Rara ex Bibliothecis Silesiis
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Edited by:
The "Geist- und Weltliche Gedichte" were written between 1630 and 1650 at the court of the Piast family, rulers of the duchy of Brzeg. Brzeg was a major centre of German Baroque literature, prominent figures like Opitz, Gryphius, Logau and Lohenstein being associated with it. The collection contains over 400 poems ranging across a broad sprectrum of genres, forms and subjects. As such it is an instructive compendium of courtly occasional literature for purposes of entertainment and representation. The postscript draws upon a variety of new source data to delineate the biography of Scherffer and attempts to establish his specific status within the res publica litteraria. After a concise outline of Scherffer's works and his place in literary history, there follows a discussion of the structure, chronology, origins and printing history of the various texts brought together in the collection. The volume rounds off with notes on individual passages, a research bibliography and an index of names.
Scherffer's work, written in 1640, was the first German translation of the Latin elegies composed by the Belgian Jesuit Hermann Hugo for his extremely popular and influential emblem book "Pia Desideria". The translation is fully in line with the cultural patriotism and irenical proclivities of the court of Brieg, where Scherffer was organist and princely tutor. Herman literary history has emphasized Scherffer's special position within Silesian Baroque literature, stressing his affinity to the so-called 'low' style. So far however there has been no complete edition of his works. This reprint is the first to make a work of this Silesian author generally available again. The editor's postface provides information on the Latin original, describes the genesis and later influence of Scherffer's translation and situates it within the historical and literary context of the age.
