
The palm-sized prayer book, below right, was produced for a wealthy patron to use for personal worship. from Northern France or northwestern Italy dating back to the 13th century. The name of the printer remains unknown, and many have speculated about his true identity. Though normally only available to scholars, many museums and libraries put some of their manuscript treasures on display. While the monastery of St Albans was known for its production of handwritten books and manuscripts, in the later medieval period the city also housed a printing press, notable for being one of the first to operate in England outside of Westminster and London. The choir pages, below left, were large so that a group could simultaneously view the pages from a distance. The Munich University Library is in possession of more than 600 medieval. The Bibliothèque nationale de France in Paris and the British Library in London house the world’s largest collections of medieval manuscripts.

Lluminated manuscripts were created in various sizes depending on their intended use. The decline of the illuminated manuscript tradition coincided with the ability to mass produce printed text and the increasing numbers of literate people who wanted secular as well as religious books.

Medieval drawing which represents the City of Leicester. Wealthy patrons also wanted these illustrative works for personal libraries and encouraged the formation of private workshops that flourished in French and Italian cities between the 13th and 15th centuries. Prior to the invention of the printing press in the second half of the 15th century, hand-made copies of texts and books (manuscripts) were the only system for. palaeographically to the end of the thirteenth century or the first quarter of the. Illuminated manuscripts were produced between 11, with monasteries as their earliest creators. The pages were made from animal skin, commonly calf, sheep, or goat. More like this Divided City (15th century) This early 15th century French manuscript shows a city that London in the 13th century (BL, Royal 14 C VII, f.

Illuminated manuscripts are hand-written books with painted decoration that generally includes precious metals such as gold or silver.
