Squee!

Are these parenthesis? Book was printed in 1520. Any thoughts @liamsims.bsky.social?

Next Wednesday 8th October, 12.30-1.30: Jiří Vnouček on "A Tale of Two Parchments" - insular and continental parchment preparation. In person: @bodleian.ox.ac.uk Weston Library, Lecture Theatre Or livestreamed. Free: book here visit.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/event/oct25/...

I'm off work for a couple of months and looking for an in-person volunteering post for about half a day a week starting now to give a bit of shape to my week.

Days with incunabula are always better. I love the little stick animal at the back of this crowd around Augustine. A glorious early title/half title page from 1494. HCL C.8.14 (ISTC ia01308000)

Hey a thing I really don’t want to get lost here is that while Tylenol doesn’t cause autism, IT’S FINE TO BE AUTISTIC. Let’s not grant them the premise that autism should be eradicated in our way to correct the science, okay? Okay.

#NotMyCat, but we call him Todd. He likes to hang around our house.

I had read about the similarity between the Hereford Gospels and some of the St. Gallen manuscripts, but WOW. Look at those swirls! So grateful for the opportunity to go see Words on the Wave last Friday.

Spent a bit of time fangirling over Isidore's Etymologies, a key text source for the Mappa Mundi. 😍

Saturday morning reading about the Faddan More Psalter. Back home tomorrow and things will look a bit different. 😂

Good morning, Dublin.

Early in the pandemic I spent 2 terrible weeks in isolation, unable to breathe or walk across the room. Expecting my temp. to spike, & knowing that then I'd have to go to the hospital. Worrying I was dying. In the middle of this anti-vax bullshit, I thought it was worth saying what it felt like:

Knitting on public transport makes me very happy, which is a good thing because I am on this bus for 4.5 hours.

A good warning sign for @allthebeset.bsky.social

Make Your Thursdays Count! Looking for something different after work? 🕔 The National Museum of Ireland – Kildare Street is open late on Thurs 11 & 18 Sept until 8 PM. ✨ Discover the stunning Words on the Wave exhibition 📍 Free entry, no booking needed. www.museum.ie/en-IE/News/L...

Scenes from Bangor Abbey.

A different #TeaUp today. Off on work adventures! Feel very grown up.

Listening to Jarvis Cocker's Sunday Service on Internet Archive because it really is perfect Sunday listening.

Can confirm this is a beautiful library with an excellent librarian. 😊

Ooh, looking forward to this! That is my commute sorted.

Got out our Nicolas Jenson book for some filming this morning and was so excited talking about it that I forgot to take a picture! It's my personal mission to shout about our printed collection as it feels like our manuscripts get all the attention.

Making things is very satisfying, so today library assistant and I made a 4 flap box for a book.🥰Not perfect, but pretty good for a first attempt.

The Medieval Scriptorium is now available in paperback! 😊 reaktionbooks.co.uk/work/the-med... #bookhistory #medievalsky #skystorians #medievalmanuscripts @reaktionbooks.bsky.social

True story: When my mom visited, we bought a bottle of Ribena and nearly half had disappeared after dinner. Turns out she had just drunk a hlass straight! (She's German but has lived in the US over 40 years.)

One month left to submit an abstract for our conference 'Bound for Devotion: The Prayer Book as Object and Practice, 1300–1800', 1-3 July 2026 in Leiden: www.universiteitleiden.nl/en/events/20... #medieval #earlymodern #bookhistory

Sometimes we’re unsatisfied with a thing we made because when it only existed in our head, we saw all the things it could have been and when it’s done we know all the things that it isn’t, but we can’t see the way it expands into a million new things when someone else unpacks it in their head. 🖊️🦑

Our library assistant is equally passionate about Dante and Beyonce and was thrilled to read this, particularly about its Margery Kempe reference.

The significance of replication/reproduction/mediation is one of my favorite things to contemplate. A great reflection.

Happy #Caturday from Panda.

What did Robert Martin read? Jane Austen’s “Emma” and “Agricultural Reports” Cardinal Tales, The Blog of Special Collections and University Archives at Iowa State University 📜 isuspecialcollections.wordpress.com/2025/08/28/w...

Drafting a loans in policy and it would absolutely fail any plagiarism checks...

Got a bit emotional about this manuscript. I haven't looked at it before, but it's completely bowled me over. Late 9th or 10th century in Caroline minuscule, according to Mynors & Thomson. (HCL O.3.2)

Ooh, look at this lovely stoup! (Is something I would never have said 3 years ago)

Does anyone have advice on approaching/finding a mentor? It's not for chartership, just a general professional development thing at this stage.

Happy #Caturday. Lots of ups and downs last week, so cat cuddles are needed.

Also, is Microsoft having a breakdown?

Back in the office after a week off, and there's no milk in the kitchen, which means I'll have to go out before my first cuppa! #TinyTragedies

www.nybooks.com/online/2025/... With customary precision and elegance (how does he make it look so bloody easy?) Charles Nicholl writes about Mrs Shakspaire for the New York Review of Books.

How brilliant is this www.weregildcalculator.com

'It is less that AI is the cause of degradation in reading and thinking, and more that the creation of a culture that views knowledge primarily in an instrumental manner has made it easier to misuse AI.'

Update on the great discovery of archived BL manuscript metadata: I started putting together a page at my website to host PDFs of the archived pages I retrieve. ruffnotes.org/british-libr... #medievalsky

And a beautiful service it is.

Straw poll: We have several experts prepared to do online talks about one of our manuscripts. Would you prefer a one-day symposium/conference-style event, or a series of lunchtime talks? Audience would ideally be general but I suspect realistically likely to draw manuscript folks.

Very worrying reflection of the wider trend of failing to care for history. In my limited experience for many people local history is a route into wider history by making it personal; preserving it carefully is so important. Dodgy short-term decisions with frightening long term consequences.

Hi everyone, As part of my dissertation, I am researching audiobook narration. If you have listened to an audiobook within the last two years, or have previously been a frequent audiobook user, I would really appreciate your thoughts! You can find the survey here: docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...

Here, have a smiley carrot to brighten your life. (This is my mom's picture, not mine.) #TinyJoys

The 2 pm slump is real. #TeaUp in an attempt to wake up.

Procrastinating again, but at least this time I am doing it with other work tasks. Also looking at my list of things I have done this year instead of my to-do list, which is a good feeling.

🚨PRE-ORDER OFFER Get 25% off the paperback edition of The Medieval Scriptorium: Making Books in the Middle Ages with code SUMMER25 from #Waterstones Offer only valid between 28-31 July #WPreorder #medievalsky #bookhistory @reaktionbooks.bsky.social www.waterstones.com/book/the-med...