Mount of Olives from BL Eg 1139, f. 7

Miniature of the Agony in the Garden. Image taken from f. 7 of Psalter (The 'Melisende Psalter') with canticles, prayers, and litany. Written in Latin.

The Agony in the Garden refers to the event in the life of Jesus Christ when he went to the Garden of Gethsemane to pray before his arrest and crucifixion. According to the New Testament, he was overwhelmed with sorrow and asked God to take the cup of suffering from him, yet he ultimately submitted to God's will, saying "Not my will, but yours be done." This event is considered one of the defining moments in the Passion of Jesus.

The Egerton Manuscript Collection is named after its founder, Sir Thomas Egerton (1540-1617), 1st Viscount Brackley, was a lawyer, statesman, and patron of the arts during the reigns of Queen Elizabeth I and King James I of England. He served as Lord Keeper of the Great Seal and later as Lord Chancellor of England, holding high positions in the legal and political realms.

Sir Thomas Egerton acquired a substantial number of historical and literary manuscripts. In 1617, shortly before his death, Sir Thomas Egerton bequeathed his collection of manuscripts to the British Museum, which was the precursor to the British Library.