The Cambridge Companion to Medieval British Manuscripts. Ed. by Orietta Da Rold and Elaine Treharne

Abstract

Book History, and in particular medieval book history, has become a popular study in universities. Digitization of medieval manuscripts has not only facilitated such study but has also aroused interest in a wider audience seeking access to our cultural heritage. The Cambridge Companion to Medieval British Manuscripts seeks to inform both student and historically minded reader of the different approaches historians of the medieval book take to answer the questions, how were manuscripts made, who read them, how were they kept, and how have they survived until today? Thirteen essays, organized under three headings and preceded by a general introduction by the editors, discuss the ‘matter of manuscripts’, followed by suggestions for further reading. Several essays discuss specific manuscripts. Although the title states British manuscripts, the majority of such case studies are of books produced in England. As Jane Gilbert and Sara Harris admit in their chapter on language...