Bibliothek und Philologie: Festschrift für Hans-Jürgen Schubert zum 65. Geburtstag (review)

Philology has played a major role in the development of libraries from ancient Greece to the present. While this term may refer more narrowly to historical or comparative linguistics, in the present volume the authors explore the relationship of libraries and librarians to philology in its more traditional sense: the study of language and writing, of word and meaning, and of literature as a primary expression of a culture. Focusing on close, analytical readings, philology encompasses studies in literature, ancient cultures, ethnography, philosophy, music, numerology, law, religion, ethics, art, and so on. These twelve essays—all in German—reflect a similarly broad range of issues arising from philological practice within librarianship and cultural studies. At the same time, this Festschrift acknowledges the achievements of Hans-Jürgen Schubert of the Fachbereich Archiv- und Bibliothekswesen der Fachhochschule für öffentliche Verwaltung und Rechtspflege in Bayern.

These contributions intersect thematically on several levels, such as the history of librarianship, special collections, cataloging and indexing, and professional development. Renate Achenbach opens the historical considerations with a discussion of origins in ancient Greece, including the location of Plato's library within the academy. Philological practices within ancient collections lay in the establishment of authoritative texts and sources as well as the exact copying of manuscripts for circulation. History also plays a role in essays by Hans Popst, Ingrid Rückert, and Claudia Maria Arndt and Sven Kuttner. Popst's contribution—published in English in Cataloging and Classification Quarterly (2002)—describes the development of alphabetical cataloging in Germany. The roots of the Regeln für alphabetische Katalogisierung (RAK, published in 1976–77) go back to research done in the nineteenth century, especially in Munich and Berlin. Popst also compares AACR2 and RAK, arguing that the latter often adheres more closely to international standards than does the former.

The history of cataloging also forms the core of Rückert's essay. The catalog undertaken by Martin Schrettinger (1772–1851) and the later Alte Realkatalog have grown into the primary access points for the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek (BSB) in Munich. Schrettinger in particular deserves mention for his recognition that the catalog should not merely represent the order of the volumes on the shelf but be a searching mechanism that provides access to the collections.

While Arndt and Kuttner provide interesting background histories to the two collections they discuss, their contribution points more to potential cooperation between libraries and other cultural institutions as well as the importance of specialized collections today. The Wissenschaftliche Bibliothek des Rhein-Sieg Kreises and the Bibliothek des Historicums (at the university library in Munich) have collaborated to support the study and remembrance of the Landjuden (provincial Jews) by drawing on unique aspects of their two collections. At the same time, their efforts have also been enhanced by cooperation with the Jewish community in Germany. This has resulted in a joint online project, the Bibliographie zur jüdischen Geschichte und Kultur im Rhein-Sieg-Kreis (Bibliography of Jewish History and Culture in the Rhine-Sieg District).

This collaboration between two specialized collections leads us to the next concentration within this volume: the importance of special collections as cultural assets in research and public libraries. Elena Corradini considers the library a central element in a "cultural society" and offers considerations for making special and unique materials available to the public. In addition to questions of audience, the library must also review its collections for the types of cultural property that will prove compelling in exhibits, such as chronicles, diaries, and correspondence. Ultimately, however, solid philological analysis is needed for the intersection missions of library, archives, and museum in order to present such cultural property to the public.

Bettina Wagner describes recent acquisitions of German-language incunables at the BSB, which houses the largest incunable collection in the world in terms of items (nearly 20,000), though not in distinct editions (about 9,650). As...