Digitized collections of the Archdiocesan Museum Kroměříž

The Olomouc Museum of Art, through its branch - the Archdiocesan Museum Kroměříž, manages the extensive collection of the Archbishopric of Olomouc at the Archbishop's Castle in Kroměříž. This collection includes not only works of painting, sculpture, drawing, coins and medals, arts and crafts, but also historical library, music archive and prints. Thanks to a project funded by the EEA Grants 2014-2021 (Culture Programme), part of these collections could be digitised and made available to the public. In the Digital Library of the Moravian Library you can find works from the following collections:

Chateau Library

The collection represents a comprehensive historical collection, which was established gradually as the central library of the Olomouc (arch)bishopric. In the Digital Library we present from its rich contents the first editions, selected old prints and manuscripts that form part of it.

Primary Prints

The collection of primary prints kept in Kroměříž was formed mainly thanks to the purchases of the Archbishop Friedrich von Fürstenberg (1853-1892), who acquired approximately one hundred volumes. In total, the Archbishop's collection are one hundred and seventy-two first-print volumes with one hundred and seventy-eight volumes. This makes it one of the most extensive collections housed in domestic castle libraries. The majority of the works come from Nuremberg and Venice, with only four books from the local area - Vimperk, Prague and Kutná Hora.

Old Prints

The library of the archbishop's castle in Kroměříž was founded on 14 May 1694 by the Olomouc Bishop Charles of Lichtenstein-Castelcorn (1664-1695). Its foundation became Bishop's private collection of about 4000 volumes. According to Lichtenstein's wish, it was to The library was intended to collect all available knowledge, so that literature from all disciplines, such as theology, law, mathematics, politics, medicine, philosophy, art and history, was represented. There were also Bibles and liturgical books. Lichtenstein's successors were instrumental in further expanding the library, enriching its holdings with additional donations and purchases. Today, the library has more than 60,000 volumes. From this impressive number you will find a selection of the most important old prints in the digital library, both in terms of their content and their artistic decoration.

Manuscripts

The collection consists of about 500 mostly modern manuscripts. Among them, 34 medieval and early modern manuscripts from the 9th and 16th centuries have been identified to date. These oldest manuscripts are presented here in digital form. These include liturgical manuscripts, missals, chant books, bibles, as well as prayer books, theological manuscripts, legal codices and books on astrology, logic and medicine. Many manuscripts are richly decorated with illuminations.

More about the collection here.

Music Archive

The Kroměříž Music Archive is one of the most important and largest historical music archives in Central Europe.

The compositions stored here are a reflection not only of the musical activity at Kromeriz Castle, but also of the state of music