The libraries of Jan Frans Willems, Prudens van Duyse, and Philippe Marie Blommaert (Flemish philologists)

Due to a general lack of interest in Dutch literary history in the rare pub lic libraries, the nineteenth century Flemish philologists, Jan Frans Wille ms(1793-1846), Prudens van Duyse (1805-1859) and Philippe Marie Blommaert ( 1808-1871), were forced to build their own collections of manuscripts and b ooks on the topic. Therefore, an analysis of the context and contents of th eir private libraries could contribute to a better understanding of the lit erary practice of early Flemish philologists. By means of a critical examin ation of book auction catalogues and relating documents(such as corresponde nce, library acquisition records, ...) this article presents a reconstructi on of the libraries and the historical context in which they were built.