Erasmus valued access to texts over owning them

Evidence

Although his life revolved around books, Erasmus was remarkably nonchalant when it came to assembling a library. For Erasmus, access to texts was far more important than owning them. — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 952

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the broader history of how scholars before public libraries relied on access networks; contrasts with modern collectors and institutional libraries. — connects to: Sixteenth-century bookshops and pedlars expanded book ownership in Europe — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 953
• corroborated: 3 independent passages support this claim — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 952

Broader Connections

• Sixteenth-century bookshops and pedlars expanded book ownership in Europe #complicates (0.70) — Andrew Pettegree, Arthur der Weduwen, The Library- A Fragile History, 953