Dr Bryony Coombs
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bryonycoombs.bsky.social
Dr Bryony Coombs
@bryonycoombs.bsky.social
Art Historian I Medieval and Early Modern, PhD, FSA Scot, FRHistS
Renaissance Teaching Fellow, Edinburgh Uni
Franco-Scottish cultural connections: art, architecture and material culture.
https://edinburgh.academia.edu/BryonyCoombs
https://bryonycoombs.com
Pinned
✨🎉Hello new BlueSky people 👋
Who am I?
New Book: Visual Arts & the Auld Alliance.
New project: Scotland on Parchment: Scraped, Limned and Bound due 2026. Inaugural book in a new EUP series Visual and Material Cultures of Scotland🎉✨ @edinburghup.bsky.social
New approaches: wp.me/peZVQm-8R
An enquiry by a former student has sent me down an academic rabbit hole relating to the works of Jacob Cornelisz van Oostsanen. I simultaneously know that I do not have time for this, but know myself, so know that I cannot let it go😬 argh!

Cornelisz, Man of Sorrows c.1510 Museum Mayer van den Bergh
November 23, 2025 at 8:57 PM
November 22, 2025 at 2:18 PM
Reposted by Dr Bryony Coombs
Delighted to announce that vol 30 of 'Review of Scottish Culture' is now available online. It's another super issue, ranging through Scotland and across genres, from senior scholars and emerging voices. All free to download. Now open, for new submissions!

journals.ed.ac.uk/rosc
November 21, 2025 at 3:13 PM
😯
Another incredible treasure from Grinnell, this time in the art collection, is this set of cuttings of the miniatures from what must have been a gorgeous book of hours! 🌟
(1985.003.001-009)
#midwestmss #medievalsky #medievalmss #manuscripts #fragments
November 20, 2025 at 5:18 PM
Reposted by Dr Bryony Coombs
Great placards from the rally at the parliament #StopaStaffCutsatEoE
November 19, 2025 at 3:00 PM
Reposted by Dr Bryony Coombs
The St  Andrews Chronicles, one of the most important manuscript histories of Scotland, is going on public display for the first time in its 500-year history. The book will be on display at @uniofstandrews.bsky.social from 21 November to 7 December
#BookHistory
news.st-andrews.ac.uk/archive/500-...
November 18, 2025 at 5:03 PM
Gorgeous:
A fun look today at @rialibrary.bsky.social’s manuscript of the week! The 15th-century Leabhar Breac / The Speckled Book (RIA MS 23 P 16) is a collection of religious, literary and historical works, including the lives St Patrick, St Brigid and Alexander the Great 📜🎉
November 18, 2025 at 6:28 PM
Reposted by Dr Bryony Coombs
I’ve written a piece on the curious lack of media and political interest in the issues faced by our national @britishlibrary.bsky.social. This is strange given we live in a world where ideas, knowledge and research are a long-term source of innovation and insight
www.cityam.com/the-british-...
The British library is in crisis: why does nobody care?
The widespread indifference to the British Library's crippling cyberattack demonstrates a perilous failure to value the knowledge infrastructure vital for national prosperity
www.cityam.com
November 18, 2025 at 6:27 AM
Reposted by Dr Bryony Coombs
I'm on strike for the next three days in protest at my employer's refusal to rule out compulsory redundancies as part of their cost-cutting vision for a radically diminished university. My school makes a healthy profit, most of which goes back into central coffers, yet still we're told to save more.
November 17, 2025 at 10:58 AM
Reposted by Dr Bryony Coombs
Thinking of undertaking a postgraduate degree in History of Art?

Have a look at some of the fantastic programmes here at Edinburgh:

Global Premodern Art (MSc)
History of Art, Theory and Display (MSc)
Modern and Contemporary Art (MSc)
Collections and Curating Practices (MScR)
November 15, 2025 at 12:22 PM
Thinking of undertaking a postgraduate degree in History of Art?

