Thorvald Olaf Boeck (August 15, 1835 – April 21, 1901) was a

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

jurist, civil servant, and book collector. He is known for assembling what was the largest private library of its time in Norway.

Book collection

Boeck acquired his first book at the age of nine. He received his ''

examen artium Examen artium was the name of the academic certification conferred in Denmark and Norway, qualifying the student for admission to university studies. Examen artium was originally introduced as the entrance exam of the University of Copenhagen in 1 ...

'' in 1854 from Heltberg High School and his

candidate of law Candidate of Law (Latin: ''candidatus/candidata juris/iuris'') is both a graduate law degree awarded to law students in the Nordic region as well as an academic status designation for advanced Law School students in German-speaking countries. ...

degree in 1860 from

Royal Frederick University The University of Oslo ( no, Universitetet i Oslo; la, Universitas Osloensis) is a public research university located in Oslo, Norway. It is the highest ranked and oldest university in Norway. It is consistently ranked among the top universit ...

. At that time, he had collected 2,000 books and had worked for a few years as a stipendiary magistrate in

Namdalen Namdalen ( sma, Nååmesjevuemie) is a traditional district in the central part of Norway, consisting of the municipalities Namsos, Grong, Overhalla, Røyrvik, Nærøysund, Høylandet, Flatanger, Lierne, Leka, and Namsskogan, all in Tr ...

before returning to his native

Kristiania Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

and a new job as a copying clerk at the Ministry of Church and Education in 1863. In 1864 he won the H.R.H. Crown Prince Gold Medal for a thesis on prices of wood and fish. In 1874 Boeck was promoted to royal envoy. He headed the

Oslo Workers' Society Oslo ( , , or ; sma, Oslove) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of ...

from 1877 to 1879, and he chaired the "flag meeting" on March 13, 1879, where the participants considered a new tricolor flag as proposed by

Hagbard Emanuel Berner Hagbart (or Hagbard) Emanuel Berner (12 September 1839 – 24 January 1920) was a Norwegian lawyer, Liberal Party politician and newspaper editor. He was one of Norway's leading liberal progressives of his time. He represented the Liberal Party a ...

. After marrying in 1866, Boeck relocated to a larger detached residence at ''Professor Dahls gate'' (Professor Dahl Street) no. 29, where he had room for his large book collection. However, space was limited, and he sold 754 volumes to the

National Library of Iceland Landsbókasafn Íslands – Háskólabókasafn ( Icelandic: ; English: ''The National and University Library of Iceland'') is the national library of Iceland which also functions as the university library of the University of Iceland. The librar ...

. In 1899, Boeck sold 31,467 books for NOK 25,000 to the

Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters The Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters ( da, Det Kongelige Norske Videnskabers Selskab, DKNVS) is a Norwegian learned society based in Trondheim. It was founded in 1760 and is Norway's oldest scientific and scholarly institution. The ...

Trondheim Trondheim ( , , ; sma, Tråante), historically Kaupangen, Nidaros and Trondhjem (), is a city and municipality in Trøndelag county, Norway. As of 2020, it had a population of 205,332, was the third most populous municipality in Norway, and ...

together with a large number of maps, letters, and 610 manuscripts. The sales contract specified that the collection could not be split up. Most of the material was incorporated into the

Gunnerus Library The Gunnerus Library in Trondheim is the oldest scientific library in Norway and dates back to 1768 when it was the library of the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters (DKNVS). The library is named after bishop Johan Ernst Gunnerus (1 ...

and, among other things, was an important addition to its collection of autographs. Today the collection is largely intact and is called the Thorvald Boeck Collection (''Thorvald Boecks boksamling'') with its own collection of handwritten material. Among other items, it includes: * A first edition of

Saxo Grammaticus Saxo Grammaticus (c. 1150 – c. 1220), also known as Saxo cognomine Longus, was a Danish historian, theologian and author. He is thought to have been a clerk or secretary to Absalon, Archbishop of Lund, the main advisor to Valdemar I of Denmark ...

