Rokycany (Czech Republic)

The house of the Canons Regular of St Augustine in Rokycany in western Bohemia was founded in 1363 by the Archbishop of Prague, Arnošt of Pardubice. It suffered severe damage during the Hussite Wars and thereafter gradually declined, before finally ceasing to exist in 1546. Despite the turbulent history of this house, books have survived from its library that offer a glimpse into the intellectual and spiritual life of the community.

From what was once a large library, fifty-two manuscripts and five volumes containing incunabula have survived. With only a single exception, the books date from the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries and are mostly undecorated paper codices. In terms of content, sermon collections predominate; works of the Church Fathers, texts concerning the lives of monks and priests, exegetical literature, philosophical writings, and biblical texts are also preserved in relatively large numbers.

A comprehensive study of this library has been published, along with a detailed catalogue of all its manuscripts:

• Adéla EBERSONOVÁ, Rukopisná knihovna řeholních kanovníků sv. Augustina v Rokycanech [Manuscript Library of the House of the Canons Regular of St Augustine in Rokycany], in: Studie o rukopisech [Manuscripts Studies] 53/1–2 (2023), pp. 86–309

  The full text of the study is available here: https://www.academia.edu/120266135

Research on this library has also been published here:

• Adéla EBERSONOVÁ. Středověké rukopisné knihovny řeholních kanovníků sv. Augustina v Čechách [Medieval Libraries of the Canons Regular of St Augustine in Bohemia]. PhD thesis. Praha: Charles University, Faculty of Arts, 2020, pp. 156–184

  The full text of the thesis is available here: https://dspace.cuni.cz/handle/20.500.11956/124141