Archivo del bibliófilo filipino: recopilación de documentos históricos, científicos, literarios y políticos (Tomo Primero)

Compiled by the prominent Spanish civil servant and bibliophile Wenceslao Emilio Retana y Gamboa in 1895, this inaugural volume of the Archivo del Bibliófilo Filipino serves as a vital monument to Philippine historical and linguistic scholarship at the close of the Spanish colonial era. Spurred by a desire to preserve primary source documents scattered throughout European archives that had disappeared from the Philippines, Retana intended this multi-volume compendium to stand as a scholarly homage ahead of the fourth centennial of the Spanish discovery of the archipelago. The volume contains critical historical records, including a 1626 account of the Dutch-Spanish conflicts in Mindanao and Macao alongside early anti-Christian persecutions in Japan; a definitive 1649 chronicling of the devastating 1645 Luzon earthquake; an anonymous 1649 manuscript detailing the administrative and medical evangelical footprint of the Franciscan Order across early Tagalog and Bicol provinces; and Fray Francisco Bencuchillo's foundational treatise on Tagalog poetic art (Arte Poético Tagalo). For the institution, this work bridges the gap between European archival holdings and local historiography, safeguarding rare, foundational accounts of pre-modern Philippine geography, ethnography, linguistics, and socio-political evolution.

The book is considered valuable. It is advised that researchers use digital copy rather than physical books for preservation purposes. xl, 83 pages, 1 unnumbered page : illustration Language Translation (English Summary of Title/Scope): Archive of the Philippine Bibliophile: a compilation of historical, scientific, literary, and political documents (Volume One). The text comprises an opening prologue by Retana followed by verbatim reproductions of rare, primary colonial manuscripts spanning 1626 to 1895, focused on early ecclesiastical history, military campaigns, natural disasters, and native linguistics. Fil. 991.4 R31 APA Citation: Retana, W. E. (Ed.). (1895). Archivo del bibliófilo filipino: Recopilación de documentos históricos, científicos, literarios y políticos (Tomo Primero). Imprenta de la Viuda de M. Minuesa de los Ríos.