Facsimile

A facsimile is an imitation, a replica or a copy of an often historical original, in the case of books, for example, a medieval manuscript or an early print. The term facsimile is borrowed from Latin:

Fac simile = make it similar!

This translation is already the only valid definition. The word "similar", i.e. the term that is decisive in the definition, is of course subject to personal views, changes over time and technical developments, and is thus in a certain sense subjective and changeable. In fact, the way of reproduction (extent, size, color, binding design, materials, etc.) does not matter for the term facsimile, as long as the reproduction shows at least a certain relationship to the original. If this is the case, the reproduction is considered a facsimile by definition.

Classifications of facsimiles based on terms such as "full facsimile" or "partial facsimile", which are used here and there and cannot be universally defined, are therefore unsuitable and redundant.

All works listed in our database are facsimiles according to the definition. Only in the quality assessment (i.e.: what degree of similarity is achieved and what technical and material effort is expended for this?) do the facsimile editions listed by us show differences. However, when including editions in our facsimile database, we strictly ensure that they meet certain quality standards.