Home book collections in the first half of the 19th century

Abstract

Cultural life on the Polish territories in the 19^th century was centred around home, where social life concentrated. Neighbours and family meetings were organised there, offering an occasion for talks about politics, economy, cultural events, including also new Polish publications. The author has begun the studies on home book collections, gathered for individual use of the owner, and members of his/her community. She left behind bibliophiles' collections, gathered to satisfy the need of possession, as well as private libraries established for social purposes, or even public donation in the future. She focuses on home libraries in manors, as they are documented in the literature from the 19^th century, and are a typical phenomenon for the Polish culture of the first half of this century. She focused on the Russian annexation, describing selected libraries, and referring to available their descriptions or inventories, as well as the sources concerning readership of that time.