Exhibition unveiling Immanuel Kant's manuscripts for the first time in commemoration of his 300th birthday

On Friday, April 5th, at 4:15 p.m., an exhibition "Kant 300 in Tartu: From Manuscripts to Heaven" will be opened at the exhibition hall of the University of Tartu Library in honor of the 300th anniversary of the philosopher Immanuel Kant's birth. The exhibition marks the beginning of a month-long series of university-wide events centered around Kant.

"Immanuel Kant can be considered the sole luminary of Western philosophy to have emerged from our cultural sphere, if we take Plato, Aristotle, and Descartes as benchmarks," remarked the exhibition curator, Eduard Parhomenko, lecturer at the UT Institute of Philosophy and Semiotics. "Kant's direct students and associates taught at the newly reopened University of Tartu. As his original manuscripts and correspondence are housed in the university library, we had a good reason and material to compile the exhibition."

The exhibition will feature handwritten materials from the philosopher's lecture courses and letters to contemporaries, such as Johann Gottfried Herder, as well as first editions of his works. Additionally, visitors will have the opportunity to acquaint themselves with manuscripts and printed materials reflecting the immediate reception of Kant's philosophy in Estonia, particularly at the University of Tartu in the early 19th century. A special exhibit is Kant's death mask, acquired by the university from the collection of Franz Joseph Gall, a German physician and pioneer of neuropsychology in the 19th century.

"Alongside manuscripts and other texts, we also aim to introduce Kant's renowned celestial view, which in its own way reflects his philosophy," explained Parhomenko the significance of the exhibition title. "We have juxtaposed it with the celestial view of his student Gottlob Benjamin Jäsche to illustrate the evolution of Kant's philosophy in Tartu in the first half of the previous century."

The exhibition will also mark the beginning of a lecture series consisting of eight 35-minute presentations providing an overview of Kant's philosophy and its influence over three centuries. The first lecture, featuring presentations by Meelis Friedenthal and Janika Päll, will take place at 5:15 PM in the Tõstamaa seminar room of the library following the exhibition opening.

The exhibition "Kant 300 in Tartu: From Manuscripts to Heaven" was organized in collaboration between the university library and the Institute of Philosophy and Semiotics. In addition to Eduard Parhomenko, the exhibition was curated by Eva Piirimäe, Associate Professor of Political Theory at UT, Moonika Teemus, head of the manuscripts and rare books department of the library, and Elo Tõnisoo, subject librarian The exhibition designer is Maarja Roosi.

The exhibition will be open until May 5th.