The remarkable stories of the men and women who made, collected and preserved medieval manuscripts.

This event will take place at the British Library. It will be simultaneously live streamed on the British Library platform. Tickets may be booked either to attend in person (physical), or to watch on our platform (online) either live or within 48 hours on catch up.  Viewing links will be sent out shortly before the event.

The online version of this event will be live captioned.

The illuminated manuscripts of the Middle Ages are among the greatest works of European art and literature. But we generally think much less about the people who made, saved and sometimes destroyed medieval manuscripts, over a thousand years of history.

As introduced in his recent book The Posthumous Papers of the Manuscripts Club, world expert Christopher de Hamel discusses some of the extraordinary people who have spent their lives among illuminated manuscripts over the last thousand years. A monk in Normandy, a prince of France, a Florentine bookseller, an English antiquary, a rabbi from central Europe, a French priest, a Keeper at the British Museum, a Greek forger, a German polymath, a British connoisseur and the woman who created the most spectacular library in America.

This exhilarating fraternity of keepers, companions and enthusiasts; all of them were participants in what de Hamel calls the Manuscripts Club.

In the course of a long career at Sotheby's and at Cambridge University, Christopher de Hamel has probably seen and catalogued more medieval manuscripts than anyone alive, and his delight and enthusiasm run through all he writes. He is the author of many books, translated into numerous languages, including A History of Illuminated Manuscripts, The Book in the Cathedral, and Meetings with Remarkable Manuscripts, which won both the Duff Cooper Prize and the Wolfson History Prize. He is a Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.

Half Price tickets available for Members, Students, Under 26 and other concession groups.

Praise for Meetings with Remarkable Manuscripts

‘An extraordinary book, a work of scholarship and history salted with the author's excitement as he conducts us among the great libraries of Western civilization. It is full of delights’

– Tom Stoppard

‘The intellectual expedition of a lifetime ... This is an endlessly fascinating and enjoyable book.’

 – Neil MacGregor

‘Entrancing ... De Hamel's learned adventures amid some of the West's greatest manuscript treasures effortlessly outclass Eco's The Name of the Rose in elegance and excitement. They are also much funnier.’

 – Diarmaid MacCulloch

We are committed to the safety of those attending our events in person. Click here to find out how we are welcoming you to the Library safely.

If you’re attending in person, please arrive no later than 15 minutes before the start time of this event. We are committed to the safety of our event bookers. Find out how we are welcoming you to the Library safely. 

The British Library is a charity. Your support helps us open up a world of knowledge and inspiration for everyone. Donate today.

Details