A European family which has long fascinated me is the Alba family of Spain. (I always loved to read about a woman known as Cayetana who died last year; she was the last Duchess of Alba, the most titled aristocrat in the world, eccentric, mysterious, and she was a pistol). The family has a long history in Europe which spans several centuries, and is well known for its vast collection of priceless art.
Doña María del Rosario Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart y de Silva, 18th Duchess of Alba de Tormes, Grandee of Spain
Last night, I was surprised to see the Albas pop up in the news in this Star-Telegram article after our discussion in class. An exhibit showcasing the family's vast collection of art is now in the Metroplex at the Dallas Meadows Museum. It, unsurprisingly, contains treasures such as paintings, sculptures, and furniture. But, I was also interested to read a few of the most prized possessions within the collection are (you guessed it!) manuscripts.
Probably the most amazing manuscript housed within the family's collection is known as the Alba Bible and is the first known translation of the Bible from Hebrew to Castilian (Spanish). The project began in 1422 and was finished in 1430, meaning it missed Gutenberg's movable type by a decade or so. This beautiful version of the Bible was translated and transcribed by hand thanks to the work of a rabbi who was commissioned by a wealthy Spaniard for the purpose of healing the relationship between Catholics and Jews.
After completion, the manuscript passed through the hands of some Franciscan censors, spent some time at a university, caused a little controversy, disappeared for a while, and then ended up in the great library belonging to the Grand Duke of Alba. Today, the Alba Bible is worth about $50,000. More in-depth information about the work can be found here.
Other manuscripts and documents belonging to the Alba family include a 1568 atlas which is considered "one of the most important early atlases in the world," and even some documents which were written by Christopher Columbus himself during his voyage to the "New World" (the family owns 21 of the existing 41 hand-written Columbus documents).
It's hard to imagine how much wealth, both of monetary and intellectual means, is contained within the vast collection of written and printed works of the Alba family. That a book could possibly be worth $50,000 is a difficult concept for me to grasp; even more difficult to visualize are the years, decades, centuries to which these works have borne witness. If only they could speak.
More information about the exhibit and the museum, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary, are here.
I was very intrigued by reading this because I personally had not heard of this family before or of how many respected arts they hold. I did some of my own research on Cayetano Fitz-James Stuart- the head of the House of Alba and the third woman to hold the title in her own right- because it was so inspiring and I wanted to know more. It made me even question going to the museum because I wonder so much about what all of these works look like.
ReplyDeleteIt made me think about how artwork and writing have such a strong influence on each other and really do go hand in hand. It is clear that paintings get their inspiration from the world around them- but they may also get their inspiration from reading an article or something along the way. Paintings can be inspired by ideas! If you think about it, every written work must be inspired by something. It must come from somewhere. I think many instances of inspiration come from artworks- or even visually watching the world around you. Either way- it has to do with observing others and drawing your own interpretation from it.
I was very amazed to find out that of the 41 existing documents by Columbus- the Alba family owns 21 of them. It was even more amazing to find out that it included a sketched map of his journey to the New World and a log of the sailors who joined his voyage on the Santa Maria in 1492. I found a website with a picture of the map if you want to take a look: http://www.meadowsmuseumdallas.org/about_Alba.htm
Towards the end where you talk about how much it would be worth both in terms of wealth and intellectually. Its interesting you bring that up and point to the reason: it is worth so much because of the history it holds and how long it has been present in the world. I think these works belong to the so-called "cannon" of literature. I think they fall into this category because they are deemed valuable and trusted.
Wonderful post on the Alba family and their immense collections of art and books. For centuries books and art were considered similar in value and prestige, and in fact although we live in an age of print saturation the history of books is generally characterized by an age of scarcity. Up until the last century books were scarce and considered some of the most valuable things a family owned.
ReplyDeleteThis is so cool that the manuscripts stayed in the family all these years! We discussed in class that only the really wealthy had books and manuscripts, especially because they were so expensive. This really drives the point home. I agree that the idea that a book could range up to $50,000 is crazy! I think about all the things that could be bought and done with that amount of money! This just goes to show the value they place on intelligence and learning. I wish that people in today's society still put that much emphasis in learning; I find that many people, including myself sometimes, take the opportunity to learn and to read for granted.
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