Author Archives: Administrator

Mediaeval decorated letters to colour

I’ve been lucky enough to have worked closely with the British Library for what is now decades. Many years ago I was helping the Education Department which had a lot of school visits. The problem always with such visits is how to occupy those who finish any set tasks quickly before the rest of the class. I suggested producing a series of outline drawings taken from illuminated and decorated mediæval manuscripts that could be coloured in, and then produced six of them.

Having a clear-out recently, I came across them again, and thought that they could be shared with a wider audience, hence this blogpost. They are copyright, but free for personal and educational use, simply click on the picture/link below for a high resolution pdf to print out; they’re sized for A4.

I’ve copyrighted them because they mustn’t be used by anyone or an institution to print out or use in a publication and make money from them.

Please, though, feel free to print these outline letters for your own use, for children and grandchildren, for courses, and for classes.

As the British Library’s website, including the digitised manuscripts, is still not completely available, colour images are here if possible, otherwise black and white photos or similar images are posted.

Copy the original colours if you wish, or go freestyle – they’re your letters to colour, so your choice.

The first is the magnificent letter B from the Ramsey Psalter (BL Harley 2904).

 

 

 

 

 

And the outline letter is here, click on it to download the high-resolution PDF:

Worksheet 1

David and Goliath, mediaeval manuscriptI wasn’t able to get a coloured image of the miniature from BL Harley MS 2895, but this is from a similar period and indicates the colours that would be used.

 

 

 

 

And the outline letter is here, click on it to download the high-resolution PDF:

Worksheet 2

Again, no colour copy copy of the letter ‘N’ from the actual manuscript, but a black and white image is here, and below it a similar letter in colour:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the outline letter is here, click on it to download the high-resolution PDF:

Worksheet 3

Yet again there are no colour images available for the York Psalter; here it is in black and white:

 

 

 

 

 

And the outline letter is here, click on it to download the high-resolution PDF:

Worksheet 4

Hosea from the Worms Bible:

 

 

 

 

 

 

And the outline letter is here, click on it to download the high-resolution PDF:

 Worksheet 5

Finally, this magnificent lettering and decoration from the Lindisfarne Gospels:

 

 

 

 

And the outline letter is here, click on it to download the high-resolution PDF:

Worksheet 6

The Art of the Scribe

‘The Art of the Scribe’ is Patricia Lovett’s latest book published by the British Library in Spring 2025.

It is an informative as well as a practical book and focuses on the seven major periods of manuscript production in terms of script and page illumination and decoration – Uncials, Caroline Minuscule, English Caroline Minuscule, Gothic Textura (Black Letter), Bâtarde, Humanistic Minuscule and Italic. At the end of each of these chapters are three graded projects – foundation, intermediate and advanced – with clear photographs and step-by-step instructions covering layout and design, illumination, using shell gold, writing is a circle, and also in a spiral, as well as painting various manuscript styles.

The second part is comprehensive and detailed and includes materials, tools and techniques, covering everything from paper, vellum and parchment, quill curing and cutting, oak gall ink, making and using gesso and then gilding with leaf gold, painting a mediaeval miniature, and so much more; modern tools and materials are covered as well. There are also sections on analysing scripts, serifs, layout and design, spacing and book binding.

This book is the result of decades of learning, researching and perfecting the craft.

The Art of the Scribe

New Illumination book on the way

After many delays I’m now getting very excited at the publication of my new book on Illumination. I’ve updated a lot of the techniques from my previous British Library book ‘Companion to Calligraphy, Illumination and Heraldry’ (can’t believe how long ago that was published!), and it links very well with my DVD on Illumination. I think that we’re on the home straight now, and could even get copies in time for Christmas! Fingers crossed.

This is the cover (left side is the back, then the spine, and then the right is the front cover):

Cover of Illumination

The little angel on the back is a copy from the Sforza Hours. It’s one of my favourite manuscripts with paintings both by Birago, done when the book was in Italy commissioned originally by Bona Sforza, Duchess of Milan, and then by Horenbout, in the Netherlands, when the stolen images were replaced by this great Dutch artist (the story of the book is really fascinating.)

Angels by BiragoMy favourites are those by Birago as he paints saints and angels with the most fabulous cheek bones and really curly hair. They almost look as if they have put their fingers in electric sockets such are the curls, and despite being angels they don’t seem to have known about frizz-eaze!

My angel is a copy of one painted by Birago and is of a chorister, but I popped a quill into his left hand to make him into a scribe (or an illuminator) ready to write or lay gesso into a book.