The First Treatise on Museums: Samuel Quiccheberg's Inscriptiones, 1565 (Texts & Documents)

A new translation of a seminal sixteenth-century book on the collection and display of objects

Samuel Quiccheberg’s Inscriptiones, first published in Latin in 1565, is an ambitious effort to demonstrate the pragmatic value of curiosity cabinets, or Wunderkammern, to princely collectors in sixteenth-century Europe and, by so doing, inspire them to develop their own such collections. Quiccheberg shows how the assembly and display of physical objects offered nobles a powerful means to expand visual knowledge, allowing them to incorporate empirical and artisanal expertise into the realm of the written word. But in mapping out the collectability of the material world, Quiccheberg did far more than create a taxonomy. Rather, he demonstrated how organizing objects made their knowledge more accessible; how objects, when juxtaposed or grouped, could tell a story; and how such strategies could enhance the value of any single object.

Quiccheberg’s descriptions of early modern collections provide both a point of origin for today’s museums and an implicit critique of their aims, asserting the fundamental research and scholarly value of collections: collections are to be used, not merely viewed. The First Treatise on Museums makes Quiccheberg’s now rare publication available in an English translation. Complementing the translation are a critical introduction by Mark A. Meadow and a preface by Bruce Robertson.

Mark A. Meadow is an associate professor of art history at the University of California, Santa Barbara, specializing in the history and theory of museums and Northern Renaissance art. Meadow is founding coeditor of the book series Proteus: Studies in Early Modern Identity Formation from Brepols Press in Belgium. He is also a member of the University Museums and Collections International Committee (UMAC) of the International Council of Museums (ICOM).

Bruce Robertson is a professor of art history at the University of California, Santa Barbara, whose areas of specialization include American art and museum studies. The author of numerous books and many essays and articles on museum issues and history, Robertson is on the editorial boards of Museum and Society and Museum History. He was formerly the associate director of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and is currently director of the Art, Design and Architecture Museum at the University of California, Santa Barbara.