OUTSTANDING FIGURES IN THE LIFE AND HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY OF CLUJ: JÓZSEF SEBESTYÉN K. (1878-1964)
OUTSTANDING FIGURES IN THE LIFE AND HISTORY OF THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY OF CLUJ: JÓZSEF SEBESTYÉN K. (1878-1964)

Summary/Abstract: József Sebestyén K. was a prominent scholar, specialised in heraldry. Additionally, he was a leading heraldic painter, a Hungarian genealogist and a distinguished connoisseur of Transylvanian monuments. Beyond evoking his major achievements – which included the painting of the first coat of arms of Greater Romania, as well as numerous other coats of arms for public institutions and private families – this study aims to present several original findings concerning the events surrounding the University Library of Cluj between 1945-1959. The research conducted in the “Lucian Blaga” Central University Library of Cluj-Napoca revealed new information regarding the years during which József Sebestyén K. was employed by the library. The official documents from the aforementioned archive can be more readily understood when read in conjunction with his correspondence with Lajos Kelemen (an eminent archivist who was both his friend and colleague at the University Library of Cluj), as well as with entries from the journal kept by his colleague, writer György Jakab (Bözödi), as well as the correspondence with his wife, Ilona Gyenge. The interpretation of the ex libris designed by K. Sebestyén József (still found today in thousands of volumes belonging to the collections of the “Lucian Blaga” Central University Library) will undoubtedly represent a novelty.

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