Editing Incunable

{{Short description|Works printed in Europe before 1501}}
{{Redirect|Incunabula}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2020}}

[[File:Inkunabel.ValMax.001.jpg|thumb|Page from [[Valerius Maximus]], ''Facta et dicta memorabilia'', printed in red and black by [[Peter Schöffer]] ([[Mainz]], 1471). The page exhibits a [[Rubrication|rubricated]] initial letter "U" and decorations, [[marginalia]], and ownership stamps of the "Bibliotheca Gymnasii Altonani" ([[Hamburg]]).]]
[[File:Prohemium..JPG|thumb|Illumination with doodles and drawings (marginalia), including an open-mouthed human profile, with multiple tongues sticking out. Copulata, "De Anima", f. 2a. HMD Collection, WZ 230 M772c 1485]]
[[File:Phisicorum ca. 1485 ..JPG|thumb|Image of two facing pages from "Phisicorum", fols. 57b and 58a, with doodles and drawings. HMD Collection, WZ 230 M772c 1485]]
An '''incunable''' or '''incunabulum''' ({{plural form}}: '''incunables''' or '''incunabula''', respectively) is a book, pamphlet, or [[broadside (printing)|broadside]] that was printed in the earliest stages of printing in Europe, up to the year 1500.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Greenfield |first=Jane |title=ABC of bookbinding: a unique glossary with over 700 illustrations for collectors and librarians |date=2002 |publisher=Oak Knoll press The Plough press |isbn=978-1-884718-41-0 |location=New Castle (Del.) Nottingham (GB) |pages=37}}</ref> The specific date is essentially arbitrary, but the number of printed book editions exploded in the following century, so that all incunabula, produced before the [[printing press]] became [[Global spread of the printing press#Europe|widespread in Europe]], are rare, where even some early 16th-century books are relatively common.  

They are distinct from [[manuscripts]], which are documents written by hand.  Some authorities on the [[history of printing]] include [[block books]] from the same time period as incunabula, whereas others limit the term to works printed using [[movable type]].

{{As of|2021|post=,}} there are about 30,000 distinct incunable [[Edition (book)|edition]]s known.<ref>The [[British Library]] [http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/istc/index.html Incunabula Short Title Catalogue] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110312185857/http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/istc/index.html |date=12 March 2011 }} (retrieved 16 August 2021) gives 30,518 editions, though this includes some which have been re-dated to the early 16th century.</ref> The probable number of surviving individual copies is much higher, estimated at 125,000 in Germany alone.<ref>According to Bettina Wagner: "Das Second-Life der Wiegendrucke. Die Inkunabelsammlung der Bayerischen Staatsbibliothek", in Griebel, Rolf; Ceynowa, Klaus (eds.): "Information, Innovation, Inspiration. 450 Jahre Bayerische Staatsbibliothek", K G Saur, Munich 2008, {{ISBN|978-3-598-11772-5}}, pp. 207–224 (207f.) the Incunabula Short Title Catalogue lists 30,375 titles published before 1501.</ref> Through statistical analysis, it is estimated that the number of [[Lost literary work|lost editions]] is at least 20,000.<ref>J. Green, F. McIntyre, P. Needham (2011), "The Shape of Incunable Survival and Statistical Estimation of Lost Editions", ''Papers of the Bibliographical Society of America'' 105 (2), {{pp.|141|175}}. doi:https://doi.org/10.1086/680773</ref> Around 550,000 copies of around 27,500 different works have been preserved worldwide.<ref>[https://www.blb-karlsruhe.de/sammlungen/inkunabeln/ Badische Landes-Bibliothek] (in German)</ref>

==Terminology==
Incunable is the [[Anglicisation|anglicised]] form of ''incunabulum'',<ref>As late as 1891 Rogers in his technical glossary recorded only the form ''incunabulum'': {{cite book|last=Rogers|first=Walter Thomas|title=A Manual of Bibliography|publisher=H. Grevel|place=London|date=1891|edition=2nd|page=195}}</ref> [[Linguistic reconstruction|reconstructed]] singular of [[Latin]] {{Lang|la|incunabula}},<ref>The word ''incunabula'' is a neuter plural only; the singular ''incunabulum'' is never found in Latin, and is no longer used in English by most bibliographers.</ref> which meant "[[swaddling]] clothes", or "[[bassinet|cradle]]",<ref>C. T. Lewis and C. Short, ''A Latin Dictionary'', Oxford 1879, p. 930.</ref> which could metaphorically refer to "the earliest stages or first traces in the development".<ref name="oed">{{OED|incunabula}}</ref> A former term for incunable is '''fifteener''',<!--fifteener redirects here--> meaning "fifteenth-century edition".<ref>"Fifteener" was coined by bibliographer [[Thomas Frognall Dibdin]], a term endorsed by [[William Morris]] and [[Robert Proctor (bibliographer)|Robert Proctor]]. {{harv|Carter|Barker|2004|p=130}}.</ref>

The term ''incunabula'' was first used in the context of printing by the Dutch physician and humanist [[Hadrianus Junius]] (Adriaen de Jonghe, 1511–1575), in a passage in his work ''Batavia'' (written in 1569; published posthumously in 1588). He referred to a period "{{lang|la|inter prima artis [typographicae] incunabula}}" ("in the first infancy of the typographic art").<ref name="junius">[[Hadrianus Junius|Hadrianus Iunius]], ''Batavia'', [...], [Lugduni Batavorum], ex officina Plantiniana, apud Franciscum Raphelengium, 1588, p.&nbsp;256, line 3.</ref><ref name="glomski">{{cite journal|last1=Glomski|first1=J.|title=Incunabula Typographiae: seventeenth-century views on early printing|journal=The Library|volume=2|issue=4 |page=336|year=2001 |doi=10.1093/library/2.4.336 }}</ref> The term has sometimes been incorrectly attributed to [[Bernhard von Mallinckrodt]] (1591–1664), in his Latin pamphlet {{Lang|la|De ortu ac progressu artis typographicae}} ("On the rise and progress of the typographic art"; 1640), but he was quoting Junius.<ref>[[Bernhard von Mallinckrodt|Bernardus a Mallinkrot]], ''De ortu ac progressu artis typographicae dissertatio historica'', [...], Coloniae Agrippinae, apud Ioannem Kinchium, 1640 (in frontispiece: 1639), p. 9, line 16. The term appears within a long passage of several pages (pp. 27–33; corresponding to ''Batavia'', {{pp.|253|58}}), set in italics to indicate a quotation, and attributed to Junius.</ref><ref>{{cite journal|year=2009|title=Le baptême inconscient de l'incunable: non pas 1640 mais 1569 au plus tard|url=https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00791398v2|journal=Gutenberg Jahrbuch|volume=84|pages=102–105|language=fr|last1=Sordet|first1=Yann}}</ref>

