The album amicorum is generally considered a transdisciplinary research field par excellence. The present volume is the first attempt to unite the various approaches into a systematic overall concept. The album amicorum is understood here as a collective form serving the acquisition and preservation of specifically constructed texts clearly determinable in terms of their situation and function. The constitution and milieu-specific differentiation of the object and the medium of collection is traced with reference to cultural and social contexts and the history of mentality. The period covered extends from Luther's Wittenberg to the early 18th century. Special emphasis is given to the methodological distinction of aspects relating to textuality, mediality, pragmatics and reception.