Antiquarian books personal collection database

Do you know if there is any institution making census of antiquarian books in private collections? For example, in Italy there is a database called Edit 16 with all editions from the 16th century owned by public libraries. There are probably similar initiatives in other countries and I was wondering if there is any kind of database of antique books which are not owned by public institutions.

>1 diego-m:
No, but it sounds like a wonderful idea whose time has come (thanks to the internet tools now readily available and the relatively low cost of data storage).

Os.

Well, I guess probably it will have to be done by indivuduals. It shouldn't even be too hard to be done

While it's true that some of this information is already available publicly (for example, in auction records), I imagine that some private collectors might look askance at having their holdings listed in a database such as you suggest.

Well, consider that auction records can help figuring out what the current price for a book is but does not help to record the existance of antiquarian books and othe information such as in which country their are located. I mean, it could be interesting for books that are particularly old or valuable but in general for out of prints books.

>4 lilithcat:
Perhaps anonymity could be an option (just like LT), but at least some general geographic location would seem necessary. Or, maybe not. I guess it all depends on the purpose(s) of the database.

Os.

I agree with you, especially for those who own very expensive books. I guess the purpose of the database would be (i) knowing what books are still existing and where they are located (at least which country) and their conditions, (ii) giving collectors a way to share with other people their collections, and (iii) reference for those who are researching and need to know books printed on a certain subject.I think it's really interesting and probably, as you said, not even too complicated.

There is currently a project to locate, catalog and image Ethiopian manuscripts in public and private collections world-wide.

It is called the Ethiopian Manuscript Imaging Project (EMIP). It is run by Professor Steve Delamarter and was begun in 2005. Its mission to help preserve images of Ethiopian manuscripts and make them available for scholarly study.

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The first two publications from this project initiate the Ethiopic Manuscripts, Texts, and Studies series.

Catalogue of the Ethiopic Manuscript Imaging Project: Volume 1: Codices 1105, Magic Scrolls 1134 by Getatchew Haile, Melaku Terefe, and Roger M. Rundell
Pickwick Publications (June 2009), Paperback, 494 pages
ISBN-10: 1606088718
ISBN-13: 978-1606088715

This is a descriptive cataloge of a large group of Ethiopian manuscripts and magic scrolls. The catalog includes detailed descriptions of each item in the collection.

Ethiopian Scribal Practice 1: Plates for the Catalogue of the Ethiopic Manuscript Imaging Project by Steve Delamarter and Melaku Terefe
Pickwick Publications (June 2009), Paperback, 208 pages
ISBN-10: 1606088726
ISBN-13: 978-1606088722

This volume ilustrates the manuscripts and scrolls published in the catalog along with additional commentary about the image and the manuscripts.

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Another equally important component to the EMIP is to make images of the manuscripts avaible on-line. They are presented in their entirety with limited commentary and descriptions at the EMIP (Ethiopian Manuscript Imaging Project) which is part of the Vivarium (on-line digital image database) from St. John's University.

I joined the Private Libraries Association for that reason, but after a few years found it to be mostly English publishers anxious to advertise.