Centuries-old parchments with Old English notes found in bookbindings at Alkmaar archive
The Regional Archive Alkmaar announced the discovery of parchment fragments in several 17th-century bookbindings, believed to have originated from an 11th-century book, possibly once owned by an English princess. These findings were made public on Thursday by the Regional Archive Alkmaar.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, many books were printed and bound, and bookbinders commonly used parchment made from animal skin to strengthen bindings. They often repurposed old medieval books written on parchment to save costs.
These parchment pieces were found in four 17th-century bookbinding and contain Latin texts with Old English translations. Old English was spoken in England from about 500 to 1100. There are over five hundred such Old English notes in total on the parchments. Thijs Porck, an associate professor of medieval English in Leiden, confirmed that these fragments belonged to a handwritten 11th-century Latin book of psalms, nearly a thousand years old.
What makes this discovery special is that fragments of the same handwritten book have been found in book bindings in Haarlem, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Poland. Thijs Porck is working with Polish colleagues to identify the exact binder responsible for these pieces.
The Regional Archive Alkmaar stated that these fragments may have been part of a book owned by English Princess Gunhilde, who fled England following a Norman army invasion in 1066. She passed away in Bruges in 1087 and left her psalm book, among other things, to the Saint Donatian's Church there.
The last known record of the book was in 1561. After 1580, some books from the Saint Donatian's Church were sold as surplus and may have been used in new editions, which could explain how the psalm book potentially ended up with a local bookbinder.
For those interested, the fragments and other parchment puzzle pieces can be viewed during free tours of the Regional Archives on January 22, 24, 26, and 30, and February 1, 2024. These tours start at 4 p.m. at the central reception of Bergerweg 1 and last approximately an hour. Registration is required due to limited group size and can be done via email at [email protected] or by calling 072 850 8200.