Have a look at some of the fantastic programmes here at Edinburgh:

Global Premodern Art (MSc)
History of Art, Theory and Display (MSc)
Modern and Contemporary Art (MSc)
Collections and Curating Practices (MScR)
November 15, 2025 at 12:22 PM
👀Wow! (not the price but that they just had this and who knew?)
www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Almshouse in Dorset discovers its 15th-century Flemish triptych is worth £3.5m
Artwork that hung for centuries at St John’s Almshouse in Sherborne will be sold to raise funds for social housing
www.theguardian.com
November 14, 2025 at 3:52 PM
Reposted by Dr Bryony Coombs
📢 Delighted to announce that our Visiting Research Fellowships scheme for 2026 is now open for applications. Wonderful collections, world-class library & a brilliant @uofglasgow.bsky.social team to support you. Find out more 👇
November 13, 2025 at 2:35 PM
Reposted by Dr Bryony Coombs
'Applications are invited from both early career and established scholars of any nationality, engaged on original research intended to produce monographs, editions or studies of documents, texts or illustrations, that include the analysis of the material features of original manuscripts'. up to £2k.
The British Academy invite applications for the Neil Ker Memorial Fund 2026. The scheme aims to promote the study of Western medieval manuscripts, particularly those of British interest: https://bit.ly/4hO0Oo1
November 13, 2025 at 8:46 AM
Well, off I go to this - a first for me, so I will keep you posted.
Double expresso and a good book to see me there!
November 12, 2025 at 8:48 AM
Reposted by Dr Bryony Coombs
The phenomenal and enigmatic rock crystal and gold 'jar' of Bishop Hyguald from the heart of the Galloway Hoard is NOW on display for the first time ever. It was held back for Kirkcudbright while the rest of the Hoard continues its world tour in Melbourne (1/2)
Gold jar from Galloway Hoard on display in Kirkcudbright
It resembles a perfume bottle and a Latin inscription on it suggests it had a religious function.
www.bbc.co.uk
November 11, 2025 at 2:51 PM
An interesting mix today. I'll be discussing AI with my first yrs and thinking about Sonja Drimmer & Christopher Nygren's very interesting work on this. This coincides with the week I ask them to take notes with quills and ink & consider embodied learning. Its going to be an interesting contrast...
November 11, 2025 at 9:28 AM
Reposted by Dr Bryony Coombs
HAD to put the bookplate there, didn't you...
November 10, 2025 at 5:16 PM
Very interested in this... when can I get to Norway?
www.nb.no/hva-skjer/th...
The Hagenes codex and the conservation of medieval manuscripts
www.nb.no
November 8, 2025 at 8:47 PM
Reposted by Dr Bryony Coombs
I had a great time recently chatting with @cjfaraday.bsky.social about 'Visual Arts and the Auld Alliance' for the 'British Art Matters' Podcast. I am in the company of some wonderful authors discussing their (and others) works:
www.walpolesociety.org.uk/podcast
Podcast | The Walpole Society
www.walpolesociety.org.uk
November 7, 2025 at 1:28 PM
I had a great time recently chatting with @cjfaraday.bsky.social about 'Visual Arts and the Auld Alliance' for the 'British Art Matters' Podcast. I am in the company of some wonderful authors discussing their (and others) works:
www.walpolesociety.org.uk/podcast
Podcast | The Walpole Society
www.walpolesociety.org.uk
November 7, 2025 at 1:28 PM
This afternoon I ran an embodied manuscripts workshop at Edinburgh CRC and we looked at some extraordinary manuscripts (just look at CRC MS 19👀👇), and I had the opportunity to spend time talking to some very interesting, engaged and enquiring students - honestly what could be better? Thank you LAMPS
November 6, 2025 at 6:47 PM
Ohh look at this:
Just found out about this amazing example of #manuscript #recycling . The whole manuscript is made up from the margins of an earlier liturgical manuscript, cut out and rearranged (hence the unusual format), the (mostly) blank margins then used to copy various magical texts in the mid 16th century.
November 6, 2025 at 6:18 PM