The Museum of Belarusian Book Printing at the Day of Writing will tell about Polotsk in book culture

August 16, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. The Museum of Belarusian Book Printing, a branch of the National Polotsk Historical and Cultural Museum-Reserve, will take part in the Day of Belarusian Written Language in Glubokoye, the head of the branch, Elena Shumovich, told a BELTA correspondent. This year is significant for Belarusian history with the 1150th anniversary of Polotsk, so the museum plans to organize an exhibition "Polotsk in the Book Culture of Belarus" in the capital of the Day of Written Language. It will showcase the rich book heritage of the oldest Belarusian city, from handwritten books, folios by Francysk Skaryna and Simeon of Polotsk, to modern editions of the "Heritage of Polotsk Land" series and books dedicated to the 1150th anniversary of Polotsk. The Museum of Belarusian Book Printing is a regular participant in the Days of Written Language and always delights guests with various traveling exhibitions. However, the book holiday is not overlooked in the branch itself. This time, on September 1, an exhibition of facsimile editions from the collections of the National Polotsk Historical and Cultural Museum-Reserve, dedicated to a significant day for Belarusian culture, will open here. The Museum of Belarusian Book Printing is one of eleven museums of the National Polotsk Historical and Cultural Museum-Reserve. It is located in the premises of the former Brotherhood School of the Polotsk Epiphany Monastery, an architectural monument of the 18th century. The museum opened its doors to visitors on September 8, 1990, during the celebration of the 500th anniversary of the birth of the Belarusian and East Slavic first printer, Francysk Skaryna from Polotsk. The museum is dedicated to the book in all its aspects, from the first handwritten scrolls to modern books, and introduces visitors to the history of the creation of writing, writing instruments, book illustration, and printing. It is the only museum of its kind in Belarus. The museum's exhibition area is 928 sq.m. The exposition is located in 15 halls on two floors, displaying 2500 museum exhibits. The collections number about 12 thousand items. The largest part of the museum exhibits are books: handwritten, early printed, as well as modern editions. Early printed editions are represented by interesting and beautiful editions in Cyrillic and Latin scripts. Among them are rarities such as the "Teaching Gospel" published in Vilnius by Mamonichei's printing house in 1595, and the Venetian Aldine edition of 1558 "12 Speeches" by Hieronymus Falecki. -0-