Biblioteki w protokołach wizytacyjnych klasztorów dominikańskich diecezji kamienieckiej z 1824 roku

Abstract

Eleven monasteries of the Dominican Brothers and one of the Dominican Sisters existed in the area of the Diocese of Kamyanets-Podilskyi in the first half of the 19th century. Thanks to the visitations preserved from that period, we can find out about the personal makeup, emolument of the monastery, and its book collections. The latter are the subject of this article. Their analysis is based on the visitation protocols from 1824. Documents that allow for a detailed analysis and comparison of all monasteries as far as their book collections are concerned are preserved in the National Archive of the Khmelnytskyi Oblast. The source is even more important as it is the last one pertinent to all monasteries before their dissolution in 1832 (only the Dominican Sisters in Kamyanets-Podilskyi were dissolved in 1864). Based on these visitations, we managed to learn about the size of the book collections, their thematic scope, age, as well as the languages in which the books were written. The analysis led to the conclusion that Dominican libraries in Podolia were rather small. The biggest ones were in Kamyanets-Podilskyi and Letychiv, the rest of libraries fell far behind them. In the remaining libraries, homiletical and ascetic literature dominated, evidently corresponding to the preaching work of the monks. The only convent that belonged to the Order of St. Dominic also did not possess an exceptional collection. However, the negligent catalogue did not allow for a deeper analysis.