The
Nowell Codex is the second of two manuscripts found in the bound volume
Cotton Vitellius A.xv, one of the four major Anglo-Saxon poetic manuscripts. It is most famous as the
manuscript containing the unique copy of the epic poem
Beowulf. In addition to this, it contains first a fragment of
The Life of Saint Christopher, then the more complete texts
Wonders of the East and
Letters of Alexander to Aristotle, and, after
Beowulf,
a poetic translation of Judith. Due to the fame of
Beowulf, the Nowell codex is also sometimes known simply as the
Beowulf manuscript. The manuscript is located within the
British Library with the rest of the
Cotton collection.