Medieval knowledge in Castile (13th to 14th centuries): Sigüenza cathedral library

Abstract

This article attempts to make progress in the knowledge of the level of assimilation of Hispanic culture in Medieval Europe. From this perspective it has been studied the inventory of Sigüenza Cathedral Library –elaborated in 1339– for the purpose of reconstructing its library and approaching us to the cultural interests of the canons of Sigüenza from the 12th to the 14th centuries. The content of said library collection, due to some particular features that distinguishes it from other Hispanic libraries, offers a unique testimony of the Castilian culture of the 12th and 13th centuries. The humanistic ideals that would prevail in the late Middle Ages can be glimpsed in the Sigüenza Cathedral library.