Register of writs; England, s. xv2/4

Title

Register of writs; England, s. xv2/4

Shelfmark

Christ Church MS. 102

Place of origin

England

Date

s. xv2/4

Language

Latin

Contents

Form

codex

Support

Parchment (FSOS)

Physical extent

Fols: ii + nine fragmentary leaves, three of them with some text but six mere stubs + 179 (numbered to 178, but an unnumbered leaf follows fol. 98) + ii (numbered fols 179–180). In addition to losses at both ends, a great many leaves have been torn away or are otherwise fragmentary: fols 33, 98, the lower halves of fols 139–41 and 149, and much of the leading edge of fol. 178; 131 is badly cut and much of the leading edge gone, but the text is still intact.

Hands

Written in anglicana with a secretary ductus.

Generally unpunctuated, sparing use of point, punctus elevatus, and double point.

Decoration

Spaces for headings and initials all unfilled.

Careful finding devices, running titles and marginal identification of the writs. A number of leaves left blank between sections, to allow the addition of new writs.

Binding

Plain brown leather, heavily wormed, over millboards, s. xvi. Sewn on six thongs. Attachments for two straps in the upper board with remains of nails, small indentations along the leading edge of the lower board from the clasp seatings. Pastedowns and all flyleaves (two at front, two at back being fol. 179–80) added paper (s. xx), with an older ChCh bookplate (ChCh and Wake arms) on the front pastedown.

Provenance

There is no definite internal evidence to indicate this volume’s early history. The text, as mentioned, is provided with several blank spaces but there are only three additions, all placed in the bottom margin and not providing any clear suggestion of a geographical origin: fol. 4v (Westminster), 49v (no place stated), 109v (to an unidentified Earl of Warwick); the first two of these are in the scribal hand, and the third may also be, though it is in a more cursive version. The only later added material is a single note: ‘And for al that indeed the feare of his d|dreame being laid aside he cals unto him’ (the blank fol. 82v, s. xvi2/4).

The manuscript can be equated with the entry in Wake’s ‘Schedule’ of manuscripts (MS 352/8): ‘Registrum Brevium &c. Imperfect’. That provenance is corroborated by the bookplate, and explains the manuscript’s absence from the New Library Catalogue (see Appendix IV).