Page:The library a magazine of bibliography and library literature, Volume 6.djvu/385

 The Vatican Library. 373 palace. 1 Seventy years of age at the time of his election he held the papal chair for eighteen years (1316-1334). Of the intel- lectual activity of this court Petrarch has given us a glowing description, 2 and he was more or less acquainted with the lives of all the Avignon popes, for he did not die till 1374. One thing has been most satisfactorily established, namely, that the library of Boniface VIII. was not incorporated with, even if it ever reached, the papal library at Avignon. 8 John XXII., crowned in 1316, on September 5, and installed at Avignon on October 2, we find already buying books on De- cember 21. We have year by year a record of the books pur- chased by that Pope, and in 1327 an inventory of the library was made, which has, unfortunately, been lost. 4 It is interesting to find in 1333 our English book-lover, Richard de Bury, visiting Avignon; and an English priest, Henry of Harandone (?), dean of a church in the diocese of Lincoln, selling books to the papal librarian. 5 We have a por- trait of John XXII. receiving a book, in a MS. at Paris. 6 The payments made year by year to illuminators and copyists at this time, with their names, have all come down to us. 7 Benedict XII. (1334-1342) built the Tower at Avignon, now known as the Torre degli Angeli, in which the Avignon Library was placed. It was constructed about 1335-7. Most important is the inventory of 1339 of the treasures left at Assisi. 8 An examination of the library was made by two canons, by order of the papal legate, during four days (Sep- tember 7-10). They were assisted by two other persons. M. Faucon declares this was the library of Benedict VIII., natur- ally enough with large gaps. The commissioners note two chests of Hebrew and Greek books. These they did not trouble to open, as also happened, as I shall show, thirty years later. When a volume had no title it was not considered worthy of a description of contents. 9 Other coffers contained MSS. 1 Ibid., p. 1 8. 2 Ibid., p. 23. It will be remembered that the MS. of Cicero's Familiar Letters was discovered at Verona in 1345. 8 Mu'ntz and Fabre, p. 2. 4 Faucon, op. cit. i., p. 9. 3 Ibid., pp. 37-8. Richard de Bury was there also in 1330, ibid., p. 32. 7 Cf. ibid., 41-42 et passim. 8 MS. Arch. Vat. 9 De Rossi, p. 105.
 * Reproduced as frontispiece to Faucon's work.