Hill Museum & Manuscript Library facts for kids

Hill Museum & Manuscript Library

Former name	Monastic Manuscript Microfilm Library (1964-1975); Hill Monastic Manuscript Library (1975-2005)
Established	1965
Location	Collegeville, Minnesota
Type	Museum and library
Key holdings	Manuscripts
Collection size	413,000
Architect	Marcel Breuer

The Hill Museum & Manuscript Library (HMML) is a special organization that works to save old handwritten books, called manuscripts. They take pictures of these books and put them online. This way, anyone can see them for free.

HMML focuses on manuscripts in places where they might be in danger. This includes areas facing war, political problems, or other threats. HMML is currently taking digital pictures of manuscripts in many countries. These include Bosnia and Herzegovina, Egypt, India, Iraq, Italy, Lebanon, Mali, Malta, and Yemen. HMML's main goal is to keep the world's handwritten past safe. They want to share it so we can better understand our present and future.

HMML has about 450,000 manuscripts that have been digitized or microfilmed. They work with over 800 libraries around the world. This makes HMML's collection the largest digital collection of ancient manuscripts. HMML also has a large collection of about 50,000 books. These books are about manuscripts, old printed books, art, and religious practices. HMML's Special Collections and Art & Photographs have over 11,000 rare books and 7,000 art pieces. Once photographed and cataloged, these items are available online in HMML's Reading Room and Museum.

Saving Old Books: HMML's History

HMML started in 1965. It is located on the campus of Saint John's Abbey and University in Collegeville, Minnesota. HMML was created because many manuscripts and books were lost during World War I and World War II. The Cold War also made people worry about losing more important historical items. To protect them, copies were made by taking tiny pictures of each page. This process is called microfilming.

The idea for HMML came from Father Colman Barry, who was the president of Saint John's University. Father Oliver Kapsner, a trained librarian, became the first leader. Both were monks at Saint John's Abbey. Benedictine monks have a long history of copying manuscripts by hand.

HMML's first projects began in 1965 at Benedictine monasteries in Austria. Over seven years, HMML staff and local helpers made microfilm copies of more than 30,000 manuscripts.

In the 1970s, HMML started projects in Africa. They also expanded their work in Europe, including Germany, Spain, and Malta. In 1973, the Malta Study Center was created at HMML. Its goal was to save and share the handwritten culture of Malta and the Order of Malta. The Center has since photographed materials in many places in Europe and the United States.

HMML began its first project with Eastern Christian manuscripts in Ethiopia in 1974. This was also their first project in Africa. The work continued through the 1980s and early 1990s, even during times of political trouble and civil war. More than 9,000 manuscripts were microfilmed. This collection is known as the Ethiopian Manuscript Microfilm Library (EMML). Professor Getatchew Haile and Dr. William Macomber helped make these copies widely available.

Over the years, HMML started working with more libraries, universities, and national libraries. By the end of the 1900s, HMML had created an archive of over 90,000 microfilm reels. Some reels held images of many different manuscripts.

In 2003, digital cameras became much better. They could take high-quality color pictures of manuscript pages. HMML then stopped using microfilm and started using digital imaging. Older microfilm images are now scanned digitally for viewing and long-term safety. All digital images and information are available online in HMML's Reading Room and Museum.

Father Columba Stewart became HMML's executive director in 2003. HMML began its first digital projects in the Middle East, starting in Lebanon. Soon after, they expanded to Iraq and Syria. In the following years, HMML grew its projects in Africa and began its first projects in Asia.

Mali is home to HMML's biggest preservation project so far. It has resulted in about 3.6 million unique image files. These files represent over 249,000 manuscripts. The project focuses on West African Islamic traditions found in libraries in Timbuktu, Djenné, and other places. HMML worked with several groups, including the NGO SAVAMA-DCI. This group helped digitize hundreds of thousands of manuscripts that were moved from Timbuktu to Bamako before a rebel takeover in 2012.

Since it started, HMML and its partners have photographed about 450,000 manuscripts. More than 100,000 of these have been cataloged and are available online in HMML's Reading Room.

How HMML Works Around the World

HMML digitally preserves, catalogs, and provides free access to manuscript collections worldwide. They give special attention to manuscripts in places that are in danger. This includes regions facing war, political problems, and other threats.

HMML works with libraries, archives, and other places that hold manuscripts. These partnerships allow HMML to create digital images of the manuscripts. They then share these images online.

The digital photography is done by local teams in each country. HMML provides the equipment, training, and support. They also pay the teams. Everything in a collection is photographed. This is because no one knows what might be important in the future. Copies of the digital photos are given to the library that owns the manuscripts. The library also gets the rights to use these images for business or publishing. HMML never takes the original manuscripts away from a library.

