Please note that, due to unforeseen circumstances, the lecture by Michael Lewis (British Museum) on ‘The Bayeux Tapestry and Anglo-Saxon Illuminations’, originally scheduled for Wednesday 4 November, has been postponed. A new date will be announced in due course.
We are very grateful to Professor Julian Luxford (University of St Andrews), who has kindly agreed to present a lecture on ‘Print, prejudice, and the dissolution of the monasteries’ in its place.
Professor Luxford will explore a remarkable group of survey rolls produced in the wake of the suppression of two major Benedictine abbeys, distinguished by their extraordinary penwork embellishments. Examining the artist’s sources and the motivations behind these elaborate decorations, the lecture will consider why such splendour was lavished upon documents that, at first glance, appear utilitarian on the surface.