40Th Anniversary of the Malta Study Center: Part II Curated Exhibit Goes National New Acquisitions the Chronicle of the Malta Study Center Left: a Photo of St

THE MALTA STUDY CENTER AT THE HILL MUSEUM & MANUSCRIPT LIBRARY

Fall 2013

The Latin wordMelitensia th denotes “things pertaining 40 Anniversary of the Malta Study Center to Malta,” and it is most st frequently used in the world Part II: 21 –Century Preservation Techniques of rare books and manuscripts to describe written collections The last issue of Melitensia told the story of The project had taken years of dedicated work of the history and culture of the Hill Museum & Manuscript Library’s and the support of generous donors to cre- the island of Malta. (HMML) mission to microfilm endangered ate the largest single repository of Maltese manuscripts in Malta. Between 1973 and historical documents in the world. The collec- This newsletter reports 1999, HMML’s Malta Study Center micro- tion was worthless, however, if no one knew the activities of the Malta filmed more than 16,000 documents, registers, where it was or what was in it. The microfilm Study Center, and features information about the history books, and other historical papers housed in 53 project represented the first time that anyone of the Knights of Malta and collections on the islands of Malta and Gozo. had listed the contents of Malta’s archives, an the history and culture of the The project included major collections such as incredible achievement even if the materials country of Malta itself. the Archives of the Knights of Malta (National were not yet completely sorted or classified. Library of Malta) and the Archives of the The challenge was to publish this information We welcome your comments Inquisition of Malta (Cathedral Museum, quickly in a format that could be easily updat- and your communication Mdina). In addition, the Mdina Cathedral ed and accessible to researchers in Malta and about others who might Museum Microfilming project, under the throughout the world. HMML turned to the share an interest in this core direction of Fr. John Azzopardi, had patiently Internet to create a virtual Malta Study Center program of the Hill Museum microfilmed numerous small collections of that could serve an international clientele and, & Manuscript Library. documents stashed in parish churches, con- in 1995, the Library hired Theresa Vann to Email: [email protected] vents, and private collections throughout the catalog the collection and put it online. Phone: (320) 363-3514 country. As a result, the project was unprec- www.hmml.org edented for its time because it included the historical record of ordinary people who are usually lost Right: Msgr. John from history. The Azzopardi, Fr. Columba, project organized, OSB, Stewart, Theresa Vann, and Joseph S. categorized, and pho- Micallef at the Cathedral tographed the docu- Archives in Malta, ments of an entire June 10, 2013. Mediterranean com- Note the marble plaques on munity who lived in the wall commemorating the 15th-18th centu- the beginning of the ries, with some docu- microfilm project. ments dating back to the 12th century and others from the 19th th and 20 . Continued on page 2 Vann set up the Malta Study Center website and posted HMML’s decision to change from microfilm to digital successful completion of the NEH Challenge preliminary descriptions of the archives by September technology in 2003 changed how the Library served its Grant has opened up many opportunities for 1995. The virtual Malta Study Center received immedi- patrons—including the Malta Study Center. HMML’s the Center. In addition to establishing digital ate feedback from users around the world. One of the first digital manuscript project started in April of that projects, the endowment supports collection first was Fr. Azzopardi, who emailed Vann to clarify the year, just as the Iraq War was reaching its climax in development, exhibits, public events, and classification schema of Malta’s small archives. The virtual Baghdad. That pioneer project was at the Monastery and scholarly outreach. All this extends the reach Malta Study Center thrived in this new environment, cre- University of Our Lady of Balamand, near Tripoli in of the Center and continues to make it one ated by the rapid and widespread changes in information northern Lebanon. Having seen their most valuable man- of the most important resources for Maltese technology that have taken place in the past twenty years. uscripts disappear during the Lebanese civil war of 1975- (and Mediterranean) culture outside of Vann produced archival descriptions and catalogs that 1991, the monks readily understood the importance Malta itself. anyone in the world with an Internet connection could of HMML’s work and were eager to be HMML’s first access. And many people did—far more researchers vis- partner in the region. After Fra’ Andrew Bertie, Prince Also in 2004, the Center’s curator, Theresa ited the virtual Center than the actual one at HMML. and Grand Master of the Order of Malta visited HMML Vann, received a Fulbright to teach library But they missed out on the full benefit of the Malta Study in October 2003 and saw the work of the Center, nego- and information technology at the University Center’s collections, which, in addition to the microfilms, tiations began to form a partnership with the Magistral of Malta. There she began to explore the pos- contained an ever-increasing collection of published Archives and Library of the Sovereign Military Order sibilities of returning to Malta to digitize col- books and materials about Malta and the Knights of of Malta in Rome. The Center used HMML’s successful lections that had been inaccessible during the Malta (also known as the Order of the Hospital). model for digitizing to begin its first digital project at the microfilm project, particularly the law courts Magistral Library in 2005. of the Knights and the notarial archives. She Above: Delegates to the 41st Citra Conference in Malta, 2009, inspect also formed networks with a new generation of the Center’s digitization equipment in the Banca Giuratale, National Two things happened in 2004 that Maltese archival partners. The Center formed Archives of Malta. Noel d’Anastas stands in the background. (CITRA – changed the direction of the Malta Study long-term partnerships with the National International Conference of the Round Table on Archives) Center. First, a challenge grant from the Archives of Malta in 2007 and the Notarial National Endowment for the Humanities Archives of Malta in 2010, in which the parties secular tribunal that the Knights of Malta established led to the creation of a permanent endow- share cataloging, digital imaging, and technical expertise. in 1543 to hear civil and criminal cases involving their ment for the Center. This permitted, for Maltese subjects. The studio began digitizing the 1,411 the first time, long-range planning, includ- In 2010, an advisory group called the “Friends of the volumes of the Acta and its 25–volume index in 2007. ing undertaking new digital preservation Malta Study Center” was created to review the Center’s It will finish photographing the remaining 510 volumes projects in Malta and putting the Center’s progress in fulfilling the goals it outlined during the within the next two years, at which point the studio will rare book collection on the Internet. The endowment drive: to preserve the history of Malta and begin work on a new series from the law courts of the make it accessible to the public. Knights. The studio at the Notarial Archives began digitizing 1,335 16th-century notarial registers in 2010, and The Center’s work is far from completed. On June 20, still has a ways to go. And HMML is creating vHMML, 2013, the photography studio at the National Archives of a virtual Library to serve manuscript researchers, students, Malta shipped its one-millionth digital image to HMML. and teachers. The Center will host online studies and th projects through vHMML, extending its reach far Above: The Malta Study Center’s first The image depicts a folium from an early 18 -century beyond Collegeville. Home Page, 1995. volume of the Acts of the Magna Curia Castellania, a

