The Teresian Library (Italian: Biblioteca
Teresiana) is a historical library, founded in Mantua
by the empress Maria Theresa of Austria
Location
The Library is located in the former
College of the Society of Jesus.
The Jesuits, in charge of higher education
and university education of the ruling classes of the city, settled in Mantua
The architectural complex belonging to the
Jesuits occupied the entire block between Via Roberto Ardigò, Via Pomponazzo,
Via Doctrina Cristiana.
The adjacent Palazzo degli Studi (Mantova)
was built by the Jesuits between 1753 and 1763, based on designs by the
Bolognese architect Alfonso Torreggiani, as a new residence for the Gymnasium,
which was later named by the Austrians Regio Arciducale Ginnasio (today Liceo
Virgilio ). Originally the use of the Library was intended primarily for
teachers and students of the Gymnasium.
The buildings belonging to the convent,
from 1883 were occupied by the State Archives of Mantua.
Facing the former Jesuit college, Palazzo
dell'Accademia, home to the Mantuan academics since 1562 and now of the Virgilian National Academy
Together these buildings form the city of Mantua
History
The Imperial Royal Library of Mantua was
opened to the public on March 30, 1780.
The empress Maria Theresa of Austria Antiquarian
Museum and Library of the Academy of Sciences
Hapsburg period: 1780-1797
Prefect of the library was appointed lawyer
Leopoldo Camillo Volta, a man of letters and a Mantuan scholar who had spent a
long time in Vienna
The first nucleus of volumes of the Library
came from the library of the Jesuit
College
Duplicates of volumes from the libraries of
Vienna , Cremona
There were no works of a scientific nature:
the prefect managed to obtain a significant number of volumes from the
"Cornaro" library of the Venetian senator Giacomo Soranzo and the
empress donated part of the purchase of the Swiss naturalist Albrecht von
Haller's collection.
Napoleonic period: 1797-1814
During the French period the Library was
enriched with manuscripts and volumes from the suppressed convents of San
Benedetto in Polirone (1797), of the convents of the Augustinians (1797), of
the Dominicans (1797), of the Franciscans (1805). In 1823 the volumes deposited
in the Library were approximately 40,000.
Period of Restoration 1815-1866
In 1816 manuscripts were returned, stolen
by the French;
In 1824 there was the purchase of
manuscripts belonging to the fund of Leopoldo Camillo Volta, prefect of the
Library from 1779 to 1823.
In 1838 the Library acquired the complete
collection from 1689 of the " Gazzetta di Mantova ".
In 1866, the Library became governmental.
In 1881 it became municipal.
At the beginning of the 1900s the number of
volumes reached around 120,000.
In 1912 the "Popular Library"
opened on the ground floor, open in the evening, from November to April, to
allow the influx of workers: in 1915 it was transferred to Palazzo Aldegatti.
In 1930 the acquisition of the library of
the Jewish Community of Mantua took place.
In 1952 the volume of volumes amounted to
200,000.
Renovations
In 1930 the Library extends by
incorporating a long corridor, until 1915 used as an antique museum. Between
1915 and 1925 the statues had been transferred to Palazzo Ducale. The corridor
was divided into consultation rooms, offices and warehouses.
In 1932 the Rare Books Room was created.
In 1959 the study rooms, the offices, the
warehouses and the access staircase were renovated.
In 1995, the whole building was restored
and brought up to standard.
The Library is reopened to the public on
March 30, 2014.
Teresian rooms
The rooms destined for the Library were two
large rooms on the first floor and adapted to a design by the Veronese
architect Paolo Pozzo. In honor of the empress they were called first and
second Teresian. The large walnut shelves, initially made only for the first
room (in the second will be installed in 1818) were inspired by the style of
Fischer von Erlach, architect of the Hofbibliothek in Vienna
The halls of knowledge
The interior of the Teresiana Library has
an austere appearance, ideal for who wishes to spend hours reading and
studying. The library is enriched by several shelves, wood work designed to
hold the most important books of the collection. The Teresiana has always
hosted some of the most important artistic and scientific collections.
The great halls
These rooms were under the supervision of
the Jesuits until the suppression of the religious order in 1773. Here the
large public library began to take shape and was called after the long-lived
Empress. The building also housed the Museo dell’Antichità, with its
prestigious collections belonging to the Gonzaga family, before it was
transferred in the halls of Palazzo Ducale. The connection to the nearby
Accademia, where today the Bibiena Theatre still stands, is very strong. Nearby
is also the State Archives building, erected in 1883. When the university was
moved to Pavia
The wide rectangular space, illuminated by
four windows on each side, is characterized by two series of shelved where the
most precious volumes are kept. The material used is walnut wood for the more
visible parts, poplar wood for the structural parts.
The Library, restored and reopened to the
visitors in 2014, houses an extraordinary collection of books. More than
400,000 volumes among which 15,000 incunabula and more than 1,300 manuscripts.
The incunabula section is one of the most significant and rich in Italy Italy
The shelves of the second hall were put in
place only in 1818.
