Introduction: Religions Collection

 

To our knowledge, no library or museum - national or otherwise - has specifically collected manuscripts representing the world's religions, both extinct and living, over the 5000 years that span human cilivisation.

Thus is here presented for the first time manuscripts from Sumerian, Babylonian, Assyrian, Egyptian, Greek and Roman religions, as well as from Mithraism and extinct Germanic, Norse and Mayan religions.

These items from extinct religions sit alongside those from well known living world religions as well as smaller less known religions practised today. Christianity and Judaism are so well represented in the Schøyen Collection as a whole that they are presented separately in the collections from the Bible, Patristic Literature, Liturgy, Dead Sea Scrolls and Music. Aspects of these religions are also represented in Magical Literature and Apocryphal Literature.

Buddhism manuscripts is also presented separately.