Description:
LOCATED IN CENTRAL AMSTERDAM, THE Ritman Library, also called the Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica and housed inside the Embassy of the Free Mind, is a goldmine of early manuscripts and books on ancient mysticism, religion, and philosophy.
The impressive collection includes around 25,000 printed materials, including around 4,500 printed before the 1800s, many of which are first or early editions. The library was founded in 1984 by Joost R. Ritman, who was driven by an interest in spiritualism.
The collection’s primary focus is the Hermetic tradition, and more specifically, Christian Hermeticism. But you will also find
LOCATED IN CENTRAL AMSTERDAM, THE Ritman Library, also called the Bibliotheca Philosophica Hermetica and housed inside the Embassy of the Free Mind, is a goldmine of early manuscripts and books on ancient mysticism, religion, and philosophy.
The impressive collection includes around 25,000 printed materials, including around 4,500 printed before the 1800s, many of which are first or early editions. The library was founded in 1984 by Joost R. Ritman, who was driven by an interest in spiritualism.
The collection’s primary focus is the Hermetic tradition, and more specifically, Christian Hermeticism. But you will also find volumes on Rosicrucianism, alchemy, gnosis, esotericism and comparative religion, Sufism, Kabbalah, anthroposophy, Freemasonry, and others lurking amid its stacks. Gems include the Corpus Hermeticum, published in 1471, the first illustrated edition of Dante’s La Divina Commedia from 1481, and Cicero’s De Officiis from 1465.
The Da Vinci Code author Dan Brown drew inspiration from the texts at the Ritman Library and used the collection for research for some of his mystery novels. He found the library such a valuable cultural resource he donated over $300,000 to help digitize and preserve the collection.
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Release date: 19 February 2017
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