Christopher de Hamel

The acclaimed author of Meetings with Remarkable Manuscripts introduces us to the extraordinary keepers and companions of medieval manuscripts over a thousand years of history The illuminated manuscripts of the Middle Ages are among the greatest works of European art and literature. We are dazzled by them and recognize their crucial role in the transmission of knowledge. But we generally think much less about the countless men and women who made, collected and preserved them through the centuries, and to whom they owe their existence.

WINNER OF THE WOLFSON HISTORY PRIZE AND THE DUFF COOPER PRIZE FOR NON FICTION Endlessly fascinating and enjoyable Neil MacGregor A marvellous book David Attenborough Full of delights Tom Stoppard An extraordinary exploration of the medieval world the most beguiling history book of the year This is a book about why medieval manuscripts matter Coming face to face with an important illuminated manuscript in the original is like meeting a very famous person We may all pretend that a well known celebrity is no different from anyone else and yet there is an undeniable thrill in actually meeting and talking to a person of world stature The idea for the book which is entirely new is to invite the reader into intimate conversations with twelve of the most famous manuscripts in existence and to explore with the author what they tell us about nearly a thousand years of medieval history and sometimes about the modern world too Christopher de Hamel introduces us to kings queens saints scribes artists librarians thieves dealers collectors and the international community of manuscript scholars showing us how he and his fellows piece together evidence to reach unexpected conclusions He traces the elaborate journeys which these exceptionally precious ar

La colección “Artesanos medievales” es una colección de libros que tienen como asunto el estudio tanto de los distintos artistas anónimos que trabajaron durante la Edad Media bajo el anonimato de los

A narrative account of the Bible as a book and an artefact, from the earliest fragments found in the Egyptian desert to the many modern translations. The author seeks to write as an impartial historian and focuses on the manufacture, translation and distribution of Bibles throughout history.

The Book A compelling, highly readable history of the Bible as a book.Christopher de Hamel This important volume tells for the first time the story of the Bible as a book, tracing its publication in endless forms and numerous languages from its origins to the present day Covers the original languages of Hebrew and Greek, the Latin Vulgate translation of Saint Jerome, the manuscript Bibles of the Middle Ages, the first printing and the translations of Protestant reformers, right up to the flood of new versions in the 20th century Concludes with the modern discovery of papyrus fragments and Dead Sea Scrolls, which have cast important new light on the origins of the Bible Contains more than 200 rich, fascinating and varied illustrations of Bibles from all times and places .A compelling, highly readable, scrupulously factual and unbiased history of the Bible as a book, with over 200 rich, fascinating and varied illustrations of Bibles from all times and places. The Bible is the most widely circulated book ever written. The Book: A History of the Bible tells for the first time the momentous story of the Bible as a book, tracing its publication in endless forms and numerous languages from its origins to the present day. The clear and highly readable narrative includes an account of the Old and New Testaments in their original languages of Hebrew and Greek, the Latin Vulgate translation of Saint Jerome, the magnificent manuscript Bibles of the Middle Ages, Guttenberg and the first printed Bible, and the translations of Wycliffe, Luther and the Protestant reformers. Continuing with missionary Bibles, the emergence of the modern Bible publishing industry and the mass of twentieth-century translations and versions, it concludes with the modern discovery of papyrus fragments and Dead Sea Scrolls which have cast important new light on the origins of the Bible. Christopher de Hamel writes as a historian. Without being evangelical or polemical, he bases his text scrupulously on actual surviving Bibles and the historical circumstances in which they were made. Scholarly and authoritative, The Book provides a new, clear-sighted, thought-provoking and utterly gripping account of the origins and history of the world's most influential book

Exquisite intelligent illuminating mischievous delightful The TimesThe acclaimed author of Meetings with Remarkable Manuscripts introduces us to the extraordinary keepers and companions of medieval manuscripts over a thousand years of historyThe illuminated manuscripts of the Middle Ages are among the greatest works of European art and literature We are dazzled by them and recognize their crucial role in the transmission of knowledge But we generally think much less about the countless men and women who made collected and preserved them through the centuries and to whom they owe their existence This entrancing book describes 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 all of them were participants in what Christopher de Hamel calls the Manuscripts Club This exhilarating fraternity and the fellow enthusiasts who come with it throw new light on how manuscripts have survived and been used by very d

