TheHarleian Library,Harley Collection,Harleian Collectionand other variants (Latin:Bibliotheca Harleiana) is one of the main "closed" collections (namely, historic collections to which new material is no longer added) of theBritish Libraryin London, formerly the library of theBritish Museum.
The collection comprises 7,660 manuscripts, including 2,200illuminated manuscripts,[1]more than 14,000 original legal documents; and more than 500rolls.It was assembled byRobert Harley(1661–1724) and his sonEdward(1689–1741). In 1753, it was purchased for£10,000 by the British government. Together with the collections ofSir Robert Cotton(theCotton library) andHans Sloane(theSloane library) it formed the basis of the British Museum's collection of manuscripts, which were transferred to the new British Library in 1973.[2]
The collection contains illuminated manuscripts spanning the earlyMiddle Agesto theRenaissance.There are important early British manuscripts, many from Western Europe, and several Byzantine manuscripts in Greek and other languages.
Manuscripts
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Among the most significant manuscripts are:
- Lacnunga(Harley MS 585)
- Harley Psalter(Harley MS 603)
- Kildare Poems(Harley MS 913)
- Annales Cambriae,in Harley MS 3859; including medieval Welsh genealogies and other items
- Sumer Is Icumen In,in Harley MS 978
- Inventory of Henry VIII of England(Harley MS 1419)
- Gospels of Mael Brigte(Harley MS 1602)
- Harley 1775,an illuminated Gospel Book produced in Italy during the last quarter of the 6th century
- Minuscule 113(Harley MS 1810) - and many others, see the category at bottom of the page
- Harley Lyrics(Harley MS 2253)
- Harley Golden Gospels(Harley MS 2788)
- Ramsey Psalter(Harley MS 2904)
- Book of Nunnaminster(Harley MS 2965)
- Minuscule 3686
- Harleian Genealogies(Harley MS 3859)
- Minuscule 104(Harley MS 5537)
- Minuscule 505(Harley MS 5538)
- Uncial 0121a(Harley MS 5613)
- Ptolemy'sGeography(Harley MS 7182 & 7195)
- Harley MS 7334
- Harleian prayerbook(Harley MS 7653)
- TheHarley Glossary(eleventh-century Latin-Old English glossary, Harley MA 3376)
References
edit- ^Laura Nuvoloni.The Harleian Medical Manuscripts(PDF).published by The British Library. Archived fromthe original(PDF)on 2015-09-23.Retrieved2015-07-26.
- ^British Library. "History of the Harley LibraryArchived2018-08-30 at theWayback Machine".
Further reading
edit- British Library Journalvol. 15 (1989) is devoted to Robert Harley and his collections.
- C. E. and C. R. Wright, eds.The Diary of Humfrey Wanley 1715–1726,2 vols (London, 1966).
Catalogue
edit- Nares, Robert;Ellis, Henry;Horne, Thomas Hartwell,eds. (1808–1812).A Catalogue of the Harleian Manuscripts, in the British Museum.London:Record Commission.(4 vols):vol. 1(MSS 1–1309);vol. 2(MSS 1310–3099);vol. 3(MSS 3100–7639);vol. 4(indexes)
External links
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- The foundation collectionsArchived2019-10-02 at theWayback Machineat the Catalogue of Illuminated manuscripts
- List of medicine and alchemist manuscriptsArchived2022-02-23 at theWayback MachinePDF, 192 KB
- Trilingual PsalterArchived2018-08-11 at theWayback Machine
- Harley Bestiary (Harley MS 4751)
- The Book of Nunnaminster (Harley 2965)