Visiting The Teleki Téka (Teleki Library)

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We're living in a digital world, where paper is on the way of disappearance. Printed newspapers are less and less sought after for a good reason, hard copy books are also less these days, printed money is also going to disappear because people are using the digital version of these things. However, some of the items already printed out won't disappear and we have to make sure to take good care of them, to try to preserve them for future generations, as this is our history and heritage as well.

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This week I had the pleasure to visit an old library, that now is functioning as a museum. It is the Teleki–Bolyai library of Targu Mures, which is commonly known as Teleki Téka, Teleki Library in English. The museum is situated at the Bolyai street No. 17, which is at a walking distance from the city center.

The Teleki Library (Hungarian: Teleki Téka, Romanian: Biblioteca Teleki-Bolyai), also known as Teleki-Bolyai Library and Bibliotheca Telekiana, is a historic public library and current museum in Târgu-Mureş, Romania. One of the richest Transylvanian collections of cultural artefacts, it was founded by the Hungarian Count Sámuel Teleki in 1802, at the time when Transylvania was part of the Habsburg monarchy, and has been open to the reading public ever since. It was among the first institutions of its kind in the Kingdom of Hungary.

It houses over 200,000 volumes, of which many are rarities, constituting a comprehensive scientific database. The book collection is divided into several smaller libraries, of which the two main donations are the original 40,000-volume Teleki Library and the 80,000-volume Bolyai Library; the rest, grouped as the Miscellaneous Collection, is made up of several private libraries, volumes previously held by religious schools and those of a Franciscan monastery. Overall, the library constitutes a collection of most traditional types of Transylvanian book. source

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As you can see, it is not an usual library, where you can borrow a book and take it home. It's a museum now that is open to the public. There's a reading room, where I suppose you can consult certain books, but without taking them home.

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The building is an old one, that looks interesting from outside, for those who like old buildings. It is interesting in the inside too :)

It is definitely interesting for me as I love old architecture and after visiting the inside, I can say I'm grateful to the Wesselényi family, for donating it to Teleki.

Teleki inherited the 17-18th century Baroque building in which the library is housed from the Wesselényi family. Inside the wing built between the years 1799 and 1802, books are still stored in accordance to the original guidelines. source

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The library is open from Tuesday to Friday, between 10am and 6pm and on Saturday, between 10am and 4pm. I didn't know if the entry is free or I have to pay, but luckily the entry was free. However, I've read somewhere that photographing is not allowed. This is a traveler's biggest fear and disappointment too as we live in a digital era, everyone has a cellphone and every cellphone has a camera, so taking photos is available for everyone now. I'm always asking at the entrance, if photographing is allowed, to avoid any rule breaking. There are cameras everywhere, so you can't hide. To my surprise, I was told it is allowed without the flesh. Perfect, I thought, it works for me as it's better than nothing.

At the entrance I was told to wait for the guide. A lady came, who opened the museum, let us in and set down next to the door and stayed there till we left. Turns out she wasn't a guide, she was more like a security person as she gave us a printed paper with the library history and that was all. I was more than happy to know we would be alone, with no other visitors around as that's the best setup a photographer can ask for.

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Stepping into the library, this is the beautiful view that surprises you. The arched room is beautiful in its own, but all the old books, the furniture, the paintings and the sculptures added make it spectacular.

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Unlike in other libraries, books are all stored in cabinets, some with glass doors and all with a protective net on the doors.

When you enter, the first thing you notice is a constant noise, like an air conditioning or similar, which is not far from the truth, but it's more than that.

It is commonly known that paper is very sensitive to humidity and light as well. Therefore, room temperature and humidity must be kept at the same level constantly, in order to protect them. There were humidifiers and air conditioning machines but I could not see them, only hear them.

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There are three isles but only the main one is open to visitors, the side isles you can only see through these arched entrances. There's a top floor as well, also closed to visitors.

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On top of each cabinet there are one or two sculptures, featuring famous people who have contributed in some way to this library. Unfortunately I could not find the names of the people, there may be a label on the sculptures, but it was impossible to see it from where I was standing. There were several paintings as well, most likely portraits of those who had also contributed or helped to grow the collection or the library.

