The royal manuscript collection revisited by the work of the librarian Luís Joaquim dos Santos Marrocos in the nineteenth century

Abstract

During the establishment of the Portuguese court in Brazil, at the beginning of the nineteenth century, much crossed the Atlantic, including printed papers and manuscripts. In this text, we discuss the royal manuscript collection through the work of the librarian Luís Joaquim dos Santos Marrocos. The main subjects examined are: a) the experience of the enlightened subject, assistant to a librarian at the Royal Library of Rio de Janeiro in the universe of letters, analyzing his dimension as a cultural mediator; and b) his daily work in the Manuscript Room, including the production of a systematic map of the manuscript collection. These propositions are situated on the basis of his letter writing practice and the production of map in question. This is ongoing research focused on privileged documentation to make considerations about the universe of written culture of the period and its developments in contemporary times.