V THE LIBRARY

The impress of the intellect of Philip II. is no less manifest in the great storehouse of books in the Escorial than in the Church and in the Monastery¹. It accords with the character of the founder² that he should desire to possess a vast collection of the world’s choicest volumes of theology and philosophy, for, like Solomon, Philip esteemed³ wisdom as highly as the supremacy⁴ of rulership and the possession of great riches. His ambition as a student and an art collector was as keen as his craving⁵ for sovereignty and might. We have seen how he had applied⁷ himself in his youth to the study of literature and of languages, and the respect which he yielded to the sciences, arts, and letters.

The civilised world was searched; the libraries of all nations were overhauled⁸ to stock the Library of the Escorial with great books and precious manuscripts. Greece, Arabia, and Palestine con{56}tributed to the Bibliotheca of the kingly scholar, and the collection of volumes was at one time the finest in Europe. Philip himself took the greatest interest in the Library. He worked at the catalogue and annotated⁹ the list of volumes. The original collection was greatly augmented¹⁰ from time to time by the purchases made on the king’s behalf by agents, who travelled in various countries, by the seizure¹¹ of volumes belonging to heretics, and by works presented by loyal and wealthy subjects. Castillo was one of Philip’s book-hunters; the catalogue of Arabic books and documents was prepared by the learned Father Sigüenza.

A suitable repository for the books was erected¹² at the Escorial under the supervision¹³ of Philip. The vaulted¹⁴ ceiling was painted by Vicente Carducci, an Italian artist of great distinction, who may be ranked as the chief of the Italian designers employed to embellish¹⁵ the Escorial. Carducci’s mural paintings in the Library are perhaps the finest of all the fresco¹⁶ works in the building. He was assisted by Tibaldi of Bologna, an artist of meagre talent, who represented Philosophy, Grammar, Arithmetic, Astronomy, and other sciences and certain of the arts, upon his portion of the ceiling.{57}

The Library is well lighted by windows. Even the shelves display the taste of the founder, for they are beautifully carved by Flecha. The tables are of marble and jasper, and the floor is paved with marble. Between the rows of shelves are some portraits of Spanish sovereigns, and among them is Carreño’s picture of Charles II. at the age of fourteen. Pantoja painted the Emperor Charles V. and the portraits of Philip II. and Philip III. The pictures represent the subjects in life-size.

Juan de Herrera, the famous architect of the Escorial, is presented on one of the canvases by an anonymous¹⁷ artist. Isabella of Portugal, wife of Charles V., is portrayed¹⁸ here, together with another portrait of Charles V. in boyhood, which hangs in the same room. The bust¹⁹ of Cicero in the Library was said to have been unearthed²⁰ at Herculaneum.

Upon the entrance to the Library are the words of anathema²¹ uttered by the Pope upon any one who should dare to purloin²² books from the collection. There have been, however, many losses. The French plundered²³ the Library, which, long before the invasion, was devastated²⁴ by the fire of 1671, and from time to time the hand of the pilferer²⁵ has been laid upon many of the volumes.{58}

From a nucleus²⁶ of four thousand volumes, collected by Philip II. and placed in the Escorial, the Library grew in the number of its books, and in the costly²⁷ manuscripts in Arabic and other Eastern tongues. At one period this was the most notable and valuable collection of Arab works in the whole of Europe. The gift of Don Diego de Mendoza’s private library further enriched the collection. Mendoza was Philip’s ambassador to Italy, and a man of wide culture and with a love of books. When the king inherited this splendid library, he satisfied all his ambassador’s creditors²⁸.

Mendoza’s volumes were presented in 1576. They were bound in an unusual manner, one cover being red and the other black, and sometimes the leaf edges are decorated in two colours. Among other donors²⁹ to the Library were Augustin, Archbishop of Tarragona, an eminent³⁰ writer, Ponce de Léon, and Geronimo de Zurita, a historian. The Balearic Islands contributed about three hundred volumes, some of them being the writings of the remarkable³¹ Raymond Lully. From the Inquisition the Library received about one hundred and forty books. Authors of repute frequently presented their manuscripts to the great collection at the Escorial.{59}

In 1583 a Moorish³² interpreter, in the employment of Philip, was commissioned to buy all the Arab books that he could discover in Granada and Cordova. This bibliographer³³, Alonso de Castillo, appears to have devoted³⁴ great labour to the extension of the Library and catalogue-making. About seventy manuscripts in Greek, Hebrew, and Arabic, were presented by Father Montano, who seems to have acted as librarian, though the first to hold that office was Father Juan de San Geronimo.