HMML has staff in the U.S. and other countries. These staff members organize the manuscript images and make them available for free online in HMML's Reading Room.

HMML has photographed manuscripts in many parts of the world:

• Africa: Egypt, Ethiopia, Libya, Mali, Mauritania, and South Africa.
• Asia: India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Turkey.
• Europe: Austria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Germany, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, Montenegro, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, and Ukraine.
• Middle East: Gaza, Iraq, Jerusalem, Lebanon, Syria, Yemen.
• North America: United States.

Amazing Collections at HMML

Manuscripts: A World of Old Books

As of 2023, about 450,000 manuscripts have been digitized or microfilmed. This work was done with over 800 libraries worldwide. After HMML staff organize the manuscripts, the information and digital images are put online in HMML's Reading Room. More than half of these manuscripts have high-quality digital images.

The manuscripts are divided into five main groups:

• Western European Manuscripts: These are manuscripts in Latin and other European languages. They come from countries like Austria, Germany, Great Britain, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and Switzerland.
• Eastern Christian Manuscripts: These manuscripts come from the historical homes of Eastern Christianity. They are from Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia. Important languages include Armenian, Coptic, Church Slavonic, Geʻez, and Syriac.
• Islamic Manuscripts: These manuscripts are from communities in Africa, the Middle East, and Asia. They are in Arabic, Persian, Turkish, Urdu, and other languages.
• Buddhist & Hindu Manuscripts: These manuscripts are from Nepal and Laos. They are in languages like Hindi, Lao, Malay, Malayalam, Nepali, Newari, Pali, and Sanskrit.
• Malta Manuscripts: These manuscripts and old documents are about the history of Malta. They also cover the Sovereign Military Order of Saint John of Jerusalem. They come from libraries and archives in Malta, Europe, and the Mediterranean region.

Art and Photographs: Pictures from the Past

This collection includes artwork and photographs from 3300 BCE up to the late 20th century. It focuses on graphic arts, religious art, art about monasteries, and the history of printing. There are over 6,000 original woodcuts, engravings, etchings, and lithographs. The collection also has ceramics and old archaeological objects. After HMML staff organize the artwork and photos, the information and digital images are put online in HMML's Museum.

Special Collections: Unique Books and Documents

This collection is used for teaching and research. It has over 11,000 printed books and hundreds of manuscripts. It is made up of five different collections, with materials from ancient times to modern days:

• Saint John's Rare Book and Manuscript Collection
• Arca Artium Rare Book and Manuscript Collection
• HMML Rare Book and Manuscript Collection
• Malta Study Center Collection
• The Saint John's Bible

Topics in Special Collections include the history of the Benedictine monks, European history (like old laws and religious changes), Bible studies, religious practices, the history of printing, manuscripts, and copies of early manuscripts.

Learning and Research at HMML

HMML's office and Reading Room in Collegeville, Minnesota, are open to the public. You can look at the collections there. These include microfilms of manuscripts, the Art & Photographs collection, and Special Collections. You can visit by contacting HMML, by applying to be a self-funded visiting scholar, or by applying for an HMML Fellowship.

Fellowships provide money for scholars to stay at HMML for a short time. They use HMML's digital or microfilm manuscript collections for their research. There are three fellowship programs:

• The Heckman Stipend started in 1991. It helps scholars who are just starting their careers. It supports research that needs HMML's collections. This fund was created by the family and friends of Al Heckman. He was involved with HMML from the very beginning.
• The Nicky B. Carpenter Fellowship in Manuscript Studies began in 2012. It was started by Nicky B. Carpenter, a long-time supporter of HMML. This fellowship helps experienced scholars do research at HMML using the digital or microfilm manuscript collections.
• The Swenson Family Fellowship in Eastern Christian Manuscript Studies for Junior Scholars was also started in 2012. It supports graduate students or new scholars who know a lot about the languages and cultures of Eastern Christianity.

HMML also offers Summer Language School courses each summer. These courses help people study languages and paleography (the study of old handwriting) by using manuscripts. Dumbarton Oaks has worked with HMML since 2016 to support these courses. They have included the study of Syriac, Classical Armenian, and Coptic. Since 2021, HMML has also offered a course called “Introduction to Arabic Manuscript Studies.” This course helps people learn about Arabic manuscripts. It covers their history, culture, and how they were made. It also teaches basic paleography, codicology (the study of how books were made), and philological practices (the study of language in historical texts).

HMML also has temporary exhibits of manuscripts and rare books from its collections all year round. They also host public events and offer travel opportunities.