Directory of Research and Expertise

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Research Summary and Profile

Research interests:

History of art, History of the book, Manuscript studies, Medieval History

Regions:

England, Europe, North America, United Kingdom

Summary of research interests and expertise:

I am interested in the art and architecture of the High Middle Ages and its reception in the twentieth and twenty-first centuries. My research concentrates on medieval manuscripts, encompassing their production, circulation, and reception. In 2019-2024 I will be leading an ERC funded project (CULTIVATE MSS) to assess the significance of the trade in medieval manuscripts for the development of ideas about the nature and value of European culture in the early twentieth century.

Publication Details

Related publications/articles:

Date	Details
01-Jun-2023	Illuminating On the Sphere Chapters Laura Cleaver and Sarah Griffin, 'Illuminating On the Sphere', in G. E. M. Gasper et al. ed., The Scientific Works of Robert Grosseteste Vol. II (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2023), pp. 331-361.
01-Mar-2023	George D. Smith (1870-1920), Bernard Alfred Quaritch (1871-1913) and the Trade in Medieval European Manuscripts in the USA c. 1890-1920 Journal articles Manuscript Studies, 8.1 (2023)
12-Aug-2022	The Trade in Rare Books and Manuscripts between Britain and America c. 1890-1929 Chapters Co-authored book with Danielle Magnusson, published by Cambridge University Press
01-Jun-2022	The dukes of Normandy in Eton College ms. 96 and the reception of Norman history in thirteenth-century England Chapters in F. Paquet and S. Lecouteux ed., Maitriser le temps et faconner l'histoire (Presses universitaires de Caen), pp. 163-182.
01-May-2022	Lost Artefacts from Medieval England and France: Representation, Reimagination, Recovery Edited Book Edited with Kathryn Gerry, published by York Medieval Press
01-May-2022	Fire! Accounts of Destruction and Survival at Canterbury and Bury St Edmunds in the Late Twelfth Century Chapters In K. Gerry and L. Cleaver ed, Lost Artefacts from Medieval England and France
01-May-2022	History Books at Worcester, c.1050-1150, and the Making of the Worcester Chronicle Chapters In F. Tinti and D. A. Woodman ed., Constucting History across the Norman Conquest: Worcester, c.1050-c.1150, York Medieval Press
02-Feb-2022	‘A most studious man, a researcher and collector of sacred and profane books’: Robert of Torigni and the Making of the Mont-Saint-Michel Chronicle (Avranches Bibliothèque Municipale MS 159) Chapters In D. O'Donovan, N. NicGhabhann ed., Mapping New Territories in Art and Architectural Histories: Essays in honour of Roger Stalley
01-Dec-2021	The Purchase of the Life of St. Cuthbert for the Nation: Art, History and Politics (c. 1903-1920) Chapters Co-authored with Olivia Baskerville, in Le livre enluminé médiéval: instrument politique ed. V. Lucherini and C. Voyer
01-Oct-2021	William Morris’ Medieval Manuscript Collection and the Trade in Illuminated Manuscripts c. 1891-1914 Articles Histoire et civilisation du livre, XVII, pp. 185-213
01-Jul-2021	An Open and Shut Case? Images of Books on Facades of Twelfth-Century French Churches Chapters in J. Luxford ed., The Medieval Book as Object, Idea and Symbol (Shaun Tyas), pp. 143-57
31-Dec-2020	Marginal Imagery in Ralph de Diceto's History Chapters Visualisieren - Orden - Aktualisieren, ed. W. Augustyn and A. Worm (Passau, 2020), pp. 217-236
01-Dec-2020	Ralph of Diceto's Opuscula and the Making of History at the End of the Twelfth Century Articles France et Angleterre: manuscrits medievaux entre 700 et 1200, Bibliologia 57
26-May-2020	The Place of the Papacy in Four Illuminated Histories from Thirteenth-Century England Chapters in Authority and Power in the Medieval Church, c. 1000-c. 1500 ed. T. W. Smith
23-May-2020	Illuminating the Middle Ages: Tributes to Prof. John Lowden from his Students, Friends and Colleagues Edited Book Brill (History of the Written Word 79)
01-Apr-2020	The Sauce of the Middle Ages: How Worcestershire sauce changed the way we look at medieval manuscripts. History Today
25-Jan-2020	Charles William Dyson Perrins as a Collector of Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts c. 1900-1920 Articles Perspectives médiévales [En ligne], 41 | 2020
01-Jun-2019	The Septenarium Pictum or Rota Dominice Orationis Diagram: Combating vice through prayer in the High Middle Ages Chapters with Andrea Worm, in Ordinare il mondo: diagrammi e simboli nelle pergamene di Vercelli, ed. T. Leonardi & M. Rainini
27-Jun-2018	Illuminated History Books in the Anglo-Norman World, 1066-1272 Monographs
01-Jun-2018	Writing History in the Anglo-Norman World: Manuscripts, Makers and Readers, c. 1066-1250 Edited Book
01-Jan-2018	The Western Manuscript Collection of Alfred Chester Beatty (c. 1915-1930) Articles L. Cleaver, ‘The Western Manuscript Collection of Alfred Chester Beatty (c. 1915-1930)’, Manuscript Studies 2 (2017) pp. 445-82.
01-Jan-2017	The Monastic Library at Le Bec Chapters L. Cleaver, ‘The Monastic Library at Le Bec’, A Companion to the Abbey of Le Bec in the Middle Ages, ed. B. Pohl and L. Gathagan (Leiden, 2017) pp. 171-205.
01-Feb-2016	Education in Twelfth-Century Art and Architecture: Images of Learning in Europe c. 1100-1220 Monographs
01-Jan-2016	History Books at Reading in the Twelfth Century Journal articles L. Cleaver, ‘History Books at Reading in the Twelfth Century’, Reading Medieval Studies 42 (2016) pp. 25-44
01-Mar-2015	Latin Psalter Manuscripts in Trinity College Dublin and the Chester Beatty Library Monographs
01-Jan-2014	“Almost every miracle is open to carping”: Doubts, Relics, Reliquaries and Images of Saints in the Long 12th Century Articles L. Cleaver, ‘“Almost every miracle is open to carping”: Doubts, Relics, Reliquaries and Images of Saints in the Long 12th Century’, Journal of the British Archaeological Association 167 (2014) pp. 51-69.
01-Jan-2013	Past, Present and Future for Thirteenth-Century Wales: Two Diagrams in British Library, Cotton Roll XIV.12 Articles electronic British Library Journal