Philip III. increased the Library by the addition of confiscated³⁵ books seized from Don Ramuz del Prado; and in the reign⁶ of the same monarch³⁶, the collection of three thousand volumes belonging to the Emperor of Morocco was acquired.

Anticipating the rule of our biggest public library, the British Museum, it was decreed that a copy of every book issued in Spain should be presented to the Escorial. Besides volumes of philosophy, history, theology, science, and poetry, there was a collection of church music in the Library, some of which was composed by the monks³⁷, del Valle, Torrijos, and Cordova. Many of the compositions of the renowned³⁸ choir-master, Antonio Soler, are in the Library.

Among the many valuable manuscripts in the{60} Escorial collection are the Gospels, illuminated³⁹ in gold on vellum. The Missal is bound in red leather and wood, with silver clasps. Bound up with these manuscripts are the ‘Epistles of San Geronimo,’ which are still in splendid preservation⁴⁰. Philip II. and many other collectors presented several breviaries and illuminated manuscripts to the Library. The relics⁴¹ are mostly well preserved, and in some cases the bindings are remarkably⁴² new in appearance. Some of the manuscripts are in Persian, others are in the Chinese and Arabic languages.

Several of the Latin manuscripts are exceedingly interesting, and date from A.D. 976 and the eleventh century. The Bibles, which number nineteen, are of the fourteenth century, and beautifully bound in parchment. One of the choicest treasures of the Library is the Apocalypse of St. John, richly illustrated⁴³. The Greek manuscripts contain several works of the early Fathers, which have never been printed. Another valuable object is the ancient copy of the Koran, most exquisitely⁴⁴ written and ornamented⁴⁵.

The great ‘Chronicle’ of Alfonso is to be seen here, as well as the king’s treatises⁴⁶ on ‘Hunting,’ ‘Chess,’ and ‘Draughts,’ which contain illustrations and diagrams. A number of old Castilian Bibles,{61} dating from the early part of the fifteenth century, are of especial interest. ‘The Census⁴⁷ of Spain,’ contributed by Philip II., is also preserved in sundry⁴⁸ volumes.

Among the sketches⁴⁹ are works by El Mudo, Tibaldi, and Urbini. A large number of fine engravings and drawings by Michael Angelo, Titian, Raphael, and Albert Dürer form part of the collection of prints in the Library.

The Reading-Room contains over fifty pictures, mostly portraits of little value in the artistic⁵⁰ sense. An inkstand which belonged to Father Sigüenza is shown here. The most notable treasure is a portrait by the vigorous Zurbarán, perhaps the most distinctively⁵¹ Spanish painter of the realistic school. According to Lord Leighton, Francisco de Zurbarán represented ‘all Spain’ in his art.

Among the portraits of illustrious persons are those of Quevedo, Father Sigüenza, Torquemada, Francisco Ximenes, Luis de Gongora, and Cardinal⁵² Mendoza.

1 monastery   

n.修道院，僧院，寺院

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• She was appointed the superior of the monastery two years ago.两年前她被任命为这个修道院的院长。

2 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

3 esteemed   

adj.受人尊敬的v.尊敬( esteem的过去式和过去分词 )；敬重；认为；以为

参考例句：

• The art of conversation is highly esteemed in France. 在法国十分尊重谈话技巧。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He esteemed that he understood what I had said. 他认为已经听懂我说的意思了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 supremacy   

n.至上；至高权力

参考例句：

• No one could challenge her supremacy in gymnastics.她是最优秀的体操运动员，无人能胜过她。
• Theoretically,she holds supremacy as the head of the state.从理论上说，她作为国家的最高元首拥有至高无上的权力。

