Manuscripts

The Library owns almost 1000 volumes, mostly proceeding from the disentailed convents, and from individual legacies specially the legacies from Vicente Hernández Máñez, Francisco Borrull, Giner de Perellós and Mariano Liñán.

Stand out, above all, those volumes from the Hieronymus Monestry of San Miguel de los Reyes which was founded in 1546 by Fernando de Aragón, Duke of Calabria and his wife Germana de Foix; this Monastery housed part of the very rich napolitan library initiated by Alfonso V of Aragon in the Napolitan Court.

Of the approximately 2500 volumes the original library consisted of, the Duke of Calabria brought to Valencia about 1000 volumes, of which 250 were deposited in the University funds. This shows the humanist concern of the Napolitan Kings: works by classic authors, humanists bound to the Court, religious books, Holy Bibles, works in romance languages, etc. The books are, most of all, a clear exponent of the Renaissance codex: luxury book in vellum, with humanistic writing, rich decoration plenty of gold and Renaissance motifs (putti, exotic animals, “bianchi girari”, medallions, emblems of the Real Court of Naples, etc.) the majority of the codex still keep their original bindings, mainly those in mudejar style.

Another important group of manuscripts (from XVI and XIX centuries) is the one proceeding from the Preacher’s Convent, constituted by the notes on theology which were teached at the Dominican convents in the province, autographic works written by Dominicans who resided in Valencia, reports of events with relation to the Order, Sermons, etc.

The Library also counts with a small fund of arab manuscripts coming from the legacy donated by Vicente Hernández Máñez .

Apart from the manual catalog (by authors and matters of the fund of manuscripts, there is another printed made by Marcelino Gutierrez del Caño, which had a facsimile edition made for Paris-Valencia.