The Production of Books in England 1350–1500

This book studies approaches to the production of manuscripts in medieval England, from the first commercial guilds to the advent of print.

Alexandra Gillespie (Edited by), Daniel Wakelin (Edited by)

9781107680197, Cambridge University Press

Paperback / softback, published 23 January 2014

396 pages, 40 b/w illus. 2 maps
24.4 x 17 x 2.1 cm, 0.63 kg

'This volume will have a wide audience, since all the essays make an important contribution to the field of late medieval manuscript studies...an excellent and well-produced book that should quickly become the standard work for later medieval book history.' Elaine Treharne, The Review of English Studies

Between roughly 1350 and 1500, the English vernacular became established as a language of literary, bureaucratic, devotional and controversial writing; metropolitan artisans formed guilds for the production and sale of books for the first time; and Gutenberg's and eventually Caxton's printed books reached their first English consumers. This book gathers the best work on manuscript books in England made during this crucial but neglected period. Its authors survey existing research, gather intensive new evidence and develop new approaches to key topics. The chapters cover the material conditions and economy of the book trade; amateur production both lay and religious; the effects of censorship; and the impact on English book production of manuscripts and artisans from elsewhere in the British Isles and Europe. A wide-ranging and innovative series of essays, this volume is a major contribution to the history of the book in medieval England.

Foreword Derek Pearsall
Introduction Alexandra Gillespie and Daniel Wakelin
1. Materials Orietta Da Rold
2. Writing the words Daniel Wakelin
3. Mapping the words Simon Horobin
4. Designing the page Stephen Partridge
5. Decorating and illustrating the page Martha Driver and Michael Orr
6. Compiling the book Margaret Connolly
7. Bookbinding Alexandra Gillespie
8. Commercial organization and innovation Erik Kwakkel
9. Vernacular literary manuscripts and their scribes Linne R. Mooney
10. Book production outside commercial contexts Jean-Pascal Pouzet
11. Censorship Fiona Somerset
12. Books beyond England John Thompson
13. English books and the Continent David Rundle
Afterword: the book in culture Wendy Scase
Bibliography
Manuscript index
Index.

Subject Areas: Printing, packaging & reprographic industry [KNTR], Publishing industry & book trade [KNTP], Literary studies: classical, early & medieval [DSBB]