Which manuscript contains the only surviving complete copy of 'Beowulf'?

The only surviving complete copy of “Beowulf” is preserved in the Nowell Codex.

The manuscript is a composite volume that forms part of British Library manuscript Cotton Vitellius A.XV. Alongside “Beowulf,” it contains texts including “The Wonders of the East,” “The Letter of Alexander to Aristotle,” and the poem “Judith.” It was probably produced around 975–1025.

The manuscript suffered damage in the 1731 Ashburnham House fire. Its edges were charred, and some readings became difficult or impossible to recover, but the poem itself remains substantially complete. “Beowulf” consists of 3,182 alliterative lines and is the longest surviving Old English epic.

The Junius Manuscript, Vercelli Book, and Exeter Book are also major Old English collections, but none contains “Beowulf.” The codex is sometimes called the Beowulf manuscript, although the poem’s original title is unknown.