The Bristol Merlin: Revealing the Secrets of a Medieval Fragment - Paperback

by Leah Tether (Author), Laura Chuhan Campbell (Author), Benjamin Pohl (Author)

The discovery of seven manuscript fragments of the Old French Suite Vulgate du Merlin in a set of early printed books in the Bristol Central Library hit global headlines in 2019. This book contains a comprehensive study of these fascinating Arthurian fragments.

Beginning with an extensive contextual history, the authors reveal details of the fragments' origin, their importation to England, and their subsequent journey to a waste pile in a bookbinder's workshop, where they would be incorporated into the bindings of a four-volume edition of the works of Jean Gerson in the early sixteenth century. A full enquiry into the provenance of these host volumes sets out the possible routes from the bookbinder's workshop to their final home in Bristol Central Library.

Using multi-spectral imaging to read the damaged sections of text, the authors also provide a full edition and translation of the narrative contained in the fragments.

Author Biography

Leah Tether===========Leah Tether is Professor of Medieval Literature and Publishing at the University of Bristol.Laura Chuhan Campbell=====================Laura Chuhan Campbell is at Durham University.Benjamin Pohl=============Benjamin Pohl is Senior Lecturer in Medieval History at the University of Bristol.Michael Richardson==================Michael Richardson is Special Collections Librarian at the University of Bristol.