OAI

Fonds JM-MSCJ - Archives of the Monastery of St. Clare of Jerusalem

Identity area

Reference code

JM-MSCJ

Title

Archives of the Monastery of St. Clare of Jerusalem

Date(s)

  • 1884-2016 (Creation)

Level of description

Fonds

Extent and medium

Contents of a wardrobe, a top cabinet (former hatter), a ragpicker; about 6 linear meters.

Context area

Name of creator

(From 1888)

Administrative history

The monastery of St. Clare of Jerusalem was founded in 1888 by a French community in Paray-le-Monial (Diocese of Autun). The first nuns arrived in 1884 and began by founding the monastery of St. Clare of Nazareth; the foundation of the monastery of Jerusalem followed in a second step. This first community was led by Mother Elisabeth of Calvary and accompanied by Father Gauthey, Vicar General of the Diocese of Autun. The monastery is under the jurisdiction of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, restored as a residential seat by Pope Pius IX in 1847.

Several well-known personalities are linked to the history of the monastery. Thus, the establishment of the monastery was initially marked by the support of Léon Harmel, a French industrialist, a prominent figure in French social Catholicism with Albert de Mun. Indeed, Leon Harmel's daughter, Maria Harmel, first of all clarified in Paray-le-Monial joined the adventure of founding the monastery of St. Clare of Jerusalem. Thus, the establishment of the monastery is under permit financed by Léon Harmel's endowments.

The history of the monastery is also marked by an exile in Egypt during the First World War. The Poor Clares then returned to their premises.

Archival history

Immediate source of acquisition or transfer

Content and structure area

Scope and content

It should be noted that the Poor Clares are a cloistered and not an apostolic order, so the monastery's interactions with the world are limited. The community has never maintained a school or dispensary: the monastery's archives reflect this life of enclosure.

Appraisal, destruction and scheduling

Accruals

The fonds is not closed.

System of arrangement

This document was prepared by Emeline Rotolo and Emmanuelle Giry, archivists at the National Archives, then on an archival mission as part of the Open Jerusalem Archive research project, under the supervision and with the expert advice of Sister Maria Chiara.

These archives are kept in a room specifically dedicated to archives within the monastery of St. Clare from which they originate; apart from the so-called episode of exile (exile of the community in Egypt during the First World War), the community has not moved.

In view of the working conditions and the very short time available for this mission (a single working day to be devoted to the archives of the Poor Clares), it was decided not to classify the archives as such but to carry out a detailed topographical survey. The organization of the following collection is therefore organized by places of physical preservation of the documents in the archiving room of the St. Clare's Convent in Jerusalem; it is therefore not surprising to find an organization by furniture, then numbered shelves from bottom to top. A work of fine reclassification and redesign of the listed funds still remains to be done.

Conditions of access and use area

Conditions governing access

Subject to the authorization of the mother abbess of the monastery.

Conditions governing reproduction

Subject to the authorization of the mother abbess of the monastery.

Language of material

  • French

Script of material

Language and script notes

Physical characteristics and technical requirements

Finding aids

Archives des clarisses du monastère Sainte-Claire de Jérusalem, Récolement topographique, Établi par Emeline Rotolo et Emmanuelle Giry, archivistes aux Archives nationales, Première édition électronique, Archives nationales, Paris, 2017

Allied materials area

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Notes area

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Description control area

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Status

Level of detail

Dates of creation revision deletion

Language(s)

Script(s)

Sources

Archivist's note

Authors : Emeline Rotolo, Emmanuelle Giry (with the help of sister Maria Chiara)

Accession area

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