5 craving   

n.渴望,热望

参考例句：

• a craving for chocolate 非常想吃巧克力
• She skipped normal meals to satisfy her craving for chocolate and crisps. 她不吃正餐，以便满足自己吃巧克力和炸薯片的渴望。

6 reign   

n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势

参考例句：

• The reign of Queen Elizabeth lapped over into the seventeenth century.伊丽莎白王朝延至17世纪。
• The reign of Zhu Yuanzhang lasted about 31 years.朱元璋统治了大约三十一年。

7 applied   

adj.应用的；v.应用，适用

参考例句：

• She plans to take a course in applied linguistics.她打算学习应用语言学课程。
• This cream is best applied to the face at night.这种乳霜最好晚上擦脸用。

8 overhauled   

v.彻底检查( overhaul的过去式和过去分词 )；大修；赶上；超越

参考例句：

• Within a year the party had drastically overhauled its structure. 一年内这个政党已大刀阔斧地整顿了结构。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A mechanic overhauled the car's motor with some new parts. 一个修理工对那辆汽车的发动机进行了彻底的检修，换了一些新部件。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 annotated   

v.注解，注释( annotate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Thematic maps should always be annotated with the source and date of the topical information. 各类专题地图，均应注明专题资料来源和日期。 来自辞典例句
• And this is the version annotated by Umberto de Bologna. 并且这是有安博多-德-波罗格那注释的版本。 来自电影对白

10 Augmented   

adj.增音的 动词augment的过去式和过去分词形式

参考例句：

• 'scientists won't be replaced," he claims, "but they will be augmented." 他宣称：“科学家不会被取代；相反，他们会被拓展。” 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史
• The impact of the report was augmented by its timing. 由于发表的时间选得好，这篇报导的影响更大了。

11 seizure   

n.没收；占有；抵押

参考例句：

• The seizure of contraband is made by customs.那些走私品是被海关没收的。
• The courts ordered the seizure of all her property.法院下令查封她所有的财产。

12 ERECTED   

adj. 直立的，竖立的，笔直的 vt. 使 ... 直立，建立

参考例句：

• A monument to him was erected in St Paul's Cathedral. 在圣保罗大教堂为他修了一座纪念碑。
• A monument was erected to the memory of that great scientist. 树立了一块纪念碑纪念那位伟大的科学家。

13 supervision   

n.监督，管理

参考例句：

• The work was done under my supervision.这项工作是在我的监督之下完成的。
• The old man's will was executed under the personal supervision of the lawyer.老人的遗嘱是在律师的亲自监督下执行的。

14 vaulted   

adj.拱状的

参考例句：

• She vaulted over the gate and ran up the path. 她用手一撑跃过栅栏门沿着小路跑去。
• The formal living room has a fireplace and vaulted ceilings. 正式的客厅有一个壁炉和拱形天花板。

15 embellish   

v.装饰，布置；给…添加细节，润饰

参考例句：

• I asked him not to embellish the truth with ideas of his own.我要他不对事实添油加醋。
• Can you embellish your refusal just a little bit?你可以对你的婉拒之辞略加修饰吗？

16 fresco   

n.壁画；vt.作壁画于

参考例句：

• This huge fresco is extremely clear and just like nature itself.It is very harmonious.这一巨幅壁画，清晰有致且又浑然天成，十分和谐。
• So it is quite necessary to study the influence of visual thinking over fresco.因此，研究视觉思维对壁画的影响和作用是十分必要的。

17 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

18 portrayed   

v.画像( portray的过去式和过去分词 )；描述；描绘；描画

参考例句：

• Throughout the trial, he portrayed himself as the victim. 在审讯过程中，他始终把自己说成是受害者。
• The author portrayed his father as a vicious drunkard. 作者把他父亲描绘成一个可恶的酒鬼。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

19 bust   

vt.打破；vi.爆裂；n.半身像；胸部

参考例句：

• I dropped my camera on the pavement and bust it. 我把照相机掉在人行道上摔坏了。
• She has worked up a lump of clay into a bust.她把一块黏土精心制作成一个半身像。