Publications available on SAS-space:

Date	Details
Jan-2020	Charles William Dyson Perrins as a Collector of Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts c. 1900-1920 NonPeerReviewed The manuscript collection of Charles Dyson Perrins is well known among scholars, in large part due to the publication of an imposing and detailed catalogue by George Warner in 1920. Perrins has become associated with spending large sums of money on manuscripts and the account of his purchase of the Gorleston Psalter following a visit to a bookshop in search of something to read on the train is a legend of the trade. The first sale of his manuscripts after his death in 1958 achieved a record total. However, like most early twentieth-century collectors, Perrins’ catalogue only contains a selection of the manuscripts that passed through his hands. Reconstructing the larger collection therefore sheds light on the choices made in creating and publishing parts of his manuscript collection. Perrins began collecting manuscripts as an extension of his interest in early printed books and maintained a strong interest in late medieval and renaissance manuscripts. The influence of a small group of collectors and scholars, and in particular Sydney Cockerell, helped shape Perrins’ manuscript collection and publicise it through its use as the basis for the Burlington Fine Arts Club exhibition of illuminated manuscripts in 1908 and the creation of monographs on particular volumes as well as the 1920 catalogue. In contrast, only part of the printed collection ever received a published catalogue. Cockerell may also have been involved in Perrins’ decision to sell some of his manuscripts, anonymously, in 1907. These decisions have had significant consequences for the long-term ownership of and scholarship on these manuscripts, and provide a case study of the impact of early twentieth-century collectors on the development of the study of medieval books.
Oct-2021	William Morris' Medieval Manuscript Collection and the Trade in Illuminated Manuscripts c. 1891-1914 PeerReviewed
Sep-2022	The Trade in Rare Books and Manuscripts Between Britain and America c. 1890-1929: Constructing Cultural Histories PeerReviewed This Element examines the trade in rare books and manuscripts between Britain and America during a period known as the “Golden Age” of collecting. Through analysis of contemporary press reports, personal correspondence, trade publications and sales records, this study contrasts American and British perspectives as rare books passed through the commercial market. The aim is to compare the rhetoric and reality of the book trade in order to assess its impact on emerging cultural institutions, contemporary scholarship and shifting notions of national identity. By analysing how markets emerged, dealers functioned and buyers navigated the market, this Element interrogates accepted narratives about the ways in which major rare book and manuscript collections were formed and how they were valued by contemporaries.
Nov-2021	The Purchase of the Life of St Cuthbert for the Nation: Art, History and Politics c. 1903-1920 PeerReviewed This essay examines the circumstances in with a twelfth-century illuminated manuscript containing an account of the Life of St Cuthbert was acquired by the British Museum.
Mar-2023	George D. Smith (1870-1920), Bernard Alfred Quaritch (1871-1913) and the Trade in Medieval European Manuscripts in the USA c. 1890-1920 PeerReviewed The late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries saw significant growth in the trade in medieval manuscripts in North America and the creation of well-known libraries including the Huntington, Morgan and Walters collections. The men who gave their names to those institutions loom large in the history of collecting, but their libraries would not have been possible without the networks of booksellers who supplied them. The latter included the American George D. Smith and the Briton Bernard Alfred Quaritch. Both men have received some attention from scholars, although much of what is known about them has been based on sources created by those involved in the trade. This essay compares the lives of these two men to examine their actions, motivations and the consequences of these for the movement of medieval manuscripts and the development of collections in the USA.
Feb-2024	THE ECONOMICS OF THE MANUSCRIPT AND RARE BOOK TRADE, ca. 1890–1939 PeerReviewed The market for rare books has been characterized as unpredictable, and driven by the whims of a small number of rich individuals. Yet behind the headlines announcing new auction records, a range of sources make it possible to analyze the market as a whole. This book introduces the economics of the trade in manuscripts and rare books during the turbulent period ca. 1890–1939. It demonstrates how surviving sources, even when incomplete and inconsistent, can be used to tackle questions about the operation of the rare book trade, including how books were priced, profit margins, accounting practices, and books as investments, from the perspectives of both dealers and collectors.

