VARIA; S. XIII in.

Title

VARIA; S. XIII in.

Shelfmark

Merton College MS. 249

Place of origin

script of English appearance

script of French appearance

Continental, probably Italian.

Date

s. xii1

S. XIII in.

Language

Anglo-Norman

Latin

Contents

Form

codex

Support

Parchment

Physical extent

192 leaves (iv + 188) Savagely retrimmed, damaging illustrations in the outer and lower margins of I, the edges spattered with red. Foliation of s. xv, 1–185, omitting 88 and repeating 172. At the head of f. 186 the foliator has written ‘185 folia sunt in isto libro.’ I and V written above top line.

Hands

Art. 1 in an informal early gothic bookhand of French appearance. The rest is in English bookhands, except for additions on blank spaces, in anglicana hands of c.1300.

Binding

Standard Merton s. xvii, repaired and rebacked by Maltby; sewn on five bands; formerly chained from the usual position; fols. i-ii and 187–8 are modern paper blanks. f. 186 was formerly a pastedown in an earlier binding; the former front pastedown is now a stub. However, f. iii, conjugate with it, is now bound upside down; in its original position it appears that the present verso was pasted to the front board. Formerly a central strap from the front board and the large iron chain-staple at the rear, near the foot.

Provenance

English except perhaps for I, the whole given to the College by William Reed in 1374: UO49. 84. At the foot of f. 3 the rubricator has painted the monogram IR in blue. On f. iv ‘Liber M. Willelmi Reed episcopi Cicestrensis quem emit a domino Thoma Tryllek’ episcopo Roffensi. Oretis pro utroque’, followed by a table of contents. The ex libris is repeated almost verbatim, with a more detailed list of contents, upside down on f. iiiv, in the hand of Walterus Roberti, who also writes ‘Liber domus scolarium de Merton’ in Oxon’ in communi libraria eiusdem et ad usuam communem sociorum ibidem studencium cathenandus ex dono uenerabilis patris domini Willelmi tercii episcopi Cicestrie. Oretis igitur pro eodem et benefactoribus eiusdem et animabus fidelium a purgatorio liberandis. Walterus Roberti notarius.’ For William Reed, fellow from 1344 until at least 1357, d. 1385, see MS 8; for Trillek, bp. of Rochester, see MS 237.

At the head of f. 1 is the James no. ‘245’, s. xvi in., cropped. Inside the front board is a sheet of paper with ‘F. 6, 4’, s. xvii, canc.; a long table of contents, s. xvii; ‘P. 3. 16. Art:’, s. xvii, canc. and replaced with modern ‘B. 1. 7, in red; the College bookplate.