This new disc on CORO accompanies the British Library’s first major exhibition celebrating eight centuries of glorious illuminated manuscripts.

The Sixteen & Harry Christophers
The Hilliard Ensemble

Royal Manuscripts: The Genius of Illumination – the British Library’s first major exhibition to bring together the Library’s Royal collection, a treasure trove of illuminated manuscripts from between the 9th and 16th centuries collected by the kings and queens of England.

The exhibition, which ran from November 2011 to March 2012, featured stunning manuscripts that are among the most outstanding examples of royal decorative and figurative painting from this era surviving in Britain today. They unlock the secrets of the private lives and public personae of the royals throughout the Middle Ages and provide the most vivid surviving source for understanding royal identity.

Created especially to accompany the exhibition, this disc features works from the Eton Choirbook alongside fascinating pieces from medieval and Renaissance France, equally preserved in beautifully illuminated collections of manuscripts.