London, British Library, Additional 36983
England |
London |
British Library |
Additional 36983 |
Bedford MS |
s. xv1 |
English |
Scribe 1 (ff. 1-118) - Scribal dialect: Bedfordshire (McIntosh, Samuels and Benskin 1986, vol. 1, p. 102). Scribe 5 (ff. 264r-279v) - Scribal Dialect: Warwickshire. Linguistic Atlas Grid Reference: 417 264, LP 4689 (McIntosh, Samuels and Benskin 1986, vol. 4, p. 244). |
A mid fifteenth-century manuscript containing devotional texts such as
Cursor Mundi, the
Prick of Conscience, the
Abbey of the Holy Ghost and the
Three Kings of Cologne. The mid fifteenth-century date of 1442 is indicated by the explicit of item 5, 'Thus endythe şe lyffe of iij kyngys of coleyne primo die ianuare anno domini ml.ccccxlijo' on f. 215v). Only items 12, 13, and 14 have a scribal dialect located to the West Midlands (Warwickshire): (
Ypotis, ff. 264r-268r;
Speculum Guidonis de Warwick, ff. 268r-279v; and
Disputacio inter deum et hominem, ff. 275r-279v). Scribe 1 (ff. 1-118) has been located to Bedfordshire (McIntosh, Samuels and Benskin 1986, vol. 1, p. 102).
Item: iff. i verso-ii recto |
Modern list of contents |
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Item: 1.1ff. 1ra-2va |
Cursor Mundi: Prologue |
'Men ?erneş gestis for to here'. |
'Off hym şat alle şis worlde began'. |
An east midland text of the northumbrian poem on the Seven Ages of the World.
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Morris 1878.
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Item: 1.2ff. 3ra-174v |
Cursor Mundi (IMEV 2153) |
'Alle men ow şat lorde to drede'. |
'To blis with şat trew iustis. Amen'. |
'Here now of the trenite dere'. |
'Explicit şe begynnyng off şe worlde off şe trenite şe ffadir & son & holigost şe makyng off şe worlde of adam and eue and afftir of noye and so ffro noye to abraham and so doune şe genelagy of our lady & şe birth off crist & his pascion & resurrexion & so many oşer dyuers matere & so to şe day of dome and şe comyng of antecrist and so to şe laste day of iugement'. |
The following three texts, 1.3, 1.4, and 1.5, are inserted before the above explicit and colophon. |
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Item: 1.3ff. 118rb-127rb |
Meditaciones Vitae Christi (IMEV 248) |
'Allmyghty god in trenite'. |
'şou liste hem and lede hem in şe way of pece'. |
'Here begynneth şe meditacion of şe pascion of crist and of şe lamentacion of oure lady saint mary şat sche made for her son when sche se hym torment among şe iewis, which was compiled of bonaventure, a gode clerk and a cardinall of rome, and şe meditacions of all şe houris of şe day '. |
Paraphrase in English verse of a part of the Meditaciones Vitae Christi commonly ascribed to St. Bonaventura. Substituted for the corresponding part of Cursor Mundi. |
Printed in Cowper 1875 from London, British Library, MS Harley 1701.
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Item: 1.4f. 154va |
Assumption of Our Lady |
'When ihesus crist was done on rode'. |
'In tyme of nede myn help şu be'. |
'Who so desireth grete pardon here of our ladies assumpcion'. |
Included as part of the Cursor Mundi. The W of 'when' is decorated with strokes in red ink with a dragon jumping into the top margin towards the fore-edge of the folio. |
See Morris 1878, pp. 1148-93.
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Item: 1.5ff. 159r-174v |
Prick of Conscience (Main Version, IMEV 3428) |
'Some clerkis say şat one schal come'. |
'Aftir şe dome now mad schall be'. |
Nearly all of Book 5 (ll. 4085-6407) concerning Antichrist and Doomsday. The text follows on from line 22004 of the Cursor Mundi without an indication of a break and is followed by the Epilogue above and therefore forms part of the Cursor Mundi. |
Edited by Morris 1863.
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Item: 2ff. 175r-179v |
ABC (IMEV 239) |
'All mighty and all mercyable quene'. |
'To penitentes şat ben to merciable. Amen'. |
'Incipit carmen secundum ordinem litterarum alphabeti'. |
'Explicit carmen. Amen'. |
Translated from the Pelerinage de la Vie Humaine of Guillaume de Deguilleville. |
Benson 1988, pp. 637-640.
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Item: 3ff. 179r-215v |
Three Kings of Cologne (IPMEP 290) |
'Off the thre worschypfull kyngys'. |
'Ihesus crist kyng evyr lastyng. Amen deo gracias'. |
'Thus begynnyth the lyffe off thre kyngys of Coleyne'. |
'Thus endythe şe lyffe of şe iij kyngys of coleyne primo die Januare anno domini millesimo ccccxlij'. |
English prose abridgement of the Historia SS. Trium Regum of John of Hildesheim, c. 1400. |
The text is collated and described in Horstmann 1886.
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Item: 4ff. 216ra-255ra |
Titus and Vespasian (IMEV 1881) |
'Harkneş all şat beş alyue'. |
'God graunt ous alle şere to be amen, amen, pur charite'. |
'Here endiş şe vengaunce of god şe deşe'. |
Printed in Herbert 1905.
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Item: 5ff. 255ra-261vb |
Jesus Mercy, Lady Help |
'Bothe for clerkys & for lewed men'. |
'And by fore hym lede. Amen'. |
'Ihesu mercy lady help'. |
Title 'Ihesu mercy lady help' is in c. three-line letters in black ink with black infill. The colophon is c. three-line letters outlined in red with red pen decoration inside - fairly rudimentary. |
Edited from Oxford, Bodleian Libray, MS Laud 108 by Horstmann 1887.
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Item: 6f. 262r |
Truth (IMEV 809) |
'ffle ffrom şe pres and dwell with sotheffastnesse'. |
'And trouthe the schall deliver it vs no dred'. |
Benson 1987, p. 653.
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Item: 7ff. 262r-263r |
Ballad (IMEV 55) |
'A knyght that is hardy as a lyon'. |
'Of kyndely right may no while endure'. |
'None of all these I doo yow well assure Off kyndely right may no while endure'. |
MacCracken 1934, pp. 820-2.
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Item: 8ff. 263r-v |
ABC of Aristotle (IMEV 471) |
'Be neuer to auenterous to amorous ne angre şe nat to moche'. |
'ffor a meritable meane is best for vs all'. |
Printed in Furnivall 1858, p. 9.
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Item: 9f. 263v |
In praise of Our Lady (IMEV 4091) |
'Who couthe such a woman counterffete'. |
'On yomen & gromes for ther can stiffly schete'. |
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Item: 10ff. 264r-268r |
Ypotis (IMEV 220) |
'Alle şat wille of wysdom lere'. |
'God leue şat so mote we amen amen for charite'. |
'Explicit liber ipotyse'. |
English poem in 664 lines on the dialogue of Hadrian and the Wise Child. |
Horstmann 1881, pp. 341, 511.
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Item: 11ff. 268r-275ra |
Speculum Gy de Warewyke (IMEV 1101) |
'Herkeneş alle to my spelle And hele of soule I wolle telle'. |
'In trewe loue and charite amen amen so mow it be'. |
'Incipit Alquyne'.'explicit alquyne'. |
First and final rubric in red. |
Printed in Horstmann 1896, p. 24.
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Item: 12ff. 275ra-279va |
Disputacio inter deum et hominem (IMEV 2714) |
'Owre gracious God prince of pyte/ Whos mi?te whos goodnesse neuer began'.
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'şat to şam chosen & ordeyned ys/ şat leuyn synn & hem amende'. |
'Explicit disputacio inter deum hominem'. |
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Item: 13f. 279va-280ra |
Verse Life of St. Erasmus (IMEV 173) |
'All cristen folke ?e listen and lere/ Of an holy buysshop and a martere'.
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'And şe second was called maximian'. |
Printed from London, British Library, Harley 2382 and this manuscript by Horstmann 1878, pp. 198, 201.