's ''

Gesta Danorum ''Gesta Danorum'' ("Deeds of the Danes") is a patriotic work of Danish history, by the 12th-century author Saxo Grammaticus ("Saxo the Literate", literally "the Grammarian"). It is the most ambitious literary undertaking of medieval Denmark an ...

'' from 1514 * A

Ludvig Holberg Ludvig Holberg, Baron of Holberg (3 December 1684 – 28 January 1754) was a writer, essayist, philosopher, historian and playwright born in Bergen, Norway, during the time of the Dano-Norwegian dual monarchy. He was influenced by Humanism, ...

collection consisting of 300 volumes and four letters * Much work by Henrik Ibsen * Material by

Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson Bjørnstjerne Martinius Bjørnson ( , ; 8 December 1832 – 26 April 1910) was a Norwegian writer who received the 1903 Nobel Prize in Literature "as a tribute to his noble, magnificent and versatile poetry, which has always been distinguishe ...

, including a handwritten draft of "

Ja, vi elsker dette landet "" (; en, "Yes, we love this country") is the Norwegian national anthem. Originally a patriotic song, it came to be commonly regarded as the ''de facto'' national anthem of Norway in the early 20th century, after being used alongside "" since th ...

" * A

Henrik Wergeland Henrik Arnold Thaulow Wergeland (17 June 1808 – 12 July 1845) was a Norwegian writer, most celebrated for his poetry but also a prolific playwright, polemicist, historian, and linguist. He is often described as a leading pioneer in the develop ...

collection consisting of 100 volumes plus some manuscripts, including a draft of "Til min gyldenlak" (To My Wallflower)

Family

Boeck was the son of the natural scientist and zoologist Christian Peder Bianco Boeck (1798–1877). He was born in the Calmeyerløkken neighborhood of

(now Oslo) and grew up in Kristiania with his brothers, including the marine biologist Jonas Axel Boeck (1833–1873). In 1866 Boeck married Julie Pauline Louise Maschmann (1841–1923), the daughter of the priest

Bernt Sverdrup Maschmann Bernt Sverdrup Maschmann (17 October 1805 – 13 May 1869) was a Norwegian priest, politician and pharmacist. Bernt Maschmann was born in Christiania (now Oslo), Norway. He was a son of pharmacist Hans Henrich Maschmann. He earned his Cand.the ...

(1805–1869). In 1889, Boeck's daughter Elisabeth (1868–1958) married the architect

Herman Backer Herman Major Backer (October 30, 1856 – May 21, 1932) was a Norwegian architect. He is best known for having designed many luxury houses, grand public buildings, and business buildings, as well as hotels and churches. Backer was very productiv ...

(1856–1932). Boeck's daughter Antoinette Augusta (1871–1939) married the wholesale merchant Jacob Christian Just Schram (1870–1952). The sculptor and painter

Dagfin Werenskiold Dagfin Werenskiold (16 October 1892 – 29 June 1977) was a Norwegian sculptor and painter. He was born in Bærum as son of Norwegian painter and illustrator Erik Werenskiold, and brother of geologist Werner Werenskiold. He first learned drawing ...

(1892–1977) married Boeck's granddaughter Elisabeth Mathilde Schram (1897–1989).

Legacy

In the

National Gallery The National Gallery is an art museum in Trafalgar Square in the City of Westminster, in Central London, England. Founded in 1824, it houses a collection of over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900. The current Director ...

there is a painting by

Harriet Backer Harriet Backer (21 January 1845 – 25 March 1932) was a Norwegian painter who achieved recognition in her own time and was a pioneer among female artists both in the Nordic countries and in Europe generally. She is best known for her detailed ...

portraying Boeck's private library in 1902.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Boeck, Thorvald Norwegian book and manuscript collectors Collectors from Oslo Civil servants from Oslo 1835 births 1901 deaths