The Manuscripts Club: The People Behind a Thousand Years of Medieval Manuscripts

by Christopher de Hamel

624 pages, Paperback

First published November 1, 2025

About the author

Dr Christopher de Hamel is a Fellow of Corpus Christi College, Cambridge, and is Fellow Librarian of the Parker Library, one of the most important small collections of early manuscripts in Britain. For 25 years from 1975 he was responsible for all sales of medieval manuscripts at Sotheby’s. He has doctorates from Oxford and Cambridge and honorary doctorates from St John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota, and Otago University, New Zealand. He is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries and a member of the Comité international de paléographie. He is author of numerous books on illuminated manuscripts and book collecting, including Glossed Books of the Bible (1984), The Book, A History of the Bible (2001), and Bibles, An Illustrated History from Papyrus to Print (2011). He was recipient of a festschrift in 2010, The Medieval Book, Glosses from Friends and Colleagues of Christopher de Hamel (ed. J. H. Marrow, R. A. Linenthal and W. Noel)

Reviews

[Mary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating. I didn't read every chapter since each featured a different individual engaged in the creation, use, and collection of illuminated manuscripts, and not all piquedmy interest. From St. Anselm to an early illuminator to a convincing and prolific forger, ending with Belle de Costa Greene, J.P. Morgan's famous librarian, the author explored many notables in the world of manuscripts. This is a gorgeous book, beautifully illustrated. Quite enjoyable.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A lot of this DRAGGED for me but my interest was renewed once we hit the 19th and then 20th centuries. I can’t believe I’d never heard of Belle da Costa Greene before and now cannot wait to read more about her!