August 04, 2006
Digital Domesday
Britain's earliest surviving public record now available in a searchable online format. Some decent background on 11th century England linked off the main page too.
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But it looks like you have to pay for the actual records :(
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In other ancient manuscript news, x-rays are revealing unreadable bits of the Archimedes Palimpsest
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Shame about the charges, but it's still pretty good. Tantalising information - I wish it were possible to find out more about Adelina the jester, for example, recorded as having land in Over Wallop, Nether Wallop, and other places. She must be among the earliest recorded professional female comedians.
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Dare we say she of these wallops was a hit?
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Wow. This, my friends, is what the Industrial Revolution was all about.
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But... why does it say you can read about bee catchers in the 11th century at the bottom of the page when you can't read about bee catchers in the 11th century when you click on the link? Man, I hate when that happens.
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What's with the National Archives going all money grubbing? They are usually so much better than that. If it were the British Library, I wouldn't be surprised, but the National Archives usually takes being a repository of public information very seriously. That said, I think that the growing popularity of geneology has spurred some of the archives to see their patrons as cash cows, rather than as the public for whom they exist to serve.
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That said, I know it's off line, but the Doomsday has been published and should be available at most large libraries. Not as nice as it being online, but at least you don't have to trek all the way to Kew just to look something up. Also, I doubt they would ever let you look at it, unless you had serious credentials. But if you want to check out Elizabethan stuff, you just need ID.
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Cool link. Thanks.
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But I want to search references to horses. *pouts
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*discovers The Idiot's Guide to Palimpsestinas*