An endlessly fascinating and enjoyable book Neil MacGregorFull of delights Tom StoppardAn extraordinary exploration of the medieval world - the most beguiling history book of the yearThis is a book about why medieval manuscripts matter. Coming face to face with an important illuminated manuscript in the original is like meeting a very famous person. We may all pretend that a well-known celebrity is no different from anyone else, and yet there is an undeniable thrill in actually meeting and talking to a person of world stature.The idea for the book, which is entirely new, is to invite the reader into intimate conversations with twelve of the most famous manuscripts in existence and to explore with the author what they tell us about nearly a thousand years of medieval history - and sometimes about the modern world too. Christopher de Hamel introduces us to kings, queens, saints, scribes, artists, librarians, thieves, dealers, collectors and the international community of manuscript scholars, showing us how he and his fellows piece together evidence to reach unexpected conclusions. He traces the elaborate journeys which these exceptionally precious artefacts have made through time and space, shows us how they have been copied, who has owned them or lusted after them (and how we can tell), how they have been embroiled in politics and scholarly disputes, how they have been regarded as objects of supreme beauty and luxury and as symbols of national identity. The book touches on religion, art, literature, music, science and the history of taste.Part travel book, part detective story, part conversation with the reader, Meetings with RemarkableManuscripts conveys the fascination and excitement of encountering some of the greatest works of art in our culture which, in the originals, are to most people completely inaccessible. At the end, we have a slightly different perspective on history and how we come by knowledge. It is a most unusual book.

A brilliant memoir from the bestselling author of Meetings With Remarkable ManuscriptsChristopher de Hamel is one of the worlds best-known scholars and writers on illuminated manuscripts. He was mostly brought up in the south of New Zealand, where his family moved when he was four. This book magically evokes a childhood at vast distance from Europe, recalling his thrill and wonder in first encountering medieval manuscripts in libraries there and the realization that they too are migrants far from home.The Migrants explores the immense journeys of books and people. It is a tale of colonization and the migration of culture of motives and idealism, triumphs and disasters bringing us face-to-face with history. We meet the colonial governor on his paradise island, the shipwrecked accountant, the nonagenarian who cut up manuscripts, the magnate who unknowingly bought Beckets Boethius and the early settler who inscribed his Book of Hours in the Maori language in 1842. We travel with the author today back to where these manuscripts began their own lives, through France and Poland and medieval England, discovering their first owners and following the longest journeys on earth.This is a coming-of-age saga with extraordinary twists, crossing many hundreds of years and tens of thousands of miles, recounted with passion, humour and a lifetimes reflection.

Exquisite... intelligent, illuminating, mischievous delightful The TimesThe acclaimed author of Meetings with Remarkable Manuscriptsintroduces us to the extraordinary keepers and companions of medieval manuscripts over a thousand years of historyThe illuminated manuscripts of the Middle Ages are among the greatest works of European art and literature. We are dazzled by them and recognize their crucial role in the transmission of knowledge. But we generally think much less about the countless men and women who made, collected and preserved them through the centuries, and to whom they owe their existence.This entrancing book describes 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 - all of them were participants in what Christopher de Hamel calls the Manuscripts Club.This exhilarating fraternity, and the fellow enthusiasts who come with it, throw new light on how manuscripts have survived and been used by very different kinds of people in many different circumstances. Christopher de Hamels unexpected connections and discoveries reveal a passion which crosses the boundaries of time. We understand the manuscripts themselves better by knowing who their keepers and companions have been.In 1850 (or thereabouts) John Ruskin bought his first manuscript at a booksellers in a back alley. This was his reaction: The new worlds which every leaf of this book opened to me, and the joy I had in counting their letters and unravelling their arabesques as if they had all been of beaten gold - as many of them were - cannot be told. The members of de Hamels club share many such wonders, which he brings to us with scholarship, style, and a lifetimes experience.

Uma extraordinária visita ao mundo medieval por meio de doze manuscritos maravilhosamente ilustrados.Misto de impressão de viagem e história de detetive, Manuscritos notáveis é, assim como cada um do

From the bestselling author of Meetings With Remarkable Manuscripts, a captivating account of the last surviving relic of Thomas BecketThe assassination of Thomas Becket in Canterbury Cathedral on 29 December 1170 is one of the most famous events in European history. It inspired the largest pilgrim site in medieval Europe and many works of literature from Chaucers Canterbury Tales to T. S. Eliots Murder in the Cathedral and Anouilhs Becket.In a brilliant piece of historical detective work, Christopher de Hamel here identifies the only surviving relic from Beckets shrine: the Anglo-Saxon Psalter which he cherished throughout his time as Archbishop of Canterbury, and which he may even have been holding when he was murdered.Beautifully illustrated and published to coincide with the 850th anniversary of the death of Thomas Becket, this is an exciting rediscovery of one of the most evocative artefacts of medieval England.

Una extraordinaria exploración del mundo medieval Grandes manuscritos medievales es un cautivador viaje por doce manuscritos ilustrados medievales. Christopher de Hamel, bibliotecario de la prestigio