HÀ NỘI — The Belarus Embassy will, on Tuesday, hand 21 volumes of books to the National Library of Việt Nam to mark the 500th year of Belarusian book printing.

The anniversary is marked on the calendar of UNESCO’s memorable dates, indicating its international significance.

The National Library of the Republic of Belarus implemented the facsimile reproduction of the books printed by Francysk Skaryna totally in 21 volumes and is handing them to the largest libraries in the world.

The project is based on electronic copies of the most preserved books of the first printer, stored in libraries and museums of Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, Lithuania, Czech Republic and other countries.

The hand-over ceremony will be held at 10am at the library at 31 Tràng Thi Street. It will gather representatives from various embassies in Hà Nội, including the Armenian, Azerbaijani, Czech and Italian.

Francysk Skaryna or Francisk Skorina (1490–1552) was an outstanding Belarusian humanist, physician, translator and one of the first book printers in Eastern Europe. He laid the groundwork for the development of the Belarusian language. He was born into a family of wealthy merchants in Polatsk.

Skaryna received his primary education in Polatsk (Belarus) and partly in Vilnius (Lithuania).

In 1522, Skaryna opened the first printing house in Vilnius (Lithuania). Initially he published The Little Travel Book. Then in 1525, he publisjhed Apostol.

All Skaryna’s editions are rare, especially those published in Vilnius (Lithuania). Copies are stored in libraries in Minsk, Moscow, St. Petersburg, Kiev, Vilnius, Lviv, London, Prague, Copenhagen and Krakow.

The last information about Francysk Skaryna is mentioned in the archives of 1534. He moved from Vilnius to Prague. It is thought that he probably served in the royal garden in Prague until his death.

Monuments to the pioneer printer are installed in Polotsk (Belarus), Minsk (Belarus), Lida (Belarus), Kaliningrad (Russia), Vilnius (Lithuania) and Prague (Czech Republic). —VNS