Right: The current Malta Study Center website page, now part of www.hmml.org.

Page 2 Page 3 Melitensia Melitensia Collection Spotlight Recent acquisitions

The Malta Study Center recently acquired four 18th-century printed works to add to its collection of rare Melitensia: José Anastasio de Figueiredo Ribeiro, Historia da Ordem do Hospital, Hoje de Malta, e Dos Senhores Grão-Priores della em Portugal (Lisbon, 1793). See photo.

This is the first edition of Ribeiro’s Nova historia da Militar View the online exhibit at melitensia.blogspot.com Ordem de Malta (Lisbon, 1800). Ribeiro’s work is an important addition to the collection because it is based upon documentary evidence from the Portuguese Priory of the Order of Malta.

Malta Study Center Curates National Exhibit The remaining works are pamphlets, ephemera that usually February 15, 2013, marked the 900th anniversary of the Association of the Order of Malta asked Theresa Vann, do not survive as well as bound books. Like modern journals papal bull “Pie postulatio voluntatis,” which is one of curator of the Malta Study Center, to create an exhibit and magazines, these pamphlets report news and opinion of the foundation documents of the Order of Malta. Pope for its celebrations that would focus on the experiences contemporary events. They are: Pascal II granted the bull to Gerard, the founder of the of the Hospitallers in the year 1113. Vann, working Order of the Hospital, on February 15, 1113. The title with HMML graphic designer Rachael Witt, created the 1) Fr. Caetano, Relação fidelissima das “Pie postulatio voluntatis,” is taken from the first three exhibit “900 Years of Faith in Action: 1113-2013, The continuas vexaçoens, e grandes tyran- 2) Fr. Manoel de Figueiredo, Oraçaõ Other acquisitions: words of the bull. The Latin phrase translates as “A vol- Bull of Pascal II.” The exhibit consisted of ten panels nias, roubes, e tormentos, que continu- Funebre, nas solennes exequias que • Aquilina, George. The Jerosolimitan untary petition made with devotion.” Pascal granted interpreting the bull’s history, and used images from the amente padecem os Religiozos de Nosso na Matriz de Campo-Maior em 17 nuns: the Church and Monastery of Gerard’s petition by placing the hospital under papal Malta Study Center’s collection. The exhibit’s centerpiece Padre S. Francisco em Jerusalem, e de Março de 1737 mandou fazer ao Saint Ursula, Valletta, Malta. [Malta]: protection, confirming its property rights, and granting was a full-sized replica of Pascal’s original bull provided Conventos pertencentes a Terra Santa, serenissimo senhor Fr. D. Antonio Malta Institute of Cultural Studies it the privilege of electing its superiors without interfer- by the National Library of Malta. de que elles fão guardias, e defensores: Manoel de Vilhena, Principe Soberano (MIOCS), 2011. ence from local kings and bishops. Continuão-se todos os successo aconteci- de Malta, e Goso, e Graõ Mestre da • Azzopardi, John. Pauline Malta: the The Western Association invited Vann and HMML dos desde a ultima Relação do anno de Preclarissima militar Religiaõ de S. formation of a nation’s identity. Rabat, Under papal protection, Gerard’s hospital in Jerusalem Development Director Erin Lonergan to attend their 1758 até o presente de mil settecentos Joaõ do Hospital. Lisbon, 1738. Malta: Fondazzjoni Patri Martin developed into the international Order of the Hospital, celebration of the 900th Anniversary on February 15, sessenta e dos. Lisbon, 1763. Caruana, O.P. in association with the which then evolved into a military religious order that 2013, held at the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels, The funeral oration delivered at Wignacourt Museum, 2010. ruled over Rhodes (1310-1522) and Malta (1530-1798). Los Angeles, and on February 16 at the Olympic Club, [A truthful account of the continuing the funeral of Antonio Manoel de • Cini, Charles. The maritime history Today’s Order, the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order San Francisco. Two Friends of the Malta Study Center, vexations, and great tyrannies, robber- Vihena, a Portuguese Grand Master Malta: the first millennia. [Sliema, of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta, focuses Fr. Eric Hollas, OSB, and HMML Lifetime Board mem- ies, and torments, that the religious of who died in 1736. Malta]; [Valletta, Malta]: Salesians solely upon the original hospitaller mission. Its 13,500 ber Nicky Carpenter, DM, also attended. Fr. Eric, as Our Father Saint Francis continually Don Bosco; Heritage Malta, 2011. world-wide members are engaged in humanitarian and chaplain to the Western Association, was a concelebrant suffer in Jerusalem and in their con- 3) José Freire de Monterroyo • Demel, Bernhard. 