November 17, 2009 - January 8, 2009
Central Library | 500 McKinney, 77002
Opening Reception | Tuesday, November 17, 2009 | 6 PM
Central Library | 500 McKinney, 77002
Wednesday, November 18, 2009 at 5 PM
Thursday, November 19, 2009 at 12 noon
The Houston–Leipzig Sister City Association and the Leipzig University Library Invite you to Experience an Outstanding Exhibition.
The exhibit presents an insight into six centuries of scholarly work that shaped the modern world. Leipzig is home to the second oldest German university (founded 1409), and todayis one of the most important institutions of higher learning. Its library was founded in 1543 and provides the material for this exposition, exclusively designed for Houston, Leipzig‘s Sister City.
Browsable images, timelines, high quality facsimiles, and video clips give an insight into the development of scholarly methods over the centuries, leading up to modern science. The lives and struggles of students provide some comic relief. Conservators and historians explain how they work with rare manuscripts during the present time.
Other treasures depicted in the exhibit include two leaves from the oldest complete Bible manuscript in existence, the Codex Sinaiticus (ca. 350 CE), the Mongolian Qur’an (1306), a section of the Papyrus Ebers, the largest surviving medical manuscript from antiquity (1600 BCE), the earliest book (1507) mentioning the name of America for the then newly discovered continent, and a artist’s book (1610) picturing a Baroque court festival with figures incorporating wild men, women on giant turtles etc.
A richly illustrated catalog of the exhibition in English is available for purchase; a web site with images and videos is located at www.inpursuitofknowledge.org