Laura Cleaver

Dr. Laura Cleaver is a Senior Lecturer in Manuscript Studies at the Institute of English Studies, University of London. She holds a PhD from The Courtauld Institute of Art (2008) and specializes in the art and architecture of the High Middle Ages and its modern reception. Her research focuses on medieval manuscripts' production, circulation, and valuation, particularly in early 20th-century Europe and North America. She leads the ERC-funded CULTIVATE MSS project (2019–2024), examining the manuscript trade's impact on cultural identity formations.

Her scholarly work spans edited volumes on manuscript economics, cultural diplomacy, and transatlantic trade dynamics. She collaborates with institutions like the Schoenberg Database of Manuscripts and York Medieval Press, contributing to series like Writing History in the Middle Ages. Her supervision includes studies on clubs/societies' roles in manuscript collecting and women's contributions to the book trade.

Research interests include medieval historiography, manuscript diagrams, and the intersection of art, politics, and religion in manuscripts. She has held affiliations with the Ordered Universe research network and New Interpretations on the Angevin World project. Her work bridges material culture analysis with socio-economic histories of cultural heritage formation.