For those fortunate enough to have stumbled upon medieval manuscripts, some discoveries have come from unexpected places. Here are my top five most peculiar spots where these medieval and ancient texts have been found.
1. The Book of Margery Kempe
The Book of Margery Kempe at the British Library – photo by Isadora Watson
Whilst searching for lost ping-pong balls in 1934, Maurice Butler-Bowdon and his father unearthed the only surviving copy of The Book of Margery Kempe. Rummaging through a “clutter[ed]” cupboard of “smallish leather books,” Butler-Bowdon’s father had initially threatened to throw the collection on a “bonfire”—not before stumbling across the priceless manuscript.
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2. Medieval Texts at the Romanian Church of St. Margaret, Mediaș
Some of the manuscripts discovered.Photo by Adinel C. Dincă / Biblioteca Batthyaneum
Over 200 medieval manuscripts, books, and documents were discovered in the Ropemakers’ Tower at the Church of St. Margaret, Mediaș, Romania. Hidden away in forgotten corners, the discovery included two complete manuscripts and 60 ancient documents, dating from the 9th to the 17th centuries.
3. The Dead Sea Scrolls
Photo by Dennis Jarvis / Flickr
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of ancient Jewish manuscripts, discovered over a span of 10 years in the 1940s and 1950s. More than 980 manuscripts were retrieved from 11 caves near the Dead Sea, dating from the 3rd century BCE. Excitingly, a 12th cave was added to the list in February 2017. Whilst no scrolls or manuscripts were found, broken jars and pickaxe remnants suggested the cave had been looted in the 1950s.
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4. The Irish Dead Sea Scrolls (The Faddan More Psalter)
Faddan More Psalter – NMI Folio-29 – National Museum of Ireland / Wikimedia Commons
In the early 2000s, an engineer made an unexpected discovery in a bog just outside Faddan More. Whilst clearing the wetland with his bulldozer, he scooped up a “bundle” that turned out to be a 1,000-year-old psalter. Experts estimated that the collection had been in the bogland for over a millennium and contains some of the earliest surviving biblical documents in the British Isles.
5. Oxburgh Hall Manuscripts
Curator Anna Forest examines a 15th century illuminated manuscript discovered under the floorboards of Oxburgh Hall by archaeologists. Photo courtesy National Trust
In 2020, archaeologist Matt Champion discovered “thousands” of rare medieval artefacts in the attic of a National Trust property in Norfolk. During the restoration of the Tudor house’s roof, the floorboards were lifted for examination. To Champion’s surprise, beneath the floor, he found a large collection of rare items, including an “almost intact copy of […] the King’s Psalms, which was dated 1568.”
Hello! My name is Isadora, and I am currently a second-year BA student at the University of Cambridge. I study French and German, with a particular interest in medieval languages.
By Isadora Watson
For those fortunate enough to have stumbled upon medieval manuscripts, some discoveries have come from unexpected places. Here are my top five most peculiar spots where these medieval and ancient texts have been found.
1. The Book of Margery Kempe
Whilst searching for lost ping-pong balls in 1934, Maurice Butler-Bowdon and his father unearthed the only surviving copy of The Book of Margery Kempe. Rummaging through a “clutter[ed]” cupboard of “smallish leather books,” Butler-Bowdon’s father had initially threatened to throw the collection on a “bonfire”—not before stumbling across the priceless manuscript.
2. Medieval Texts at the Romanian Church of St. Margaret, Mediaș
Over 200 medieval manuscripts, books, and documents were discovered in the Ropemakers’ Tower at the Church of St. Margaret, Mediaș, Romania. Hidden away in forgotten corners, the discovery included two complete manuscripts and 60 ancient documents, dating from the 9th to the 17th centuries.
3. The Dead Sea Scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of ancient Jewish manuscripts, discovered over a span of 10 years in the 1940s and 1950s. More than 980 manuscripts were retrieved from 11 caves near the Dead Sea, dating from the 3rd century BCE. Excitingly, a 12th cave was added to the list in February 2017. Whilst no scrolls or manuscripts were found, broken jars and pickaxe remnants suggested the cave had been looted in the 1950s.
4. The Irish Dead Sea Scrolls (The Faddan More Psalter)
In the early 2000s, an engineer made an unexpected discovery in a bog just outside Faddan More. Whilst clearing the wetland with his bulldozer, he scooped up a “bundle” that turned out to be a 1,000-year-old psalter. Experts estimated that the collection had been in the bogland for over a millennium and contains some of the earliest surviving biblical documents in the British Isles.
5. Oxburgh Hall Manuscripts
In 2020, archaeologist Matt Champion discovered “thousands” of rare medieval artefacts in the attic of a National Trust property in Norfolk. During the restoration of the Tudor house’s roof, the floorboards were lifted for examination. To Champion’s surprise, beneath the floor, he found a large collection of rare items, including an “almost intact copy of […] the King’s Psalms, which was dated 1568.”
Hello! My name is Isadora, and I am currently a second-year BA student at the University of Cambridge. I study French and German, with a particular interest in medieval languages.
Top Image: Photo by judy dean / Flickr
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