Durham Cathedral Library

'What an astonishing thing a book is... one glance at it and you're inside the mind of another person, maybe somebody dead for thousands of years. Books break the shackles of time. A book is proof that humans are capable of working magic.' ~ Carl Sagan

This image is a detail from MS B.II.30, the Durham Cassiodorus. The manuscript is the oldest surviving copy of the commentary on the Psalms by Roman statesman & scholar Cassiodorus (d.580). It was produced in Northumbria in the 8th century.

You can view the whole manuscript here: https://iiif.durham.ac.uk/index.html?manifest=t2mrn3011371&canvas=t2twd375w420

Medical pioneer William Harvey was born on this day in 1578. He was the first physician to fully describe 'systemic circulation' (circulation of blood to & from the heart), setting out his discoveries in his most famous work 'De Motu Cordis', published in 1628. Our 1660 edition, published 3 years after Harvey's death, is a little pocket sized volume only slightly bigger than an iphone.

Today is the feast day of priest & poet John Donne, who died on this day in 1631. Written in December 1623 as he recovered from a serious illness, Donne's famous words seem especially relevant today: ‘No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main.’ We are all in this together. Stay safe everyone.

Good morning all. So we’ve created a rare books version of the classic ‘how do you take your tea / eat your toast’ meme.

We’ll start.
Tea: 2A
Toast: 2D
Rare books: All of them

What about you? Post your answers below. 😀

P.S. This is what happens when two librarians have a spare half hour, a crazy idea and a kick stool.
P.P.S. No librarians or rare books were harmed in the making of this meme. We did this a couple of weeks ago as a cheerful distraction from the sadness of getting ready to temporarily shut down our lovely library.

Let's end the week with a 1000 year old tiny dragon. Because who doesn't love a tiny dragon?

From MS A.IV.19 (early 10th century). Link to the full manuscript here: https://iiif.durham.ac.uk/index.html?manifest=t2m0p096691f&canvas=t2tx633f178w

Stay safe everyone & have good weekend

For World Theatre Day here's an early print of the Theatre Royal Drury Lane from a book of theatre music by John Eccles, published 1698-1700. This incarnation of the theatre in Drury Lane was built in 1674 & demolished in 1791. John Eccles was composer to Drury Lane from 1693, and became Master of the King's Musick in 1700.

Today is International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade, when we remember the more than 15 million men, women & children who were victims of the brutal transatlantic slave trade. This year the UN are calling on us all to confront slavery’s legacy of racism together. This diagram of a slave ship was one of the most powerful images used by those campaigning to abolish slavery. Published in 1787, the image shows a slave ship loaded to full capacity with 454 people crammed into the hold. Our copy of this famous image is part of a collection of paper relating to The Society for the Abolition of the Slave Trade which was formed in London in May 1787 by twelve men, including Granville Sharp who was born and raised here at Durham Cathedral.

Today is Lady Day, the feast of the Annunciation, marking the angel Gabriel's visit to the Virgin Mary, when he told her she would be the mother of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. This beautiful plaster relief hangs in the St Gregory Chapel Durham Cathedral.

Queen Elizabeth I died on this day in 1603.
Here’s Elizabeth’s signature on a document from Durham Cathedral's archive (DCD 2.5.Reg.12). Dated 2 June 1589, this document concerns the election of Matthew Hutton as Bishop of Durham.

In line with the announcement by the Prime Minister a few moments ago, Durham Cathedral is fully closed to the public. We suspended public worship and closed our visit attraction facilities one week ago, whilst remaining open as a quiet place for prayer and reflection.

During these troubled times we are providing digital resources to enable prayer and reflection at home, creating new opportunities for shared worship.


Keep up to date here on Facebook and on our website.
www.durhamcathedral.co.uk/coronavirus-response
Diocese of Durham The Church of England Durham World Heritage Site

M is for Monday.
And for medieval manuscript.
And also for St Mark’s gospel.

(MS A.II.1, de Puiset Bible).

