COWTON ON I SENT; S. XIV in.

Title

COWTON ON I SENT; S. XIV in.

Shelfmark

Merton College MS. 93

Place of origin

England, Oxford (?)

Date

S. XIV in

Language

Latin

Contents

Form

codex

Support

Parchment

Physical extent

198 leaves (v + 193)The edges heavily retrimmed affecting marginalia and spattered with red.

Hands

A single proficient anglicana hand, using pale ink.

Decoration

Blue initials flourished in red; red or blue paraphs.

Binding

Standard Merton s. xvii, sewn on six bands; formerly chained from the usual position. Fols. i-ii, 192–3 are paper binding leaves, the outermost from the same printed book as in MS 11. A previous binding had clasps at head, tail and two at the foredge. Fols. i and 191 were pastedowns in an earlier binding. The same or another binding had a small iron chain-staple at the foot of the front board, near the foredge, and, near the foot of the foredge, another of brass. Near the foot of fol. 191 are the marks of the large iron chain-staple.

Provenance

Part 1 of a set with MS 92. Probably made in Oxford, at first owned by Walter Rammesbury. On fol. 1v are three inscriptions: at the head, thoroughly erased, of which only ‘fratrum’ can be read, the second and third as in MS 92.

On fol. 190v are two cautio notes of Rammesbury and Simon Banbury recording the pledging of this volume in the Reed chest, 25 May 1382. The first includes four supplements with secundo folios [erased], dis sed, les epistolas, and trii. The second includes MS 92 as a supplement. Banbury (BRUO 104) was fellow of Merton in that year and the following, in which he may have died.

Inside the front board is a sheet of paper with a title and ‘D. 6, 1’ (canc.), s. xvii, and ‘N. 7. 13. Art:’, canc. and replaced with ‘B. 1. 12 (XCIII)’ in red; the College bookplate. ‘13’ is inked on the foredge.