Ludwig Tieck´s Library. Anatomy of a romantic and comparatist book collection

The goal of this project is the virtual reconstruction of the German romanticist Ludwig Tiecks (1773- 1853) famous library (containing about 9000 volumes), the main thesis being that Tiecks book collection was a private, a scholarly and a poets library, which represented in an ideal way the material platform for a reading and writing practice that has to be described as genuinely comparatist. A reconstruction and appreciation of Tiecks library, which contained rare and precious prints from the Renaissance and the Siglo de oro through to his own era and was sold at a Berlin auction in 1849/50, would be a pioneer work for studies in European Romanticism and an important contribution to the systematic exploration of pre- comparatist book collections. As the history of the dispersion of the Bibliotheca Tieckiana is extremely complex, the desideratum consists in listing Tiecks complete library, following modern standards of cataloguing, i.e. to assign comprehensive data on Tiecks purchase or use as well as to localise and evaluate all copies (now mainly in Vienna, London, Berlin, Wroclaw, Göttingen, Halle, Krakow, Munich, and presumably in Lodz, St. Petersburg, Warsaw, but also in private property). An important additional achievement will be the historical evaluation of the important acquisitions from the Tieck library for the Viennese Hofbibliothek that has to be carried out by an expert of the ÖNB archives. The information on Tiecks libraries will be combined and amended to represent an extensive knowledge, and the results will be presented in a digital database designed appropriately to its particular functions. An open access internet presentation will be implemented, as well, in order to enhance the depth and quality of the data so that further questions can be considered. The specific and additional value for the understanding of Tiecks library, also in its diachronic dimension, will be combined search parametres and searching routines getting far ahead of the possibilities of book-indices. As it is unknown how Tieck arranged his library, the database will have to be open to different classifications for Tiecks books. It must allow for continuous and simultaneous work and international access, so that new information can easily be incorporated at any time. Whereas a print edition should still be pursued as a long-term goal, the database is a necessary prerequisite for the sustainable use of the results, and it will qualify the project as a meeting point for the international community of researchers on Tieck, romanticism or early comparatism, who are invited to contribute. Thanks to this endeavour, one of the most important libraries of a poet in literary history will, at least virtually, be restored and persevere.

The goal of this project is the virtual reconstruction of the German romanticist Ludwig Tieck's (1773- 1853) famous library (containing about 17000 volumes). A reconstruction and appreciation of Tieck's library, which contained rare and precious prints from the 16th century through to his own era and was sold at a Berlin auction in 1849/50, is a pioneer work for studies in European Romanticism and an important contribution to the systematic exploration of scholarly multilingual book collections - and also an unparalleled opportunity to explore the international book trade in the 19th century. Our goal consisted in listing Tieck's complete library, following modern standards of cataloguing, i.e. to assign comprehensive data on Tieck's purchase or use as well as to locate and evaluate all copies. In its first instalment, the project has already located and examined thousands of volumes in in Berlin, Göttingen, Halle, Krakow, Lodz, London, Munich, Vienna, and in private ownership. The results have already been processed in a database developed specifically for this purpose. A continuation of our project is not only essential due to further leads in Moscow, St. Petersburg, and Wroclaw, but especially because of the recent discovery of a catalogue copy naming more than 80 buyers that partook in the auction, specifying which titles were individually bought and at which price. This source will - even beyond our results that have already surpassed our hopes - facilitate the exploration of the fate of Tieck's library to a depth not thought probable in 2014. The resulting database represents the extensive knowledge on Tieck's library in a depth and quality of data so that further research questions can be considered. The specific and additional value for the understanding of Tieck's library, also in its diachronic dimension, are combined search parameters and searching routines getting far ahead of the possibilities of book-indices. The database now facilitates the classification of Tieck's books according to the Regensburger Verbundklassifikation which is especially suited for collections with an emphasis on fine literature. The database is a necessary prerequisite for the monograph that will present all results of our project and will furthermore guarantee the sustainable use of the results, and it will qualify the project as a meeting point for the international community of researchers on Tieck, Romanticism, or 19th and 20th century book trade, who are invited to contribute. Thanks to this endeavour, one of the most important libraries of a poet in literary history will, at least virtually, be restored and persevere.