We are getting ready for our livestream at 7pm this evening when the Right Reverend Paul Butler, Bishop of Durham will lead prayers from the Shrine of St Cuthbert at Durham Cathedral. This is part of the National Day of Prayer and Action. You are invited to light a candle and place it on your windowsill, safely, or light a candle inside your home, and join with the Bishop of Durham in prayer.

www.cte.org.uk/Articles/569010/Home/News/Latest_news/Light_a_candle.aspx

Association of English Cathedrals Diocese of Durham The Church of England

For World Poetry Day here is the medieval poem ‘Roman de Brut’ which contains the first recorded mention of King Arthur's Round Table. Written by the poet Wace in 14866 lines of Norman French it was completed in 1155. This manuscript (MS C.IV.27) is the oldest surviving copy of the whole text.

For St Cuthbert's feast day a late 14th century image of St Cuthbert from MS A.I.3. St Cuthbert is shown holding the head of King Oswald, whose skull is buried with Cuthbert in the Feretory at Durham Cathedral. The scribe of this manuscript was William le Stiphel, monk of Durham, who undertook the work on the instructions of Robert Blacklaw, subprior of Durham Priory.
You can view the whole manuscript here: https://iiif.durham.ac.uk/index.html?manifest=t1mmw22v562w&canvas=t1tjw827d32n

Happy ! Join us for a special half hour recorded service of the St Cuthbert Evensong at 7pm tonight, as we celebrate the patron saint of the north on his feast day.

This digital broadcast comes as we are all too aware of how difficult it has become for people to attend the cathedral in person due to the coronavirus pandemic.

We hope that many of you will be able to join us, watching from your computers and smartphones, to share in the wonder of Christ, as we strive to worship as one during these turbulent times.

To watch head to www.durhamcathedral.co.uk and a link to the service will appear shortly before 7pm on the homepage. We hope to see you there!

This is Durham Durham World Heritage Site Diocese of Durham Durham BID Visit North East England Association of English Cathedrals The Church of England Church of England Newspaper Premier Christian Radio The Northern Echo Sunderland Echo County Durham Live

Happy St Cuthbert's Day! Our great northern saint died on this day in 687. This 12th century manuscript of Bede’s Life of St Cuthbert, MS A.IV.35, was produced here at Durham Cathedral & features extremely rare medieval edge paintings. The manuscript opens with Bede's prose Life of St Cuthbert, followed by further accounts of Cuthbert's life & miracles. The entry for this book in our 1392 medieval library catalogue describes it as 'a special and precious volume'.

This Is Just To Say

I have borrowed
the book
that was on
the very top shelf

and which
you will probably
need a ladder
to re-shelve later

Forgive me
it was delightful
so interesting
and engaging

Blue skies and old stones. Here's the view of our office this morning. What's the view like where you are?

The Cathedral Library is now closed until further notice. For updates on Durham Cathedral's response to the coronavirus please check the cathedral website & social media: https://durhamcathedral.co.uk
We'll keep sharing our historic collections on social media. Take care everyone.

Our response to coronavirus (COVID-19) Learn how Durham Cathedral is responding to the coronavirus pandemic

Durham Cathedral is open as usual. On advice of The Church of England and Public Health England we are observing best hygiene practice in all aspects of visitor and pastoral care. Because of the potential for you to be anxious or stressed at this turbulent time, we've created a page to provide updates, and resources for those not able to worship with us in person. https://www.durhamcathedral.co.uk/coronavirus-response

Did you know you can follow us on twitter ?

And we've just joined instagram, so if you do the insta thing please do give us a friendly follow: https://instagram.com/bedes.books/

Durham Cathedral Library (@bedes.books) • Instagram photos and videos 12 Followers, 27 Following, 3 Posts - See Instagram photos and videos from Durham Cathedral Library (.books)

Galileo Galilei first published his short treatise Sidereus Nuncius (the Starry Messenger) on this day in 1610. It was the first published scientific work based on observations made through a telescope. This third edition of the work was published in London in 1653.

There is no higher life form than a Librarian.
~ Terry Pratchett. The Science of Discworld.

