The Robinson-Library is a unique literary archive worldwide. It is dedicated to a single literary text, Daniel Defoe’s famous adventure novel Robinson Crusoe (1719) and its rich afterlives in literature and culture. Built as an island into the exhibition space of the Kunst(Zeug)Haus in Rapperswil-Jona, the Robinson-Library houses around 4000 editions, translations and imitations of Defoe’s novel in around 40 languages, as well as drawings, games, films and folders containing everything from newspaper articles over comics to works of art.
The Robinson-Library sprang from the private collecting passion of Peter Bosshard (1942-2018), who, together with his wife Elisabeth Bosshard, over the course of forty years also collected the works of contemporary Swiss art that have been on display in the Kunst(Zeug)Haus since 2006. Peter Bosshard’s extensive collection of Robinsoniana is evidence of the enduring fascination Defoe’s adventure novel has exerted from the eighteenth century to the present day.
On the one hand, the Robinson story, which is entangled with the historical narratives of colonial expansion as well as decolonisation, has global relevance. This is evidenced by the worldwide translations and adaptations represented in the collection. On the other hand, the novel has a local significance for Switzerland, embodied in Johann David Wyss’ retelling The Swiss Family Robinson (Der Schweizerische Robinson, 1794/1812), which in turn has been translated into numerous other languages and made into films.
The Robinson-Library is a fascinating literature archive that allows visitors to experience the rich afterlife of one of the best-known novels in the canon of world literature. Freely accessible – except for the oldest and most fragile items – the many books, games, illustrations and objects of popular culture form a true playground for the curious reader. Because the books are shelved in the order of their acquisition rather than alphabetically, one never knows what one will encounter next. Getting lost among the shelves, pulling out one book and then another, exclaiming over unexpected versions – an Arctic Crusoe! Robinson on the Moon! – or delighting in colourful illustrations is an experience not to be missed.
Text: Isabel Karremann