Knowledge and globes
The manuscript section of the library, made
up of 1,381 volumes (among which 535 are Medieval) is outstanding. The codes of
the religious orders of the whole district were moved here, following the
suppression of various orders during the Habsurg Empire and the Napoleonic
period. Also, the section houses 385 precious codes from the San Benedetto in
Polirone Abbey, a monastery founded and patronized by the Canossa
(Tedaldo di Canossa, 1007). The scriptorium of Polirone was a place of creation
already at the time, and production here continued for centuries despite the
periods of crisis.Not much is left of the collection of codices belonging to
the Gonzaga family, though the ones kept here are remarkable; also interesting
are the works which once belonged to other noble families from Mantua
The Franciscan Coronelli was a geographer
and cartographer. He is the author of the book Libro dei Globi di misure
differenti. The first pair of Globes by Coronelli kept in the Teresiana Library
are appreciated above all for the dimensions, one metre in diameter. The globe
of the earth was designed following precise cartographic measurements, and is
embellished by small animals both real and imaginary, and by scenes depicting
people travelling through the different inhabited areas.
In the representation of the celestial
globe, Coronelli inserted the eighty-three constellations, including the twelve
zodiacal signs. Although the provenance of the globes cannot be determined with
certainty – they were surely created in Venice
Matteo Greuter is the author of four
globes, kept in the Teresiana Library, two globes of the earth and two
celestial globes. Greuter is best known for having created a large map of Italy
The Image captures the overall harmony
between the drywall globes mounted on wood structures and the fascinating halls
of the Library.
The second pair of globes by Coronelli is
smaller than the first. Nothing however is lost in the descriptions and lines
that form constellations and trace continents. Both globes are placed on an
interesting wooden structure, which of course is Atlas, who is bending under
the weight of the sphere he is condemned to bear.
A significant painting
Vindizio Nodari Pesenti is one of the most
representative artists of the period that goes from the end of nineteenth
century to the early twentieth century in Mantua
This painting depicts the surroundings as
they appeared at the time of the erection of the Teresian Library. In the
background, looking through the open window, it is possible to identify the
contour of the great dome of the church
of Sant'Andrea
A priceless heritage
The study room, where manuscripts and rare
books are kept, is illuminated by a large window that also gives light to the
corridor. The restoration of the rooms was carried out with particular
attention to the furniture, which, in addition to being functional for
consultation, is designed so as to not create a contrast with the older pieces
still in place. The Teresian Library, a public library since 1881, today has
been granted museum status.
The modern entrance of the Library gives
access to a large hall on the ground floor, which is located just below the
corridor.
History and legends
The Teresian Library also houses a vast
collection of historical findings, many of paramount importance. Among the
personal archives it is worth mentioning the one belonging to the diplomat and
traveller Giuseppe Acerbi (Castel Goffredo 1773, Castel Goffredo 1846), which
includes Egyptian artefacts, and the collection of the researcher and art
historian Ercolano Marani (Castellucchio 1914, Mantova 1994). The collection
also includes items dating to the Italian Risorgimento; legal documents;
literary works composed in dialect; the fund of Francesco and Ettore
Campogalliani – Francesco was a great puppeteer who lived between the
nineteenth and twentieth century, while Ettore was a composer and one of the
best singing teachers of his time. In addition to medical sciences, also
natural sciences occupy an important position in the collection thanks to the
fund of the naturalist Enrico Paglia (Mantua 1834, Mantua 1889).
Jewish background
The precious library of the thriving local
Jewish community is also kept in the Teresian Library. It is a valuable legacy
comprising 160 manuscripts, the oldest dating to the fourteenth century, and
1,549 printed works. Mantua
The contour of the co-cathedral of
Sant'Andrea, designed by Leon Battista Alberti (Genoa
1404, Rome
The frescoes room
This room on the second floor of the
Teresian library, towards the end of the corridor on the left, was very
probably used for religious purposes, as attested by the frescoes that decorate
it. Perhaps this was the so-called Oratorio delle Scuole inferiori The frescoes
depicting scenes from the life of Christ, have been attributed by Stefano
L'Occaso, although it is not possible to prove this with certainty, to the late
Baroque painter Siro Baroni, who lived and worked in Mantua, and whose works
can be admired in the churches of Santa Barbara and Sant'Orsola.
The key feature of the frescoes of this
room is the relatively small dimension of the figures, traced with a skilful
and graceful stroke; behind them the landscape and an impressive blue sky.
Everything in the fresco is blue except these figures that are painted with
more intense colours: the frescoes are a vivid depiction of some scenes of the
life of Christ.
Christ keeps his eyes closed and is bending
to receive the holy water from John the Baptist who is pouring it over his
head.
The protagonists of this scene have a
bewildered look on them, they are almost intimidated by a very solemn Christ
who summons them to preaching and martyrdom.
La Sala delle Vedute
The so-called Sala delle vedute is on the ground
floor, at the end of the great entrance hall. Opened after restoration in 2014,
it has become a conference room; it was maybe the first reading room of the
popular library. The frescoes decorating it depict two couples of young girls
carrying books, and four dancers. Also, and this is where the name of the hall
comes from, on the wall are ten scenes of the city of Mantua, with its
monuments and buildings appearing in the distance. The style of the decoration
is decidedly Liberty
Digital Library
The Teresian Library has a conspicuous
digitized heritage, consisting of around 350,000 images that can be consulted
online:
Polironian manuscripts
Hebrew manuscripts
Antique cartographic prints
Archive of the Jewish Community
Local historical periodicals
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