Commemorative exhibition on St. Bridget of Sweden available online and at the Feeniks Library

It has been 650 years since the passing of St. Bridget of Sweden. To mark the anniversary, two exhibitions have been opened to the public, both free of charge. These exhibitions are a collaboration between the Turku University Library, the Lived religion in Medieval Finland project, and the Turku Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies (TUCEMEMS).

Visibility to St. Bridget and valuable books through collaboration

The St. Bridget of Sweden exhibitions, open to all, have been opened. These exhibitions have been created in close collaboration between the Turku University Library and the Lived religion in Medieval Finland project and researchers of the TUCEMEMS (Turku Centre for Medieval and Early Modern Studies). The online exhibition provides a staggering 47 pages of information about St. Bridget of Sweden and her world - in Finnish and Swedish. In addition, it contains images of the Revelations of St. Bridget taken specifically for this online exhibition. Visitors to the exhibition in the Feeniks Library are able to see three rarely exhibited early editions of the Revelations of St. Bridget of Sweden. So how did this fascinating exhibition come about?

The Library staff began working on the exhibition at the end of 2022. They were then contacted by Academy Research Fellow Marika Räsänen, Professor [SYK1] Sari Katajala-Peltomaa and Postdoctoral Researchers Sofia Lahti and Anna-Stina Hägglund. They suggested displaying works from the Library's collection of valuable books as part of the 650th anniversary of St. Bridget's passing (linked page in Finnish)[SYK2] . The Library was tempted by the proposal as it was an opportunity to showcase works from the Library's valuable books collection and collaborate with researchers at the same time. From the smaller-scale ideas at the beginning, the project eventually evolved into a showcase exhibition of three valuable books and an extensive online exhibition.

The exhibition brought together the expertise of various specialists. Library Information Specialists Liisa Hilander and Sara Kannisto had prior knowledge of the creation of collaborative online exhibitions: An exhibition on 18th century almanacs (linked page in Finnish) was created in collaboration with the teachers and students of the Old Finnish and Swedish course. The expertise of the researchers is reflected in the collection of extensive texts: the online exhibition contains information on St. Bridget, her world, her time period in general and the interpretation of the images in the exhibition. The high-quality photos were taken by Suvi Harvisalo from the University Communications of the University of Turku. Based on the feedback, all parties involved have been pleased with the seamless collaboration and the finished exhibition.

Visitors to the exhibition have also given initial positive feedback, praising the exhibitions as very educational and a chance to enjoy the artistic illustrations of the old books.

We invite you to enjoy the exhibitions on the Library's website and in the Feeniks Library!

Commemorative exhibition on St. Bridget of Sweden available online

• Experience the exhibition in Finnish on the Library's website. The exhibition is permanent, so you can enjoy it at your own pace.
• Provides an extensive account of St. Bridget of Sweden and her world.
• Bilingual: 47 pages of information in Finnish and Swedish
• The illustrations are from the 1502 edition in the Library's collection. More information about the book is available at: Das Puch der himlischen Offenbarung der heiligen Wittiben Birgitte von dem Künigreich Sweden in the Volter Database.

650 years since St. Bridget's passing. Three early editions of the Revelations of St. Bridget - a showcase exhibition

• Second floor of the Feeniks Library from 8 September to 31 December 2023. Visit the exhibition during the opening hours of the Feeniks Library.
• The exhibition is open and free of charge to everyone.
• Three early editions of the Revelations of St. Bridget from the 16th and 17th centuries.
• The books are stored in the Feeniks Library's valuable book collection and will be on display only for the duration of the exhibition.
  • Das Puch der himlischen Offenbarung der heiligen Wittiben Birgitte von dem Künigreich Sweden, 1502. More information on the book can be found in the Volter Database.
  • Revelationes celestes, 1517. More information on the book can be found in the Volter Database.
  • Revelationes celestes, 1606. More information on the book can be found in the Volter Database.