Incunabula & Old Prints

The collection of the Abbey Library contains both incunabula (books printed up to 1500) and so-called old prints (printed up to 1800). The 1,100 incunabula are kept almost entirely in the Baroque Hall. Among the old prints, the approximately 650 St Gall monastery prints, which were specially printed in the monastery between 1633 and 1800, occupy a special position. They can be found in our library catalogue SGBN and a large number may be viewed on e-rara, the platform for digitised prints from Swiss institutions.

Collection history

When the Abbey of St Gall began to flourish again under abbot Ulrich Rösch from the mid-15th century, it also started to acquire its first printed books. These form the basis for today’s collection of incunabula and prints in the Abbey Library, which the abbots judiciously expanded from the Early Modern era onwards. The new acquisitions were not kept only in the main library, but often in specialist libraries in other parts of the abbey; indications in the books still betray these origins. The most common mark is ad scholam (“belonging to the school”). In the 16th century, some monks also kept books privately, labelling them with their name or function. Another group of old prints consists of the estates of scholars who bequeathed their libraries partly or entirely to the Abbey Library and whose erstwhile owners can be identified with the aid of handwritten notes and the traces left by use. These indications of origin and the fonds that can be recreated as a result have recently shifted into the focus of researchers, for they cast an interesting light on the structure of the library and the motives guiding the collections of particular readers.

The incunabula in the Baroque Hall present a unified look to today’s visitors. In the 18th century most of the old covers were removed and the books were rebound in identical fashion. However, this standardised appearance is deceptive, as the books are extremely varied in nature and often resist clear-cut categorisations.

A more detailed description of the older printed works can be found in an article about St.Gallen in the handbook of historical Swiss book collections. This printed overview is composed of three volumes: Handbuch der historischen Buchbestände in der Schweiz = Répertoire des fonds imprimés anciens de Suisse / published by Zentralbibliothek Zürich. Hildesheim, 2011.

An exhibition catalogue published in 2015, «Advent des Buchdrucks. Die Wiegendrucke der Stiftsbibliothek St.Gallen» (available only in German), offers insights into the history of the collection, with essays on specific themes and a selection of precious items.

A summary of cartographic holdings in St.Gallen Abbey Library (in German), composed for the online publication «Kartographische Sammlungen in der Schweiz» in 2010, has been posted on the website of Bern University Library.