library, which were noted as lost copies in Ludwig Denecke's German catalogue. The search continued until June 2023, and the collection of finds was increased by twenty-seven items. "The volumes discovered in the Poznań University Library from the private book collection of the Brothers Grimm, which had been considered lost since the end of the Second World War, can make a significant contribution to the development of contemporary Grimm studies and, moreover, give hope that there are also other items from the private library of Jacob and Wilhelm - considered lost - in the collection of the BUP," the researchers wrote in an article published in the university's journal "Biblioteka".

Interestingly, in many cases, the found books include notes made by the hand of Jacob and Wilhelm, who often annotated the motifs of interest on the end-sheets of books. As the researchers point out, these notes are of great value for research into the Grimms' legacy, as they may provide insights into their working method and choice of motifs (e.g. in fairy tales). In order to find out more, it would be necessary to initiate a joint German-Polish study on the description and elaboration of the notes.

It is worth emphasising that the Grimm brothers' book collection is regarded as a separate object of study in Germany and is displayed in the Berlin library in a form that resembles as closely as possible the book collection used by Jacob and Wilhelm during their lifetime.

Attached you can find a sample photo of the handwritten entries and one of the found books - the first edition of "Simplicissimus" from 1699, an extremely valuable print.

The article from the journal "Biblioteka" is available at: https://pressto.amu.edu.pl/index.php/b/article/view/38294/35512