The term ''incunabula'' came to denote printed books themselves in the late 17th century.<ref>{{Cite web |title=incunabula {{!}} printing {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/incunabula |access-date=2022-10-26 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> It is not found in English before the mid-19th century.<ref name="oed"/>

Junius set an end-date of 1500 to his era of ''incunabula'', which remains the convention in modern bibliographical scholarship.<ref name="junius"/><ref name="glomski"/> This convenient but arbitrary end-date for identifying a printed book as an incunable does not reflect changes in the printing process, and many books printed for some years after 1500 are visually indistinguishable from incunables. The term "'''post-incunable'''" is now used to refer to books printed after 1500 up to 1520 or 1540, without general agreement. From around this period the dating of any edition becomes easier, as the practice of printing the place and year of publication using a [[Colophon (publishing)|colophon]] or on the [[title page]] became more widespread.{{sfn|Walsby|Kemp|2011|p=viii}}

==Types==
There are two types of printed incunabula: the [[block book]], printed from a single carved or sculpted wooden block for each page (the same process as the [[woodcut]] in art, called ''xylographic''); and the ''[[Typography|typographic book]]'', made by individual cast-metal [[movable type]] pieces on a [[printing press]]. Many authors reserve the term "incunabula" for the latter.<ref>''Oxford Companion to the Book'', ed. M. F. Suarez and H. R. Woudhuysen, OUP, 2010, s.v. 'Incunabulum', p. 815.</ref>

The spread of [[printing]] to cities both in the North and in Italy ensured that there was great variety in the texts and the styles which appeared. Many early [[typeface]]s were modelled on local [[writing]] or derived from various European [[Blackletter|Gothic]] scripts, but there were also some derived from documentary scripts like [[William Caxton|Caxton]]'s, and, particularly in Italy, types modelled on handwritten scripts and [[calligraphy]] used by [[Renaissance humanism|humanists]].

Printers congregated in urban centres where there were [[scholar]]s, [[ecclesiastic]]s, [[lawyers]], and [[nobles]] and [[profession]]als who formed their major customer base. Standard works in [[Latin]] inherited from the medieval tradition formed the bulk of the earliest printed works, but as books became cheaper, [[vernacular]] works (or translations into vernaculars of standard works) began to appear.{{citation needed|date=September 2021}}

==Famous examples==
[[File:Pfister.faks.1.jpg|thumb|left|240px|{{center|First incunable with illustrations, Ulrich Boner's ''[[Der Edelstein]],'' printed by [[Albrecht Pfister]], Bamberg, 1461}}]]

Famous incunabula include two from [[Mainz]], the [[Gutenberg Bible]] of 1455 and the ''Peregrinatio in terram sanctam'' of 1486, printed and illustrated by [[Erhard Reuwich]]; the ''[[Nuremberg Chronicle]]'' written by [[Hartmann Schedel]] and printed by [[Anton Koberger]] in 1493; and the ''[[Hypnerotomachia Poliphili]]'' printed by [[Aldus Manutius]] with important illustrations by an unknown artist.{{citation needed|date=September 2021}}

Other printers of incunabula were [[Günther Zainer]] of [[Augsburg]], [[Johannes Mentelin]] and [[Heinrich Eggestein]] of [[Strasbourg]], [[Heinrich Gran]] of [[Haguenau]], [[Johann Amerbach]] of [[Basel]], [[William Caxton]] of [[Bruges]] and London, and [[Nicolas Jenson]] of [[Venice]]. The first incunable to have woodcut illustrations was [[Ulrich Boner]]'s ''Der Edelstein'', printed by [[Albrecht Pfister]] in [[Bamberg]] in 1461.<ref>Daniel De Simone (ed), ''A Heavenly Craft: the Woodcut in Early Printed Books,'' New York, 2004, {{p.|48}}.</ref>

A finding in 2015 brought [[Procopius Waldvogel#Controversial printed quires possibly assigned to Procopius Waldvogel|evidence of quires]], as claimed by research, possibly printed in 1444–1446 and possibly assigned to [[Procopius Waldvogel]] of [[Avignon]], France.{{Citation needed|date=October 2024}}

==Post-incunable==
Many incunabula are undated, needing complex bibliographical analysis to place them correctly. The post-incunabula period marks a time of development during which the printed book evolved fully as a mature artefact with a standard format.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Book Triumphant: Print in Transition in the Sixteenth and Seventeenth Centuries |editor1-last=Walsby |editor1-first=Malcolm |editor2-last=Kemp |editor2-first=Graeme |publisher=Brill |year=2011 |page=viii |isbn=978-90-04-20723-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cysqnfvAUEAC&pg=PR7}}</ref> After about 1540 books tended to conform to a pattern that included the author, title-page, date, seller, and place of printing. This makes it much easier to identify any particular edition.{{sfn|Walsby|Kemp|2011|p=viii}}

As noted above, the ''end date'' for identifying a printed book as an incunable is convenient but was chosen arbitrarily; it does not reflect any notable developments in the printing process around the year 1500. Books printed for a number of years after 1500 continued to look much like incunables, with the notable exception of the small format books printed in [[italic type]] introduced by [[Aldus Manutius]] in 1501. The term '''post-incunable''' is sometimes used to refer to books printed "after 1500—how long after, the experts have not yet agreed."<ref>{{cite book |first1=John |last1=Carter |first2=Nicolas |last2=Barker |title=ABC for Book Collectors |url=http://www.ilab.org/download.php?object=documentation&id=29 |format=PDF |access-date=28 May 2010 |edition=8th |year=2004 |publisher=Oak Knoll Press and the British Library |location=New Castle, Del. |isbn=1-58456-112-2 |page=172 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171121030905/https://www.ilab.org/download.php?object=documentation&id=29 |archive-date=21 November 2017 }} {{free access}}</ref> For books printed in England, the term generally covers 1501–1520, and for books printed in mainland [[Europe]], 1501–1540.{{sfn|Carter|Barker|2004|p=172}}

One notable example from this period is [[Hakob Meghapart]] (Hagop Meghapart), who in 1512 became the first known printer of Armenian books. Working in [[Venice]], he published ''[[Urbatagirk]]'' (''The Book of Friday'') and several other early Armenian printed works. His books retained characteristics of manuscript tradition, including red and black ink and decorative initials, aligning them stylistically with [[incunabula]] despite being [[post-incunable]] by definition.

