The National Library will transfer the facsimile edition "The Book Heritage of Francysk Skaryna" to Polotsk State University.

The National Library of Belarus will transfer the facsimile edition "Book Heritage of Francysk Skaryna" to Polotsk State University. The solemn ceremony, which opens a series of similar events in the republic on November 12, was reported to a BELTA correspondent by Olga Komendantova, Deputy Director of the Viciebsk Regional Library named after Lenin.

The National Library of Belarus will transfer the facsimile edition "Book Heritage of Francysk Skaryna" to Polotsk State University. The solemn ceremony, which opens a series of similar events in the republic on November 12, was reported to a BELTA correspondent by Olga Komendantova, Deputy Director of the Viciebsk Regional Library named after Lenin.

Polotsk, the birthplace of the famous enlightener and first printer, became the first city to receive the first 5 volumes of the restored masterpiece as a gift. Then the edition will be transferred to the libraries of all districts of the Viciebsk region.

Since 2013, the National Library of Belarus, in conjunction with BelVEB Bank, has been implementing a nationwide project to publish a facsimile edition of the complete collection of books by Francysk Skaryna. In the first year of the project, five volumes have already been published. The entire publishing project is planned until 2017 and is timed to coincide with the 500th anniversary of Belarusian printing.

The multi-volume facsimile edition will allow for the collection of a complete repertoire of books printed by Francysk Skaryna in Prague (1517-1519) and Vilnius (1522-1525). It is based on electronic copies of the best-preserved books by the first printer, which are held in libraries in Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, Germany, and other countries. All editions are accompanied by scholarly commentaries, as well as the first-ever translations of Skaryna's prefaces and postscripts into modern Belarusian, Russian, and English. Thus, the facsimile restoration will allow the general public to become acquainted with one of the most valuable treasures of Belarus's book culture.

News of Belarus (BELTA)