Mass from BL YT 11, f. 6v - Public domain dedication image

Miniature of a mass attended by officials of a nunnery inside a church. On the right, a priest, in chasuble, is at the altar, with a deacon, an abbess with book and crozier, and nuns, including the sacristan pulling the bell ropes. Below, a procession is led by a clerk carrying a processional cross, followed by a priest, and nuns, two with open books, and the abbess with book and crozier. Image taken from f. 6v of 'La Sainte Abbaye' (ff. 2-7); a treatise on love (ff. 7-28); Livres de l'estat de l'ame (ff. 28v-51v); Tractatus de tribulatione (ff. 53-82). Written in French, with Latin inscriptions in miniatures.

Henry Yates Thompson (1838-1928) was a British collector and philanthropist who assembled this remarkable collection over his lifetime. The collection is now housed at the British Library in London.

Henry Yates Thompson was born into a wealthy family in 1838. Thompson began collecting manuscripts and other items in the 1870s. His collection quickly gained recognition for its exceptional quality and breadth. He had a keen eye for illuminated manuscripts, which are manuscripts decorated with intricate illustrations and calligraphy. The collection has a particular emphasis on medieval manuscripts.