Gothic Exhibition Features Rare Books and Manuscripts
The Bedford Psalter and Hours (London, Workshop of Herman Scheere, 1414-1435)
The Nature of Gothic at Blackburn Museum celebrates how artists across centuries, disciplines and faiths have all drawn inspiration from the natural world.
At its heart are treasures from Blackburn’s Hart Collection, one of the UK’s most important collections of rare books and manuscripts, bequeathed by local rope maker, industrialist and collector Edward Hart.
These will sit alongside important works on loan from the British Library, Manchester Art Gallery, and Cambridge University Library.
Highlights include:
- iluminated manuscripts including the Bedford Psalter and Hours
- Islamic devotional texts
- rare bindings and early printed book including a copy of the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam with calligraphy by William Morris
“Thanks to industrialists like Edward Hart, who saw the importance of collecting items from across the globe and leaving them for the benefit of the town, we can now explore the shared cultural theme of gothic decorative art through books, paintings, textiles and ceramics," said co-curator Dr Cynthia Johnston from the School of Advanced Study at the University of London.
The exhibition , which openson September 13 and runs through December 13, also features brand-new artist commissions including one by Jamie Holman, working with artists in Islamabad, who has created a piece inspired by the Tregaskis bindings on loan from the University of Manchester’s John Rylands Library.
