The hall in which the exhibition is staged isn't quite ideal for the purpose - a tad cramped, inclined to be stuffy, and the information signs were frequently too small or badly placed to read - but these minor inconveniences were easily overshadowed by the treasures within.
And what marvels they were! Beautifully rendered manuscripts, many of them illuminated with extraordinary illustrations, and characterised by the most astonishing penmanship. There were breviaries, lectionaries, hymnals, bestiaries, editions of Ptolemy and Livy and the Augustan History...a wonderful variety of precious manuscripts, created with exquisite care and painstaking attention to detail.
But for me, the two most captivating aspects were:
- The miniatures. These were pint-sized books that nonetheless were as embellished and beautiful as their larger counterparts. How extraordinary was the penmanship, line after line of tiny handwriting reproduced with disciplined and unwavering hands. The effort that creating these miniatures must have taken is almost incomprehensible - you can certainly understand how and why more than one scribe went blind creating these marvels.
- The hymnals. What was most intriguing about these were the musical notations: they were different and yet vaguely familiar as well. Certainly, you could identify the origins of the modern musical system, given the notations were set against the familiar five line stave. But the notations themselves lacked stems, meaning they were identifiable through their different shapes and whether or not they were solid or hollow. Also, the elaborate script that accompanied the music must have been hard to read, especially by candle light!
So if you're looking for a diverting hour or so wondering at the industry that produced these manuscripts, and admiring their sheer beauty, get along to the State Library. It's well worth it!
Talk to you soon,
BB.
Quote for the Day: The library: a sort of harem. (Ralph Waldo Emmerson)
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