The Iron Library (

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

Eisenbibliothek) is a

special Special or specials may refer to: Policing * Specials, Ulster Special Constabulary, the Northern Ireland police force * Specials, Special Constable, an auxiliary, volunteer, or temporary; police worker or police officer * Special police forces ...

scientific Science is a systematic discipline that builds and organises knowledge in the form of testable hypotheses and predictions about the universe. Modern science is typically divided into twoor threemajor branches: the natural sciences, which stu ...

and

technical library Technical may refer to: * Technical (vehicle), an improvised fighting vehicle * Technical area, an area which a manager, other coaching personnel, and substitutes are allowed to occupy during a football match * Technical advisor, a person who adv ...

Schlatt, Thurgau Schlatt (or sometimes ''Schlatt TG'' in order to distinguish it from others) is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in Frauenfeld District in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. History Schlatt is first mentione ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. Its main focuses are

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand or typewritten, as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in some indirect or automated way. More recently, the term has ...

s, books and journals on

iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

metallurgy Metallurgy is a domain of materials science and engineering that studies the physical and chemical behavior of metallic elements, their inter-metallic compounds, and their mixtures, which are known as alloys. Metallurgy encompasses both the ...

and

plastics Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic materials composed primarily of polymers. Their defining characteristic, plasticity, allows them to be molded, extruded, or pressed into a diverse range of solid forms. This adaptab ...

History

The ''Iron Library Foundation'' was established on 31 December 1948, at the initiative of Ernst Müller (1885–1957). He had been director of

Georg Fischer AG Georg Fischer (abbreviated GF) comprises four divisions GF Piping Systems, GF Building Flow Solutions (since November 2023), GF Casting Solutions, and GF Machining Solutions. Founded in 1802, the corporation is headquartered in Switzerland and i ...

(GF). The Iron Library itself was opened in 1952 in the west wing of the ''Klostergut Paradies'' in

. In this year the company Georg Fischer celebrated the 150th anniversary. The ''Klostergut Paradies'' is the former

Poor Clares The Poor Clares, officially the Order of Saint Clare (Latin language, Latin: ''Ordo Sanctae Clarae''), originally referred to as the Order of Poor Ladies, and also known as the Clarisses or Clarissines, the Minoresses, the Franciscan Clarist Or ...

convent A convent is an enclosed community of monks, nuns, friars or religious sisters. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The term is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

of ''Paradies'', which had been purchased by Georg Fischer in 1918. In 2014 the Iron Library became member of the

Plastics Historical Society The Plastics Historical Society (PHS) was formed in 1986 and aims to encourage the study of all historical aspects of plastics and other polymers, including synthetic fibres, rubber and elastomers. It is an independent society, affiliated to the I ...

in London and the German Plastics Historical Society (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Kunststoffgeschichte) in

Bayreuth Bayreuth ( or ; High Franconian German, Upper Franconian: Bareid, ) is a Town#Germany, town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtel Mountains. The town's roots date back to 11 ...

Collection focuses

Iron Library collects media from the following fields: *

Iron Iron is a chemical element; it has symbol Fe () and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, forming much of Earth's o ...

and

Plastics Plastics are a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic materials composed primarily of polymers. Their defining characteristic, plasticity, allows them to be molded, extruded, or pressed into a diverse range of solid forms. This adaptab ...

*History of

technology Technology is the application of Conceptual model, conceptual knowledge to achieve practical goals, especially in a reproducible way. The word ''technology'' can also mean the products resulting from such efforts, including both tangible too ...

and

natural sciences Natural science or empirical science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer ...

*History of Georg Fischer AG

Manuscripts and rare books

The Iron Library's collections contain valuable original holdings of scientific and cultural-historical relevance. The collections include: * The "Aristoteles-Albertus-Magnus-

" was written in the first half of 13th century. Its main parts are ''De mineralibus'' by Aristoteles and ''De natura loci'' by

Albertus Magnus Albertus Magnus ( 1200 – 15 November 1280), also known as Saint Albert the Great, Albert of Swabia, Albert von Bollstadt, or Albert of Cologne, was a German Dominican friar, philosopher, scientist, and bishop, considered one of the great ...

. *

Bartholomaeus Anglicus Bartholomaeus Anglicus (before 1203–1272), also known as Bartholomew the Englishman and Berthelet, was an early 13th-century Scholastic of Paris, a member of the Franciscan order. He was the author of the compendium ''De proprietatibus rerum ...

