A Book of Hours: St Bartholomew-the-Great
Fri 16 Oct
|St Bartholomew-the-Great
In partnership with St Bart's, Rune presents a Marian service inspired by Books of Hours - popular devotional books from the 13th-16th C. The service will focus on the Hours of the Virgin, telling the story of Mary. Especially fitting in a church with a recorded Marian visitation before 1180.
Time & Location
16 Oct 2026, 18:00 – 19:30
St Bartholomew-the-Great, W Smithfield, Barbican, London EC1A 9DS, UK
About the event
A Book of Hours was a medieval prayer book for lay people, structuring the day around set moments such as Matins, Lauds, and Vespers. These deeply personal and ornate books, popular from the 13th to 16th centuries, offered texts, prayers, and often music to accompany daily life. Central to most Books of Hours are the Hours of the Virgin Mary, which trace key moments in her story. In partnership with St Bartholomew-the-Great, Rune presents a Marian service shaped by this tradition and by Mary’s story - especially fitting in this medieval church, the only church in London with a recorded visitation from the Virgin Mary occurring sometime before 1180.