820 Jahre relief work in more than 120 countries around the world. and a speaker. Both events included a Mass, social, and vents in the Holy Land, which they Mascarenhas, Relaçam da victoria Deutscher Orden 1190 - 2010; [fünf formal dinner. guard and protect. A continuation of alcançada contra os argelinos nos mares Referate über eine lange Geschichte On February 7, 2013, 5,000 members and volunteers of all that happened since the last account de Barbaria, pela esquadra das galés in Europa]. Wien: Demel, 2011. the Order of Malta from all over the world met in Rome “900 Years of Faith in Action: 1113-2013, The Bull of of 1758 until 1762.] da Sagrada Religiam de S. Joam de • Demurger, Alain. Les hospitaliers: de at a two-day International Conference to commemorate Pascal II,” has been displayed throughout the year: Hierusalem, commandada pelo general Jérusalem à Rhodes, 1050-1317. Paris: its history, examine its present, and to define its future. • February 15-March 15, • June 23, American The previous “Relação” narrated how dellas o balio d. Francisco Parisio em Tallandier, 2013. They concluded the Conference with a solemn Mass at Cathedral of Our Lady of the Association, Order of Malta, the Ottoman authorities had permit- 15. do mez de mayo do prezente anno. • Klement, Katja. Gottes. St. Peter’s Basilica on February 9 and an address by Pope Angels, Los Angeles 900-Year Anniversary Mass, ted the Greek Orthodox clergy to Lisbon, 1752. Gastgeber Die Ritter des Hospitals Benedict XVI. • February 16, The Olympic Stamford, CT take over the Church of the Holy von Jerusalem. Die vatikanische Club, San Francisco • May 25-July 7, Basilica of Sepulchre and evict the Franciscans. [Relation of a victory achieved over the Handschrift Vat. Lat. 4852. The Order of Malta recognizes that its history forms an • May 9- June 9, Waldo St. Mary’s, Minneapolis This “Relação” describes how the Algerians in the seas of Barbary by the Norderstedt: Books on Demand, essential part of its religious identity and mission. To Library, Western Michigan • September 8-October 8, Ottomans accused the Franciscans in galley squadron of the Holy Religion 2010. http://nbn-resolving.de/ commemorate the 900th anniversary, it created a travel- University, Kalamazoo, MI Alcuin Library, Saint John’s the Holy Land of accepting aid from of St. John of Jerusalem, under the urn:nbn:de:101:1-201009186011. ing photographic exhibition, “Order of Malta: 900 years • May 18, Order of Malta’s University, Collegeville, MN the Knights of Malta. command of the Bailiff Don Francisco • Sciberras, Keith. Baroque painting in the service of the poor and the sick,” for celebrations Permanent Observer to the • Online at melitensia. Parisio on May 15 of this year.] in Malta. Valletta, Malta: Midsea around the world. To augment this display, the Western United Nations, NYC blogspot.com Books, 2009. Page 4 Page 5 Melitensia Melitensia The Chronicle of the Malta study center The chronicle of the malta study center New Online Resources The Archives of the Archdiocese of Malta has been digitiz- HMML Donors and Friends Travel to Malta ing the microfilms that the Malta Study Center made of their collections. In those cases where the microfilms are Fr. Columba Stewart, OSB, executive director of Gozo, welcomed them to the not available, the project has digitized the volumes them- HMML, hosted a lively group of 38 members of Gozitan section of the National selves. These are available online at archives.maltadiocese. HMML’s Millennium Club and Legacy Society on a Archives, where he showed the org. Researchers must register with the website to view week-long trip to Malta in June 2013. They first stayed Giuliana Masini, 88 manu- low-resolution PDFs of the manuscripts. Registration is at the elegant Phoenicia Hotel in Valletta, the capital of scripts that registered all the free and the website is continually updated. Some of the Malta, and later transferred to the Radisson Golden Bay births, marriages, and