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Item: 14f. 280ra-va |
Prose list of the sufferings of St. Erasmus |
'These ben şe passion şat he suffred only on şe sonday for şe loue of god'. |
'angelys in thampayne'. |
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Item: 15ff. 281r-297v |
Abbey of the Holy Ghost (IPMEP 39 and 590) |
'My dere bretheren and susteren y se wele'. |
'To şat ioye and to şat blysse brynge vs he şat for loue of synfulle manes soule deyed on şe rode tre. Amen'. |
'This is the abbey of the holy gost that is yfounded in a place that is ycalled conscience'. |
'Thus endiş the abbey of şe holy gooste'. |
Prose treatise formerly ascribed to John Alcock, Bishop of Ely 1485-1500, but really of much earlier date (1350-70). Rubric in red. |
Perry 1867, pp. 48-58; Horstmann 1895; Blake 1972, pp.88-102.
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Item: 16ff. 298r-305r |
The Mirror of Mankind (IMEV 1259) |
'How şat mankynde doth be gynne it is meruayle to telle it so'. |
'And dwell wath şat prince in fere. Amen'. |
'Hic incipit gubernacio hominis'. |
Poem on the course of human life. |
Furnivall 1867, pp. 58-78.
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Item: 17f. 305v |
Lives of Saints Dorotheus and Theodora (IMEV 3936) |
'Whan crystys ffeyth ?ong was and newe And not ffully rootyd stedfastely'. |
'And ferto spekyn of bodyly bewte She passi all maydens of şat contre'. |
Fragment |
Edited by Horstmann 1883, p. 120.
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Codex |
Paper |
275 x 210 mm |
Collation not possible. Catchwords: ff. 16v; 32v; 48v; 64v; 80v; 96v; 112v; 128v; 144v; 160v.
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Pricking: none. Ff. 1r-174v: double columns with each column 240 x 90 mm ruled for 28 lines. Other folios: writing space: c. 215 x 155 mm prose; 225 x 120 mm verse. Single columns with 31 lines. Frames ruled in ?crayon (now very faint). |
Scribe 1 writing in an Anglicana hand on ff. 1r-2v, 216r-229v, 264r-305v. Characteristics: v-shaped r; long s in initial and medial positions; reversed circular e; double compartment a with a larger top loop reaching beyond minim height; long descender on h curling to the right; writing slopes to the right. Body height: 2-3 mm.
Scribe 2 writing in a Bastard Anglicana hand on ff. 3r-178v, 305v. Characteristics: more angular than Scribe 1; z-shaped r in medial position; ş; B-shaped s in final position; hooked ascender of b, l, and h; single lobed g with bar through lobe. Body height: 4 mm.
Scribe 3 writing in a Secretary hand on ff. 179r-215v. Characteristics: double compartment a; looped ascender on h; double compartment g with diamond-shaped top compartment; long s in medial position; y with descender hooked to the right; ş; v-shaped r in medial position. Body height: 2 mm.
Scribe 4 writing in a Bastard Anglicana hand on ff. 230r-261v. Characteristics: more angular hand; single compartment a with pointed head; r with detached top stroke formed from a diamond shape; B-shaped s in final position; diamond-shaped lobes; reversed, circular e; ?; small, squat ş; topline ascenders with otiose hairlines and bottom line descenders extending into patterns. Body height: 3 mm.
Scribe 5 writing in a Bastard Anglicana hand on ff. 262r-263v. Guddat-Figge notes the similarities between scribes 4 and 5 (Guddat-Figge 1976, p. 166). Characteristics: v-shape/long r in medial position; sigma s in final position; double compartment g; hooked ascender on h; z-shaped r in final position; B-shaped s in final position. Body height: 2 mm.
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Item 1: rudimentary initials in red, three/four-line, some patterned cf. Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Digby 86. First letter of each line highlighted with red. Red paraphs.
Item 5: underlining of names in red, red paraphs, some initials highlighted red, red and black line filler; two/three-line red or blue initials.
Item 7: two-line red initials.
Item 12: four-line initial A begins text. Outlined in red with red decoration and outline face drawn on right leg of A. Top line ascenders elaborate extension that look like leaves.
Item 13: two-line red initials.
Item 17: initials in red.
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British Library binding.
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ff. ii + 305 |
On f. 1 are scribbled accounts relating to sheep, fifteenth century. On the flyleaves are notes by Furnivall (7 October 1886), C. Horstmann and others on the contents of the MS.
