The Ricklefs collection at Leiden University Libraries. Some material features
Cod.Or. 27.089 Babad Metaram, p. 278
Manuscripts are not only about content. The leather bindings, the kinds of paper, and the ink used may tell us stories without words – material talks. Dr. Dick van der Meij will introduce us to some Javanese manuscripts
In 2015, the Leiden University Libraries received a very special gift from Prof. Merle Ricklefs, who donated seven Javanese manuscripts to the library (Cod.Or. 27.087 – 27.093). Prior to this donation he had already donated the extraordinary Serat Pustakaraja (D Or. 661) to the KITLV library, now part of the UB Leiden. These eight manuscripts form a most magnificent collection on Javanese narrative traditions. However, in the following they will not be discussed for their content but for their materiality. Read More
Manuscript of the Month 05/2019
Text by Dick van der Meij
