Shanghai Library East is hosting the exhibition Reading the Renaissance: Western Books and Manuscripts from the 10th to the 17th Century. The exhibition brings together 119 rare books, manuscripts, and related items that trace the spread of knowledge, intellectual shifts, and artistic achievements across Europe during this transformative period.

Among the highlights are 46 incunabula, or early printed books, forming the largest exhibition of its kind in Asia. Another 17 Western manuscripts showcase the diversity of scripts and illuminations from the Renaissance period.

The exhibition is organized into three thematic sections, covering fields as diverse as literature, philosophy, history, politics, mathematics, astronomy, geography, painting, and architecture.

The first section explores the materiality of books — from parchment and paper to bindings and illustrations — as well as manuscript traditions and the innovation of movable-type printing. Visitors will encounter landmark works, including an illustrated edition of Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, Giovanni Boccaccio's Decameron, a 10th-century Gospel in Carolingian minuscule, and some of Italy's earliest printed works.

The second section explores the transition from the scholastic tradition to critical inquiry and scientific curiosity. It features rare manuscripts and incunabula linked to the revival of Plato and Aristotle, encyclopedic inquiries such as Titus Lucretius Carus' On the Nature of Things, and groundbreaking publications, including Isaac Newton's Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica.

The third section focuses on the book as a work of art. It examines how patrons and collectors shaped the survival and transmission of texts, and highlights masterpieces of Renaissance bookbinding. A dedicated area explores the influential role of the House of Medici in commissioning and preserving cultural heritage.

If you go

When: Through Oct 11, 2026

Where: Gallery 1, 1F, Shanghai Library East, No 300 Hehuan Road, Pudong New Area

Open: Daily, 9 am to 7 pm

Ticket prices: 60 yuan ($8.85) for one visitor, 115 yuan for two

Source: Shanghai Library