The Bishops’ Libraries in Western Europe (9th-12th Centuries)

This essay aims to give an overview of the books owned, commissioned, given, bequeathed, borrowed and above all read by bishops in Western Europe in the Early and High Middle Ages up until the end of the 12th century, as a means to investigate the foundation of their education, culture and political activity. It is mainly based on two type of sources: 1) published inventories, booklists, wills and other kind of documents mentioning bishops and books; 2) manuscripts carrying ex libris, exdono, colophons or notes mentioning bishops as patrons, owners, donors or scribes. Common trends and local or personal preferences are highlighted, and theevolution in the bishops libraries - that is, in the bishops cultural interests and pursuits - throughout the centuries is investigated.