Richard lll Book of Hours now online

[English page]

FEBRUARY 21, 2017 BY MEDIEVALISTS.NET

http://www.medievalists.net/2017/02/richard-lll-book-hours-now-online/

Leicester Cathedral has digitised and published the personal prayer book of King Richard III.  The original manuscript rests in Lambeth Palace Library with restricted access due to its fragile condition so this digital version will enable the public to view the book.

The digital version has been enhanced with links between the original text and a scholarly publication The Hours of Richard III by Anne F Sutton and Livia Visser-Fuchs. This helps viewers to understand the meaning of the original text which was written in the Latin of its time.

Dr Phil Stone, Chair of the Richard III Society commented: “The Society is very pleased to support this project. Together, the digitisation of the Book of Hours and the explanatory text make this important medieval text accessible to scholars and the public alike. Our thanks go to Leicester Cathedral for completing the project and to Lambeth Palace Library for making Richard III’s Hours available.”

The digitisation of this manuscript has been made possible with funding from Heritage Lottery Fund, Richard III Society, the University of Leicester and donations from the public and the support of Lambeth Palace Library and Anne F Sutton and Livia Visser-Fuchs.

Lambeth Palace Library is the historic library of the Archbishops of Canterbury and is the principal library and record office of the Church of England. Its mission is to preserve, develop and promote access to the manuscript, archive and printed collections in its custody, whatever their medium, and to encourage and develop interest in and use of them in support of the Archbishop, the Church of England, the academic community and the wider public.

The manuscript can be found at: http://leicestercathedral.org/about-us/richard-iii/book-hours/