Showing posts with label Manuscripts. Show all posts

Love Is All Around

Dear Members and Followers,

A calligraphic Valentine.

Manuscript Letter

This is probably the oldest surviving Valentine's Day letter in the English language. It was written by Margery Brews to her fiancé John Paston in February 1477.
Describing John as her 'right well-beloved valentine', she tells him she is 'not in good health of body nor of heart, nor shall I be till I hear from you.' She explains that her mother had tried to persuade her father to increase her dowry – so far unsuccessfully. However, she says, if John loves her he will marry her anyway: 'But if you love me, as I trust verily that you do, you will not leave me therefore.' There was a happy ending to the story, as the couple would eventually marry.
The letter comes from one of the largest collections of 15th century English private correspondence, known as the Paston letters. The collection offers a unique glimpse into the personal lives of the Paston family from Norfolk – the family name comes from a Norfolk village about 20 miles north of Norwich.

British Library https://www.bl.uk/collection-items/valentines-day-love-letter-from-margery-brews-to-john-paston

Medieval Hipsters

Dear Members and Followers,

This month many people are celebrating Movember, yet few imagine that one of the most detailed works on beards comes from the medieval period. The Church Fathers had thought about facial hair in moral and theological terms, while medieval theologians and clergymen debated whether communities of priests, monks and other clerics could grow beards at all. By the 12th century, canon law forbade Western clerics to grow beards, as beardlessness came to be associated with the purity and humility of angels. Laymen could grow beards if they wished, but that would mark them out even further from the clergy.
https://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2018/11/in-defence-of-medieval-beards.html

Forme of Cury: A Medieval English Cookbook

Dear Members and Followers,

Do you want to rethink Christmas in our hetic commercial world then look to the past http://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2016/12/forme-of-cury-a-medieval-english-cookbook.html

‘Chykens in hocchee’ in Forme of Cury, Add MS 5016.

Explore Greek Manuscripts Online

Dear Members and Followers,

The British Library has now digitised and published online more than 900 Greek manuscripts. You can read more about their efforts here http://blogs.bl.uk/digitisedmanuscripts/2016/12/explore-our-greek-manuscripts-online.html

Depiction of the call of David to be a King by Samuel, in the Theodore Psalter, Constantinople, 1066: Add MS 19352, f. 27v

Vatican Library Puts 4,000 Ancient Manuscripts Available Online For Free

Dear Members and Followers,

Here is a wonderful article that is worth a look with some mouth watering pictures (that is if you are a calligrapher).

http://www.theeventchronicle.com/study/vatican-library-puts-4000-ancient-manuscripts-available-online-free/

Booked In

Dear Members and Followers,

Tuesday 23 September besides being a beautiful spring day and where better to be than in Sydney, meant it was our visit to the Mitchell Library (State Library N.S.W.) to view some rare manuscripts. 17 members and guests were organised by our publicist and social organiser Mirelle to visit the Mitchell Library.

We were meet by Lynette one of the Librarians in the Rare Books and Manuscripts section and taken into a special room where we were introduced to Rene and a lovely Librarian Technician whose name I missed. All three were extremely helpful and willing to guide us through facsimile copies of The Book of Kells and the Saint John's Bible (Donald Jackson) plus some extremely rare Prayer Books from the 15th and 16th Century. Their patience with our need to know was immense and I'm sure we were there longer than they had anticipated.
I would suggest that if you are a calligrapher or a calligraphy group this is a must do. It is especially important to support our libraries in the work they do.

Here are some examples from the Saint John's Bible facsimile: