«This Holy Reliquary». The Bible Museum at the St. Joseph-of-Volotsk Monastery

Abstract

The first and only Russia Bible museum is situated in the St. Joseph-of-Volotsk stauropegial monastery. It was founded on the initiative and with the direct participation of the Metropolitan of Volokolamsk and Yurievsky Pitirim soon after the return of the St. Joseph-of-Volotskmonastery to the Russian Orthodox Church. The exhibition is located in three museum halls and contains more than five hundred items. It makes more than thousand copies counting museum funds. There are books of the Holy Scriptures, liturgical books, patristic literature, books on the church history, some albums with icon painting and other publications. The museum exhibits books of the Holy Scripture in 40 languages - European, Asian and indigenous languages of the peoples of Russia. Among rare museum exhibits thereis the Ostrog Bible (1581), the Moscow Bible (1663), several editions of the Elizabethan Bible (XVIII century), the Venetian Vulgate edition (1609) etc.One of the pearls of the collection is a Czech manuscript of the mid XIV century as well as a two-volumed Bible edition in French with 228 engravings by Gustave Dore (1866) and editions containing works of Lucas Cranach, Rembrandt, Albrecht Durer; German Bible edition illustrated by Salvador Dali (1990), a four-volumed Bible in French with Edie Legrand’si llustrations (1949) etc. The museum, which has emerged from the Bishop Pitirim’s library, is currently growing with exhibits purchased by Archimandrite Sergiy, Abbot of the St. Joseph-of-Volotsk monastery, and generous gifts of the Institute of the Bible Translation as well as other donators and patrons.