==Statistical data==
[[File:Printing towns incunabula.svg|thumb|upright=1.2|Printing centres in Europe]]
[[File:Incunabula distribution by Region.svg|thumb|right|upright=1.2|Incunabula distribution by region]]
[[File:Incunabula BY language-08.svg|thumb|upright=1.1|right|Incunabula distribution by language]]

The data in this section were derived from the [[Incunabula Short-Title Catalogue]] (ISTC).<ref>[http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/istc/index.html BL.uk] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110312185857/http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/istc/index.html |date=12 March 2011 }}, consulted in 2007. The figures are subject to slight change as new copies are reported. Exact figures are given but should be treated as close estimates; they refer to extant editions.</ref>

The number of printing towns and cities stands at 282. These are situated in some 18 countries in terms of present-day boundaries. In descending order of the number of editions printed in each, these are: Italy, Germany, France, Netherlands, Switzerland, Spain, Belgium, England, Austria, the Czech Republic, Portugal, Poland, Sweden, Denmark, Turkey, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, and Hungary (see diagram).

The following table shows the 20 main 15th-century printing locations; as with all data in this section, exact figures are given, but should be treated as close estimates (the total editions recorded in ISTC at August 2016 is 30,518):
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Town or city !! No. of editions !! % of ISTC recorded editions
|-
| [[Venice]]<ref>{{citation |work=Incunabula Short Title Catalogue |access-date= 3 December 2017 |url= http://data.cerl.org/istc/_search?query=data.imprint.imprint_place:%22Venice%22 |title= Index: Place of Publication: Venice }}</ref> || 3,549 || 12.5
|-
| [[Paris]]<ref>{{citation |work=Incunabula Short Title Catalogue |access-date= 3 December 2017 |url= http://data.cerl.org/istc/_search?query=data.imprint.imprint_place:%22Paris%22 |title= Index: Place of Publication: Paris }}</ref> || 2,764 || 9.7
|-
| [[Rome]]<ref>{{citation |work=Incunabula Short Title Catalogue |access-date= 3 December 2017 |url= http://data.cerl.org/istc/_search?query=data.imprint.imprint_place:%22Rome%22 |title= Index: Place of Publication: Rome }}</ref> || 1,922 || 6.8
|-
| [[Cologne]]<ref>{{citation |work=Incunabula Short Title Catalogue |access-date= 3 December 2017 |url= http://data.cerl.org/istc/_search?query=data.imprint.imprint_place:%22Cologne%22 |title= Index: Place of Publication: Cologne }}</ref> || 1,530 || 5.4
|-
| [[Lyon]]<ref>{{citation |work=Incunabula Short Title Catalogue |access-date= 3 December 2017 |url= http://data.cerl.org/istc/_search?query=data.imprint.imprint_place:%22Lyons%22 |title= Index: Place of Publication: Lyons }}</ref> || 1,364 || 4.8
|-
| [[Leipzig]]<ref>{{citation |work=Incunabula Short Title Catalogue |access-date= 3 December 2017 |url= http://data.cerl.org/istc/_search?query=data.imprint.imprint_place:%22Leipzig%22 |title= Index: Place of Publication: Leipzig }}</ref> || 1,337 || 4.7
|-
| [[Augsburg]]<ref>{{citation |work=Incunabula Short Title Catalogue |access-date= 3 December 2017 |url= http://data.cerl.org/istc/_search?query=data.imprint.imprint_place:%22Augsburg%22 |title= Index: Place of Publication: Augsburg }}</ref> || 1,219 || 4.3
|-
| [[Strasbourg]]<ref>{{citation |work=Incunabula Short Title Catalogue |access-date= 3 December 2017 |url= http://data.cerl.org/istc/_search?query=data.imprint.imprint_place:%22Strassburg%22 |title= Index: Place of Publication: Strassburg }}</ref> || 1,158 || 4.1
|-
| [[Milan]]<ref>{{citation |work=Incunabula Short Title Catalogue |access-date= 3 December 2017 |url= http://data.cerl.org/istc/_search?query=data.imprint.imprint_place:%22Milan%22 |title= Index: Place of Publication: Milan }}</ref> || 1,101 || 3.9
|-
| [[Nuremberg]]<ref>{{citation |work=Incunabula Short Title Catalogue |access-date= 3 December 2017 |url= http://data.cerl.org/istc/_search?query=data.imprint.imprint_place:%22Nuremberg%22 |title= Index: Place of Publication: Nuremberg }}</ref> || 1,051 || 3.7
|-
| [[Florence]]|| 801 || 2.8
|-
| [[Basel]]|| 786 || 2.8
|-
| [[Deventer]]|| 613 || 2.2
|-
| [[Bologna]]|| 559 || 2.0
|-
| [[Antwerp]]|| 440 || 1.5
|-
| [[Mainz]]|| 418 || 1.5
|-
| [[Ulm]]|| 398 || 1.4
|-
| [[Speyer]]|| 354 || 1.2
|-
| [[Pavia]]|| 337 || 1.2
|-
| [[Naples]]|| 323 || 1.1
|-
| '''TOTAL''' || 22,024 || 77.6
|}
The 18 languages that incunabula are printed in, in descending order, are: Latin, [[German language|German]], [[Italian language|Italian]], [[French language|French]], [[Dutch language|Dutch]], [[Spanish language|Spanish]], English, [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]], [[Catalan language|Catalan]], [[Czech language|Czech]], [[Greek language|Greek]], [[Church Slavonic]], [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]], [[Swedish language|Swedish]], [[Breton language|Breton]], [[Danish language|Danish]], [[Frisian languages|Frisian]] and [[Sardinian language|Sardinian]] (see diagram).<!-- At least one incunabula is printed in Croatian language, according to the same source (https://data.cerl.org/istc/ic00190250)-->

Only about one edition in ten (i.e. just over 3,000) has any illustrations, [[woodcut]]s or [[metalcut]]s.

The "commonest" incunable is Schedel's ''[[Nuremberg Chronicle]]'' ("Liber Chronicarum") of 1493, with about 1,250 surviving copies (which is also the most heavily illustrated). Many incunabula are unique, but on average about 18 copies survive of each. This makes the [[Gutenberg Bible]], at 48 or 49 known copies, a relatively common (though extremely valuable) edition. Counting extant incunabula is complicated by the fact that most libraries consider a single volume of a multi-volume work as a separate item, as well as fragments or copies lacking more than half the total leaves. A complete incunable may consist of a slip, or up to ten volumes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=What Are Incunables? - YTread |url=https://youtuberead.com/what-are-incunables |access-date=2023-04-02 |website=youtuberead.com |language=en}}</ref>

In terms of [[Book size|format]], the 30,000-odd editions comprise: 2,000 [[broadside (printing)|broadsides]], 9,000 [[Folio (printing)|folios]], 15,000 [[quarto]]s, 3,000 [[octavo]]s, 18 12mos, 230 16mos, 20 32mos, and 3 64mos.