Sir Terry Pratchett died on this day in 2015.

English composer John Bull died on this day in 1628. His anthem 'Almighty God, which by the Leading of a Star', known simply as the Star Anthem, was the most popular verse anthem of the Jacobean period, appearing in more contemporary sources than any other. Here’s the organ music for the Star Anthem from one of our Durham Cathedral manuscripts dating to 1620s.

Today is the feast of Pope Gregory the Great, who died on this day in 604. Gregory is the patron saint of teachers and students. His works were essential to any medieval monastic library. Our copy of Gregory's Moralia on Job (MS B.III.10) was produced in Normandy around 1075, and appears in the list of books donated to Durham Priory Library by Bishop William St Calais in 1096.
You can explore the full digital copy of MS B.III.10 here: https://iiif.durham.ac.uk/index.html?manifest=t1mmw22v546q&canvas=t1t9019s321b

There are now over EIGHTY-SEVEN THOUSAND images up on the Durham Priory Library website (87,685 to be precise).

Most recently added manuscripts include MS A.I.11 (Thomas Aquinas's Golden Chain), with our very favourite manuscript dog.

https://iiif.durham.ac.uk/index.html?manifest=t2mks65hc34p&canvas=t2t02871115z

It’s British Science Week this week. To celebrate here is an example of some medieval astronomy from Abbo of Fleury who died 1004. This graph shows his calculations for the movement of the planets across the constellations of the zodiac. It appears in MS Hunter 100, a compilation of astronomical and medical texts which was produced in Durham around 1125.
You can explore the whole manuscript here: https://iiif.durham.ac.uk/index.html?manifest=t1m2f75r801v&canvas=t1tr207tp882

Our Treasure of the Month for March is a fascinating little book by influential early palaeontologist William Buckland. It contains a remarkable geological timeline which folds out to be at least six times the width of the book itself.
Read more here: https://www.durhamcathedral.co.uk/heritage/treasure-of-the-month

Geographer Gerardus Mercator was born on this day in 1512. Most famous for this cylindrical Mercator map projection (variations of which are still used today), he was also the first person to use the word ‘Atlas’ to describe a bound volume of maps, publishing his Atlas in 1595. This pocket-sized 'Atlas Minor' was published posthumously by his grandsons in 1607.

It's World Book Day!
In a move that will surprise no-one we've come into work dressed as the ultimate book hero.... A librarian.
Who are your book heroes?

On This Day in 1675 John Flamsteed became the first Astronomer Royal by royal warrant. He was charged with creating accurate lunar & stellar tables for navigation.
Another royal warrant in June 1675 provided for the foundation of the Royal Observatory at Greenwich to aid Flamsteed with his work. Flamsteed himself laid the foundation stone of the new Observatory on 10 August.
His great work 'Historiae Coelestis Brittanica', published posthumously by his widow in 1725, catalogues 2,935 stars.

Today is the holy day of George Herbert, priest and metaphysical poet. Godson of John Donne, Herbert is most famous for his devotional pattern poems such as Easter Wings. He died of consumption in 1633, aged 39.

Durham Cathedral Library updated their business hours.

A message from our Head of Collections, Gabriel Sewell:

An extremely generous anonymous donation to the Library has made it possible for us to 'bring home' a printed book from Durham Cathedral's great medieval library, over 400 years after it was removed. The book came up for sale in New York over Easter.

Only one other copy is known of the book, Nicholas Denyse, Gemma Predicantium (Paris and Rouen, 1506). The book is a collection of homilies from the sermons of Denyse, a French friar whose works received several editions during his lifetime and after his death in 1509. Our copy is still in its original 16th century binding by the famous Cambridge book binder, Nicholaus Spierinck. The copy belonged to Thomas Swalwell, who became a monk of Durham Cathedral Priory about 1483 and held offices including chief land agent, almoner and monastic chancellor. Swalwell died, probably in Durham, in the second half of 1539, shortly before the Priory was dissolved. The book probably left the Cathedral in the 1560s or 1570s as ex-monks deprived of their canonries took books with them when they left.