Laure Miolo – Oxford Medieval Studies

Exploring Medieval Oxford through Surviving Archives

by Laure Miolo

20/05/2026

22:20

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Conference Report

by Louise Tjoline Keitsch (University of Freiburg, Research Intern with Henrike Lähnemann Hilary and Trinity Term 2026)

On 29 May 2026, the Weston Library hosted the one-day conference Exploring Medieval Oxford through Surviving Archives, organised by Laure Miolo and Matthew Holford and supported by the Centre for the Study of the Book. Bringing together students, early-career researchers, and established scholars, the event showcased research centred on medieval documents preserved in the Bodleian Libraries and the Christ Church archives: Claims, charters, letters and tenancy agreements.

The programme combined longer presentations by established Oxford academics with shorter papers by participants in the seminar, creating a productive dialogue between methodological reflection and original research. The keynote-style contributions by Natasha Jenman, Teresa Witcombe, Julian Munby, Richard Allen, and Dan Wakelin explored topics including the Queen’s Gold accounts of Eleanor of Castile, medieval Castilian archives, the documentary record of medieval Oxford, the cartulary and charters of the Hospital of St John the Baptist, and the challenges of working with late medieval letter collections (in that order). Together, these papers offered best-practice insights into archival research, palaeography, and the interpretation of medieval documentary sources.

The shorter presentations demonstrated the remarkable thematic breadth that a single archive can sustain. Papers addressed property ownership in thirteenth-century Oxford, the administration of religious houses, the lives of individuals at the margins of the historical record, and questions of legal practice, social obligation, and institutional memory. Several contributions drew on documents connected to the Priory of St Frideswide, whose extensive property interests across Oxford and the surrounding countryside formed a recurring thread throughout the day, while others highlighted the richness of individual charters, tenancy agreements, and parish records.

A particular strength of the conference was its sustained attention to medieval documents as material objects. Discussions addressed the challenges of transcription, the significance of seals and diplomatic features, and the interpretive possibilities opened up by close palaeographical analysis. This emphasis on materiality was complemented by an exhibition curated by the participants, displayed in two cases in the Weston Library, which presented a selection of the documents discussed during the conference and allowed attendees to engage directly with the archival material.

The conference highlighted the continued vitality of archive-based research in medieval studies and demonstrated the value of bringing together experienced scholars and emerging researchers to explore the rich documentary heritage of medieval Oxford. It offered an excellent example of how close engagement with archival sources continues to generate new perspectives on the medieval past.

Exhibition curated by the students in the Weston Library (photograph: Louise Tjoline Keitsch)

Programme

Conference Friday 29 May 2026 – Weston Library
With an exhibition curated by the participants

9 Welcome Matthew Holford & Laure Miolo

9.15 Lauren Pidgeon & Deborah Seymour : An agreement between Agatha the widow and John Halegod

9.30 Emily Breithaupt & India Kelly: The Charter of Alice of Stokes

9.45 Alice Zhang & Annabel Brodersen: A Study of Christ Church F. 48: Property Ownership in Thirteenth-Century St Aldates, Oxford

10 Natasha Jenman (History, St Edmund Hall): Jews in the Queen’s Gold Accounts of Eleanor of Castile

10.30 Marina Giraudeau & Philine Armbuster: Renting and Salvation: The Tenancy Agreement of Christ Church F. 17

11.15 Teresa Witcombe (History, Wadham College): Captives and slaves in medieval Castilian archives

11.45 Tabitha Claydon: At the “insistence” of an “intervening” king

12 Julian Munby (Conted, Oxford): Mapping medieval Oxford from the archives

12.45 Lunch

2 Richard Allen (Magdalen College): Towards a new edition of the cartulary and charters of the Hospital of St John the Baptist, Oxford

2.30 Kevin Hoff & Cara Nicholls: Christina Pady and the Priory of St Frideswide

2.45 Hannele Hellerstedt, Holly Smith & Vanessa Emmet: Land and Legacy: The Life of Hugo de Plugenet

3 Louise Keitsch: Giving up (on) everything?

3.15 Yijia Wang& Luka Luhai: Cumin, Lamp, and Obligation: Making Continuity in a Medieval Oxford Parish.

3.30 Dan Wakelin (English Faculty, St Hilda’s College): Late medieval letters: disorderly archives

4.15 Daniel Dias & Charlotte Visconsi: Copying Amidst Conflict: Reproducing Castilian Law in the Wake of Civil War, (1437-1445).

4.30 End

This event is supported by the Centre for the Study of the Book.

History and Materiality of the Book Seminar series

by Laure Miolo

11/01/2026

16:58

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Organisers: Matthew Holford, Andrew Honey, Laure Miolo

Hilary Term 2026, Wednesdays 2.15-3.45pm (see sessions details below). Venue: Weston Library, Horton room. Anyone interested in manuscript studies is welcome. No registration required. For questions, please e-mail laure.miolo@history.ox.ac.uk

The series of seminars has been designed to introduce participants to the various material aspects of the book, thereby laying the foundations for the reconstruction of manuscripts’ production and history. The objective is to provide the indispensable elements for the analysis of the manuscript.

