Treasure trove of medieval manuscripts published

PA 359/10 The largest surviving family-owned library of medieval manuscripts in Britain can now be enjoyed by everyone thanks to the publication of a new book telling its fascinating story. The Wollaton Medieval Manuscripts. Texts, Owners and Readers is the culmination of a major research project at The University of Nottingham into this nationally important regional collection. The large, beautifully illustrated hardback volume tells the story of Nottinghamshire's landowning Willoughby family, and the extensive library of rare medieval manuscripts they collected during the 15th and 16th centuries. The collection includes important examples of Latin, French, Anglo-Norman and Middle English literature from the 13th to 15th centuries. The manuscripts, along with a huge collection of family archives, were originally housed in the family library at Wollaton in Nottingham, and transferred to the present hall, built by Sir Francis Willoughby in the 1580s, which the family owned until the 1920s when it was bought by the city council. The new book describes all the medieval books once part of the library, focusing on 10 manuscripts in the Wollaton Library Collection which are now in the care of the University's Department of Manuscripts and Special Collections.