Chester Beatty Library facts for kids
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Established | 1953 |
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Location | Dublin Castle, Dublin |
Type | Art Museum, Library, Visitor Attraction |
Key holdings | Chester Beatty Papyri |
Collections | East Asian, Islamic, Western |
Collection size | approx 25,000 |
Visitors | 350,000 (2018) |
Founder | Sir Alfred Chester Beatty |
Public transit access | Luas, Dublin Bus, DART |
The Chester Beatty, also known as the Chester Beatty Library, is a cool museum and library located in Dublin, Ireland. It first opened its doors in 1953. The museum was created to hold the amazing collections of Sir Alfred Chester Beatty, who was a very successful mining businessman.
The current museum building, found within the historic Dublin Castle grounds, opened on February 7, 2000. This date was special because it was Sir Beatty's 125th birthday! Just two years later, in 2002, the Chester Beatty was named the European Museum of the Year.
Inside the museum, you'll find its collections displayed in two main galleries. These are called "Sacred Traditions" and "Arts of the Book". Both galleries show off old manuscripts, tiny paintings, prints, drawings, and rare books. They also feature some decorative art pieces from different parts of the world. These include items from Persian, Islamic, East Asian, and Western cultures.
The Chester Beatty is a top spot for learning about both the Old and New Testaments. It holds one of the most important collections of Western, Islamic, and East & South East Asian artifacts. The museum also has special temporary exhibitions. Many of these shows include artworks borrowed from other museums and collections around the world. You can see some truly priceless items here. These include one of the few remaining volumes of the first illustrated Life of the Prophet. Another incredible piece is the Gospel of Mani, which is one of the last surviving Manichaean scriptures. Many old writings from the Medinet Madi library are also kept at the Chester Beatty Library.
Contents
- Explore the Collections
- Collection highlights
- Arabic collection
- Armenian collection
- Biblical papyri collection
- Burmese collection
- Chinese collection
- Coptic collection
- Egyptian Papyrus collection
- Ethiopian collection
- Hebrew collection
- Indian collection
- Indian (non-Mughal) collection
- Islamic collection
- Japanese collection
- Papyrus collection
- Persian collection
- Syriac collection
- Thai collection
- Tibetan collection
- Turkish collection
- Western collection
- Western Miscellaneous collection
- Western Prints and Drawings collection
- Others
- See also
Explore the Collections
The Chester Beatty has about 25,000 items! These are grouped into different collections based on where they come from. Let's take a look at some of the main ones.
Western Treasures
The Western Collection is home to many beautiful illuminated manuscripts. These are old books with colorful drawings and decorations. You can also find rare printed books and old master prints and drawings here. The Christian items in this collection come from many different places and cultures. They include biblical texts written in languages like Armenian, Greek, Latin, and Syriac.
The museum has one of the largest collections of papyri in the world. Papyri are ancient papers made from plants. Some of the oldest Christian artifacts still existing are papyrus books found here. These include Papyrus 45 and Papyrus 46. This collection also has almost all of the ancient Egyptian love songs ever found!
Islamic Art and Writings
The Islamic Collection is divided into several parts. These include Arabic, Persian, Turkish, and Mughal-Era Indian items. You can also find many different versions of the Qur'an, which is the holy book of Islam.
The Arabic texts cover many topics. These include religion, history, medicine, and even math and astronomy. The museum also has some of the most beautiful miniature paintings from imperial Mughal albums. These albums are called Muraqqa'. Important paintings from the Late Shah Jahan Album and the Minto Album are here. You can often see the Ibn al-Bawwab Qur'an on display. It was copied by one of the most famous Islamic calligraphers (people who write beautifully) from the Middle Ages.
Persian Miniatures
The Persian collection features many miniature paintings. It also has manuscripts of famous Persian poets. These include Ferdowsi and Nizami.
East Asian Wonders
The East Asian Collection has one of the biggest collections of carved snuff bottles. These are tiny, often very detailed bottles used for snuff (a type of tobacco). Many of them are featured in a special book about the collection.
