British Literary Manuscripts, Medieval and Renaissance
Presents facsimile images of literary manuscripts, including letters and diaries, drafts of poems, plays, novels, and other literary works, and similar materials. Searching is based on tags and descriptive text associated with each manuscript. Images of the complete manuscript can be viewed, manipulated and navigated on screen. Please note that the text of the manuscripts themselves is not searchable. The database content reflects that of the two microfilm sets described below.
British Literary Manuscripts from Cambridge University Library [microform]. 49 reels. Brighton, Sussex, England: Harvester Microform, 1984- . Olin B Level Film 5902
Scope:
The manuscripts in this collection have been selected from Cambridge University Library's principal "two letter" series and from the separate "Additional Manuscript series." Manuscripts are those only from the University Library and do not include those held elsewhere in Cambridge. The principal focus of this collection is on creative literary forms, poetry, drama and prose. Included are romances, legends, saints' lives, homilies, and scriptural paraphrases. Chronicles are not included. Although most works are by anonymous authors, the writings of some major Middle English authors are included, such as Chaucer, Langland Tower, Richard Rolle, Wycliffe and John Lydgate. Most manuscripts are in English, but Latin and French are also included as these languages were used for literary composition. Manuscripts are produced in their entirety.
Guides:
British Literary Manuscripts from Cambridge University Library. Brighton, Sussex, England: Harvester Microform, 1984-. Olin Reference, Film 5902 Guide
This printed guide lists only the manuscript numbers from the two letter series contained on each reel and includes an Appendix with descriptive details of the Additional Manuscripts. Full descriptive entries for each manuscript are contained on reel one. These entries are from Cambridge University Library's Catalogue of Manuscripts (1856-1867). Catalogue entries for the contents of each reel are also reproduced at the beginning of each reel.
British Literary Manuscripts from the British Library, London. [microform] Brighton, Sussex, England : Harvester Microform, 1984-. 53 reels. Library Annex Film 5903
This collection, Series One: The English Renaissance: Literature from the Tudor period to the Restoration, c 1500-1700, contains manuscripts from the Sloane and Additional Manuscript collections in the British Library. The principal focus of the collection is on creative literary manuscripts of poetry, drama or prose. Any volume that contained more than one-tenth of such material was included. All volumes were filmed in their entirety. Writers of all levels were included. Cornell has parts one, two and three of the series.
Bibliographies and Guides:
British Literary Manuscripts from the British Library. London.
Special limited 2nd ed. -- Brighton, Sussex, England: Harvester Microform, 1986- . Olin Reference Film 5903 Guide.
Finding aids are provided on film and in hard copy. List of contents of reels, and descriptive entries for all items are produced on the first reel of each of the three parts. In addition, the descriptive entries for the contents of each reel are produced at the beginning of each reel. The printed guide also provides a list of contents of the reels, and the full text of the descriptive entries. The majority of the entries are taken from the British Library's Catalogue of Additions to the Manuscripts. This publication began in 1843 and is still in progress. Entries were also typed up from the handwritten Sloane catalog and from the "Rough Registers" which are the unpublished catalogs of recent acquisitions.