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A leaf is lost after f. 8 and f. 143 is torn. |
Unknown |
Unknown |
Acquisition: Book-stamp of the 'Bedfordshire Central Library, instituted July 1830', f. 1r, afterwards the Bedford Library Institute (sale-catalogue, Sotheby's 18 June 1904 Lot 456). |
Catalogued and encoded: Rebecca Farnham, University of Birmingham, March 2004.
- Blake, N. F. 1972. Middle English Religious Prose, York Medieval Texts, London: Arnold.
- Boffey, J. 2003. The Charter of the Abbey of the Holy Ghost and its Role in Manuscript Anthologies, Yearbook of English Studies, 33, 120-130.
- Cowper, J. M. 1875. Meditationes Vitae Christi: Meditations on the Supper of Our Lord, and the hours of the passion by Cardinal John Bonaventura drawn into English verse by Robert Manning of Brunne (about 1315-1330) edited from the mss. in the British Museum and the Bodleian Library, Oxford, with introduction and glossary, EETS, os, 60, London: Trübner.
- Furnivall, F. J., ed, 1858. Early English Meals and Manners, EETS, os, 32, London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner.
- Furnivall, F. J., ed, 1867. Hymns to the Virgin and Christ, The Parliament of Devils, and other Religious Poems, chiefly from the Archbishop of Canterburys Lambeth MS no. 853, EETS, os, 24, London: Trübner, pp. 118-125.
- Guddat-Figge, G. 1976. Catalogue of Manuscripts Containing Middle English Romances, München: Wilhelm Fink Verlag, pp.166-168.
- Herbert, J. A., ed, 1905. Titus and Vespasian, or The Destruction of Jerusalem: in rhymed couplets: edited from the London and Oxford Manuscripts, London: Printed for the Roxburghe Club by J. B. Nichols.
- Horrall, S. M., ed, 1978. The Southern Version of Cursor Mundi, Ottawa, Canada: The University of Ottawa Press, pp. 16-17.
- Horstmann, C. 1878. Sammlung Altenglischer Legenden, Heilbronn: Henninger, pp. 198, 201.
- Horstmann, C., ed, 1881. Altenglische Legenden, Neue Folge, Heilbronn: Henninger.
- Horstmann, C. 1883. Bokenhams Legenden, Heilbronn: , p. 120.
- Horstmann, C. 1886. The Three Kings of Cologne: An Early English Translation of the Historia Trium Regum by John of Hildesheim, EETS, os, 85, London: Trübner.
- Horstmann, C., ed, 1887. The Early South English Legendary or Lives of Saints, EETS, os, 87, London: Trübner.
- Horstmann, C. 1895. Yorkshire Writers: Richard Rolle of Hampole and His Followers, Library of Early English Writers, 2 vols, London: Swan Sonnenschein, 1.
- Horstmann, C. 1896. Yorkshire Writers: Richard Rolle of Hampole and His Followers, Library of Early English Writers, 2 vols, London: Swan Sonnenschein, 2.
- http://searcharchives.bl.uk.
- MacCracken, H. N., ed, 1934. The Minor Poems of John Lydgate, 2 vols, EETS, 192, London: Oxford University Press, 2.
- McIntosh, A., Samuels, M. L. and Benskin, M. 1986. A Linguistic Atlas of Late Medieval English: General Introduction, Index of Sources, Dot Maps, 4 vols, Aberdeen: Aberdeen University Press, 1.
- McIntosh, A., Samuels, M. L. and Benskin, M. 1986. A Linguistic Atlas of Late Medieval English: County Dictionary, 4 vols, Aberdeen: Aberdeen University Press, 4.
- Morris, R. ed, 1863. Richard Rolle of Hampole, The Pricke of Conscience (Stimulus Conscientiae), Berlin: Asher.
- Morris, R., ed, 1878. Cursor Mundi: a Northumbrian Poem of the XIVth Century in Four Versions, 5 vols, EETS, os, 68, London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trübner, 5.
- Perry, A. J., ed. 1867 rev. ed. 1914. Religious Pieces in Prose and Verse, EETS, os, 26, London: Kegan Paul.
- Sutton, J. D. 1916. Hitherto Unprinted Manuscripts of the Middle English Ipotis, PMLA, 31, 114-160.
- Warner, George Frederic, ed. 1907, rpt. 1989. Catalogue of additions to the manuscripts in the British Museum in the years 1900-1905, London: The Trustees of the British Museum, pp. 265-269.