The British Library is pleased to announce the loan of three manuscripts to the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, Maryland, USA, as part of their exhibition A Feast for the Senses: Art and Experience in Medieval Europe. This ground-breaking exhibition aims to recreate sensory experiences of the medieval world through sight, hearing, touch and smell. In addition to manuscripts, the exhibition incorporates a wide range of artworks in diverse media, including stained glass, metals and gems, ivories, tapestries and paintings.

We are delighted to be one of many institutions from around the world to have loaned objects for this remarkable exhibition, which incorporates over 100 items. The three manuscripts from our collection represent the various functions of medieval manuscripts in later medieval society.

Harley Roll T11 — the wounds of Christ

The first is Harley Roll T11, which contains drawings of the five wounds of Christ and was believed to function as an amulet to guard against evil and sickness. This unique manuscript, made in England in the 15th century, is a roll rather than the more common codex or book form, made by sewing together sheets of parchment (called membranes) to create one long scroll. There is evidence that this roll was draped over the stomachs of pregnant women to protect them during childbirth, emphasising the importance of touch and the apotropaic properties of manuscripts in later medieval Christian devotion.

Egerton MS 1069, f. 1r, the walled garden

The second manuscript is Egerton MS 1069, dating from c. 1400, an illustrated copy of the Roman de la Rose (Romance of the Rose), a popular allegorical French poem written in the 13th century by Guillaume de Lorris and Jean de Meun. The Roman de la Rose follows the attempts of a courtier to woo a lady, and is set within a symbolic walled garden, the traditional setting for many medieval courtly romances. You can see more of the lovely illuminations in Egerton MS 1069 in our Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts.

Add MS 18196, f. 1r, Agnes Enthroned and Scenes from Her Legend

The final manuscript on loan to the exhibition is folio 1 from Additional MS 18196, which is not a single manuscript but rather a compilation of leaves from various hymnals. The folio shows, at the top, a vibrant depiction of St Agnes, the patron saint of young girls and chastity, surrounded by two angels. Below, the scene on the left shows a priest called Paulinus giving an emerald ring to the statue of St Agnes to receive her permission to marry; and on the right, St Agnes appearing to relatives who are holding a vigil around her tomb. Below these scenes is a section of music meant to accompany songs of praise to St Agnes. You can read more about this folio in our Catalogue of Illuminated Manuscripts.

A Feast for the Senses is on view from now until 8 January 2017 at the Walters Art Museum in Baltimore. The exhibition is free to enter and open to all members of the public. We hope as many of our North American readers as possible get the opportunity to visit!

Taylor McCall

@BLMedieval/@taylorjmccall