[Latin Bible]

Description

Manuscript in Latin in Gothic bookhand (textura) on parchment, containing the text of the Old and New Testaments. Decoration: Minimal decoration, but occasional fine decorated capitals in red and blue with extensive pen flourishing infill. Major initials: Fol. 1r: Ornamental painted initial at the beginning of Genesis which runs the length of the writing area, consisting of scrolling vine like tendrils ending at the top and the bottom in a Celtic knot-like pattern. Fol. 50v: Ornamental blue and red initial at the beginning of Deuteronomy with flourished infill and border extensions. Minor initials: small red and blue capitals throughout to mark the opening of chapters; some slightly larger and more ornate initials for the opening of each new book (cf. fol. 16r: an ornamental ‘H’ for beginning of Exodus. Fol. 38v: an ornamental ‘L’ for incipit of Numbers). Capital strokes in red. Running titles throughout top middle of the folio in red and blue, split across verso and recto, some
trimmed by later binding. Some rubrics present in red; chapter numbers appear in the main text in blue or alternating blue and red roman numerals. Red is used for corrections to the text. In particular textual additions are written in the margin and circled in red; a red ruled line by the addition points to an omission mark in red in the text. Where these are triangular in the margins, the corresponding mark in the text is also a triangle outlined in red. Pages ruled: rulings are visible left and right of the writing area. Incipit: Fol 1r, Incipit liber genesis (rubric). Imperfect: Wanting three? opening leaves, containing the general prologue (Frater ambrosius) [Stegmüller 284]. Fol. 4, which probably contained the prologue to Genesis (‘Desiderii mei’) [Stegmüller 285] has had a paper slip glued over the text of the prologue, to give the impression that the manuscript is complete and opens with the ornamental initial at the beginning of Genesis. Annotations: Early MS marginalia in a
different hand to that of the scribe [cf. leaf 11r (inner margin), 11v, 14v, 75v, 208r, 331r, 331v, 370r, 370v. Chapter numbers added in MS within the Psalms leaf 187v-191v, apparently in the same hand as the early MS marginalia. MS slip pasted to front flyleaf, containing a lengthy nineteenth-century discussion of the textual variations apparent in the manuscript. Further MS bibliographical notes in a nineteenth-century hand to verso of front flyleaf. Nineteenth-century MS not on textual variation on leaf 377r. Leaf size: max height 160 x width 115mm (some leaves down to 112mm). Text frame: 120 x 78mm. 2 columns, 51 lines.


Referenced in: Private pleasures : illuminated manuscripts from Persia to Paris: the collection of Denys Spittle (Cambridge : Fitzwilliam Museum, [2007]) pp. 7-9. Potten, Edward, 'From Byzantium to Alberto Sangorski: Treasures from the Thomas Edward Watson Collection at the Brotherton Library, University of Leeds', The Book Collector, Autumn 2023, pp. 1-16 (pp. 4-6).

Features

Nineteenth-century full blue morocco over pasteboards; gilt and blind rolled to form an outer border; central panel made up of double blind fillets and a repeating blind drawer handle tool; small gilt flower tool repeated at the points where lines meet in the central panel; sewn onto five raised supports; spine gilt; spine direct lettered in gilt: Biblia Sacra edition Vulgatia MS. in membrana; marbled endpapers.

Provenance

MS inscription on front flyleaf: 'From ye Catalogue of J. Sams Darlington May 6 1840' [i.e.: purchased from a bookseller's catalogue issued by Joseph Sams (1784–1860), the Darlington bookseller and dealer in antiquities, in 1840]. Printed book label on front pastedown: Sir Robert Johnson Eden Bart. [i.e.: Sir Robert Johnson Eden (1774-1844)]. Not listed in the printed catalogue of the sale of the library of William George Eden (1829-1890), Puttick & Simpson, 22 July 1885. Printed book label on front pastedown: Mr. T. E. Watson [i.e.: Sir Thomas Edward Watson (1851-1921)]; thence Sir Geoffrey Watson (1897-1961), Daphne Southwell [Watson] (1907-1998); Stanley Denys Trevor Spittle (1920–2003). Accepted in lieu of Estate Duty by H M Government and allocated to Special Collections & Galleries at the University of Leeds Libraries, 2022.

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