BUDA CHRONICLE 550

On the occasion of the 550th anniversary of the Buda Chronicle, our temporary exhibition offers an insight into the original version of the Chronica Hungarorum and the most unique publications in the history of printing.

The most famous publication of the first printing house in Hungary is the Chronica Hungarorum (Buda Chronicle), produced by András Hess for the eve of Pentecost on the 5th of June 1473, the original version preserved in our library is also notable for the fact that the edition never left the territory of historic Hungary.

In our country, however, the printing of books could not take root for a long time due to the lack of a suitable patron. A few years later, presumably also in Buda (possibly Bratislava), between 1477 and 1480, another press, the Confessionale printing house, renowned for its first edition, may have been in operation. The printing house's products, the Confessionale by the Florentine Archbishop Antoninus Florentinus and the 15th century Johannine unique biography of St. Jerome by Laudivio Zacchia, are also on display.  

Later, over several decades, the special historical works presented in our exhibition were selected from foreign workshops, including the Thuróczy Chronicle, the Schedel Chronicle with a view of Buda, and the chronicle of the German theologian Johann Ludwig Gottfried, depicting the execution of László Hunyadi.

The chamber exhibition is open until the 8th of September 2023, from 10.00 to 15.00 on weekdays. Registration is possible at titkarsag@lib.elte.hu. More information about our exhibitions is available on our website.

Illustration: The picture features Queen Mary of Hungary (1371-1395), daughter of Louis the Great, wife of Sigismund of Luxembourg. [Thuróczy János, Chronica Hungarorum. Auguste [Augsburg] : impressa Erhardi Ratdolt ... industria … impensis ... Theobaldi Feger, 3. Jun. 1488. fol. m8v.]

Source/author of illustration: ELTE University Library and Archives, Thuróczy János, Chronica Hungarorum. Auguste [Augsburg] : impressa Erhardi Ratdolt ... industria … impensis ... Theobaldi Feger, 3. Jun. 1488. fol. m8v.