Christian Classics Ethereal LibraryExtensive online collection of classic Christian texts, including Patristic writings, various versions of the Bible, hymns, denominational works, reference works, and theological texts.
Global Medieval SourcebookSpans one thousand years (600-1600) of literary production around the world. Contains short texts of broad interdisciplinary interest in various languages.
International Medieval BibliographyA multidisciplinary bibliographic database covering Europe, North Africa and the Middle East for the entire period from 300 to 1500 CE.
Internet Medieval SourcebookLinks to medieval texts and sources on the Web, both of short "classroom sized" extracts and full documents.
ITER: Gateway to the Middle Ages and the RenaissanceExtensive database on the Middle Ages and Renaissance periods. The Renaissance and Reformation journal might interest anyone conducting research on these eras.
Library of Latin TextsDatabase that contains texts from the beginning of Latin literature (Livius Andronicus, 240 BC) through to the texts of the Second Vatican Council (1962-1965). It covers all the works from the classical period, the most important patristic works, a very extensive corpus of Medieval Latin literature as well as works of recentior latinitas including texts from the Reformation and Catholic Reformation.
Manchester Medieval Sources OnlineA web-based learning resource containing hundreds of original medieval history documents compiled for the teaching and study of history. Designed for the needs of medieval history students, academics and researchers. Includes a portal to other sources on the web.
Medieval and Early Modern Sources OnlineA collection of digitized editions of texts concerning the study of Britain and its place in the world during the medieval and early modern period (c. 1100-1800). Includes texts covering religion in medieval Europe.
Patrologia GraecaContains more than 160 volumes of Greek material (with Latin translations) relevant to the study of the history of the Christian Church from its beginnings through the Council of Florence in 1439.
Patrologia Latina DatabaseAn electronic version of the first edition of Jacques-Paul Migne's Patrologia Latina, published between 1844 and 1855, and the four volumes of indexes published between 1862 and 1865. The Patrologia Latina comprises the works of the Church Fathers from Tertullian in 200 AD to the death of Pope Innocent III in 1216.
Crusade Sources in TranslationLists translations of primary sources from the Crusades in different languages, including English.
The Society for Medieval Military History: Primary SourcesA scholarly society dedicated to the study of warfare, broadly construed, in the Middle Ages. This section contains the collection of translated medieval sources that deal with warfare in the Middle Ages.
Aberdeen Bestiary ManuscriptThe manuscript, written and illuminated in England around 1200, is of added interest since it contains notes, sketches and other evidence of the way it was designed and executed.
The Bayeux Tapestry Digital EditionAn electronic edition of the Bayeux Tapestry, which is reassembled and presented in a continuous scrolling format. Annotations of scholarship appear in context with the relevant sections of the textile.
The Black Hours (Morgan Library)The Black Hours was created in Bruges around the year 1475. All 121 vellum folios are stained in black. To make the writing stand out against the dark background, only white lead and opaque paints were used for the miniatures, and gold and silver ink for the script.
Digital Vatican LibraryProvides free access to the Vatican Library’s digitized collections: manuscripts, incunabula, archival materials and inventories as well as graphic materials, coins and medals, printed materials (special projects).
Goodspeed Manuscript CollectionComprises 68 early Greek, Syriac, Ethiopic, Armenian, Arabic, and Latin manuscripts ranging in date from the 5th to the 19th centuries. Searchable by place and date of origin.
The Hours of Jeanne d'Evreux (The MET)Created in Paris between 1325 and 1328, within its 209 folios one can find 25 full-page miniatures and 700 other illustrations. It was originally a wedding gift from King Charles IV of France to his new wife Jeanne d’Evreux. Part of its appeal is that manuscript is very small (8.9 × 6.2 cm), yet is full of art. All miniatures are in demi-grisaille, a painting technique using mainly shades of grey and colouring for the figures’ faces and hands
Images from Medieval and Renaissance ManuscriptsOne of the largest repositories of medieval images on the Internet, providing access to more than 57,000 digitized images from New York's Morgan's collection of medieval and Renaissance manuscripts.
In Principio Incipit Index of Latin TextsCovers all known Latin texts, in manuscript form, from the start of Latin literature to around 1500c.e. It includes ancient, patristic, medieval, and humanist literature and it covers all genres: theology, liturgy, civil and canon law, and sermons.