deaths collections currently available are: Resort to enjoy swimming in the azure Mediterranean in Gozo between 1554 and • The Parish Archives of Malta Sea. The itinerary included visits to Malta’s museums, 1930. Perhaps the highlight • AAM Acta Civilia temples, and several of the libraries and archives where of the trip was the group’s • AAM Benefici the Malta Study Center has worked or is working. meeting with the American Opening of the Center’s Curated Exhibit • AAM Brevia et Constitutiones Apostolicae Ambassador to Malta, the The opening of the exhibit “900 Years of Faith in Action: • AAM Cabreo Mr. Charles Farrugia, the Director of the National Honorable Gina Abercrombie- Above: The American 1113-2013, The Bull of Pascal II,” at the Cathedral of • AAM Registrum Edictorum Archives of Malta, welcomed the group to the archives’ Winstanley, who described the Ambassador to Malta, Our Lady of the Angels, February 15, 2013. From left • AAM Registrum Supplicationum main office at the former Sancto Spirito Hospital in role American diplomats play the Honorable Gina to right: Jeffrey Littell, KM; Theresa Vann, PhD; John • AAM Status Animarum Rabat. There they saw the preservation laboratory and in the Mediterranean region Abercrombie-Winstanley, Dunlap, KM, and member of the Sovereign Council; • AAM Visitationes Pastorales th the re-created 19 -century pharmacy. The Malta Study today. Joseph S. Micallef, KM, speaking to HMML’s Marchese Gian Luca Chiavari, KM, and Receiver of the Center is currently digitizing the archives of the law Malta’s Honorary Consul Millennium Club at the Common Treasure; and Antonio Sanchez-Corea, KM, courts of the Knights, which the National Archives holds General in St. Paul, a Founder Phoenicia Hotel, Malta. member of the Sovereign Council. at the Banca Giuratale in Mdina. Msgr. John Azzopardi, Emeritus of the HMML Board the Center’s former field director, led them through the of Overseers, and Chairman of the Friends of the Malta Wignacourt and Cathedral Museums, and showed them Study Center, facilitated the meeting with Ambassador a display in the entry hall of the Cathedral Archives. Abercrombie-Winstanley. Afterward, he spoke to the Theresa Vann Gift group about his experiences as a child during the horrific Theresa Vann gave 30 volumes from the E. J. Brill series Dr. Maroma Camilleri welcomed them to the National aerial bombardment of Malta during World War II. History of Warfare to HMML and Alcuin Library. The Library of Malta, where the Center had microfilmed the books, published between 2002 and 2007, cover the Archives of the Order of Malta. There the group saw in For more information about travel opportunities with history of warfare from ancient times to the present in person the 900-year-old papal bull, Pie postulatio volunta- HMML, please contact Linda Orzechowski at 320-363- Europe, Asia, and the Americas. For a complete list, visit tis, which had gone on display in the exhibit “Tuitio Fidei 3514 or [email protected]. You can also visit our melitensia.blogspot.com. et Obsequium Pauperum, 1113 – 2013” on June 8. website at www.hmml.org. In Gozo Fr. Joseph Bettsina, the National Archivist of Medieval Congress Diplomatic Reception Held in May Featured His Excellency, The Secretary-General of the United Anniversary Nations, Mr. Ban Ki-Moon, and Ambassador Robert The participants L. Shafer, the Order of Malta’s Permanent Observer to in the panels the United Nations, at the diplomatic reception honor- “The Nine- ing 900 years of sovereignty hosted by the Order’s U.N. Hundreth Mission on May 17, 2013. Anniversary of the Order of the Hospital: Hospitaller Rules and Statutes,” held at the International Find more news at www.hmml.org and on Facebook Medieval Congress at Western Michigan University, at www.facebook.com/HMML.MSC. Kalamazoo, May 12, 2013. Top row, from left to right: Above: Members of HMML’s Millennium Club and Legacy Society with Fr. Columba Stewart, OSB, in Malta, June 2013. Jochen Burgtorf, Philip Handyside, Jyri Hasecker. Bottom row: Christie Majoros, Helen Nicholson, Page 6 Theresa Vann, and Betty Binysh. Page 7 Melitensia Melitensia The Malta Study Center Non-Profit Organization Hill Museum & Manuscript Library U.S. Postage Saint John’s University PAID Saint John’s University 2835 Abbey Plaza | PO Box 7300 Collegeville, Minnesota 56321-7300 320-363-3514 • www.hmml.org

