Detail of a miniature of a lecture, from Bartholomaeus Anglicus (translated by Jean Corbechon), De proprietatibus rerum (Livre des proprietez des choses), France (Paris?), 1st quarter of the 15th century, Royal 17 E. iii, f. 93v

As regular readers of this blog will have seen, the British Library is running a workshop to be held at the University of Durham on 6 June 2012 (that’s just one week away!). You are warmly invited to attend this workshop, which is free and open to the public. It will begin at 2pm and will take place in The Williams Library, St Chad’s College (click here for a map).

In addition to your attendance, we would welcome your feedback and responses to some of the questions posed below. Selected responses written into the comments section of this blog or emailed to royal-manuscripts-digitization@bl.uk will be read aloud at the workshop, and, of course, fully attributed if you choose to provide your name.

This workshop is structured so that guided presentations will blend with open discussion, allowing for a productive and mutually beneficial event for us here at the British Library and you, as researchers and users of our resources.

The workshop will be divided into two parts.

Part I:  Research using digital resources

A presentation by Dr Joanna Fronska, which gives insights into the ‘behind the scenes process of digitisation’, the Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts, and the British Library's new Digitised Manuscripts website.

After Dr Fronska’s presentation, discussion will be opened up to workshop participants, centring on the questions below. We would also welcome your responses to the following questions:

• How do you use digital resources in your research?
• What do you like / dislike about existing digital resources?
• Which websites are most useful?
• What are the respective merits of our Digital Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts versus our new Digitised Manuscripts website?
• What developments, such as annotation tools or inter-library searchability, would be most useful for your research?

After a coffee and tea break, the workshop will resume with part two.

Part II: Short Panel presentations on manuscripts in the Royal collection

A number of speakers will present brief papers that address following questions:  

• ‘How were the illuminated manuscripts in the royal library used and received by their owners?’  
• What are the characteristics of illustrated manuscripts collected by English monarchs?
• How did monastic manuscripts enter the royal collection, or what was their function within the library?
• How representative is what survives of the royal library, and why is there a relative lack of liturgical or private devotional books in Royal?

All workshop participants will be invited to contribute to the conversation, while it is taking place among the panellists (in other words, we will not be holding questions till the end but creating an open discussion based around a prepared structure).

A summary of the discussions will be published on the Medieval and Earlier Manuscripts blog, with a possibility of papers being offered to the Electronic British Library Journal. 

We look forward to seeing you at the University of Durham!

Detail of an historiated initial 'C'(olor) of an artist mixing colours, from James le Palmer's Omne Bonum, England (London), c. 1360- c. 1375, Royal 6 E. vi, f. 329

Detail of a miniature of the naked bearded-woman of Limerick and the naked man-ox of Wicklow (who is being given a round object by another man), from Gerald of Wales's Topographia Hibernica, England (Lincoln?), c. 1196 - c. 1223, Royal 13 B. viii, f. 19

The first fully-digitised manuscript from our recent exhibition Royal Manuscripts: The Genius of Illumination has gone live (huzzah!); please have a look at the stunning images of Royal 13 B. viii now available on the Digitised Manuscripts website.

Royal 13 B. viii was one of the highlights of the Royal exhibition and the favourite of many visitors (for more details also see the Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts record). The manuscript is an anthology of texts about history, topography and marvels, concentrating on Ireland and Wales.  It includes the famous Topographia Hibernica by Gerald of Wales (1146-1223), the only text in the volume illustrated by a series of marginal images.

Detail of a marginal miniature of a leaping salmon in a river in Munster, from Gerald of Wales's Topographia Hibernica, England (Lincoln?), c. 1196 - c. 1223, Royal 13 B. viii, f. 23

The 'proto-ethnographic' Topographia was the result of Gerald's journey to Ireland with Prince John of England in 1185.  The text contains descriptions of the Irish people, geography and wildlife, along with discussions of various miracles and the so-called wonders of Ireland.  These marvels feature prominently in the marginal images of this manuscript; see for example the leaping salmon of Munster (f. 23, above) or the monstrous bearded woman of Limerick and the man-ox of Wicklow (f. 19, at the top). 