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Its founder, Count Sámuel Teleki de Szék (1739–1822) was one of the most learned book collectors of the time. From the very beginning, he intended his collection as a public library, and developed it throughout his life; he remained a committed and active bibliophile despite his time-consuming administrative career — he was Chancellor of Transylvania from 1791 until his death — building on his relations with all important European printing and publishing houses, and purchasing all important works published between the invention of the movable type and the early 19th century.

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Back in those days books were not for every pocket. Today we have paperback and hard cover, but in those days books had leather cover with gold-plated letters. Obviously there was no gold used in the process, but the color of gold symbolized high quality. Needless to say only a few, mostly nobles could afford to acquire these books, let alone have a private collection. This is why a library like this was a huge help for those eager to learn. These books were the only source of information as radio and television came much later. Some of these books traveled from the other end of the world and huge sacrifices were made to bring them here.

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These books are not only in Hungarian, there are books written in German, Latin, French, English, Romanian and who knows in how many other languages.

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This part of the library was like an altar, if I can say that.

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Maria Teresia's portrait, ruler of the Habsburg dominions between 1740 and 1780, painted by Joseph Hickel in 1779. Looking from where I was standing (not very close as obviously you can't go near the painting, as a measure of protection), the painting looked like a photograph and I'm telling you this without any exaggeration. I had a close look and the details were absolutely amazing. I looked at her hands, how she was holding that letter or piece of document and how her hands had a shadow, even her nails looked natural.

Now you have to know that back in those days, nobles and rulers may not looked like the paintings portraying them. The painter who got the commission to do the portrait had a very difficult job as he could not show reality as it was, instead he had to make them look beautiful, handsome if they were men and younger as well. Otherwise he risked having his head on the chopping board. This is why Auguste Rodin, the famous French sculpture was struggling to get accepted by the society for years, but that's another story, for another post.

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Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor, painted by the same painter, in 1779. The funny thing is, photos were non existent in those days, so the only image left behind by these rulers, were the paintings.

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Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor. Leopold II and Joseph II were both Maria Theresa's sons.

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I was standing in the library, tying to imagine what life was back in those days when these books could be borrowed. The dress code was definitely very different, women would not go in dressed in jeans for sure :) I don't even know if women were among the readers as women's social status was different those days. In any case, I would have loved to be able to take a book in my hand (wearing gloves of course) and read a few pages, enjoying the silence, while nothing reminded me of the passing time or the present. Would have been like a travel back in time. Maybe one day. You never know.

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I'm glad this beauty could survive the destruction of the communist era and it was possible to keep it in good condition.
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Next time I'm going to show you the book collection that was displayed, with some very old and rare pieces.

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Wow, that was a great time you had over there. At first, seeing the outside of the old building...I thought the inside wouldn't make any sense but I was wrong 😂.

Wahoo...library and museum altogether, glad to know that it's free to access and you were allowed to take these pictures.
Nowadays, people hardly visit the library since one can get every information needed online.

Those statues look great...the books over there will surely have a great ancient history 😇👌.
Thanks for sharing @erikah

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At first, seeing the outside of the old building...I thought the inside wouldn't make any sense but I was wrong

I bet you're not from Europe then 🙂

It is indeed a place to visit, if you're interested in history and culture. I agree, peple can get almost any information online, but as I said in the post, this is a museum now, so you don't go there for reading books, unless you need one for a study for a scientific work.

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Oh...great!
I am not from Europe, I am a Nigerian 😇

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1799 is a long time, yet the library still look well kept. Though digital form of reading is more convenient, I'm a fan of hard copy. Reading a newspaper or novel and flipping the pages gives more thrill than staring at the phone screen for hours. It's great museums like this are available to keep the old ways fresh in one's memory.

By the way, is there any particular reason was having the flash on when taking pictures is not allowed?

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Then we have something in common as I love paper too, a lot. Books, newspapers, even writing on paper. During my university years I loved taking notes on paper, always made my notes special, so I can picture the text in front of me and reading it, during exams.

By the way, is there any particular reason was having the flash on when taking pictures is not allowed?

