Iskalnik COBISS
Iskalnik COBISS

Local collection

The local collection department

Koroška osrednja knjižnica dr. Franca Sušnika Ravne na Koroškem (The Dr. Franc Sušnik Central Carinthian Library) started activities concerning the local collection already at its own beginnings, in 1949. While at first functioning as a part of other departments, the local collection department has been autonomous since 1994, when also the automatic documentation of articles and contributions into a collective base began.

The local collection activities geographically cover the region of Koroška and Koroška abroad.

The local collection is very diverse: it includes the processing of monographs, articles and grey literature as well as the keeping and partially the processing of pamphlets, cartographic materials, audio-visual materials and manuscripts. About thirty volumes of secondary local history documents have been created here. The library has published bibliographies of Dr. Franc Sušnik, Marjan Kolar, Leopold Suhodolčan, Karel Prušnik – Gašper, Pavle Žavcar – Matjaž, Vestnik koroških partizanov (The Carinthian Partisans’ Herald), Vestnik fašističnega nasilja na Koroškem (The Fascist Terrorization in Koroška Gazette) and many smaller bibliographies.

The local collection department includes

THE LOCAL COLLECTION comprises approximately 9.700 units (monographs, periodicals, school gazettes, researches, university and doctoral dissertations). While most of these materials are reference only, some high-use local collection materials (duplicates) are available for loan for use outside the library. Our yearly number of users is 1.500 on average. Users can confer about a specific piece of information with the documentalist at the local collection department or ask for more general information at the information desk in the circulation department.

PAMPHLETS are also considered a part of the local collection: posters, invitation cards, tourist brochures, maps, ordnance survey maps of Koroška as a whole or of its parts and other information materials appearing in the region of Koroška.

THE PHOTOGRAPHIC COLLECTION: photographs, picture postcards, slides of different parts of Koroška and of its interesting, important people and events can as well represent a point of interest. It holds about 7.900 units 4.000 of which are inventoried. The collection comprises valuable photographic material from the life of the Counts Thurn, Prežihov Voranc, Dr. Franc Sušnik and other important Carinthians. There is also a rich collection of photographs of Železarna Ravne (the Ravne Iron and Steel Works), of constructing the Ravne Grammar School building and of the World War II events. The heritage of Dr. Jurij Felaher is a rich source of World War I photographic materials (the Battles for the Northern Border).

THE AUDIOVISUAL MATERIALS keeps a collection of films and documentaries about Koroška and its people and a collection of audio recordings (various types of music produced by Carinthian musicians and music groups).

MANUSCRIPTS AND TREASURES
Valuable and rare books and documents, manuscripts, correspondence, heritage etc. are kept in separate premises and in safes.

THE DALMATIN BIBLE (1584)
The Dalmatin’s translation of the Bible is a remarkable work in every respect. As the main 16th century Slovene text it even influenced the wider European cultural community. It was taken into consideration essentially by all bibliographical-polymathic works.

Of the 1.500 copies printed 36 have been preserved in Slovenia, one of them is kept in Koroška osrednja knjižnica (The Central Carinthian Library).

There are also other valuable old prints:

  • Epistels Pauli an die Roemer (1720)
  • Gutsman, Ožbalt: Deutsch-windisches Wörterbuch mit einer Sammlung der verdeutschten windischen Stammwörter (1789)
  • Janežič, Anton:
    • Cvetje slovanskega naroda (1852)
    • A. Janežičeva slovenska slovnica (1889)
  • Jarnik, Urban: Versuch eines Etymologikons der Slowenischen Mundart in Inner-Oesterreich (1832)
  • Listina Pilatove ustanove (1700)
  • Megiser, Hieronim: Annales Carinthiae (1612)
  • Slomšek, Anton Martin: Blashe ino Neshiza v nedelski sholi (1842)
  • Valvasor, Janez Vajkard:
    • Slava vojvodine Kranjske (1689)
    • Topographia  Archiducatus Carinthiae (1688)

Črnjanski rokopis (The Črna Manuscript) originates from the middle and from the second half of the 17th century. It is a two-page prayer for faithful souls – a written testimony of the Slovene language usage in the Mežiška dolina valley.

Dr. Franc Kotnik (1882-1955), a well-known ethnographer, brought before the public ANDREJ ŠUSTER DRABÓSNJAK (1786-1825), a self-taught writer (bukovnik) from Kostanje nad Vrbskim jezerom. Some of his manuscripts and numerous transcriptions of his works are kept in our library.

A great part of attention here is devoted to Lovro Kuhar – Prežihov Voranc (1893-1950). Besides his manuscripts the library arranges matters of his correspondence as well as other documents concerning him.

The library also possesses an autographed copy of SKET’s tale Miklova Zala, the manuscripts of its first dramatization by JAKA ŠPICAR (1884-1970), an extensive documentation of its later stagings and other manuscripts of Špicar’s works.

FRANC KSAVER MEŠKO (1874-1964) willed many manuscripts to our library. His literary works and photographic and other materials about his life and work are kept here as well as the manuscripts of Dr. Ljuba Prenner, Blaž Mavrel, Dr. Alojz Kuhar, Avgust Kuhar, Dr. Janko Kotnik, Karl Prušnik Gašper and many other indigenes.

 

Sources:
Glavan, Mihael: Dalmatinova biblija in Slovenci. Ljubljana, 1994
Mrdavšič, Janez: Koroška osrednja knjižnica dr. Franc Sušnik. Ravne na Koroškem, 1989.

Photographs:
Tomo Jeseničnik, arhiv KOK.