Detail of a marginal miniature of the woman of Connacht embracing a goat, from Gerald of Wales's Topographia Hibernica, England (Lincoln?), c. 1196 - c. 1223, Royal 13 B. viii, f. 19v

The manuscript is more than a mere description of the 'marvels of the west', however.  Gerald wrote his book as a propaganda tool in support of the English conquest of Ireland, and dedicated it to Henry II of England, who he described as 'our western Alexander'.  Some of the marginal images reflect this slant (and are far beyond any sense of 'political correctness').  On f. 19v a woman of Connacht can be seen in a lustful embrace with a goat (above), whilst on f. 28v an Irish king-to-be is immersing himself in the broth of a slaughtered white mare, with which he has just had sexual intercourse (below).  These and other examples of the purported bestiality and immorality of the Irish people were intended to serve as justification for the planned English invasion of Ireland.

Detail of a marginal miniature of the kingship ritual in Tirconnell: the killing of the white mare, the bath of the king in a stew of mare's meat and eating of the meat by the king's supporters, from Gerald of Wales's Topographia Hibernica, England (Lincoln?), c. 1196 - c. 1223, Royal 13 B. viii, f. 28v

There is some evidence that this Royal copy of the Topographia Hibernica could have been made in Lincoln, where Gerald spent time in 1196-1198, before finally returning to retire there after 1207.  This manuscript contains some local additions, including a description and painting of a deer with golden teeth, which was allegedly captured in Dunholm Wood (close to Lincoln); it is shown here compared with a similarly golden-toothed fish found at Ulster in Ireland.

Detail of a marginal miniature of a fish with golden teeth found at Carlingford in Ulster, and a deer with golden teeth from Dunholm Wood, from Gerald of Wales's Topographia Hibernica, England (Lincoln?), c. 1196 - c. 1223, Royal 13 B. viii, f. 16v

You might also like to know that this manuscript is currently on display in the British Library's Writing Britain exhibition (11 May-25 September 2012).

We will be publishing many more Royal manuscripts to the Digitised Manuscripts site in the coming weeks and months; all our new uploads will be announced here.

Detail of miniatures from the prefatory cycle of the Nativity: in the upper register,  the Virgin suckling the Christ Child and Joseph adjusting her pillow, and in the lower register, the Annunciation to the Shepherds, from a Psalter, England (Oxford), 1st quarter of the 13th century, before 1220, Royal 1 D. x, f. 1v

We would like to thank everyone who answered our call for ideas about which Royal manuscripts should be included in our upcoming digitisation programme, sponsored by the Arts and Humanities Research Council.  A group of manuscripts was initially selected by our project group (see the list here), but as you'll recall, we asked you to supplement this with other manuscripts featured in our recent exhibition Royal Manuscripts: The Genius of Illumination.  We are happy to announce that the following nine manuscripts have been chosen, based on your suggestions:

Royal 1 D. x	Psalter, England (Oxford), 1st quarter of the 13th century, before 1220
Royal 6 C. i	Isidore of Seville, Etymologiae, England, last quarter of the 11th century
Royal 12 C. xix	Bestiary, with various theological tracts, England, 1st quarter of the 13th century
Royal 12 F. xiii	The Rochester Bestiary & Lapidary, England (possibly Rochester), 2nd quarter of the 13th century
Royal 15 D. ii	The Welles Apocalypse, England, 1st quarter of the 14th century
Royal 19 B. xv	The Queen Mary Apocalypse, England (London, or East Anglia), 1st quarter of the 14th century
Royal 19 D. i	La vraie ystoire dou bon roi Alixandre, and other romances, France (Paris), c. 1340, after 1333
Royal 19 E. v	Romuléon, Netherlands (Bruges), 1480
Royal 20 B. xx	Le Livre et le vraye hystoire du bon roy Alixandre, France (Paris), c. 1420

Digitisation is currently in progress for the project, and we plan to begin loading the finished manuscripts onto the Digitised Manuscripts site shortly.  We will announce all of the uploads on the blog, so keep watching this space!