ISTC at present cites 528 extant copies of books printed by [[William Caxton|Caxton]], which together with 128 fragments makes 656 in total, though many are broadsides or very imperfect (incomplete).{{citation needed|date=September 2021}}

Apart from migration to mainly North American and Japanese universities, there has been little movement of incunabula in the last five centuries. None were printed in the [[Southern Hemisphere]], and the latter appears to possess fewer than 2,000 copies, while about 97.75% remain north of the equator. However, many incunabula are sold at auction or through the rare book trade every year.{{citation needed|date=September 2021}}

==Major collections==
The [[British Library]]'s [[Incunabula Short Title Catalogue]] now records over 29,000 titles, of which around 27,400 are incunabula editions (not all unique works). Studies of incunabula began in the 17th century. [[Michel Maittaire]] (1667–1747) and [[Georg Wolfgang Panzer]] (1729–1805) arranged printed material chronologically in annals format, and in the first half of the 19th century, [[Ludwig Hain]] published the ''Repertorium bibliographicum''—a checklist of incunabula arranged alphabetically by author: "Hain numbers" are still a reference point. Hain was expanded in subsequent editions, by [[Walter A. Copinger]] and [[Dietrich Reichling]], but it is being superseded by the authoritative modern listing, a German catalogue, the ''[[Gesamtkatalog der Wiegendrucke]]'', which has been under way since 1925 and is still being compiled at the [[Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin]]. North American holdings were listed by [[Frederick R. Goff]] and a worldwide union catalogue is provided by the [[Incunabula Short Title Catalogue]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/istc/|title=ISTC|access-date=2009-05-16|archive-date=18 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211118093805/http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/istc/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Notable collections with more than 1,000 incunabula include:

{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-  style="text-align:right; vertical-align:top;" "
! Library
! Location
! Country
! Number of copies
! Number of editions
! Ref.
|-
| [[Bavarian State Library]]
| [[Munich]]
| Germany
| 19,717
|  9,381
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://inkunabeln.digitale-sammlungen.de/ |title=Incunabula |publisher=Bayerische Staatsbibliothek |access-date=18 January 2023 }}</ref>
|-
| [[British Library]]
|[[London]]
| UK
| 12,500
| 10,390
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bl.uk/collection-guides/early-printed-books |title=Early Printed Books |publisher=British Library |access-date=18 January 2023 |archive-date=23 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191223140256/https://www.bl.uk/collection-guides/early-printed-books |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|fr|[[Bibliothèque nationale de France]]|italic=no}}
|[[Paris]]
| France
| 12,000
| 8,000
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://classes.bnf.fr/livre/arret/histoire-du-livre/imprimerie/05.htm |title=Les Incunables |publisher=Bibliothèque nationale de France |access-date=2013-09-07}}</ref>
|-
| [[Vatican Library]]
| [[Vatican City]]
| Vatican City
| 8,600
| 5,400 (more than)
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://opac.vatlib.it/iguana/www.main.cls?v=50cb035c-301c-11e1-925a-5056b2002600 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130616134430/http://opac.vatlib.it/iguana/www.main.cls?v=50cb035c-301c-11e1-925a-5056b2002600 |archive-date=16 June 2013 |title=All catalogues |publisher=Vatican Library |access-date=2013-05-21 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Austrian National Library]]
| [[Vienna]]
| Austria
| 8,030
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.onb.ac.at/fileadmin/user_upload/1_Sitemap/Ueber_Uns/Jahresberichte/oenb_jahresbericht2021_web.pdf |title= 2021 Jahresbericht |publisher= Österreichische Nationalbibliothek |access-date= 18 January 2023 | page=53 }}</ref>
|-
| [[National Library of Russia]]
| [[Saint Petersburg]]
| Russia
| 7,302
| 
| <ref>{{cite book|script-title=ru:Путеводитель по фондам Отдела редких книг Российской национальной библиотеки |editor=А.В. Лихоманова |editor2=Н.В. Николаев |location= Санкт-Петербург |date = 2015 |publisher= РНБ | page = 3| isbn = 978-5-8192-0483-2}}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|de|[[Württembergische Landesbibliothek]]|italic=no}}
| [[Stuttgart]]
| Germany
| 7,093
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.wlb-stuttgart.de/die-wlb/wir-ueber-uns/wlb-in-zahlen-2021/ |title=WLB in Zahlen 2021 |publisher=Württembergische Landesbibliothek |access-date=18 January 2023 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Bodleian Library]]
| [[Oxford]]
| UK
| 6,755
| 5,623
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/weston/finding-resources/guides/rarebooks |title=Rare Books in Western Languages |publisher=Bodleian Library, University of Oxford |access-date=18 January 2023 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Library of Congress]]
|[[Washington, D.C.]]
| US
| 5,700
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.loc.gov/rr/rarebook/guide/europe.html |title=Rare Books and Special Collections: Europe |publisher=Library of Congress |access-date=2020-09-03 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Russian State Library]]
| [[Moscow]]
| Russia
| 5,360
| 
| <ref>[https://books.google.com/books?hl=en&id=WwkjAQAAIAAJ&q=5360 Выставочный проект На благое просвещение: Румянцевский музей, Московский период], Индрик, 2005, {{ISBN|978-5-85759-308-0}}</ref>
|-
| [[Huntington Library]]
|[[San Marino, California]]
| US
| 5,000 (more than)
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.huntington.org/collections/early-printed-books |title=Early Printed Books and Printing History |publisher=The Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens |access-date=2020-09-03 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Cambridge University Library]]
| [[Cambridge]]
| UK
| 4,650 (more than)
| 
|<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lib.cam.ac.uk/collections/departments/rare-books/rare-books-collections/incunabula |title=Incunabula|date=10 October 2018 | publisher=Cambridge University Library|access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|it|[[Biblioteca Nazionale Vittorio Emanuele III]]|italic=no}}
| [[Naples]]
| Italy
| 4,563
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.beniculturali.it/luogo/biblioteca-nazionale-vittorio-emanuele-iii |title=Biblioteca nazionale di Napoli "Vittorio Emanuele III" |publisher=Ministero per i beni e le attività culturali e per il turismo |language=it |access-date=2020-09-03 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Danish Royal Library]]
| [[Copenhagen]]
| Denmark
| 4,500
| 
| <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www5.kb.dk/en/nb/samling/boghistoriske_samlinger/index.html|title=Rare Books |publisher=Royal Danish Library |access-date=2021-01-12 }}</ref>
|-
| [[John Rylands Research Institute and Library]]
| Manchester
| UK
| 4,500
| 
| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.library.manchester.ac.uk/search-resources/special-collections/guide-to-special-collections/printed-books/ |title=Guide to Special Collections: Printed books |publisher=The University of Manchester Library |access-date=2021-01-12 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Berlin State Library]]
| [[Berlin]]
| Germany
| 4,496
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/die-staatsbibliothek/zahlen-und-fakten/ |title=Zahlen und Fakten |publisher=Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin |language=de |access-date=2023-01-18 |archive-date=19 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210119125937/https://staatsbibliothek-berlin.de/die-staatsbibliothek/zahlen-und-fakten/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
| [[Harvard University]]
|[[Cambridge, Massachusetts]]
| US
| 4,389
| 3,627
| <ref>{{cite book |last=Whitesell |first=David |title=First supplement to James E. Walsh's Catalogue of the fifteenth-century printed books in the Harvard University Library |year=2006 |publisher=[[Houghton Library]] |location=Cambridge, Mass. |isbn=978-0-674-02145-7 |oclc=71691077 |page=xiii}}</ref>
|-
| [[National Library of the Czech Republic]]
| [[Prague]]
| Czech Republic
| 4,200
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://text.en.nkp.cz/collections/by-document-type/historical-book-collection/manuscripts-and-incunabula/inkunabule-en |title=Incunabula|publisher=National Library of the Czech Republic |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref>
|-
| [[National Central Library (Florence)|National Central Library of Florence]]
| [[Florence]]
| Italy
| 4,089
|
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bncf.firenze.sbn.it/pagina.php?id=51&rigamenu=Patrimonio |title=La Biblioteca – Informazioni generali – Patrimonio librario |publisher=Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Firenze |language=it |access-date=2011-03-07 |archive-date=18 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718040109/http://www.bncf.firenze.sbn.it/pagina.php?id=51&rigamenu=Patrimonio }}</ref>
|-
| [[Leipzig University Library]]
| [[Leipzig]]
| Germany
| 3,800
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ub.uni-leipzig.de/forschungsbibliothek/historische-bestaende/drucke/#c1061 |title=DRUCKE |publisher=Universitätsbibliothek Leipzig |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| [[Jagiellonian Library]]
| [[Kraków]]
| Poland
| 3,671
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bj.uj.edu.pl/o_bib/bj_w_licz1_en.php |title=The Jagiellonian University Library Collection |publisher=Biblioteka Jagiellońska |date=2009-12-31 |access-date=2011-03-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607164641/http://www.bj.uj.edu.pl/o_bib/bj_w_licz1_en.php |archive-date=7 June 2011 }}</ref>
|-
| Library of the [[Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich]]
| [[Munich]]
| Germany
| 3,598
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.en.ub.uni-muenchen.de/about/historic_collections/historic_collections_figures/index.html |title=Historic collections in figures |publisher=Universitätsbibliothek der LMU München |access-date=2020-09-03 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Bamberg State Library]]
| [[Bamberg]]
| Germany
| 3,550
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.staatsbibliothek-bamberg.de/en/about-us/profile/#c3912 |title=The State Library in Numbers |publisher=Bamberg State Library |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| [[Yale University]] ([[Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library]])
|[[New Haven, Connecticut]]
| US
| 3,525 (all collections)
| 
| {{citation needed|date=March 2011}}
|-
| [[Herzog August Library]]
| [[Wolfenbüttel]]
| Germany
| 3,477
| 2,835
| <ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.hab.de/de/home/bibliothek/bestaende/bestandsgeschichte/inkunabeln.html|title=Herzog August Library – Inkunabeln -Bestandsgeschichte|language=de|access-date=2020-09-03|archive-date=15 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150915162250/http://www.hab.de/de/home/bibliothek/bestaende/bestandsgeschichte/inkunabeln.html|url-status=dead}}</ref>
|-
| [[University Library Freiburg]]
| [[Freiburg im Breisgau]]
| Germany
| 3,448
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ub.uni-freiburg.de/en/about-us/library-profile/figures/ |title=The University Library in figures |publisher=Universitätsbibliothek Freiburg |access-date=2020-09-03 }}</ref>
|-
| [[University of Wrocław|Wrocław University Library]]
| [[Wrocław]]
| Poland
| 3,250 (more than)
|
| <ref>{{cite web |title=Old Prints Department - Collections |url=https://www.bu.uni.wroc.pl/en/departments/special-collections/old-prints-department-collections |website=bu.uni.wroc.pl |access-date=18 January 2023}}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|es|[[Biblioteca Nacional de España]]|italic=no}}
