A Catalogue of Manuscripts of Assam

Cataloguing ancient handwritten manuscripts is an essential branch of manuscriptology. The Anandaram Borooah Institute of Language, Art and Culture (ABILAC) launched a field campaign to survey and catalog handwritten manuscripts scattered across the Brahmaputra and Barak valleys. Pausing institutional cataloging at satras, monasteries, universities, and museums for a later phase, the primary goal of this phase was to track down manuscripts preserved in private collections and document them along with the owner's name and address. Through the collaborative effort of multiple researchers, a catalog of 1155 manuscripts was prepared. The manuscripts are categorized into domains such as astronomy/astrology, tantric incantations (Mantra), Ayurveda, chronicles (Buranji), hagiographies, philosophy, ritual manuals, Puranas, Smritis, grammar, lexicons, poetry, verses, and plays. Each entry meticulously records the manuscript's title, material base, language, description, opening and colophon verses, date, folio count, content condition, and ownership details. This landmark project has been integrated into the national manuscript registry framework (New Catalogus Catalogorum) of Madras University.