The seminars also provide a forum for specialists from different fields of manuscript studies to share their expertise. The sessions bring together curators, librarians, researchers and conservators to provide a comprehensive understanding of the various components of the codex from diverse perspectives. These components include the writing surface, ink, binding, decoration, manuscript production in its broadest sense, and its provenance. The seminars thus represent a valuable opportunity to demonstrate the necessity of close collaboration between researchers, curators/librarians, and conservators for a comprehensive consideration of the manuscript in its entirety. Such collaboration facilitates a more profound comprehension of the diverse contexts in which the manuscript was created, copied, and utilised.

Wednesday 28 January
Writing supports (parchment and paper) and manuscript structure
– Andrew Honey & Matthew Holford

Wednesday 4 February
Decoration
– Martin Kauffmann

Wednesday 11 February
Inks and Pigments
– Céline Delattre and Robert Minte

Wednesday 18 February
Bindings
– Andrew Honey

Wednesday 25 February
Calendars and time-reckoning
– Laure Miolo

Wednesday 4 March
Medieval Libraries and Provenance
– Matthew Holford and Laure MioloWednesday 11 March
Text identification
– Matthew Holford and Laure Miolo

Bodleian Library MS. Laud Misc. 165, fol. 17v

Exploring the Medieval Sky

by Laure Miolo

19/12/2025

15:00

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Report on the Spring School ‘Introduction to the “Science of the Stars” Through Manuscripts and Instruments‘

by Louise Tjoline Keitsch (University of Freiburg, Research Intern with Henrike Lähnemann Hilary and Trinity Term 2026)

From 16–20 March 2026, the Spring School Exploring the Medieval Sky: An Introduction to the “Science of the Stars” Through Manuscripts and Instruments brought together participants from a range of disciplines to explore the history of medieval astronomy and astrology through manuscripts, scientific instruments, and material culture. Organised by Laure Miolo (University of Oxford) and Alexandre Tur (Bibliothèque nationale de France), the programme combined lectures and papers, object-based teaching, and hands-on sessions across several Oxford institutions, including the Bodleian Libraries, the History of Science Museum and Merton College.

The week was structured around a progressive introduction to medieval conceptions of the cosmos. Morning sessions established the historical and theoretical foundations of medieval astronomy, tracing developments from the Early Middle Ages and the transmission of scientific knowledge to Ptolemaic cosmology, planetary theory, eclipses, conjunctions, and Renaissance astronomy. These lectures provided participants with the conceptual framework necessary to engage critically with medieval scientific texts and diagrams.

Afternoon sessions complemented this theoretical programme with direct engagement with manuscripts and instruments. Participants examined medieval scientific manuscripts from the Bodleian collections, visited the History of Science Museum and the libraries of Merton College, and took part in practical workshops devoted to astronomical tables, diagrams, and instruments. Additional specialist lectures addressed subjects including the zodiac man, nineteenth-century eclipse observation, astrology in early modern England, and the material transmission of scientific knowledge across different historical contexts.

Rather than using manuscripts and instruments merely as visual aids for scientific concepts, the programme invited participants to approach them as complex historical objects in their own right, in which material form, diagrammatic structure, marginal annotations, and patterns of handling all contribute to their meaning. Direct engagement with original artefacts made it clear how closely the physical examination of sources can reshape our understanding of both the production and transmission of scientific knowledge in the Middle Ages. Bringing together historians, manuscript scholars, librarians, museum professionals, students, and early-career researchers, the Spring School created a collaborative environment in which different disciplinary perspectives could intersect productively. Through its combination of lectures and hands-on work with primary materials, it underscored the importance of interdisciplinary approaches and object-based study for the history of medieval science.

A manuscript consulted during the workshop (photograph: Louise Tjoline Keitsch)

Announcement of the Spring School

Weston Library, 16–20 March 2026

Registration is now open for Exploring the Medieval Sky, a spring school designed for undergraduate and graduate students who wish to explore how medieval people understood the sky —encompassing the visible heavens (stars, planets, eclipses, comets), the theoretical structures used to explain them(cosmology, celestial spheres, planetary models), and the cultural meanings attached to celestial phenomena in art, science, and daily life. Over five days, participants will discover the foundations of medieval astronomy and astrology through a combination of lectures, hands-on sessions with manuscripts and instruments, visits to the History of Science Museum and Merton College OldLibrary and presentations of current research.By the end of the course, participants will have acquired a clear chronological framework for the medieval history of the “science of the stars,” will gain practical experience using an armillary sphere and an astrolabe, and will learn to identify the codicological structure and cultural significance of scientific manuscripts through extensive engagement with materials from the Weston Library’s collections.

