Lactantius, Works

Title

Lactantius, Works

Shelfmark

St John's College MS 35

Place of origin

an English scribe in Italy?

England?

Date

1447;

with supply leaves, s. xvii ex.

Language

Latin

Contents

Form

codex

Support

Vellum (FSOS/FHHF).

Physical extent

Fols. iii + 185+ i (numbered fol. iv).

Hands

Written in humanistic bookhand .

Decoration

Headings in red.

Red and blue 7-line lombards at heads of texts and books (the guide letters on several occasions in anglicana).

Extensive marginal finding guides for subjects, in the hand of Robert Flemmyng (see Provenance), usually in a darker ink, in a hand similar to but more erect than that of the text (only sporadic examples, fols. 84–156).

Chapter numbers in the margins in this ink.

Running titles in text ink give book numbers or titles in the upper margin leading edge (none in fols. 76–156, 172–85).

Binding

Dark brown leather over millboards, s. xvi. Sewn on five thongs. Green ribbon ties in both boards (those in the upper board frayed and the top one almost gone) to close the book. A chain-staple impression in Watson’s position 6.‘35’ inked on a paper lozenge at the head of the spine and in black ink on the leading edges, with the notation of contents ‘Lactantius manule’. Pastedowns modern paper. At the front, a modern paper flyleaf and two of medieval vellum; at the rear, a modern paper flyleaf (iv). Fol. iihas been a pastedown; both it and fol. iiiare singles, their conjugate stubs visible following that of the original fol. 8. A College bookplate on fol. iiv.

Acquisition

‘Liber Collegij Sancti Ioannis Baptistæ Oxon’ ex dono D Doctoris Gwinnehuius Collegii socij 1600’ ( fol. 2, upper margin, faded).

Provenance

Perhaps copied, certainly annotated, by the Oxford scholar Robert Flemmyng, nephew of the founder of Lincoln College; for him, see BRUO 699–700 and A. C. de la Mare, Hunt Exhib, 22.5 (96–7) , with further references and reproductions from our MS, figs. 67–9 ( fols. 29 , 95, 184). Although Flemmyng was certainly in Italy in 1447, the parchment and decoration are English.

The old shelfmark ‘Abac: ij. N. 61’ (fol. ii v).