The Fitzwilliam Museum

Launched in 2012 by the Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Research in the presence of the Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University, MINIARE is a cross-disciplinary project using advanced methods in the physical sciences, the arts, humanities and social sciences. It employs non-invasive analytical methods to identify the painting materials and techniques in manuscripts, incorporating the discoveries into textual, art-historical and provenance research. Combining Cambridge’s rich collections and world-class expertise, MINIARE brings studies of the artistic, cultural, political, social and economic environments in which the manuscripts were created together with cutting-edge scientific protocol and digital technology.

Technical analysis, well established as a scholarly tool in other artistic media, is a recent development in manuscript studies. The few results, published mostly in scientific journals, are rarely considered vis-à-vis the manuscripts’ cultural significance. MINIARE is the first synergy of scientific, stylistic, textual and historical analyses, systematically examining statistically significant groups of material rather than isolated examples. It identifies new pigments, corrects misconceptions about artists’ methods of work and transforms current knowledge about medieval painting, revealing the transfer of materials and expertise across manuscripts, panels, stained glass and textiles. MINIARE has a research network of colleagues from three of Cambridge’s Schools, from UK and overseas universities, and from industry. MINIARE features in the Vice-Chancellor’s presentations as a flagship of Cambridge’s interdisciplinary research.

MINIARE’s current focus is on Western European manuscripts produced between the 6th and the 16th century. This phase of the project informed the Museum’s bicentenary exhibition COLOUR: The Art and Science of Illuminated Manuscripts (30 July - 30 December 2016) and is the research platform for the resource ILLUMINATED: Manuscripts in the making.