: ''

De proprietatibus rerum Bartholomaeus Anglicus (before 1203–1272), also known as Bartholomew the Englishman and Berthelet, was an early 13th-century Scholastic of Paris, a member of the Franciscan order. He was the author of the compendium ''De proprietatibus rerum ...

.'' Printed by Pierre Hongre in

Lyon Lyon (Franco-Provençal: ''Liyon'') is a city in France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of the French Alps, southeast of Paris, north of Marseille, southwest of Geneva, Switzerland, north ...

s, 1482. * Albertus Magnus: ''De natura locorum''. Printed in

Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...

, 1515. * Wok Pniowsky von Eulenberg: ''Ayn liblichs piechel.'' Written in 1526. *

Georgius Agricola Georgius Agricola (; born Georg Bauer; 24 March 1494 – 21 November 1555) was a German Humanist scholar, mineralogist and metallurgist. Born in the small town of Glauchau, in the Electorate of Saxony of the Holy Roman Empire, he was b ...

: '' De re metallica.'' Printed in

Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...

, 1556. *

Isaac Newton Sir Isaac Newton () was an English polymath active as a mathematician, physicist, astronomer, alchemist, theologian, and author. Newton was a key figure in the Scientific Revolution and the Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment that followed ...

: ''

Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, value, mind, and language. It is a rational and critical inquiry that reflects on ...

.'' Printed in London, 1687. *

Giuseppe Valadier Giuseppe Valadier (April 14, 1762 – February 1, 1839) was an Italian architect and designer, urban planner and archaeologist and a chief exponent of Neoclassicism in Italy. A teacher of architecture at the Accademia di San Luca, Valadier was a ...

: ''Disegni, e spiegazione della Fonderia principio, e termine della Campana di S. Pietro.'' Written in 1786. *

Christian von Mechel Christian von Mechel (4 April 1737 in Basel; † 11 April 1817 in Berlin) was a Swiss engraver, publisher and art dealer. He developed a broad trade in art, through business connections throughout northern and central Europe; although the French ...

: ''Die eiserne Hand des tapferen deutschen Ritters Götz von Berlichingen.'' The book was printed in 1815 and describes the iron hand of

Götz von Berlichingen zu Hornberg (, ; 15 November 1480 – 23 July 1562), also known as Götz of the Iron Hand (German language, German: Eisenfaust), was a 16th-century Germany, German (Franconian) Imperial Knight (''Reichsritter''), mercenary and poet. He wa ...

, which was created in 1530. *

Gustave Eiffel Alexandre Gustave Eiffel ( , ; Bonickhausen dit Eiffel; 15 December 1832 – 27 December 1923) was a French civil engineer. A graduate of École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures, he made his name with various bridges for the French railway net ...

: ''La tour de trois cents mètres.'' (

Eiffel Tower The Eiffel Tower ( ; ) is a wrought-iron lattice tower on the Champ de Mars in Paris, France. It is named after the engineer Gustave Eiffel, whose company designed and built the tower from 1887 to 1889. Locally nicknamed "''La dame de fe ...

) Paris, 1900. Aristoteles - Albertus Magnus - manuscript.jpg, Aristoteles and his pupils, 13th century Pierre Hongre - De proprietatibus rerum - Lyon 1482.jpg, ''

'', 1482 Wappen von Wok Pniowsky von Eulenberg.jpg, ''Ayn liblichs piechel'', 1526 Valadier, Disegni e spiegazione della fonderia.jpg, Illustration by Giuseppe Valadier, 1786

Georg Fischer Corporate Archives

The Iron Library forms a unitary institution together with the Corporate Archives of Georg Fischer Ltd. The older holdings of the archives are also to be found on the premises of the ''Paradies'' convent.

Cultural property and heritage site of significance

The Iron Library is listed as Swiss cultural property of regional significance. The archives of Georg Fischer and the former

convent of ''Paradies'' in Altparadies are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance. The entire ''Paradies'' monastery is included in the

Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites The Federal Inventory of Heritage Sites (ISOS) is part of a 1981 Ordinance of the Swiss Federal Council implementing the Federal Law on the Protection of Nature and Cultural Heritage. Sites of national importance Types The types are based on t ...

Literature

*Annual Report 2019. Iron Library Foundation and Corporate Archives of Georg Fischer Ltd. Romanshorn 2020. ISSN 2297-8496.

References

External links

Official Website of Iron Library
''(Eisenbibliothek)''

Iron Library
at e-codices {{Authority control Libraries in Switzerland Cultural property of regional significance in Thurgau Thurgau