Illuminated Manuscripts with Imogen Corrigan

After serving nearly 20 years in the British army, Imogen Corrigan studied Anglo-Saxon & Medieval History and Art at the University of Kent. She followed this with an MPhil from the University of Birmingham. She is a Freeman of the City of London, being a Member of
the Company of Communicators, and currently works as a freelance lecturer across Britain and Europe, and on small cruise ships. In addition, she runs study tours and courses on land.
This special interest day explores the fascinating topic of Illuminated Manuscripts, books that were handwritten and decorated or illustrated in rich colours, including gold or silver, that made the pages shimmer.

09.30 Doors open

10.00–11.00: Lecture 1

Illuminated Manuscripts: A General Introduction
An introduction to illuminated manuscripts of both pre- and post-Conquest periods. This considers briefly how they were made and planned and the difficulties faced by the scribes. The lecture considers the importance of the correct text and how errors were corrected, how
some manuscripts are linked artistically to others; we can track styles migrating and progressing over the years. Throughout the lecture, there is a theme of how the books were used, whether as sacred vessels for The Word or as memory joggers for day-dreaming monks.

11.00–11.30. Tea, coffee and homemade cake included

11.30–12.30: Lecture 2

The Men Behind the Pen: The Life of the Scribe in the Middle Ages
The glories of the manuscripts are one thing, but the men (and women) who made them are another. Who was wielding the quills in the thousand years before the Reformation and how much do we know about them as individuals?

12.30–14.00. Lunch break for soup, sandwiches and fruit

14.00–15.00: Final Lecture

The Benedictional of St. Aethelwold
This beautifully illustrated document made in the Winchester School of decoration in the 970s, reveals much about the relationship between Æthelwold (Bishop of Winchester) and the young king Edgar. Æthelwold was brought up in the lavish and cosmopolitan court of
Æthelstan which very much affected his thinking both about art and power. The Benedictional he commissioned shows us a subtle change in attitudes to and images of kingship and – famously – contains the first western illustration of the Three Wise Men as Three Kings. It also contains the first recorded image of the Dormition of Mary and the reasons for this will be explained.

15.00. Question and answer session