Research Projects & Supervisions

Research projects:

Details
CULTIVATE MSS - Cultural values and the International trade in Medieval European Manuscripts 1900-1945 Institute of English Studies Project period: 01-May-2019 - 30-Apr-2024 Research interests: Literatures in a modern language, Medieval History, Modern History
The Medieval Diagram as Subject Institute of English Studies Project period: 12-Apr-2022 - 19-May-2022 Research interests: Manuscript studies, Medieval History
CULTIVATE MSS The CULTIVATE MSS project (2019-2024), funded by the European Research Council, aims to analyse the significance of the trade in medieval manuscripts for the development of ideas about the nature and value of European culture between 1900 and 1945. It will assess the roles of collectors, scholars and dealers in the formation of collections of medieval manuscripts, and the impact of this on scholarship, comparing the English-speaking world, France and Germany. Through analysis of published and unpublished accounts of manuscripts, together with price data, it will reconstruct the values projected onto books. It will then contextualise these values within the history of the early twentieth century, assessing the impact of two world wars and other political and economic shifts on the trade in books and attitudes to manuscripts as objects of national significance.

Current PhD topics supervised:

Dates	Details
From: 03-Jan-2018 Until:	Moguls Collecting Mughals Karen Winslow
From: 01-Jan-2020 Until:	The Role of Clubs and Societies in the Formation of Medieval Manuscript Collections, c. 1900-1945 The CULTIVATE MSS project (2019-24) analyses the significance of the trade in medieval manuscripts for the development of ideas about the nature and value of European culture between 1900 and 1945. It examines the roles of collectors, scholars and dealers in the formation of collections of medieval manuscripts, and the impact of these people on the development of scholarship. Within the framework of the overall project, this PhD researcher will study the impact of clubs and societies on the development of collections of medieval manuscripts and the transmission of knowledge about them. Through an analysis of published and unpublished sources the research will address the role of clubs and societies in creating and maintaining social networks, and the impact of these on the acquisition of manuscripts and the creation of scholarship about them. Subjects studied may include, but are not limited to: The Roxburghe Club, The Grolier Club, the Burlington Fine Arts Club, and the Red Cross.
From: 01-Jan-2020 Until:	Women and the Manuscript Trade in Britain and the USA, c. 1900-1945 The CULTIVATE MSS project (2019-24) analyses the significance of the trade in medieval manuscripts for the development of ideas about the nature and value of European culture between 1900 and 1945. It examines the roles of collectors, scholars and dealers in the formation of collections of medieval manuscripts, and the impact of these people on the development of scholarship. Within the framework of the overall project, this PhD researcher will study the roles of women in the book trade in Britain and the USA (as collectors, librarians, and booksellers). Through an analysis of published and unpublished sources, the research will examine the hypothesis that women’s roles in the manuscript trade have been undervalued. It will study well-known and lesser-known women and contrast their activities with those of their male contemporaries. Subjects studied may include, but are not limited to: Belle Greene, Isabella Stewart Gardner, Edith Beatty, Elizabeth Thompson, and the Kingsford sisters.

Available for doctoral supervision: Yes

Professional Affiliations

Professional affiliations:

Name	Activity
Schoenberg Database of Manuscripts - Advisory Committee Member
Series Editor: Writing History in the Middle Ages, York Medieval Press

Collaborations:

Name	Type	Activity	Start date	End date
The Ordered Universe	Associate Member		06-Jan-2016
New Interpretations on the Angevin World	Associate Member	Research Network	01-Jan-2014	31-Dec-2017

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