| [[Madrid]]
| Spain
| 3,159
| 2,298
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bne.es/es/Colecciones/Incunables/Historia/index.html |title=Biblioteca Nacional de España – Colecciones – Incunables |date=11 March 2011 |publisher=Biblioteca Nacional de España |language=es |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| [[Göttingen State and University Library]]
| [[Göttingen]]
| Germany
| 3,100
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.sub.uni-goettingen.de/sammlungen-historische-bestaende/inkunabeln-und-seltene-drucke/ |title=Inkunabeln und Seltene Drucke |publisher=Niedersächsische Staats- und Universitätsbibliothek Göttingen |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| Library of the [[University of Würzburg]]
| [[Würzburg]]
| Germany
| 3,100
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://vb.uni-wuerzburg.de/ub/inkunabeln/sammlungen.html |title=Die Inkunabelsammlung der UB |publisher=[[Universitätsbibliothek Würzburg]] |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
|[[Biblioteca Palatina, Parma|Palatina Library]]
|[[Parma]]
|Italy
|3,042
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of Palatina Library |url=http://www.bibpal.unipr.it/index.php?en/1/home}}</ref>
|-
| [[Basel University Library]]
| [[Basel]]
| Switzerland
| 3,000 (more than)
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://ub.unibas.ch/de/historische-bestaende/alte-drucke-438/ |title=Alte Drucke |publisher=UB Basel |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|it|[[Biblioteca Marciana]]|italic=no}}
| [[Venice]]
| Italy
| 2,887
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://marciana.venezia.sbn.it/la-biblioteca/il-patrimonio/patrimonio-librario |title=Patrimonio librario |date=22 November 2010 |publisher=Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana |language=it |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| [[Frankfurt University Library]]
| [[Frankfurt]]
| Germany
| 2,800
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ub.uni-frankfurt.de/hsn/hsn.html |title=Handschriften und Inkunabeln |publisher=Universitätsbibliothek Johann Christian Senckenberg |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| [[Uppsala University Library]]
| [[Uppsala]]
| Sweden
| 2,500
| 
| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.ub.uu.se/finding-your-way-in-the-collections/selections-of-special-items-and-collections/incunable-collection/| title=The Incunable Collection|access-date=2020-09-04}}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|it|[[Biblioteca comunale dell'Archiginnasio]]|italic=no}}
| [[Bologna]]
| Italy
| 2,500 (circa)
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.archiginnasio.it/collections.htm |title=COLLECTIONS |publisher=Biblioteca comunale dell'Archiginnasio | access-date=2020-09-04 }}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|fr|[[Bibliothèque Mazarine]]|italic=no}}
| Paris
| France
| 2,400
| 2,120
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bibliotheque-mazarine.fr/fr/collections/fonds-particuliers/incunables |title=Incunables |publisher=Bibliothèque Mazarine |language=fr |access-date=2020-09-04 }}</ref>
|-
|[[Biblioteca di Brera|Braidense National Library]]
|[[Milan]]
|Italy
|2,368
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of Braidense National Library |url=http://www.braidense.it/risorse/}}</ref>
|-
| Library of the [[University of Cologne]]
| [[Cologne]]
| Germany
| 2,350
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ub.uni-koeln.de/sammlungen/inkunabeln/index_ger.html |title=Inkunabeln |publisher=Universitäts- und Stadtbibliothek Köln |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| {{ill|Les Dominicains de Colmar|fr}}
| [[Colmar]]
| France
| 2,300
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://dominicains.colmar.fr/collections |title=Les collections |publisher=Les Dominicains – Bibliothèque patrimoniale Jacques Chirac |language=fr |access-date=2020-09-04 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Newberry Library]]
| [[Chicago]]
| US
| 2,200 (more than)
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.newberry.org/history-book |title=History of the Book |publisher=The Newberry |access-date=2020-09-04}}</ref>
|-
|[[Biblioteca Casanatense|Casanatense Library]]
|[[Rome]]
|Italy
|2,200
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of Casanatense Library |url=http://casanatense.beniculturali.it/}}</ref>
|-
| [[National Library of the Netherlands]]
| [[The Hague]]
| Netherlands
| 2,200
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.kb.nl/en/resources-research-guides/kb-collections/early-printed-books-until-1801/incunables-printed-works-until-1501 |title=Incunables (printed works, until 1501) |publisher=KB |access-date=2020-09-03 |archive-date=15 April 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415005408/https://www.kb.nl/en/resources-research-guides/kb-collections/early-printed-books-until-1801/incunables-printed-works-until-1501 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
|-
| Library of the [[University of Tübingen]]
| [[Tübingen]]
| Germany
| 2,148
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://idb.ub.uni-tuebingen.de/digitue/tue/Inkunabeln |title=Inkunabeln (Wiegendrucke) |publisher=Universitätsbibliothek Tübingen |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| Library of the [[University of Innsbruck]] (Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek)
| [[Innsbruck]]
| Austria
| 2,122
| 1,889
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.uibk.ac.at/ulb/sondersammlungen/2.1.2.1-inkunabeln-und-blockbuecher.html |title=Inkunabeln & Blockbücher |publisher=Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek Tirol |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| [[National Academic Library (Strasbourg)|National and University Library]]
| [[Strasbourg]]
| France
| 2,120 (circa) (7,000 destroyed by fire in the 1870 [[Siege of Strasbourg]])
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bnu.fr/fr/services/nos-collections/les-incunables |title=Les incunables |publisher=Bibliothèque nationale et universitaire de Strasbourg |language=fr |access-date=9 January 2020}}</ref>
|-
| {{ill|Nuremberg Public Library|de|Stadtbibliothek Nürnberg}}
| [[Nuremberg]]
| Germany
| 2,100
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.nuernberg.de/internet/stadtbibliothek/inkunabeln.html |title=Inkunabeln |publisher=Stadtbibliothek Nürnberg |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
|[[Biblioteca Civica Angelo Mai|Library Angelo Mai]]
|[[Bergamo]]
|Italy
|2,100
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of the Library |url=https://www.bibliotecamai.org/patrimonio-e-cataloghi/opere-a-stampa/}}</ref>
|-
| [[Morgan Library]]
|[[New York City|New York]]
| US
| 2,000 (more than)
| 
| {{citation needed|date=March 2011}}
|-
| Library of the [[University of Erlangen–Nuremberg]]
| [[Erlangen]]
| Germany
| 2,000 (more than)
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://ub.fau.de/history/inkunabeln/ |title=Inkunabeln |publisher=Universitätsbibliothek Erlangen-Nürnberg |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|it|[[Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Roma]]|italic=no}}
| Rome
| Italy
| 2,000
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bncrm.beniculturali.it/it/8/collezioni |title=Collezioni |date=23 December 2016 |publisher=Biblioteca nazionale centrale di Roma |language=it |access-date=2020-09-03 }}</ref>
|-
| [[National Széchényi Library]]
| [[Budapest]]
| Hungary
| 1,800 (more than)
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.oszk.hu/en/early_printed_books |title=Early Printed Books |publisher=National Széchényi Library |access-date=2020-09-03 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Heidelberg University Library]]
| [[Heidelberg]]
| Germany
| 1,800
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/helios/digi/inkunabeln.html |title=Heidelberger Inkunabeln – digital |publisher=Universitätsbibliothek Heidelberg |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03 }}</ref>
|-
|[[Biblioteca Estense|Estense University Library]]
|[[Modena]]
|Italy
|1,662
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of Estense Library |url=https://gallerie-estensi.beniculturali.it/biblioteca-estense-universitaria/}}</ref>
|-
| [[Bibliothèque de l'Arsenal]]
| [[Paris]]
| France
| 1,623
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://bnf.hypotheses.org/527 |title=Les incunables de l’Arsenal : un continent à découvrir |date=8 June 2016 |publisher=Bibliothèque nationale de France |language=fr |access-date=2025-05-23 }}</ref>
|-
| [[Turin National University Library]]
| [[Turin]]
| Italy
| 1,600 (more than)
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bnto.librari.beniculturali.it/index.php?it/156/patrimonio |title=Incunaboli |date=19 April 2013 |publisher=Biblioteca Nazionale Universitaria di Torino |language=it |access-date=2020-09-03 }}</ref>
|-
| {{ill|Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek Sachsen-Anhalt|de}}
| [[Halle (Saale)]]
| Germany
| 1,600
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://bibliothek.uni-halle.de/sammlungen/sondersammlungen/ |title=Historische Sammlungen |publisher=Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek Sachsen-Anhalt |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|pt|[[Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal]]|italic=no}}
| [[Lisbon]]
| Portugal
| 1,597
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bnportugal.gov.pt/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=201&Itemid=160&lang=en |title=Incunabula |publisher=Biblioteca Nacional de Portugal |access-date=2020-09-04}}</ref>
|-
| {{interlanguage link|Biblioteca universitaria di Padova|it|Biblioteca Universitaria di Padova|lt=Biblioteca Universitaria di Padova}}
| [[Padua]]
| Italy
| 1,583