20 unearthed   

出土的（考古）

参考例句：

• Many unearthed cultural relics are set forth in the exhibition hall. 展览馆里陈列着许多出土文物。
• Some utensils were in a state of decay when they were unearthed. 有些器皿在出土时已经残破。

21 anathema   

n.诅咒；被诅咒的人(物)，十分讨厌的人(物)

参考例句：

• Independence for the Kurds is anathema to Turkey and Iran.库尔德人的独立对土耳其和伊朗来说将是一场梦魇。
• Her views are ( an ) anathema to me.她的观点真叫我讨厌。

22 purloin   

v.偷窃

参考例句：

• Each side purloins the other's private letters.双方彼此都偷对方的私人信件。
• Xiao Chen insisted that he didn't purloin.小陈坚称自己没有偷窃。

23 plundered   

掠夺，抢劫( plunder的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Many of our cultural treasures have been plundered by imperialists. 我国许多珍贵文物被帝国主义掠走了。
• The imperialists plundered many valuable works of art. 帝国主义列强掠夺了许多珍贵的艺术品。

24 devastated   

v.彻底破坏( devastate的过去式和过去分词)；摧毁；毁灭；在感情上（精神上、财务上等）压垮adj.毁坏的；极为震惊的

参考例句：

• The bomb devastated much of the old part of the city. 这颗炸弹炸毁了旧城的一大片地方。
• His family is absolutely devastated. 他的一家感到极为震惊。

25 pilferer   

n.小偷

参考例句：

26 nucleus   

n.核，核心，原子核

参考例句：

• These young people formed the nucleus of the club.这些年轻人成了俱乐部的核心。
• These councils would form the nucleus of a future regime.这些委员会将成为一个未来政权的核心。

27 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

28 creditors   

n.债权人，债主( creditor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They agreed to repay their creditors over a period of three years. 他们同意3年内向债主还清欠款。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Creditors could obtain a writ for the arrest of their debtors. 债权人可以获得逮捕债务人的令状。 来自《简明英汉词典》

29 donors   

n.捐赠者( donor的名词复数 )；献血者；捐血者；器官捐献者

参考例句：

• Please email us to be removed from our active list of blood donors. 假如你想把自己的名字从献血联系人名单中删去，请给我们发电子邮件。
• About half this amount comes from individual donors and bequests. 这笔钱大约有一半来自个人捐赠及遗赠。 来自《简明英汉词典》

30 eminent   

adj.显赫的，杰出的，有名的，优良的

参考例句：

• We are expecting the arrival of an eminent scientist.我们正期待一位著名科学家的来访。
• He is an eminent citizen of China.他是一个杰出的中国公民。

31 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

32 moorish   

adj.沼地的，荒野的，生[住]在沼地的

参考例句：

• There was great excitement among the Moorish people at the waterside. 海边的摩尔人一阵轰动。 来自辞典例句
• All the doors are arched with the special arch we see in Moorish pictures. 门户造成拱形，形状独特，跟摩尔风暴画片里所见的一样。 来自辞典例句

33 bibliographer   

书志学家，书目提要编著人

参考例句：

• Zhang Xuecheng is a famous historiographer and bibliographer in Qing Dynasty. 摘要章学诚是清代著名的史学家、目录学家。

34 devoted   

adj.忠诚的，忠实的，热心的，献身于...的

参考例句：

• He devoted his life to the educational cause of the motherland.他为祖国的教育事业贡献了一生。
• We devoted a lengthy and full discussion to this topic.我们对这个题目进行了长时间的充分讨论。

35 confiscated   

没收，充公( confiscate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Their land was confiscated after the war. 他们的土地在战后被没收。
• The customs officer confiscated the smuggled goods. 海关官员没收了走私品。

36 monarch   

n.帝王，君主，最高统治者

参考例句：

• The monarch's role is purely ceremonial.君主纯粹是个礼仪职位。
• I think myself happier now than the greatest monarch upon earth.我觉得这个时候比世界上什么帝王都快乐。

