Léopold Delisle, Henri Omont, and The Price of National Collecting: The Medieval Manuscript Acquisitions of the Bibliothèque nationale ca. 1900–1910

The Bibliothèque nationale was one of the most important national libraries active in the manuscript trade in the early twentieth century. Using the archives from the Département des manuscrits, this chapter examines the Bibliothèque nationale’s purchases of pre-modern manuscripts in “European” languages between 1900 and 1910. It focuses on the three principal sources of purchased items (private individuals, auction sales, and professional book dealers) to ascertain the ways in which the contexts of acquisition affected the prices paid, the influence of the buyer–seller relationship, and the impact of the changes in personnel. Analysis of this previously untapped dataset offers new insights into the position of the Bibliothèque nationale within the manuscript trade and the roles of the individuals who shaped the national collection.