The breviary, made by an Italian master around 1480, is one of many priceless objects on display at the exhibition, which is timed to coincide with the 550th anniversary of the coronation of King Matthias, Hungary's Renaissance king. (King Matthias is also known as Matthias Corvinus, because of the raven in his family's coat of arms.)
Among the objects to be seen is the Acephalous Codex, written around the 300 a.d., which describes a journey to the Far East and the people who lived there. The codex, which also recorded the story of Alexander the Great, was among the most read and most translated volumes of its time after the Bible. A Latin version of the codex can be seen at the National Széchényi Library.
The library will show 50 official letters and seven personal letters written by János Vitéz, who tutored Matthias and became the Archbishop of Esztergom. It will also show a portrait of János Vitéz from the Tribachus Codex.
Visitors will be able to see the first printed version of the Cronica Hungarorum.
In addition to objects from its own collection, the National Széchényi Library has borrowed from the German State Library in Munich, the St. Peter Library in Salzburg, the Austrian National Library, the Vatican Library, the Eötvös Loránd University Library and the Hungarian National Gallery.
The exhibition, which runs until June 14, is the first of four to take place in the capital as part of Hungary's Renaissance Year 2008. The other three - to open in the second half of March - will be hosted by the Budapest History Museum, the Hungarian National Gallery and the Museum of Applied Arts.
Source: Múlt-kor / Hungarian News Agency (MTI)