37 monks   

n.修道士，僧侣( monk的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The monks lived a very ascetic life. 僧侣过着很清苦的生活。
• He had been trained rigorously by the monks. 他接受过修道士的严格训练。 来自《简明英汉词典》

38 renowned   

adj.著名的，有名望的，声誉鹊起的

参考例句：

• He is one of the world's renowned writers.他是世界上知名的作家之一。
• She is renowned for her advocacy of human rights.她以提倡人权而闻名。

39 illuminated   

adj.被照明的；受启迪的

参考例句：

• Floodlights illuminated the stadium. 泛光灯照亮了体育场。
• the illuminated city at night 夜幕中万家灯火的城市

40 preservation   

n.保护，维护，保存，保留，保持

参考例句：

• The police are responsible for the preservation of law and order.警察负责维持法律与秩序。
• The picture is in an excellent state of preservation.这幅画保存得极为完好。

41 relics   

[pl.］n.遗物，遗迹，遗产；遗体，尸骸

参考例句：

• The area is a treasure house of archaeological relics. 这个地区是古文物遗迹的宝库。
• Xi'an is an ancient city full of treasures and saintly relics. 西安是一个有很多宝藏和神圣的遗物的古老城市。

42 remarkably   

ad.不同寻常地，相当地

参考例句：

• I thought she was remarkably restrained in the circumstances. 我认为她在那种情况下非常克制。
• He made a remarkably swift recovery. 他康复得相当快。

43 illustrated   

adj. 有插图的，列举的 动词illustrate的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• His lecture was illustrated with slides taken during the expedition. 他在讲演中使用了探险时拍摄到的幻灯片。
• The manufacturing Methods: Will be illustrated in the next chapter. 制作方法将在下一章说明。

44 exquisitely   

adv.精致地；强烈地；剧烈地；异常地

参考例句：

• He found her exquisitely beautiful. 他觉得她异常美丽。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He wore an exquisitely tailored gray silk and accessories to match. 他穿的是做工非常考究的灰色绸缎衣服，还有各种配得很协调的装饰。 来自教父部分

45 ornamented   

adj.花式字体的v.装饰，点缀，美化( ornament的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The desk was ornamented with many carvings. 这桌子装饰有很多雕刻物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• She ornamented her dress with lace. 她用花边装饰衣服。 来自《简明英汉词典》

46 treatises   

n.专题著作，专题论文，专著( treatise的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Many treatises in different languages have been published on pigeons. 关于鸽类的著作，用各种文字写的很多。 来自辞典例句
• Many other treatises incorporated the new rigor. 许多其它的专题论文体现了新的严密性。 来自辞典例句

47 census   

n.(官方的)人口调查，人口普查

参考例句：

• A census of population is taken every ten years.人口普查每10年进行一次。
• The census is taken one time every four years in our country.我国每四年一次人口普查。

48 sundry   

adj.各式各样的，种种的

参考例句：

• This cream can be used to treat sundry minor injuries.这种药膏可用来治各种轻伤。
• We can see the rich man on sundry occasions.我们能在各种场合见到那个富豪。

49 sketches   

n.草图( sketch的名词复数 )；素描；速写；梗概

参考例句：

• The artist is making sketches for his next painting. 画家正为他的下一幅作品画素描。
• You have to admit that these sketches are true to life. 你得承认这些素描很逼真。 来自《简明英汉词典》

50 artistic   

adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的

参考例句：

• The picture on this screen is a good artistic work.这屏风上的画是件很好的艺术品。
• These artistic handicrafts are very popular with foreign friends.外国朋友很喜欢这些美术工艺品。

51 distinctively   

adv.特殊地，区别地

参考例句：

• "Public risks" is a recent term for distinctively high-tech hazards. “公共风险”是个特殊的高技术危害个人的一个最新术语。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• His language was natural, unaffected, distinctively vivid, humorous and strongly charming. 语言既朴实无华，又鲜明生动，幽默而富有艺术魅力。

52 cardinal   

n.(天主教的)红衣主教；adj.首要的，基本的

参考例句：

• This is a matter of cardinal significance.这是非常重要的事。
• The Cardinal coloured with vexation. 红衣主教感到恼火，脸涨得通红。