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NewsAnother Library GemNews - date posted 03/02/06 Sir Walter Scott's Abbotsford Library has produced yet another literary gem which is nearly 500 years old. Lindsay Levy, the Faculty's Cataloguer of Rare Books, was delighted to find a copy of Teuerdank - a medieval German text written by Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I and Melchior Pfintzing, his chaplain - which has lain undisturbed in the library for half a century and is in remarkable condition for its age. First published in 1517, the Abbotsford copy of the richly-illustrated book was printed two years later. Containing 118 woodcuts and using a highly ornamental typeface, its design has been described as one of the triumphs of the German Renaissance. Bound between heavy oak boards covered in stamped leather and decorated with brass clasps, the Abbotsford book is one of the best preserved copies of the work in existence.  The book, which is a long allegorical poem written in rhymed couplets, is an epic fictional account of the adventures of Maximilian as he travelled to the Netherlands in 1477 to claim his bride, Mary of Burgundy. The king is portrayed as a chivalric knight, Teuerdank, and the book tells of how he escapes 80 different life-threatening adventures and assassination attempts en route. Maximilian, who lived between 1459 and1519 and ruled The Holy Roman Empire from 1493, is said to have modelled himself on King Arthur and was an important patron of the arts and sciences. Lindsay said: "The book looks as if it had left the printers last week. This is probably due to its binding in heavy oak boards secured with clasps which would have kept all dust and damp out. The typeface, an early version of Fraktur, was specially commissioned by Maximilian himself.
"It is easy to see a parallel with Scott, who designed a medieval castle for himself and installed the latest gas lighting. Both Scott and Maximilian shared a love of chivalry and both were men who loved things ancient and modern." The rediscovery of the copy of Teuerdank, which was last examined about 50 years ago, is the latest in a series of finds which highlights Abbotsford as a literary treasure trove. Earlier this year Lindsay uncovered the only complete manuscript of one of Robert Burns's bawdy songs which also contained a spoof will in the bard's hand dedicating the song to his friend Alexander Findlater. Penned around 1793 "O saw ye my Maggie" is thought to be based on a traditional folk song and is bound into a printed copy of The Fornicators' Court, a risqué work by Burns of which only 10 copies were ever printed. In 2004, Lindsay discovered a rare medieval manuscript called The Legenda Aurea (Golden Legend) which was described by experts as one of the most significant literary finds of the last 70 years. The manuscript was produced in about 1450 and bought by Scott at Sotheby's in London for 15 guineas in 1809. |
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"Maximilian was a follower of medieval ideals, but also a modernist and a patron of art, science
and humanism. He employed the modern technology of printing, but insisted on a traditional font with
large flourishes that is often mistaken for manuscript. 