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.bibliotecauniversitariapadova.beniculturali.it/index.php?it/69/storia-e-patrimonio.it |title=Storia e patrimonio |publisher=Biblioteca Universitaria di Padova |language=it |access-date=2022-08-09}}</ref>
|-
| [[Zentralbibliothek Zürich]]
| [[Zürich]]
| Switzerland
| 1,562
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.zb.uzh.ch/de/collections/alte-drucke-und-rara |title=Alte Drucke und Rara |publisher=Zentralbibliothek Zürich |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| [[Strahov Monastery]] Library
| Prague
| Czech Republic
| 1,500 (more than)
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.strahovskyklaster.cz/library/concise-history-of-the-monastic-library |title=Concise history of the monastic library |publisher=Royal Canonry of Premonstratensians at Strahov |access-date=2014-05-16}}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|fr|[[Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève]]|italic=no}}
| Paris
| France
| 1,500
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bsg.univ-paris3.fr/iguana/www.main.cls?surl=presentation |title=Nos collections |publisher=Bibliothèque Sainte-Geneviève |language=fr |access-date=2021-01-12}}</ref>
|-
| {{ill|Universitätsbibliothek Salzburg|de}}
| [[Salzburg]]
| Austria
| 1,385
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.uni-salzburg.at/index.php?id=32299&L=1 |title=Collections, University Archives, Provenance Research |publisher=Universität Salzburg |language=de |access-date=2020-09-04}}</ref>
|-
| [[Baden State Library]]
| [[Karlsruhe]]
| Germany
| 1,365
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.blb-karlsruhe.de/sammlungen/inkunabeln/bestand/ |title=Inkunabeln: Bestand |publisher=Badische Landesbibliothek |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| [[University Library of Bonn]]
| [[Bonn]]
| Germany
| 1,338
| 1,307
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ulb.uni-bonn.de/de/sammlungen/inkunabeln |title=Inkunabeln |publisher=Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek Bonn |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
|[[Biblioteca Augusta]]
|[[Perugia]]
|Italy
|1,330
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Augusta|url=https://turismo.comune.perugia.it/pagine/augusta|publisher=Biblioteca Augusta|language=it|access-date=2024-01-05}}</ref>
|-
|[[University Library in Genoa]]
|[[Genoa]]
|Italy
|1,321
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Catalogo alfabetico per autore degli Incunaboli - INDEX|url=http://www.bibliotecauniversitaria.ge.it/it/cataloghi/Incunaboli/incuna_index_0.html|publisher=University Library of Genoa|language=it|access-date=2024-01-05}}</ref>
|-
|[[Trivulziana Library]]
|Milan
|Italy
|1,300
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of Trivulziana Library |url=https://trivulziana.milanocastello.it/it/content/patrimonio}}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|fr|[[Bibliothèque municipale de Lyon]]|italic=no}}
| [[Lyon]]
| France
| 1,300
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bm-lyon.fr/16-bibliotheques-et-un-bibliobus/a-propos-de-la-bibliotheque-municipale-de-lyon/article/la-bml-en-chiffres |title=La BmL en chiffres |publisher=Bibliothèque municipale de Lyon |language=fr |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| Library of the [[Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt]]
| [[Eichstätt]]
| Germany
| 1,290
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ku.de/bibliothek/suchen-und-finden/sammlungen/historische-drucke |title=Historische Drucke (1450–1830) |publisher=Universitätsbibliothek Eichstätt-Ingolstadt |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| [[Walters Art Museum]]
| Baltimore, Maryland
| US
| 1,280
| 
| <ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/museums/walters-art-museum-highlights-the-bumpy-road-of-publishing-post-gutenberg/2014/11/12/97ceacca-69be-11e4-a31c-77759fc1eacc_story.html |title=Walters Art Museum highlights the bumpy road of publishing, post-Gutenberg | author=Roger Catlin | date=2014-11-14 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
|[[Verona Municipal Library]]
|[[Verona]]
|Italy
|1,230
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of Verona Municipal Library |url=https://biblioteche.comune.verona.it/nqcontent.cfm?a_id=79983}}</ref>
|-
| [[Bryn Mawr College]] Library
| Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania
| US
| 1,225 (more than)
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://guides.tricolib.brynmawr.edu/c.php?g=542610 |title=Fifteenth Century Printed Books at Bryn Mawr (BMC) |publisher=Tri-College Libraries|access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
|[[Library Teresiana]]
|[[Mantua]]
|Italy
|1,281
|1,083
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of the Library |url=https://www.bibliotecateresiana.it/index.php/patrimonio/14-le-raccolte/34-incunaboli}}</ref>
|-
| {{ill|Ratsschulbibliothek Zwickau|de}}
| [[Zwickau]]
| Germany
| 1,200
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.ratsschulbibliothek.de/de/ratsschulbibliothek/bestaende.php |title=Bestände |publisher=Ratsschulbibliothek Zwickau |language=de |access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
| [[University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign]]
| Urbana, Illinois
| US
| 1,200 (more than)
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.library.illinois.edu/rbx/collections/distinctive-collections/ |title=Distinctive Collections |publisher=Rare Book & Manuscript Library, University of Illinois |access-date=2021-01-12 }}</ref>
|-
| [[National Library of Poland]]
| [[Warsaw]]
| Poland
| 1,198
| 1,031
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://bn.org.pl/o-nas/zbiory-bn/zbiory-bn/starodruki |title=Starodruki |publisher=National Library of Poland |language=pl |access-date=2024-06-14 }}</ref>
|-
| {{Lang|es|[[Biblioteca Colombina]]|italic=no}}
| [[Seville]]
| Spain
| 1,194
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.icolombina.es/colombina/incunables.htm |title=Incunables de la Biblioteca Colombina |publisher=Institución Colombina |language=es |access-date=2020-09-03 |archive-date=23 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210123180612/http://www.icolombina.es/colombina/incunables.htm }}</ref>
|-
|[[Biblioteca Queriniana, Brescia|Queriniana Library]]
|[[Brescia]]
|Italy
|1,158
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of Queriniana Library |url=https://queriniana.comune.brescia.it/}}</ref>
|-
|[[Biblioteca centrale della Regione Siciliana|Central Library of the Region of Sicily]]
|[[Palermo]]
|Italy
|1,136
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of the Library |url=http://www.bibliotecaregionalepalermo.it/index.php?it/200/patrimonio-librario-antico}}</ref>
|-
| [[University of Graz Library]]
| [[Graz]]
| Austria
| 1,115
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url= https://public.sharepoint.uni-graz.at/sites/ub/OeffentlicheDokumente/Jahresbericht%202017%20-%20reduziert.pdf |title= Universitätsbibliothek der Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz: Jahresbericht 2017 |publisher= Universitätsbibliothek der Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz |date= 2017 |language= de |access-date= 2020-09-04 |page= 43 |archive-date= 18 January 2021 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20210118104212/https://public.sharepoint.uni-graz.at/sites/ub/OeffentlicheDokumente/Jahresbericht%202017%20-%20reduziert.pdf |url-status= dead }}</ref>
|-
|[[Biblioteca Angelica|Angelica Library]]
|Rome
|Italy
|1,100
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of the Library |url=https://bibliotecaangelica.cultura.gov.it/?page_id=129}}</ref>
|-
| [[Glasgow University Library|University of Glasgow]]
| [[Glasgow]]
| UK
| 1,062
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.gla.ac.uk/myglasgow/incunabula/projectintroduction/ |title=Glasgow Incunabula Project: A Catalogue of Fifteenth-century Printed Books in Glasgow |publisher=University of Glasgow | access-date=2021-01-12}}</ref>
|-
|[[University Library in Bologna]]
|[[Bologna]]
|Italy
|1,021
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of University Library of Bologna |url=https://bub.unibo.it/it/collezioni-e-cataloghi/collezioni-speciali-manoscritti-e-libri-antichi-a-stampa}}</ref>
|-
| [[Perkins School of Theology#Library|Bridwell Library]]
| Dallas, Texas
| US
| 1,000 (more than)
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.smu.edu/Bridwell/SpecialCollectionsandArchives/Overview/Incunabula |title=Incunabula: Printing in Europe before 1501 |publisher=Bridwell Library, Perkins School of Theology, Southern Methodist University |access-date=2021-01-12 }}</ref>
|-
|[[Biblioteca Passerini-Landi|Library Passerini Landi]]
|[[Piacenza]]
|Italy
|1,000 (more than)
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of the Library |url=https://www.passerinilandi.piacenza.it/sedi-e-orari/visita-la-biblioteca/ambienti-e-storia/storia}}</ref>
|-
| [[Abbey library of Saint Gall]]
| [[St. Gallen]]
| Switzerland
| 1,000
| 
| <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.stiftsbezirk.ch/de/stiftsbibliothek/recherche/ |title=Recherche|publisher=Stiftsbibliothek St. Gallen |language=de | access-date=2020-09-03}}</ref>
|-
|[[Library Intronati]]
|[[Siena]]
|Italy
|1,000 (circa)
|
|<ref>{{Cite web |title=Official Website of the Library |url=https://www.bibliotecasiena.it/patrimonio/fondi-antichi-e-rari/libri-antichi-stampa}}</ref>
|-
| [[National Library of Serbia]]
| [[Belgrade]]
| Serbia
| 1,000 (circa)
| 
| <ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kbbgAAAAMAAJ&q=Incunable%20serbia |title=Incunabula and Their Readers - Printing, Selling and Using Books in the Fifteenth Century|first=Kristian|last=Jensen |year=2003 |publisher=British Library |isbn=978-0-7123-4769-3 |page= }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=British Library|url=https://data.cerl.org/istc/io00022300}}</ref>

