Vernon Manuscript
Vernon Manuscript | |
---|---|
Bodleian Library | |
Date | c. 1400 |
Language(s) | Middle English |
The Vernon Manuscript (Bodleian Library MS. Eng. poet. a. 1) is a medieval English manuscript, written in the dialect spoken in the English West Midlands around 1400,[1] that is now in the Bodleian Library, to whom it was presented around 1677 by Colonel Edward Vernon.[1] It has been described as "the biggest and most important surviving late medieval English manuscript"[2] and "one of the Bodleian Library’s greatest treasures".[1]
The manuscript is lavishly illustrated and decorated,[2] and includes 370 poetry and prose texts on moral or religious subjects,[1] intended to be read by the pious.[2] It has over 700 pages and weighs 22 kilograms (49 lb).[3] The Bodleian Library estimates that the manuscript was compiled around the final decade of the fourteenth century.[1]
An online exhibition of the manuscript is curated by Professor Wendy Scase of the University of Birmingham.[1] A facsimile and transcription are available commercially.[1]
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f g "Luxury Manuscripts". Bodleian Library. Retrieved 17 May 2012.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c "The Vernon Manuscript Project". University of Birmingham. 2012. Retrieved 17 May 2012.
- ^ "Vernon Manuscript aims to unlock West Midlands accent origins". BBC Online. 11 September 2011. Retrieved 17 May 2012.
External links[]
- MS. Eng. poet. a. 1 In the Bodleian Libraries Catalogue of Medieval Manuscripts
- MS. Eng. poet. a. 1 Images available on Digital Bodleian
- University of Birmingham Vernon Manuscript Project
- Bodleian Library online exhibition
- Medieval manuscripts
- 1400s books
- Bodleian Library collection
- English manuscripts