3. The Gilded Page: The Secret Lives of Medieval Manuscripts
The Gilded Page: The Secret Lives of Medieval Manuscripts

The Gilded Page: The Secret Lives of Medieval Manuscripts

by

, english, arc-or-review-copy, female-nb-gq-2021, medieval, arc-owned, 2021, favorites, arcs, 2021, review-copies, read-in-2022, actual-reality, 2022, non-fiction, bibliography, History, Nonfiction, Writing, Historical, Art, Literature, Reference, Adult, Womens

A breathtaking journey into the hidden history of medieval manuscripts, from the Lindisfarne Gospels to the ornate Psalter of Henry VIII 

Medieval manuscripts can tell us much about power and art, knowledge and beauty. Many have survived because of an author’s status—part of the reason we have so much of Chaucer’s writing, for example, is because he was a London-based government official first and a poet second. Other works by the less influential have narrowly avoided ruin, like the book of illiterate Margery Kempe, found in a country house closet, the cover nibbled on by mice. Scholar Mary Wellesley recounts the amazing origins of these remarkable manuscripts, surfacing the important roles played by women and ordinary people—the grinders, binders, and scribes—in their creation and survival.  

The Gilded Page is the story of the written word in the manuscript age. Rich and surprising, The Gilded Page shows how the most exquisite objects ever made by human hands came from unexpected places. 

Read Book Online Download Book
Title:The Gilded Page: The Secret Lives of Medieval Manuscripts
ISBN:9781541675087
Format Type:

Readers Also Enjoyed The Gilded Page: The Secret Lives of Medieval Manuscripts

A Psalm for the Wild-Built (Monk & Robot, #1)
A Psalm for the Wild-Built (Monk & Robot, #1)
The Bright Ages: A New History of Medieval Europe
The Bright Ages: A New History of Medieval Europe
Velvet Was the Night
Velvet Was the Night
The Bookseller of Florence: The Story of the Manuscripts That Illuminated the Renaissance
The Bookseller of Florence: The Story of the Manuscripts That Illuminated the Renaissance
Iron Widow (Iron Widow, #1)
Iron Widow (Iron Widow, #1)
My Heart Is a Chainsaw (The Lake Witch Trilogy, #1)
My Heart Is a Chainsaw (The Lake Witch Trilogy, #1)
The Jasmine Throne (Burning Kingdoms, #1)
The Jasmine Throne (Burning Kingdoms, #1)
The Writing of the Gods: The Race to Decode the Rosetta Stone
The Writing of the Gods: The Race to Decode the Rosetta Stone
The Last King of America: The Misunderstood Reign of George III
The Last King of America: The Misunderstood Reign of George III
Twelve Caesars: Images of Power from the Ancient World to the Modern
Twelve Caesars: Images of Power from the Ancient World to the Modern

    The Gilded Page: The Secret Lives of Medieval Manuscripts Reviews

  • David

    Between the papyrus and the printed page lies the medieval manuscript.*Before the fourteenth century, parchment, made from the skin of either a sheep or calves, was the main source for writing. It was...

  • The Sassy Bookworm

    ⭐⭐⭐⭐First off, how gorgeous is that cover?! I wish there had been illustrations just like it in this book. It perhaps would have pushed it into the 5 Star category! However, even with none, I ...

  • Sarah

    https://sarahsdeepdives.blogspot.com/...It’s hard for me to put into words how much I loved reading this one. That really is all you need to know about it right there. Part history, part love letter...

  • Alexandra

    Read thanks to NetGalley. I loved this book. I already love medieval manuscripts and the stories that go along with them - about marginalia and the sheer effort that goes in to making one. What Welles...

  • Susan Paxton

    It's a symptom of my geekdom or useless bales of random knowledge, none of which has ever made me a dime, that the first thing I did on picking this up was to wonder who Mary Wellesley was related to....

  • Tracie

    If you enjoy the texture and smell of a manuscript or book and wonder about it's history or herstory, this book is a lovely read. Ms Wellesley describes fascinating documents , how they survived throu...

  • Simon Pressinger

    Not only is this a refreshing feminist reading of the production and life cycle of some of the world’s rarest books, but it also pieces together the traces of the lives of the authors, the scribes, ...

  • Andrea

    Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an ARC.This was a combination of 2 things I love: an ode to the written word and a sweeping history. Tale after tale shows how lucky we are to possess the ...

  • Dylan Simon

    I had the opportunity to read this book through Net Galley.Review: In college I considered medieval history to be my "hobby history" that I often read for fun because it was a complete break from my n...

  • Claire

    I received The Gilded Page as part of a NetGalley giveaway.Medieval manuscripts contain a wealth of information beyond the words they communicate--from the physical makeup of the texts, to the art tha...