6 Stunning Manuscripts on View at the British Library

This past weekend the British Library opened a major, "once-in-a-generation" exhibition, the largest ever on the history, literature, and culture of Anglo-Saxon England, according to a press release from the BL. "From stunning illuminated manuscripts to the earliest surviving will of an English woman, Anglo-Saxon Kingdoms: Art, Word, War will highlight the key role manuscripts played in the transmission of ideas, religion, literature and artistic influences throughout England and across political and geographical boundaries, as well as the sophisticated skill and craftsmanship of the artwork produced at this time."

The show defies the very idea of "high points," but here's a look at six stunning manuscripts you can see in London now through February 19, 2019.  

The Codex Amiatinus is the earliest surviving complete Bible in Latin, made at the monastery of Wearmouth-Jarrow in the northeast of England in the early 8th century and taken to Italy in 716 as a gift for the Pope. It will be returning to England for the first time in more than 1,300 years, on loan from the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana in Florence. Credit: Sam Lane Photography

The British Library's unique manuscript of "Beowulf." It is one of four manuscripts of Old English poetry on exhibit, along with the Vercelli Book, the Exeter Book, and the Junius Manuscript. Credit: British Library Board

On loan from The National Archives is the Domesday Book, the most famous book in English history and the earliest surviving public record. Credit: The National Archives

The Lindisfarne Gospels, pictured here, is one of several outstanding illuminated and decorated manuscripts on display, alongside the St. Augustine Gospels, the Book of Durrow, and the Echternach Gospels. Credit: British Library Board

The oldest intact European book with its original binding is the St. Cuthbert Gospel, made at the monastery of Wearmouth-Jarrow in the northeast of England in the early 8th century; it was acquired by the British Library in 2012. Credit: Sam Lane Photography

The Vespasian Psalter includes the oldest translation of part of the Bible into English and depicts two musicians playing similar instruments. Credit: British Library Board