Page 106 [106]
by a revival of thinking about libraries (bibliotheconomia) and new research into li¬
brary history.“° The authors were particularly inspired by the history of the greater
scattered libraries.*1
We do not know exactly what kind of consciousness (conscientia) the Augustin¬
ian monk Xystus Schier had. The question was not raised by his biographers.*””
Researchers of the Hungarian Aistoria litteraria, who believe that Schier is a sig¬
nificant figure," have not yet dealt with this question. Certainly, he was born a
German-speaking man, belonging to the universal Christian Catholic Church, on
the border of the Hungarian Kingdom and Lower Austria of the Holy German¬
Roman Empire. He was educated in Pozsony, among Hungarians, Germans, and
Slovaks, and partially among Protestants. He was the historian of his order, but
also wrote several books on the history of the Hungarians. However, I do not
think the question of his national consciousness in connection to his choice of
the history of this library as a research topic can be answered. At the beginning
of his work, he indicates that he finds Joachimus Vadianus’s assumption that the
library had been destroyed by irresponsible successors offensive.*”* For him, know¬
ing the history of the Kingdom, the story of the library falling apart is much
more complex. In the foreword, he also gives an overview of his knowledge of
library history tradition, in other words, the literature available at the time on the
Bibliotheca Corvina.** He was definitely influenced by the spirit of the times, the
formation of collections, museum and library thinking, and the beginnings of sci¬
entific library history. It is also possible that he sensed the change in atmosphere
between the Austrian and Hungarian political elites, and considered it important
to write a chapter on the history of culture, which was important for the hungarus
consciousness.
As a conclusion, returning to the question raised in the first part of the chapter
on Schier, whether studying, understanding, or at least reflecting on the different
forms of collective and individual consciousness of the times before the “emer¬
gence of nation states” would bring us closer to the right (or better) decisions on
contemporary issues, I can only answer with a resounding yes.
‘The cultural bases of the behaviour of the people living in 21st century Europe,
or just in the European Union, and the reflexes that arise from them, are much
deeper than we could understand from just the recent past. Unraveling, interpret¬
ing, and becoming aware of these roots at both the individual and collective levels
could (perhaps) help manage the consequences of identity crises. It could also help
190 A good example is ScumipT J. A. 1703, on pages 309-352 the Julius Pflugk letter and the catalogue of
books found in Buda are republished.
For an example see the anthology: GREINER 1729.
#2 MixscH 1966, 356-366., MıxscH 1969., RENNHOFER 1970, 317-324.
#3 Tüsk&s G. 2006, 15-42. (here: 40.);, Knapp 2006, 547-566. (here: 550-551.); BRETZ-Csörsz RUMEN—
Heceptis 2006, 567-678. (here: 653-654.)
#4 VapIANus 1534a, 85.; VapIANus 1534, 85.
#5 LAMBEcK 1669, caput IX, 989-996., Prrucıus 1688.; PrLucrus 1688a.; GREINER 1729, caput VIII,
34-38.; BERGER 1750, 348-352.; FABRI-BÖöRNER 1756.; Bostus 1748.; BERGER, 1748.
491
104