The York Gospels: a 1000-year biological palimpsest.
View / Open Files
Authors
Fiddyment, Sarah
Vnouček, Jiří
Mattiangeli, Valeria
Speller, Camilla
Binois, Annelise
Carver, Martin
Dand, Catherine
Newfield, Timothy P
Webb, Christopher C
Bradley, Daniel G
Collins, Matthew J
Publication Date
2017-10Journal Title
R Soc Open Sci
ISSN
2054-5703
Publisher
The Royal Society
Volume
4
Issue
10
Pages
170988
Language
eng
Type
Article
Physical Medium
Electronic-eCollection
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Teasdale, M. D., Fiddyment, S., Vnouček, J., Mattiangeli, V., Speller, C., Binois, A., Carver, M., et al. (2017). The York Gospels: a 1000-year biological palimpsest.. R Soc Open Sci, 4 (10), 170988. https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170988
Abstract
Medieval manuscripts, carefully curated and conserved, represent not only an irreplaceable documentary record but also a remarkable reservoir of biological information. Palaeographic and codicological investigation can often locate and date these documents with remarkable precision. The York Gospels (York Minster Ms. Add. 1) is one such codex, one of only a small collection of pre-conquest Gospel books to have survived the Reformation. By extending the non-invasive triboelectric (eraser-based) sampling technique eZooMS, to include the analysis of DNA, we report a cost-effective and simple-to-use biomolecular sampling technique for parchment. We apply this combined methodology to document for the first time a rich palimpsest of biological information contained within the York Gospels, which has accumulated over the 1000-year lifespan of this cherished object that remains an active participant in the life of York Minster. These biological data provide insights into the decisions made in the selection of materials, the construction of the codex and the use history of the object.
Identifiers
External DOI: https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.170988
This record's URL: https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/285858
Statistics
Total file downloads (since January 2020). For more information on metrics see the
IRUS guide.