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Historical Library of the Sant'Anna Central Hospital of Ferrara

  • The Collection
  • Consultation
  • Conservation and Cataloguing
  • Promotion
  • Studies and Research Projects

Image: John Browne, Myographia nova sive
Musculorum omnium [...] accuratissima descriptio
,
Amsterdam, Joannes Wolters, 1694
(Literature and Philosophy Library,
ANTICHI MEDSANNA 2535), c. [E]2r.

The collection includes almost the entirety of the oldest nucleus of the Sant'Anna Central Hospital of Ferrara's library collections, owned by the city's University Hospital and entrusted to the university in 1992 on loan for use and also for its promotion.

It is made up of over 3700 volumes, whose dates of publication range from the 15th to the 20th century, and it offers evidence of the development of medical science over the centuries, in particular in the Ferrara area.

There are numerous editions in the collection printed in Ferrara; these include not only important scientific works such as Febris china chinae expugnata by famous Ferrara doctor Francesco Maria Nigrisoli (Ferrara, Giglio, 1700), but also polemical texts, such as the Warnings and the Letter published by doctor Ignazio Vari under the pseudonym of "Castruccio Coppetta, barber at the Cona Villa" (Ferrara, 1754 and [after 1754]).

The many ownership notes on the pieces in the collection arguably highlight the areas of interest of the city's scholars: one that stands out is the name of the botanist and medical doctor Francesco Jachelli (died 1864), whose ex-libris is found in over 350 volumes, from De lacteis thoracicis in homine … by Thomas Bartholin (Utrecht, Dirck van Ackersdijck & Gijsbert van Zijll, 1654) to Osservazioni sopra le malattie di armata by John Pringle (Bassano, Remondini, 1781).

The collection is found in the Literature and Philosophy Library, in Palazzo Tassoni-Mirogli.

Owners of pieces in the collection

To find out more

 

The collection is kept at the Literature and Philosophy Library.

The volumes that make up the collection are ineligible for external loans, but it is possible to consult them in the library, upon request, made by telephone (+39 0532 293417 - 293123), email or through the online catalogue.

Rules for consultation

The collection was transferred to the University of Ferrara following the signing of a contract through which Local Health Unit no. 31 in Ferrara granted "a series of volumes making up the Historical Library of Sant'Anna Central Hospital" to the university on loan for use.

In this context, the university committed to designating this heritage for "goals of education and research within the institutional purposes of the university". The volumes were immediately taken to the Rectory and other university premises.

Following analytical shelf inspections, dusting and cryogenic disinfestation (2009-2010), they were transferred to the Literature and Philosophy Library, where a storage area was made available that would guarantee adequate conditions for the conservation and promotion of these ancient and valuable documents.

The cataloguing of the collection in the SBN (National Library Service) was carried out from 2014-2016, and was outsourced to a firm specialising in the cataloguing of ancient books. The technical instructions provided to the cataloguers also included a detailed description of the pieces (handwritten notes, notes on ownership and ex-libris, binding, etc.) and the identification of owners and origin.

The volumes are located in the ANTICHI MEDSANNA section of the library where they are kept.

To find out more

With the Art Bonus, you can support projects for ancient book restoration at the University of Ferrara.

Audiovisual

2020 - The historical collections. Literature and Philosophy Library (length: 2 minutes and 45 seconds)

Video in Italian Sign Language (LIS) made thanks to collaboration from the Equal Opportunities and Disability Policy Coordination, the E-Learning and Multimedia Services Office and AIDUS (Association for the Inclusion of Hearing and Deaf People).

Exhibitions

To recommend studies or research projects on the collection or pieces from it, please write to biblioteca.letterefilosofia@unife.it