The Book of Cerne

The ninth-century Book of Cerne offers a fascinating insight into Insular culture and is the only surviving illuminated manuscript that can be firmly attributed to the powerful Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia.

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The Book of Cerne (Cambridge University library, MSLLL10) reveals a complex interplay of text, script, and image. It offers a fascinating insight into Insular culture and is the only surviving illuminated manuscript that can be firmly attributed to the powerful Anglo-Saxon kingdom of Mercia. At the time of its production, around 820-840, princes and prelates were vying for power and the Vikings were knocking, less than politely, at the door.


The Book of Cerne is a prayerbook (meditating upon the themes of salvation and the communion of saints) made for a patron whose cultural tastes embraced Celtic, Anglo-Saxon, Carolingian, Roman, and Byzantine materials. This volume represents the first comprehensive study of the manuscript and places it within the broader context of the book production and prayer life of the Insular world.