Exhibition and book with works by Johann Christoph Brotze to be presented in Kiev

 

On 14 February in Kiev, the official opening of an exhibition entitled A Collection of Drawings and Descriptions of Livonia by Johann Christoph Brotze at the Latvian Academic Library and the presentation of a book entitled Johann Christoph Brotze. Estonica will take place at the Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine. The exhibition and book are devoted to the 90^th anniversaries of the proclamation of the Republic of Latvia and the Republic of Estonia.

Representatives of diplomatic corps and Ukrainian scientific, cultural, and academic communities, as well as other participants of the event will be greeted with addresses by Atis Sjanits, the Latvian Ambassador to Ukraine, Jaan Hein, the Estonian Ambassador to Ukraine, Eriks Zunda, the Foreign Ministry Parliamentary Secretary, Venta Kocere, the Latvian Academic Library Director, and the Honorary Doctor of the Latvian Academy of Sciences, Prof. dr. hab. hist. Raimo Pullat.

The uniqueness of the collection of drawings and descriptions devoted to the Baltic region by the then teacher of the Riga Lyceum, Baltic German historian, and ethnographer J. C. Brotze lies in his diverse and comprehensive revelation of historical evidence. His heritage consists of 10 leather-bound volumes (more than 3000 pages) that contain a detailed depiction of the then Livonian village scenes, town and country-folk, various technical devices, coats of arms, seals, and coins.

The Latvian Academic Library has contributed considerably to the promotion of J. C. Brotze's unique collection. In 1997, as a part of a project prepared by the library and supported by the Soros Foundation and the Open Society Institute, a 10-volume digital archive with high-quality images was compiled from the Brotze collection. Likewise, an online data base of the images was developed, and damaged volumes were restored.

The book Johann Christoph Brotze. Estonica was published in 2006 in Tallinn. It is devoted to Estonia and features 287 colour illustrations, with comments in Estonian and German. The illustrations show Estonian villages, maps, town plans, fortifications, castles, manor houses, homesteads, landscapes, and people.                       

The exhibition and presentation is being held with the support of the Foreign Ministry. The works by Brotze will be on view at the Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine until 15 March.

The collection of Brotze's drawings and descriptions continues to broaden established the perceptions about Latvia and Estonia in the eyes of other Europeans. A number of European states: Estonia, Poland, Finland, and Austria have already been given the opportunity to become acquainted with the Latvian Academic Library collection.

           

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