Bibliotheca Cartusiana Moguntina – Digitized. Virtual Carthusian Library Mainz

• Applicant: Dr. Jochen Apel, since 10/2023
• Subject Area: Roman Catholic Theology ; Medieval History
• Term: since 2019
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 428867092

The aim of the project is to establish a virtual library containing the manuscripts of the Mainz charterhouse which was situated on Michaelsberg and dissolved in 1781. The focus of the project is on the digitization and online presentation of the 624 manuscripts from the charterhouse that are in the collection of the Wissenschaftliche Staatsbibliothek Mainz. The plan is to provide a portal that not only offers access to the digitized codices but also includes in-depth information on the history and eminence of the library and individual manuscripts. In the second phase of the project, the remaining 314 manuscripts will be digitised and put online. In the spirit of a “virtual library” the aim is also to include, if possible. The outstanding value of the ensemble, and the significance of the documents of piety specific to the Carthusians from the Mainz charterhouse has been recognized by international scholars for many decades. The majority of the manuscripts were produced in the late Middle Ages (14th / 15th century) although the collection also comprises several earlier documents, including some from the 9th until the 11th centuries. The library includes works on a wide spectrum of medieval theology, as well as canon law, philosophy, medicine, natural history, computus, Latin poetry, philology, rhetoric, and grammar. An extensive collection of Latin-German and Latin-Low German vocabularies are of particular significance. A unique feature is the Carthusian laity library, containing around 100 German language manuscripts mainly dedicated to asceticism for the lay brothers. Scribes, authors, and former owners indicate a manifold of connections between universities, networks of scholars, and other charterhouses). As Mainz lacks the technical infrastructures for the digitization of such an extensive and technically challenging inventory, Heidelberg University Library is responsible for the digitization and online presentation of the codices in accordance with DFG specifications. Watermarks inside the manuscripts are also being digitized and embedded in the online documentation. The necessary cataloguing information for the manuscripts is already available. The project results will be provided in national and international portals. Manuscripts will be displayed via the DFG-Viewer and will also be accessible via IIIF-Manifest for subsequent use. This cataloging process will secure the normative data record in Manuscripta Mediaevalia (and in the prospective manuscript portal). In the second project phase, an improvement of the cross-manuscript search in the portal "Bibliotheca Cartusiana Moguntina - digital" (https://doi.org/10.11588/library.bcm) will be realised.

• DFG Programme: Cataloguing and Digitisation (Scientific Library Services and Information Systems)
• Co-Investigator: Dr. Stephan Fliedner
• Ehemaliger Antragsteller: Dr. Veit Probst, until 9/2023