“A TRAVELOGUE TO THE HOLY PLACES IN PALESTINE” (1898): A BIBLIOGRAPHIC PERPLEX OF POST-LIBERATION BULGARIAN BOOK

Abstract

The present study examines the unusual bibliographic characteristics of a Bulgarian edition from the late 19th century. In terms of content, the book belongs to the genre of pilgrimage travel literature, designed to assist pilgrims (hadjis) journeying from the Bulgarian lands to the holy sites in Jerusalem and Palestine. Its practical orientation largely compensates for the navigational challenges laypeople might encounter during the arduous journey to the Near East. Furthermore, the realization of such a work addressed a significant lacuna in Bulgarian literature, as contemporary reference guides on the subject were notably absent toward the end of the century. The primary feature that renders this book remarkable from both a bibliographic and scholarly perspective is its place of publication: Jerusalem. The geographical scope of the retrospective national bibliography does not typically account for Bulgarian publishing or literary activity in this region, neither before nor after the Liberation. “A Guide to the Holy Places in Palestine” is absent from the standard reference apparatus of the Bulgarian book and is virtually non-existent in the holdings of Bulgarian libraries. Beyond being a precedent regarding its place of publication, the guide contains several unreliable bibliographic elements that cast doubt upon its overall authenticity.