New Digital Collection: Medieval Manuscript Leaves and Fragments
The Medieval Manuscript Leaves and Fragments collection contains individual leaves and partial fragments from handwritten books which date from the 13th to the 16th centuries. The original books were all created in Western Europe. They were intended for religious study or liturgical use, and all but one were written during the Middle Ages. Although the original books are no longer complete, these leaves and fragments still convey the rich history and artistry of the Middle Ages.
The Medieval Manuscript Leaves and Fragments collection is now available in the University of Houston Digital Library.
The collection includes four leaves from 13th century Bibles, one from Cambridge and three most likely from Paris. The most ornate leaf in the digital collection is a hymnal page from a 14th century book (probably a psalter) which bears historiated initials, one featuring a youth carrying the True Cross and the other featuring John the Baptist with his symbolic lamb. The collection contains several other psalters and breviaries, including a “pseudo-Gregory” incorrectly attributed to Pope Gregory the Great. Written music is represented in this collection by two simple antiphonary leaves, one from the 15th century and one from the 16th century.
The original materials are available in UH Libraries Special Collections in the Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts Collection.