The Ancient and New Covenants, manuscript work by Freeman, Claybury Asylum

Manuscript volume created by resident of Claybury Asylum. Date inscribed on cover may not be date of creation.Written in ink and illustrated with watercolour images, by an author who identifies himself only as 'Freeman', The Ancient and New Covenants is his creation of a new religious mythos. The script is dense but clear. The narrative created by Freeman, 'tells the story of two brothers inheriting respective kingdoms of Waterland and Ashland. One of the kingdoms is beset by plagues, and ?the Master Workman? bestows upon the kings a mystical Covenant which will deliver them from evil.' (vendor's note).Freeman has included a photograph of 'the messenger' of the Covenant in the frontispiece of the volume. Themes of paranoia, apolcalyptic prophechy and the intolerances of his time run through the narrative created by Freeman.