The Name of the Rose

This edition of The Name of the Rose, translated from Italian, is set in centaur at the Folio Society, and was printed on Caxton-wove paper at St. Edmundsbury Press and bound in Edinburgh in full cloth blocked with a design by the artist.

Winter, 1327. The medieval Church is rife with corruption. High in a remote monastery in Northern Italy, a young monk has been found murdered in bizarre circumstances. Brother William, a learned member of the Franciscan order, is sent to the monastery to investigate. Accompanied by his young scribe, Adso of Melk - who at the beginning of his account asks only that 'the Lord grant me the grace to be a transparent witness of the happenings that took place in the abbey' - William sets about his task. But before he has had time to become acquainted with his new surroundings, another corpse is discovered, plunged head first into a vat of pig's blood. As the murders multiply, William must navigate his way through a bewildering maze of riddles, conundrums, signs and symbols to solve the ever-deepening mystery.

With digressions on everything from theological history to the intricacies of classical philosophy, from the art of manuscript illumination to the darker arts of the occult, the story provides a rich and enthralling feast of love and betrayal, skulduggery, faith and heresy.