The market for medieval manuscripts in the age of Modernism, 1914-45

I’ll be talking about my recent research on the trade in medieval manuscripts on 25 March @ihr.bsky.social @ies-sas.bsky.social
Https://www.history.ac.uk/news-events/events/market-medieval-manuscripts-age-modernism-1914-45

Creative industries hold upper hand in AI copyright fight Artists, musicians, writers and journalists are pushing back hard as Big Tech firms seek access to their work for training AI models

“In 2024 the UK’s creative industries contributed £145.8 billion to the economy while the entire AI sector contributed £11.8 billion.”

www.thetimes.com/article/8561...

Tonight’s Book Collecting Seminar @ies-sas.bsky.social ! #BookHistory

AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership (CDP) PhD Studentship Rediscovering a Woman Collector at the British Library: New Sources and Perspectives on Sarah Sophia Banks

Fully-funded AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Partnership project:

'Rediscovering a Woman Collector at the British Library: New Sources and Perspectives on Sarah Sophia Banks' - BL & UCL Dep of Information Studies

www.ucl.ac.uk/arts-humanit...

Now open for student applications! Deadline: 14 April

those in Cambridge: I'm giving a talk on Wednesday to the Cambridge Bibliophiles on 'Obliterated Provenances in Early Modern Books' (Peterhouse, 8:45) ... and a talk on Thursday to the Material Texts Seminar on 'Halliwell-Phillipps, theft, and the problem of identifying manuscripts' (5pm)

Crime and the London Rare Book Trade 1890-1930 Join an evening talk by Dr Laura Cleaver - exploring London life, book trade workings, and views on rare books through crime stories.

This is going to be a fun event. I’ll be talking about fictional book trade crime as well as theft, fraud, and conspiracy against and by London’s rare book sellers. 👇 @thelondonarchives.bsky.social @ies-sas.bsky.social

www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/crime-and-...

Manchester University Press - The dreadful name of Henry Hills The dreadful name of Henry Hills - Browse and buy the Hardcover edition of The dreadful name of Henry Hills by Michael Durrant

*Publishing March 2026*
The dreadful name of Henry Hills, The lives and afterlives of a C17th printer.

Michael Durrant @michaelwdurrant.bsky.social brings the forgotten printer Henry Hills vividly back to life, exploring how his reputation, notoriety, and his legacy has evolved over time.

Wednesday 8th. ... in the lib'y with Archdn Mr Glover – going over the Greek fathers. The MSS. are in such a contracted character & so badly written, that they are almost impossible to be read. But I am astonished at my own proficiency ... #otd
full entry: www.madden1826.com/8-march

A Roman mosaic depicting an owl with wide eyes, brown and red body, and blue feet, set against a cream-colored background with a black geometric border. The owl looks a bit deranged.

Just another Monday…

A Roman mosaic depicting a somewhat whimsical owl 🦉, found in Uzès, southern France, dating second half of the 1st century BC.

📷 Denis Gliksman, Inrap

🏺 #MosaicMonday

The IES is excited to offer 'The Sarum Master Bible in Context', a short course delivered at @salisburycathedral.bsky.social, which gives the rare opportunity to explore this 13th century text in the context of medieval manuscript production.

🎟️ Limited tickets available. Book here - buff.ly/tmEzm5s

The opening of Beowulf from the unique surviving manuscript of the Old English text, beginning with a large initial 'H'.

Hwaet! The Beowulf manuscript (Cotton MS Vitellius A XV) is now back online.

You can consult the entire manuscript through the online catalogue:

searcharchives.bl.uk/catalog/040-...

‘... an adult and discreet son should be feeling ashamed when he believes and tries to extort money from his poor father, to whom he should rather be providing in necessities!'

Want to know more about this embarrassing letter from a father to his son? Join us tomorrow at the Life Cycles Seminar!

Three people, including a person with navy-blue sleeves holding open a book and one person in a peach hijab, take part in bookbinding in a conservation lab.

A dark-haired person wearing a mask examines a historic Japanese katana (sword0 on a white surface.

A large medieval antiphonal (choir book) is held open, with one side covered in protective clear wrapping and the other showing a page filled with lyrics and music notes across staves.

We are hiring! ✨The Chester Beatty is seeking a skilled conservator and inspiring leader to join us as Head of Conservation.