Full-page miniature of Christ enthroned with 24 Elders and, in the lower register, the door opened in Heaven, illustrating Revelation 4:2-9, from the Welles Apocalypse, England, 1st quarter of the 14th century, Royal 15 D. ii, f. 117v

As part of the project to digitise some of the outstanding illuminated manuscripts in the British Library's Royal collection, you are warmly invited to attend a workshop at Durham University on Wednesday, 6 June 2012 (beginning at 14.00).

Illuminated Manuscripts and Their Users: The British Library's Royal Collection

Workshop at Durham University, 6 June 2012: Call for Participation

The first session will focus on the use of digital resources in manuscript research, with a presentation by Dr Joanna Fronska (The British Library), ‘Behind the scenes process of digitisation’, followed by a roundtable discussion of the use and value of online digital resources.

The second session will consist of short panel presentations/discussion on illuminated manuscripts in the Royal collection, addressing one of the following questions:

• How were the illuminated manuscripts in the royal library used and received by their owners? 
• What are the characteristics of illustrated manuscripts collected by English monarchs?
• How did monastic manuscripts enter the royal collection, or what was their function within the library?
• How representative is what survives of the royal library, and why is there a relative lack of liturgical or private devotional books in the royal collection?

The content of the presentations (to be no more than 500 words) will be circulated before the workshop to enable participants to formulate questions/responses in advance. 

If you would like to be considered as a presenter, please submit a 500-word essay to Professor Richard Gameson (richard.gameson@durham.ac.uk) by Friday, 25 May 2012. A summary of the discussions will be published on the Medieval and Earlier Manuscripts Blog, and papers may be offered to the Electronic British Library Journal for publication.

Miniature of a mitred bishop and nobles sitting in a choir within a church, from the Psalter of Henry VI, Paris, c. 1405-10 (with later additions), Cotton Domitian A. XVII, f. 12v

Regular readers of our blog will know that the British Library currently has a number of projects underway to make fully digitised medieval manuscripts available on the Digitised Manuscripts website - including the long-running Greek manuscript project, Harley Science, and our most recent undertaking, which will include a number of manuscripts from the Royal exhibition.

Alongside these projects is an ongoing effort to upload some of the British Library's manuscript treasures, such as the Lindisfarne Gospels, the Old English Hexateuch, and the Æthelstan Psalter. Today we are pleased to announce the latest addition to this group - the Psalter of Henry VI (Cotton Domitian A. XVII), a beautifully illuminated 15th century Parisian manuscript.

The Psalter of Henry VI was shown in our recent exhibition Royal Manuscripts: The Genius of Illumination, and was featured in our post A Book of Two Princes.  Check out the fully digitised version here!

Miniature of monks seated in a choir in a church during a funeral Mass, with five spectres of skeletal death behind them, from the Psalter of Henry VI, Paris, c. 1405-10 (with later additions), Cotton Domitian A. XVII, f. 150v

Miniature of the Coronation of the Virgin, with an illuminated initial 'E'(xultate) and a full border, from the Psalter of Henry VI, Paris, c. 1405-10 (with later additions), Cotton Domitian A. XVII, f. 151

Wat Tyler and John Ball leading the Peasants' Revolt, each inscribed with their name for ease of identification (London, British Library, MS Royal 18 E. I, f. 165v).

English history is littered with protests against the ruling classes, one of the most notorious being the Peasants' Revolt of 1381. This manuscript of Jean Froissart's Chronicle, made in the 15th century and depicting the rebellion, is currently on display in the Sir John Ritblat Gallery: Treasures of the British Library. And the entire manuscript can also be viewed on our Digitised Manuscripts site.

