Pedagogy

Professor Joseph Schüngel (1844-1922) was a teacher of mathematics and physics at the Rijks HBS in 's-Hertogenbosch and director of that school from 1906-1913. He also taught at the Stedelijk Gymnasium in that town. He is known for his textbooks on physics, which were also used at the Gemeentelijke HBS in Maastricht. Several editions from his textbooks are part of Maastricht University’s Special Collections, such as Leidraad bij het onderwijs in de natuurkunde. Schüngel’s books are scarce in the Netherlands. Maastricht scientist and winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry Peter Debye (1884-1966) gained his first knowledge of physics from Schüngel’s books.

As Latin schools served as bastions of learning from the 16th to 19th centuries, scholars and educators sought innovative ways to inspire and motivate students in their pursuit of knowledge. It was within this context that the tradition of awarding prize bindings (called ‘prijsbanden’ in Dutch) for outstanding performance emerged, as a means to recognise and reward academic excellence. This tradition became popular in Europe and the UK. The oldest preserved prize binding housed in our collection dates back to 1629 and originates from Haarlem. This particular volume contains the poems of Dutch writer and humanist Daniel Heyns and is very special as it is the second oldest prize binding in the Netherlands which is stamped with the city coat of arms. The collection boasts about 150 meticulously restored prize bindings.