This permanent, full-time role has a salary grade of €77,666 to €87,124 and is on-site.

Application deadline: 15th April 2026, 5pm. To apply, visit: ow.ly/7SCV50Yr7wy

#Skystorians #MedievalSky

Medieval Women and the Book This course reviews some of the evidence for the role of women – as scribes, illuminators, patrons and authors – in the creation of medieval manuscripts in the western world.

In June the wonderful Michelle Brown is teaching her summer school course on Medieval Women @ #LRBS @ies-sas.bsky.social. Book now 👇

ies.sas.ac.uk/study-traini...

Coffee with a Codex: Commentaries on Aristotle by Albertus Magnus An informal lunch or coffee time to meet virtually with Kislak curators and talk about one of the manuscripts from Penn's collections. Each week we'll feature a different...

For #CoffeeWithACodex on March 12 (12pm ET, on Zoom), @leoba.bsky.social will bring out LJS 482, a 13th century copy of commentaries on Aristotle's De generatione et corruptione and Meteorologica, by the Dominican friar Albertus Magnus. #medievalsky

Register here: https://bit.ly/47mgL0K

Reposting this for the weekend crowd #Skystorians

Tuesday 7th. Took a walk before breakfast. From 10 till 5 oC. in the lib'y with Archdn Glover, – hardest work. I went through the reminder of the Greek Offices & Missals, &c – undescribed by Roscoe. Mr & Mrs Blane dined here – & Hon. Edwd Keppel, brother of Lady Anne, – came to stay. #otd

Reposting this for the weekend crowd #Skystorians

The 49th Latin and Palaeography Summer School, 27-31 July 2026 The School, formerly the Keele Latin and Palaeography Summer School, returns for its 49th year. In 2025 The Ranulf Higden Society took over the organisation of the Latin and Palaeography Summer Sch…

Many medievalists and early modernists have fond memories of the Keele Palaeography Summer School - it lives on! Now in the convenient location of central Birmingham, organised with help from @ies-sas.bsky.social and @ihr.bsky.social Booking open now!

palaeography.uk/study/short-...

Join us on Tuesday 10th. February from 17:30 GMT to hear @elenarossi.bsky.social speak about families in the middle ages as their children left for university and international travel.
We will be at the IHR in London. You may meet us there or online.
www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...

Congratulations, Sara. Can’t wait to read your research!

Bursaries for London Rare Book School courses including this one are available thanks to @bibsoc.bsky.social! 📖

Introduction to Making Medieval Manuscripts (Practice Based) This course introduces students to the complicated and messy processes of production through which pre-modern manuscripts were created. It offers a mixture of talks and practical sessions that give…

The “messy” course returns to London’s palaeography summer school, 8-12 June. A chance to make your own medieval manuscript. Places are limited so book now (tell your friends)! #medievalsky taught by the amazing @saracharles.bsky.social @stevelawesarts.bsky.social 👇🎨🫟
palaeography.uk/study/short-...

Don't be fooled by the appearances! At first glance, these look like early printed books, but it is an ingenious chest of drawers. Has anyone seen this elsewhere?

In which we discuss oyster shells and candles, pigments and what to do when you have a hole in your parchment:

The Caxton exhibition @senatehouselib.bsky.social is full of wonderful things. Congratulations to @michaelwdurrant.bsky.social and all involved. #BookHistory

Monday 6th. Sent a letter to Mr Petrie, describ'g the MS of the Saxon Laws ... went over the Latin Bibles & Psalters. Archdeacon Glover arrived, – a profound scholar, who has been employed ... in compiling a Catalogue of the Duke of Sussex’s library. ...
full entry: www.madden1826.com/6-march

Meeting Henry Hills - a Roman Catholic printer - Manchester University Press ‘At the revolution, [Henry Hills] went abroad with his son, and I met with them at Watten, near St. Omer’s, on 13th Feb. 1689.’ This line appears in a letter on notable English Catholic printers publi...

I wrote a blog post for the @manchesterup.bsky.social website to introduce my forthcoming book. It’s out at the end of this month! manchesteruniversitypress.co.uk/blog/2026/03...

I'm compiling a handout with paleography advice for my students. I'll post it as a thread below. What am I missing?

- Your goal is to transcribe what is written on the page as fully as possible.