University Libraries

The Art of Knowledge: Medieval Manuscripts from Clairvaux to Montpellier

Exhibition organized by the Historical Library of Medicine

Date:September 19 to October 31, 2015 / October 3 conference day: program for the day
Hours:free admission Tuesday to Saturday from 1:00 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.
Location:Exhibition hall of the University Medical Library – 2 rue École de médecine – Montpellier

Poster
Catalog

The Art of Knowledge: Medieval Manuscripts from Clairvaux to Montpellier, 2015, 82 pages, €8

The exhibition "The Art of Knowledge: Medieval Manuscripts from Clairvaux to Montpellier" presentsa selection of these manuscripts, showcasing the variety of subjects covered and the diversity of their decoration, highlighting the monks' ambition to bring together all knowledge. You can virtually browse through all these manuscripts, which have been restored and digitized as part of the Clairvaux Virtual Library project.
These manuscripts are also available in Foli@, the BIU's digital library.
The display cases also illustrate the methods, materials, and different stages involved in the production of a manuscript.
Several activities accompany the exhibition.

  • Guided tours on Saturdays at 2:30 p.m. (on Saturday, October 17 at 1:30 p.m.) and by appointment (groups)
  • Educational file and visits for classes (student version, teacher version, appendix: decomposed initial letter)
  • Illumination workshops at the Faculty of Medicine in collaboration with the Hérault Departmental Archives on September 30, October 7, and October 21 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. (open to everyone aged 8 and over, free of charge but registration required at 04 34 43 35 80 or bu.medecine@univ-montp1.fr)
  • Demonstration of illumination by Aline Bonafoux at the Faculty of Medicine: presentation of the illuminator's materials, the medium, the production of colors, and the application of gold leaf on Saturday, October 17, at 3 p.m. Breakdown of the illumination process
  • Conference day on the manuscripts of Clairvaux, open to the general public, on Saturday, October 3 (Saint-Charles university campus, conference room 2).

Photo credits: University of Montpellier / SCDI Montpellier – photography department