The Forgotten Theft of Royal MS 16 E VIII: Carla Rossi's Research Unveils Hidden History

ISFiDa is pleased to announce the publication of The 1879 Theft of Royal Ms 16 E VIII from the British Museum: Wars and Tolkien’s Teacher’s Role, a new scholarly work by Prof. Carla Rossi.

Published in 2024 by Cambridge Scholars Publishing, this book offers a groundbreaking historical and philological investigation into the mysterious disappearance of one of the British Museum’s most precious medieval manuscripts, Royal MS 16 E VIII.

📖 About the Book

Prof. Carla Rossi, renowned philologist and specialist in medieval manuscripts, brings to light the forgotten history of Royal MS 16 E VIII. Through extensive archival research and codicological analysis, she reconstructs the story of this 13th-century manuscript, contributing significantly to the field of medieval studies and manuscript preservation.

Her book, The 1879 Theft of Royal MS 16 E VIII from the British Museum (Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2024), reaffirms her commitment to responsible scholarship and cultural heritage protection.

In the face of defamatory attacks targeting her work, Prof. Rossi continues to uphold the values of academic integrity and resilience. The volume reconstructs the circumstances surrounding the 1879 theft of the manuscript, which contained the only known copy of the Voyage de Charlemagne à Jérusalem et à Constantinople and several other precious Anglo-Norman texts.

Through meticulous archival research and a critical reassessment of international cultural rivalries following the Franco-Prussian War, Prof. Rossi sheds light on the political tensions that shaped the fate of cultural heritage during the late 19th century. Her research also uncovers the unexpected connection between the missing manuscript and J.R.R. Tolkien’s German teacher, August Leopold Rothe.

This compelling study brings together history, literature, and political intrigue, culminating in a fascinating narrative that reveals hidden dimensions of the world of philology and manuscript studies.

📚 Book Details

• Author: Prof. Carla Rossi

• Publisher: Cambridge Scholars Publishing

• Year: 2024

• ISBN (print): 978-1-0364-1564-8

• ISBN (eBook): 978-1-0364-1565-5

• 📎 View the Book on Cambridge Scholars

🌍 Why It Matters

The 1879 Theft not only offers a comprehensive reconstruction of a long-forgotten cultural crime but also addresses broader issues such as:

• Cultural nationalism after the Franco-Prussian War,

• Academic rivalries and their impact on scholarship,

• Preservation and loss of medieval manuscripts,

• The hidden networks connecting European philologists at the turn of the 20th century.

This research is particularly timely today, as discussions about cultural heritage, restitution, and historical memory are gaining renewed attention worldwide.