National Library of Wales
Llanstephan Manuscripts
#### Llanstephan Manuscripts

The [Llanstephan](/wiki/Llanstephan "Llanstephan") Collection of manuscripts was donated to the National Library of Wales by Sir John Williams in 1909\. It had been his personal collection, which he kept in the library of his home, Llanstephan mansion, Carmarthenshire. The collection is composed of the 154 manuscripts which had belonged to [Moses Williams](/wiki/Moses_Williams_%28antiquarian%29 "Moses Williams (antiquarian)") (1685–1742\), that were purchased from [Shirburn Castle](/wiki/Shirburn_Castle "Shirburn Castle"), Oxfordshire and other manuscripts of diverse origins collected by Sir John. Medieval Welsh prose is well represented in the Shirburn Castle collection, with chronicles, legends, fables, theological tracts and collections of works by eminent poets of the period. These manuscripts include a Welsh translation of Geoffrey of Monmouth's *Historia* from the 13th century, the [Gutun Owain](/wiki/Gutun_Owain "Gutun Owain") Manuscript and the Red Book of Talgarth.


Where were the Shirburn Castle manuscripts purchased from?