The spring school is open to all Oxford undergraduate and graduate students. It is designed as anintroductory course; no prior knowledge is required, only an interest in the history of astronomy, astrology,or manuscript studies.To ensure effective work with rare and fragile historical materials, places are limited. By registering,participants agree to attend the full programme. Registration is free.

Registration deadline: 2 February 2026. To register please email: laure.miolo@history.ox.ac.uk

Organisation: Laure Miolo (Faculty of History, Wadham College) and Alexandre Tur (Bibliothèque nationale de France, Paris).

With the kind participation of: the Centre for the Study of the Book (Bodleian Library), Sumner Brand (History of Science Museum), Matthew Holford (Bodleian Library), Stephen Johnston (History of Science Museum), Michelle Pfeffer (Magdalen College), Julia Walworth (Merton College), Sian Witherden (Exeter College).

Palaeography Offers in Michaelmas 25

by Laure Miolo

13/10/2025

09:02

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There are a number of palaeography offers available for anybody interested in Oxford happening in Michaelmas 2025, coordinated by Dr Laure Miolo, Lyell Career Development Fellow in Latin Palaeography and Dilts Fellow at Lincoln College, historian of late medieval Europe, specialising in manuscript studies and history of early libraries with a special focus on scientific books and practices. Contact her for any of the below under laure.miolo@history.ox.ac.uk.

Header Image: Lincoln College/EL/OAS/D1

French Palaeography Manuscript Reading Group, Mo 10.30-12
Exploring Medieval Oxford through Lincoln & Magdalen Archives, Fr 2-3pm
Latin Palaeography Manuscript Reading Group, Tue 2-3.30pm

1. French Palaeography Manuscript Reading Group

This group is open to anyone with an interest in Old French, Middle French and Anglo-Norman manuscripts. We study and read manuscripts from the 12^th century to the 16^th century with a special focus on palaeography. We meet every Monday between 10.30am-12pm in the Weston Library.

If you are interested in joining the group or would like more information, please write to Laure Miolo.

The seminar comprises brief lectures on the morphology and function of scripts, as well as the evolution of script shapes and graphic systems in context, followed by transcription practice using original manuscripts and documents. Sessions are structured around the historical development of scripts, progressing from simpler shapes and strokes with minimal ligatures and abbreviations to more cursive and complex forms. A study of the diverse scripts found between the twelfth and early sixteenth centuries in manuscripts and documents written in Old French, Middle French, and Anglo-Norman — and produced in various geographical areas —will allow participants to gain familiarity with a wide range of scripts and abbreviations. The reading of literary texts in parallel with the analysis of manuscripts and their scripts serves to complement both the lectures and transcription practice.

Oxford, St John’s College MS 164, fol. 1r

2. Exploring Medieval Oxford through Surviving Archives

Every Friday 2-3pm Weston Library (Horton Room)

This weekly one-hour seminar offers participants the opportunity to work directly with original documents from various Oxford parishes, held in the Bodleian Libraries. Focusing primarily on thirteenth-century deeds, these documents provide rich insight into everyday life in medieval Oxford. Open to undergraduates, postgraduates, and early career researchers, the seminar welcomes all those interested in working with primary sources and conducting in-depth contextual analysis of historical records

Working individually or in pairs on a self-selected original document, participants will closely examine its physical and material features (such as writing surface, layout, and signs of use), carry out transcription and translation, and identify the individuals and locations mentioned in order to situate the document within its historical context. Particular emphasis will be placed on the seals attached to the documents.

Alongside collaborative work on these unpublished or little-studied sources, participants will gain experience in the digitisation and cataloguing of archival materials, and will have the opportunity to present their research and original documents to a wider audience during a one-day workshop in Trinity Term.

This seminar is held at the Weston Library (Horton Room) in collaboration with Matthew Holford, Tolkien Curator of Medieval Manuscripts. Those who are interested can contact the convenor, Laure Miolo via email: laure.miolo@history.ox.ac.uk. Those who are interested can contact the convenor, Laure Miolo

3. Latin Palaeography Manuscript Reading Group

(advanced beginner, intermediate and advanced levels)

For those wishing to develop, deepen or maintain their skills in Latin palaeography, we meet every Tuesday between 2pm and 3.30pm in the Weston Library (Horton Room or Visiting Scholars Centre). We explore a wide variety of medieval manuscripts and documents dating from the 9th to the 15th centuries. Each session combines hands-on analysis of different scripts, abbreviations, and codicological features. Regular practice is key to building palaeographical skills and gaining confidence in reading a range of scripts, from clear book and documentary hands to more cursive and heavily abbreviated ones. This reading group is designed to introduce the essential features of each script and abbreviation, enabling participants to read and interpret manuscripts directly and with confidence. Those who are interested can contact the convenor, Laure Miolo

Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS. Laud Misc. 562, fol. 1r

Recording Oxford’s Medieval Lives

by Laure Miolo

24/05/2024

06:27

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