Irish Script on ScreenSOS is Ireland's largest digital repository of Irish manuscripts. Funded by the Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies.
Manuscripts Online (1000-1500)Collection of online primary resources relating to written and early printed culture in Britain during the period 1000 to 1500. Resources include literary manuscripts, historical documents and early printed books.
Medieval Family LifeA database of full-colour images of the original medieval manuscripts that make up these 5 letter collections of 15th century England families: the Paston, Stonor, Plumpton, Armburgh and Cely families. Full-text-searchable transcripts from the printed editions, where they are available.
Medieval Travel WritingA collection of medieval manuscripts from libraries around the world and dating from the 13th to the 16th centuries. The main focus is accounts of journeys to the Holy Land, India and China. The original documents are in a range of languages.
The Morgan Crusader Bible (Morgan Library)Also known as the Maciejowski Bible, this Bible was made for King Louis IX of France around 1250. In this manuscript we see Biblical history depicted in great detail, from the Creation of the world to the deeds of the most important characters of the Old Testament. The Crusader’s Bible fascinates through its rich and refined gold embellishment which comes to enhance the luminosity of the colours.
Parker Library on the WebA digital exhibit designed to support use and study of the manuscripts in the historic Parker Library at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge. Includes digitized images of rare medieval and Renaissance manuscripts, and printed books.
Polonsky Foundation Digitization ProjectBetween 2012 and 2017 the Bodleian Libraries of the University of Oxford and the Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana (Vatican Library) joined efforts in a landmark digitization project with the aim of opening up their repositories of ancient texts. The digitization project has focussed on three main groups of texts: Hebrew manuscripts, Greek manuscripts, and incunabula, or 15th-century printed books. These groups were chosen for their scholarly importance and for the strength of their collections in both libraries, and they include both religious and secular texts. An important group of Latin texts in the Vatican Library has also been made available online.
The Prayer Book of Claude de France (Morgan Library)The Prayer Book of Claude de France is a tiny, jewel-like manuscript that was made for Claude (1499–1524) around 1517, the year she was crowned queen of France. Her coat of arms appears on three different folios. The book is richly illustrated: the borders of each leaf are painted, front and back, with 132 scenes from the lives of Christ, the Virgin Mary, and numerous saints.
Acta SanctorumIncludes materials on the lives of the saints from the beginning of the Christian era to the end of the sixteenth century, in critical editions with commentaries on the source documents.
Albertus Magnus E-CorpusProvides access to 60 works by the medieval mystic and philosopher electronically, using a Boolean search engine which gives access to a corpus of approximately 19,000 pages in print.
Corpus ThomisticumIncludes: a full edition of the complete works of St. Thomas; a bibliography covering all the studies on Aquinas and his doctrine; an index of the main tools of Thomistic research; and; a digital edition of the main manuscripts of Aquinas' works.
Franciscan SourcesMaintains an index of all URLs currently active, which in any way pertain to St. Francis and the religious orders he founded. Here are links to primary sources.
Internet Sacred Text ArchiveIncludes sacred texts from various religious traditions including Christianity. Includes resources from the Reformation era such as the Spiritual Exercises, works of Luther and Calvin, catechisms, and famous novels from the era.
Primary Sources: Other Topics
Archive of Celtic-Latin LiteratureContains the texts processed thus far from the corpus of Celtic-Latin literature from the period 400-1200 as part of the Royal Irish Academy's Dictionary of Medieval Latin from Celtic Sources project.
Cantus: A Database for Latin Ecclesiastical ChantA database of the Latin chants found in manuscripts and early printed books, primarily from medieval Europe. This searchable digital archive holds inventories of antiphoners and breviaries -- the main sources for the music sung in the Latin liturgical Office -- as well as graduals and other sources for music of the Mass.
Epistolae: Medieval Women's LettersEpistolæ is a collection of medieval Latin letters to and from women. The letters collected here date from the 4th to the 13th centuries, and they are presented in their original Latin as well as in English translation.
Silk Road NarrativesA collection of primary sources from travelers on the Silk Road from 200-1700 CE.
