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The 22nd of November is dedicated to St Cecilia – the patron saint of music. So what better way to mark the occasion than with a gallery of some of the most eye-catching musical manuscripts, from the earliest Gregorian chants to scores signed by Elgar? Here are some of our favourites…
These are 22 of the most beautiful musical manuscripts
The manuscript for Ludwig van Beethoven's first edition of the Ninth Symphony, which was sold for £2.1m in 2003. Credit: Ian Waldie/Getty
An image of one of the surviving leaves of Mozart's own draft manuscript for the Sinfonia Concertante in E Flat for violin, viola and orchestra. Credit: Getty
A facsimile of the manuscript of Chopin's Prelude in D flat. Op. 28. No. 15. Credit: Getty
Jesus' crucifixion, depicted in a miniature from the Saint Wulfram Gospels, 15th-Century France. Picture: Getty
From around 1721, this is the first page of the musical manuscript of Johann Sebastian Bach's 'The Well-Tempered Clavichord' showing the first prelude. Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty
A manuscript score of Stravinsky's 'The Firebird'. Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale De France (Library) Picture: Getty
People playing blind man's buff, miniature from Chansonnier de Paris, around 1280-1315, France. Picture: Getty
The manuscript of Beethoven's Grosse Fuge in B flat major, Op 133 for string quartet. Credit: Getty
A score signed by the great British composer Edward Elgar (1857 - 1934). Picture: Getty
A manuscript of music by Johann Sebastian Bach. Credit: Getty
Song of love, miniature by Chansonnier de Paris in a manuscript from France, 1280-1315. Picture: Getty
A copy of the first page of the autographed manuscript of Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue from 1924. Picture: Getty
An antiquated illuminated manuscript on vellum. Credit: Getty
1815: The manuscript of Franz Schubert's first sketch of the song 'Erlkönig from 1815, showing a different right-hand accompaniment to the finally published version. Credit: Getty
From around 1845: a page of music by Robert Schumann that belonged to the famous violinist Joseph Joachim. Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty
A beautiful illuminated musical manuscript. Credit: Getty
A manuscript of Robert Schumann's 'Ritornelles', for male chorus, in canon form from January 1852. Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty
A page of musical manuscript by Gioacchino Rossini from around 1858. Credit: Hulton Archive/Getty
An illustration showing the Resurrection, c. 1500. Found in the collection of the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles. Picture: Getty
A manuscript of a re-discovered composition by J. S. Bach, a "ritornello aria" in which the different verses of the aria are interrupted by short passages of instrumental music. Credit: Getty
A manuscript showing music written in Beethoven's own hand. Credit: Getty
A facsimile of Handel's 'Belshazzar' oratorio. Photo: Jan Woitas