Anonymous, MS Harley 2253

Susanna Fein (Kent State University)

Ed. by Rory Critten, Université de Lausanne
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 1.2.1.02: English Writing and Culture: High and Late Medieval, 1066-1485.
Vol. editors: Kate Ash-Irisarri (University of Edinburgh), Rory Critten (Université de Lausanne), David Fuller (University of Durham), Natalie Hanna (University of Liverpool), Hugh Magennis (Queen's University Belfast), Jamie McKinstry (University of Durham), Sarah Peverley (University of Liverpool), Sebastian Sobecki (Rijksuniversiteit Groningen)

Dates

First circulation or publication c. 1300 - c. 1400

Places

England (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Poetry (any)

Resources

Introduction

London, British Library, MS Harley 2253 (c. 1340-1349) is an extraordinary manuscript from the West Midlands of England. In the history of Middle English literature, its early date—some forty years before the London-based poetry of Geoffrey Chaucer—underscores its exceptionalism. Without the survival of this manuscript, we would little suspect the vitality and range of early-fourteenth-century literature, to which it gives witness in 104 items copied across 184 pages of parchment. The texts preserved in Harley 2253 were collected by a scribe of sharp literary instincts. Although his name is unknown, we have access to a substantial portion of his library and scrivening oeuvre. We are thereby able to surmise details of his career, cultural milieu, and active period, which ceased in the year that the Black Death ravaged the West Midlands.

The Harley Scribe

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4234 words

Citation: Fein, Susanna. "MS Harley 2253". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 03 February 2023 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=3402, accessed 09 June 2026.]