This collection also includes amazing Japanese art. For example, there's a pair of long picture-scrolls. These were painted in the 17th century by a famous artist named Kanō Sansetsu.
Collection highlights
Source:
Arabic collection
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'Manual on the Arts of Horsemanship' by al-Aqsara'i. Cairo, 1366.
Armenian collection
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Armenian Gospel Book made in Isfahan in 1655
Biblical papyri collection
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Fragments of Papyrus 46
Burmese collection
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Court amusements and ceremonies. Myanmar, 19th century
Chinese collection
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Chapters 10,110 to 10,112 of the 'Great encyclopaedia of the Yongle Reign'
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'Diamond Sutra' written in Chinese, engraved and gilded on fifty-three folios of nephrite jade. 1732
Coptic collection
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Papyrus with the fragments of the Book of Joshua. Egypt, 4th century
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Coptic manuscript of the 'Pauline Epistles & Gospel of John'. Egypt, circa 600
Egyptian Papyrus collection
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Book of the Dead of Lady Neskhons. Egypt, c. 300 BC
Ethiopian collection
Hebrew collection
Indian collection
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Portrait of Raisal Darbari. Allahabad, circa 1600-1605
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Jujhar Singh Bundela kneels in submission to Shah Jahan by Bichitr, circa 1630
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Women on a palace terrace with a panoramic view. Faizabad, 1770
Indian (non-Mughal) collection
Islamic collection
Japanese collection
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17th century manuscript of The Tale of Genji
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Seven-mile beach in Sagami province (Sōshū Shichiri-ga-hama). Woodblock print from the series Thirty-six Views of Mount Fuji (Fugaku sanjūrokkei) by Katsushika Hokusai, c. 1831
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Plum Park in Kameido, woodblock print from the series One Hundred Famous Views of Edo (Meisho Edo hyakkei) by Utagawa Hiroshige, 1857
Papyrus collection
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Official correspondence of the Strategos of Panopolis concerning the preparations for the forthcoming visit of Diocletian. Panopolis, 298
Persian collection
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The rescue at sea by Amir Khalil. From Prince Baysunghur's Rose Garden (Gulistan). Herat, 1427
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Filigree leather book cover, for the Five Poems (Khamsa) of Amir Khusrau. Herat, 1485
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Zal Rescued by the Simurgh by Sadiqi Beg. Miniature from the Shahnameh commissioned by Shah Abbas I. Probably Qazvin, between 1590 and 1600
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Young man in a fur hat by Reza Abbasi. Isfahan, between 1600 and 1625
Syriac collection
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Parchment manuscript of the Ephrem's Commentary on the Diatessaron and an exchange of letters between Severus of Antioch and Julian of Halicarnassus. Egypt, late 5th or early 6th century and 8th or 9th century
Thai collection
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Fortune-Telling Manual (Phrommachat) with the twelve animals of the Thai zodiac and their associated attributes, avatars and plants. Thailand, c. 1845
Tibetan collection
Turkish collection
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Binding from "The Cream of Histories" (Zubdat al-tawarikh). Istanbul, 1585-1590
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Description of the Prophet (Hilya al-nabi), by Hâfiz Osman. Istanbul, 1691/1692
Western collection
Western Miscellaneous collection
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Triptych with Virgin and Child and St Nicholas. Russia, c. 1800
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St John the Forerunner. Russia, 19th century
Western Prints and Drawings collection
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Popish Plot Playing Cards, after Francis Barlow. England, c. 1679
Others
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First edition of 'The Prester John of the India' (Ho Preste Joam das Indias) by Francisco Álvares. Lisbon, 1540
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Embroidered Binding. Possibly an Italian 18th-century binding of white silk Damask. The Book of Common Prayer and administration of the sacraments
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Art Nouveau binding by Charles Meunier. Paris, 1897
See also
In Spanish: Biblioteca Chester Beatty para niños