The publication of the „Handbuch des Römischen Privatrechts“ marks the completion of a grand project. Its sheer size is impressive: The work on this handbook took over ten years, and 65 authors have contributed 112 chapters. These contributions fill more than 3000 pages, and the detailed indexes make up another 600 pages. The volumes obviously contain a great deal of research spirit, knowledge of the sources and countless hours of searching, sorting and writing. But what panorama does the handbook open up, what new insights? What methods do modern Romanists use when researching its sources? What help does the handbook offer for future research? These are some of the questions this essay seeks to answer. Many details, not least the design of the work, show that the ambitions of the editors and authors must have been greater than the result suggests.