Gothenburg University Library Miniatures Collection

About the collection

Miniature books go by many names around the world, such as Kleinbücher, Liliputanerböcker, microbes de livres, éditions diamants, mikroskopische Ausgaben, livres nains, and Scotch books (due to the very sparing use of paper). 

The below text is based, with gratitude, on Gösta Engström's excellent little book, Om miniatyrböcker (1966). 

Generally, books are called miniatures when they are less than 7.5 cm tall – but only if they have been manufactured in that format. A true miniature should also have been printed with microscopic type: together, the small format and the fineness of the type make the miniature. In addition, only books printed with movable type are held to be true miniatures. Such works are termed "microscopic prints". Small books produced by other methods of printing, including the use of engraved plates or photographic reduction, are instead referred to as "miniature books" - a somewhat wider term that accommodates a variety of small-scale prints manufactured with a vast range of techniques. 

Apart from their value as curiosities, miniature books have ever been interesting as collectible items, and the format is also comfortably portable, not least when travelling. To a certain extent, the small book could be considered politically dangerous, a tool for dissidents, as it is so easily concealed. Judging by the titles that have historically been issued as miniatures, it can be concluded that the books were really made for reading. Just before the mid-19^th century, miniature books were however made successively smaller, and from this period on, the books were no longer strictly intended for reading, but rather to serve as decorative conversation pieces in custom-made miniature bookshelves. 

Notes on miniature books go back to Antiquity. Pliny's Naturalis Historia (7:21) mentions a copy of the Iliad, said to have been small enough to be encased in a nutshell. Older miniature books were often prayer books, to be carried on your person for easy access to a bit of spiritual nourishment. 

The Swedish miniature material is of a plainer kind than the European in general, and consists mostly of religious tracts and children's books. The collection of the Gothenburg University library includes some 40 titles that can be considered miniatures by format, but many of these must be excluded from being true miniatures due to the printing method used. The Swedish interest in miniature books has been relatively minor. 

From the Carl Snoilsky Collection, the miniature collection has acquired the Geographiska underrättelser för fruntimmer, printed in 1788 in Stockholm, as well as Namnkunniga fruntimmer, Stockholm 1794-95. Another interesting work is The northern harp or relics of Scandinavian poetry, Consisting of the poems of Ossa & Solma - an Ossian imitation of unknown origins, printed in Gothenburg in 1824. The author is likely an English writer who lived in Sweden at the time. 

The smallest book of the collection  - and of the entire library - is a donation from Kjell Peterson, founder of Atlantis publishing. Kjell Peterson has previously donated the Allhem Small Prints Collection as well as his private archives to the Humanities Library. The miniature book in question is The Gettysburg address by Abraham Lincoln. 

The second smallest book is a book of prayer, containing a single printed page, with the prayer Our Father. The library has two copies of this work - this one, as well as a multilingual edition which is part of the Herbert Blomstedt Collection, a collection that also includes several miniatures.

Acquisition history

The collection has been gradually expanded as all acquisitions that might fit in it were brought together as a distinctive part of the library's holdings. Today, the collection is partially catalogued, and displays a number of provenances. Other books in the collection have origins that are by now untraceable, other than through meticulous browsing of the old acquisition catalogues, where it is possible to hunt down notes made on individual works.

Read more

Engström, Gösta, Om miniatyrböcker, Sällsk. Bokvännerna, Stockholm, 1966

Suggested research topics

• An overview of the collection's contents. What is represented here, and how does it mirror the time and context of the material? 
• Comparisons to other, similar collections. 
• Miniature books in Sweden, book history and collectors. 
• Printing and bookbinding methods for miniature books. 

Please contact us if you have any suggested research topics you would like to share!