Primary Sources: Medieval and Renaissance Periods: Religion & Philosophy

"... is considered to be one of the best examples of its type. The 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."

"You can browse and compare the unabridged texts of the four editions of this massive work published in John Foxe’s lifetime (1563, 1570, 1576, 1583). Each edition changed significantly as Foxe sought to incorporate new material, answer his critics, and adjust its polemical force to the needs of the moment. "

Online works from the Online Library of Liberty.

"The Apocalypse, or Book of Revelation, is not only the last Book of the New Testament, but its most difficult, puzzling, and terrifying. It provided challenges to medieval illustrators and was the source for a number of popular images, such as Christ in Majesty, the Adoration of the Lamb, and the Madonna of the Apocalypse and contributed to the widespread use of the Evangelists' symbols. "

"This fifteenth-century manuscript (AUL MS 25) was bequeathed to Marischal College, Aberdeen by one of its most famous graduates, Gilbert Burnet (1643-1715), Bishop of Salisbury, historian, theological writer, and adviser to William III. This site provides full-page images (text and illustration) and details from the manuscript."

Provides access to a variety e-books related to Christianity - most items have a free version available in either plain text or as a pdf.

"Codex Sinaiticus is one of the most important books in the world. Handwritten well over 1600 years ago, the manuscript contains the Christian Bible in Greek, including the oldest complete copy of the New Testament."

"... is an online project designed to grow and develop with the contribution of Pico scholars world wide. The Conclusiones were first published by Eucharius Silber in Rome on 7 December, 1486."

Old Testament Miniatures with Latin, Persian, and Judeo-Persian inscriptions
France, Paris, 1240s

"This digital facsimile provides reproductions of all 157 miniatures (and facing text pages) from the Hours of Catherine of Cleves. The original one-volume prayer book had been taken apart in the nineteenth century; the leaves were shuffled and then rebound into two confusing volumes. This presentation offers the miniatures in their original, fifteenth-century sequence. "

"... both maintains an index of all URLs currently active, which in any way pertain to St. Francis, the religious orders he founded, Franciscan Saints, Spirituality, History, Art, Architecture, Theology, etc., and provides a place for the publication of original texts, translations, and articles on Franciscanism."

"The Edgar J. Goodspeed Manuscript Collection comprises 68 early Greek, Syriac, Ethiopic, Armenian, Arabic, and Latin manuscripts ranging in date from the 5th to the 19th centuries. The acquisition of these hitherto unknown manuscripts was spearheaded by Edgar J. Goodspeed in the first half of the twentieth century in order to support new scholarship in the humanities."

"...contains pointers to Internet-accessible files relating to the early church, including canonical documents, creeds, the writings of the Apostolic Fathers and other historical texts relevant to church history."

"Illuminated around 1500 by the artist Jean Poyer, The Hours of Henry VIII receives its name from the possible but unproven eighteenth-century tradition that holds King Henry of England once owned this splendid manuscript. By following the simple instructions, you can explore every painting of this Renaissance masterpiece and learn how Books of Hours helped their readers to pray."

"This site is a freely available archive of electronic texts about religion, mythology, legends and folklore, and occult and esoteric topics. Texts are presented in English translation and, where possible, in the original language."

"This bibliography includes primary source texts relevant to the literary, historical, cultural, and religious milieu of Lollardy as well as those specifically by and about Lollard writers–and so, it is also a good place to start for work on later medieval religious culture in England at large. Inclusion on this list, therefore, does not necessarily mean that a text is Lollard."

Full view items available through the HathiTrust Digital Library and authored by the Church of England.

"... include manuscripts in Arabic, Coptic, Hebrew, Persian, and Turkish dating from at least as early as 800CE/183AH; and more than three thousand printed books from and about the Middle East. Highlighted in this collection is an eighteenth century Quran produced in Bukhara and a Persian manuscript of poetry by a Mughal princess."

"The Morgan Library & Museum is the only institution in the world to possess three copies of the Gutenberg Bible, the first substantial book printed from movable type in the West. ... This presentation features digital images of the Old Testament copy along with commentary on its history and significance."

Provides access to Latin, English and Italian translations of “Oration on the Dignity of Man” by Giovanni Pico della Mirandola

"This prayer book was commissioned by Anne de Bretagne, wife of two successive kings of France, Charles VIII and Louis XII, to teach her son, the dauphin Charles-Orland (1492–1495), his catechism. It was painted in Tours by Jean Poyer, an artist documented as working for the queen. The book is richly illustrated, and its thirty-four airy, light-flooded miniatures are among the most delicate examples of late-fifteenth-century art."

"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. "

Online Books by Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki a.k.a. Rashi

Online works from the Online Library of Liberty.

Online works from the Online Library of Liberty.

"This web site aims to display the St Albans psalter in such a way that readers may enjoy its beauty and contents. Commentaries on each page explain simply aspects of the iconography and codicology. These, together with the transcriptions and translations, provide a basic understanding of the book."