Prameny k dějinám knihoven premonstrátských klášterů v Doksanech a Chotěšově

When the Premonstratensian monasteries in Doksany and Chotěšov came to an end in the first phase of the dissolution of monasteries under Joseph II in 1782, what followed was the elimination of their libraries. As the surviving books from both libraries represent only a fraction of the original collections, they provide a limited picture of their size and content. This study explores the potential of the hitherto little-used secondary sources, i.e. the preserved library catalogues or inventories created during the dissolution of the two monasteries. These sources provided valuable information on the size and content of the collections in each library: in the case of Doksany, it was the local catalogue of the original abbey library, whereas the Chotěšov source was the inventory made by the committee in the monastery while it was being dissolved. Particularly important are also the inventories taken at the Prague University Library, where both collections had been transferred. Not only do these inventories provide more detailed information on the content of the collection, but they also allow for further insights into the process of the gradual elimination of both libraries. The comparative analysis of the above-listed sources has proved to be helpful in providing a fairly accurate reconstruction of the book collections that no longer exist.