Yes, there's a reason. Actually no matter where you go, what art gallery, museum you are visiting, flash is not allowed as it deteriorated the paintings, artworks. Imagine those paintings were painted in 1779, which means they are 243 years old. Back in those days the paint they used was not what painters are using today. Most of the paintings from those ear need restoration and high protection from light and temperature changes.

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Oh wow! How I love love historical stuff like this. Those shots seem ike they do justice to the looks of the library; they're beautiful. Well done. I knew stuff like this would exist. I for one most times prefer paperback to e-books, and e-anything especially novels. I'm glad they do.
Cheers!

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Thank you! O prefer paperback because it's a nice way to protect your eyes. We're staring at the screen a lot and trust me, sometimes it's good to take a break. From storage and shipping point of view, e-books are obviously more convenient, but still.

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Oh of course, there's the health benefits.... I agree totally, e-books are indeed more convenient, even for little things like my having friends who aren't into books and then go ahead to tease me about reading so much. With my phone, I'm off the hook 😉.

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Very nice presentation of the old library from what I saw it has been turned into a museum, unfortunately nowadays we humans turn our eyes less and less to buy or read a book, libraries are more and more empty and books are getting dusty because no one browsed them.

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That is true unfortunately and I'm guilty of neglecting book reading. If the day would consist of 48 hours, just for me obviously, I would have more time. Also need to mention book prices, which are so high sometimes, that one must think 3 times before buying something.

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Libraries and museums are my favorite places. Last weeks, I went there, too. I was that anxious if they wouldn't allow photography since I want somwthing to look at while remembering my trip there and things that I can share with my friends, but luckily they allow it. They just don't us to touch anything inside the museum.

Lucky you, the entrance is free there. We have to pay almost $2 to get in, but that's fine when you can have a memorable experience. It's great reading your post. I feel like having a tour to foreign library in a foreign country. 🤗

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Libraries and museums are my favorite places.

Mine too. That's where you can learn a lot, especially of the past and those who don't know the past, tend to repeat the same mistake they say :)

Yeah, there are places where the entry is free, other museums are charging a fee, but luckily it's still not what you would pay in Paris or Vienna for example.

$2 may be nothing for some and a fortune for others, so I don't know how much it means to you. I pay more than $2 here :)

And I agree, posting about your experience is like taking the others to a tour. I'm glad you were able to visit the museum.

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It's a huge library, I remembered the huge one we have in our province.. I want to visit the library here in HK too someday..
Btw, the architecture is great

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I hope you get the chance to visit that library soon.

This is not exactly huge but the architecture is lovely.

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That's huge for me haha. Yeah..i like the architecture too

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As a student of history, this is very educative and helpful.

I love the documentary. Well detailed with a lot of pictures and while reading, it felt like I was there physically too lol. I most definitely have learnt something new.

The library is a beautiful historical one and I hope to visit soon

Also, I’m anticipating the book collection that was displayed.

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My goal is to take those, who don't have the possibility to visit these places, t a virtual tour and I'm glad I succeeded with you :)

The book collection will be amazing too, with a lot of old books.

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Oh this looks like an amazing place to visit, especially for someone like me who loves books. Those big doors on the front are gorgeous too! I love the history of these places and often wonder who might have stood in the very spot I'm in. What a lovely place and your post really shows it to its best advantage.

Becca 💗

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I'm glad to hear you love books too. Looks like we have a lot in common and I'm also always thinking what life must have been back in those days 🙂

It is indeed a lovely place and I'm glad to know you like it too. Stay tune as a very interesting book collection is coming soon 😉

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Hmm, keeping me interested with promises of book collections...It worked.

Becca 🌻

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Libraries are the treasury of nations and cultures, if you remember during WW2 the books were destroyed so that the knowledge, literature and wisdom of some of the authors were erased. The same were done in far past lost libraries. No matter how good the online source they never will be able to replace ordinary books.

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Libraries are the treasury of nations and cultures

I couldn't agree more.

Unfortunately the destruction did not happen just during WW2. My country was under communist domination from the ww2 till 1989 and the mass destruction that went on is hard t imagine, or restore.

Online sources are good when you want something quick, but an e-book will never replace a hard copy book.

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