One of the leaders of the revolt was Walter (Wat) Tyler, described by Froissart as "a tiler of houses, an ungracious patron". A native of Kent or Essex, Tyler reputedly instigated the rising by killing a collector of the recently-introduced poll tax, who had indecently assaulted his daughter. A large gathering of rebels marched on Maidstone, Canterbury and London, seizing and beheading Simon Sudbury, the chancellor of England and archbishop of Canterbury, together with Robert Hales, the treasurer of England.

This copy of Froissart's Chronicles illustrates Wat Tyler’s demise. Having been summoned to speak with King Richard II (1377–1399) at Smithfield on 15 June 1381, Tyler outlined the rebels' demands, which included the abolition of villeinage and serfdom, and nobody to exercise lordship except the king. A fracas then ensued, in part (it was alleged) because Tyler kept his head covered in the king's presence, leading the mayor of London, William Walworth, to attempt to arrest him. Tyler struck at Walworth with his dagger, but the mayor was wearing armour under his cloak, and in retaliation pierced Tyler's neck with his sword. Reports state that the other rebels quickly dispersed, having been granted a royal pardon. The fatally-wounded Tyler was not so fortunate. Walworth had him dragged from the nearby hospital of St Bartholomew, and summarily executed at Smithfield.

The wounding of Wat Tyler by William Walworth, mayor of London, in the presence of King Richard II (London, British Library, MS Royal 16 E. I, f. 175r).

The Sir John Ritblat Gallery at the British Library is a free exhibition space, open seven days a week. It houses some of the world's most significant books, from Magna Carta and the Gutenberg Bible, to Handel and the Beatles.

The DVD of The Private Lives of Medieval Kings, filmed largely at the British Library, is available from our online shop, priced £15. Presented by Dr Janina Ramirez, and featuring the assorted hands, heads and legs of various curators, the DVD contains all three episodes from the television series originally broadcast on BBC Four: (1) Ruling by the Book; (2) What a King Should Know; and (3) Libraries Gave Us Power. This final episode is shown again tonight on BBC HD, at 19.00, and will then be available on the BBC iPlayer.

Today (Tuesday, 13 March 2012) is the final day of the British Library's exhibition Royal Manuscripts: The Genius of Illumination.

Vincent of Beauvais, Speculum historiale, translated into French by Jean de Vignay: Bruges, c. 1478-80 (London, British Library, MS Royal 14 E. i, f. 3r).

It's probably too late to book your plane or train tickets -- final admission is scheduled for 19.00 British time -- but don't forget that you can continue to view all the exhibited manuscripts on our Royal Facebook pages. What's more, there are detailed descriptions of every book in the accompanying catalogue, edited by Scot McKendrick, John Lowden and Kathleen Doyle (ISBN 9780712358156).

The catalogue is fully illlustrated in colour, and contains introductory essays by the three editors (John Lowden, 'The Royal Manuscript as Idea and Object'; Scot McKendrick, 'A European Heritage: Books of Continental Origin collected by the English Royal Family from Edward III to Henry VIII'; Kathleen Doyle, 'The Old Royal Library: "A greate many noble manuscripts yet remaining"'), with catalogue entries by the above plus Nicolas Bell, Sarah J. Biggs, Alixe Bovey, Andrea Clarke, Justin Clegg, Sonja Drimmer, Joanna Fronska, Richard Gameson, Julian Harrison, Deirdre Jackson, Joshua O'Driscoll, Stella Panayatova and Lucy Freeman Sandler.

Motets for Henry VIII: southern Netherlands (?Antwerp), 1516 (London, British Library, MS Royal 11 E. xi, f. 2r).

Although the exhibition is soon to disappear, its legacy will live on! We hope you've all enjoyed the beautiful books we have shared with you, and that you continue to share our delight in the joys of medieval and early modern manuscripts. The British Library's next medieval-inspired exhibition will open in a few years -- watch this space!