|-
| [[National and University Library in Zagreb]]
| [[Zagreb]]
| Croatia
| 1,000 (circa)
| 
| {{citation needed|date=September 2020}}
|-
| [[Bibliothèque municipale de Besançon]]
| [[Besançon]]
| France
| 1,000 (circa)
| 
| {{citation needed|date=March 2011}}
<!-- Please do not add any below 1,000 per talk page consensus -->
|}

==See also==
* [[Global spread of the printing press]]
* [[History of books]]
* [[Book collecting]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category|Incunabula}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20160606062022/http://www.chb.hss.ed.ac.uk/ Centre for the History of the Book]
* British Library worldwide [http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/istc/index.html Incunabula Short Title Catalogue] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110312185857/http://www.bl.uk/catalogues/istc/index.html |date=12 March 2011 }}
* [http://www.gesamtkatalogderwiegendrucke.de/GWEN.xhtml ''Gesamtkatalog der Wiegendrucke'' (''GW''), partially English version]
* [https://www.ndl.go.jp/incunabula/e/chapter1/chapter1_04.html History of Incunabula Studies]
* [https://www.library.illinois.edu/rbx/ UIUC Rare Book & Manuscript Library]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120822151605/http://gvsu.edu/library/specialcollections/incunabula-16th-century-printing-20.htm Grand Valley State University Incunabula & 16th Century Printing digital collections]
* [https://www.loc.gov/rr/rarebook/coll/incun.html Incunable Collection] at the US [[Library of Congress]]
* [http://lhldigital.lindahall.org/cdm/search/searchterm/incunabul*/field/all/mode/all/conn/and/order/nosort Digital facsimiles of several incunabula] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170608121333/http://lhldigital.lindahall.org/cdm/search/searchterm/incunabul*/field/all/mode/all/conn/and/order/nosort |date=8 June 2017 }} from the website of the [[Linda Hall Library]]
* {{cite web |title=Introduction to the study of incunabula |author=Kristian Jensen |publisher=[[Ecole Nationale Superieure des Sciences de l'information et des Bibliotheques]], Institut d'histoire du livre |location=Lyon |year=2016  |url=http://ihl.enssib.fr/en/book-history-workshop/courses/99291-introduction-to-the-study-of-incunabula-2016-in-english |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171127114915/http://ihl.enssib.fr/en/book-history-workshop/courses/99291-introduction-to-the-study-of-incunabula-2016-in-english |archive-date=2017-11-27 }} (Includes annotated bibliography)
* {{cite web |url=https://guides.library.harvard.edu/c.php?g=310256&p=2071425 |title=Rinascimento: Manuscripts & Incunabula |publisher=Harvard University Library |location=US |work=Research Guides }}
* {{Cite EB1911 |wstitle=Incunabula |volume=14 |pages=369–370 |first=Alfred W. |last=Pollard |short=1}}
* {{cite web|title=An Introduction to Incunabula|url=http://www.historicpages.com/texts/incun1.htm|publisher=Barber, Phil|access-date=6 July 2017}}

{{Books}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Incunabula}}
[[Category:Books by type]]
[[Category:Incunabula| ]]
[[Category:Writing]]