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Fall 2013 Contents 40th Anniversary of the Malta Study Center: Part II Curated Exhibit goes National New Acquisitions The Chronicle of the Malta Study Center Left: A photo of St. Paul’s Bay on the island of Malta, taken during HMML’s trip there in June. According to the Bible, Saint Paul was shipwrecked on an island during his voyage from Caesarea to Rome, which many scholars have now identified as Malta. The Maltese people believe it was Saint Paul who laid the foundations of Christianity on the island.

FRIENDS OF THE MALTA STUDY CENTER

The Friends of the Malta Study Center is an advisory group that meets annually and establishes mission and vision, provides oversight in financial matters, and ensures that the organization has the financial resources it needs to do its work.

Nicky B. Carpenter, DM Lucy R. Jones Fra’ Emmanuel Rousseau, KJ Wayzata, MN Wayzata, MN Rome, Italy Dr. Philip Farugia Random, KM Edmund Luzine, KM Robert Shafer, KM Valletta, Malta McLean, VA New York, NY Michael K. Grace, Esq. Steven Kennedy, KM* Fr. Columba Stewart, OSB* Pasadena, CA Medina, MN Collegeville, MN Fr. Eric Hollas, OSB Joseph S. Micallef, KM, UOM Robert Weyerhaeuser Collegeville, MN Committee Chair Kingston, MA Honorary Consul General to Malta Saint Paul, MN *Ex-officio member