HUGH OF ST CHER &c; S. XIII med.

Title

HUGH OF ST CHER &c; S. XIII med.

Shelfmark

Merton College MS. 206

Place of origin

Italy (text)

France, Paris (decoration)

Date

S. XIII med.

Language

Latin

Contents

Form

codex

Support

Parchment

Physical extent

264 leaves (ii + 262) Parchment treated in the Italian manner, the edges retrimmed affecting the text, and spattered with red. The companion volume to MS 207.

Hands

Expert Italian gothic rotunda bookhands, one each for text and gloss in art. 1; arts 2–3 may be by the glossing hand.

Decoration

Parisian: 44 exquisite decorated or historiated initials, mostly small, in colours and gold: fol. 1 (prol.) F, the whole depth of the written space with marginal extension, with scenes in two registers: seated Dominican friar being ?tortured by a surgeon who appears to be applying a saw-knife to his mouth; seated friar writing; fols. 2v (Gen.; the opening initial gone with the orig. fol. 3; a tiny piece of decoration remains), 21v (Exod.; horned Moses divides the waters before the Israelites), 38v (Levit.; offering of two beasts), 53v (Num.; horned Moses receives the Decalogue), 69 (Deut.; horned Moses places the tables in the ark), 84v, 85 (Ios.; nimbed Joshua with scroll), 92v (Iud.; nimbed prophet admonishes a soldier with kite-shaped shield), 100v (Ruth; Ruth and Boaz travelling), 102, 102v (I Reg.; massacre), 110v (II Reg.; execution), 117v (III Reg.; King David dying), 126 (IV Reg.; Ozias falls from a tower), 133, 133v (I Paral.; group of patriarchs), 140v (II Paral.; 2, the second with seated king bearing sword), 148 (Esdr.; 2, the second with king, architect and builders’ labourers), 151v (Nehem.; king and cupbearer), 155v (III Esdr.; man with bucket on pole), 160 (Tob.; 2, second with dying man, his soul escaping in the form of a blackbird), 163 (Judith; Judith kills Holophernes), 167 (Esth.; Esther pleads with the king; Haman is hanged), 171, 171v (Job; Job on the dunghill castigated by his wife), 190v (2), 191 (Psalms; David harping, a stork above), 198v (The Lord crowns David: Ps. 26), 202 (David and God converse: Ps. 39), 205v (a madman: Ps. 52), 209 (God delivers drowning king: Ps. 68), 213 (David playing bells: Ps. 80), 217 (singing priests: Ps. 95), 221 (God in Majesty: Ps. 109), 222, 226–7, 228, 229v, 232.

Red or blue initials flourished in the other colour, some with long marginal extensions; some in the Psalter are touched with gold; plain red or blue initials; running heads and chapter numbers in capitals of both colours; red or blue paraphs flourished in the other colour.

Binding

Standard Merton s. xvii, sewn on five bands; formerly chained from the usual position. Fols. i, 262 were formerly pastedowns, probably in an earlier binding; both have the marks of iron bosses. Near the foot of the foredge of fol. i is the mark of an iron chain-staple.

Provenance

Written in Italy, decorated in Paris. A handful of annotations in anglicana script suggest that it was in England by s. xv.

At the College by s. xv ex., when it was in an electio: on fol. iiv ‘Li primus’, followed by a table of contents in the same hand.

‘3’ is inked on the foredge.

Inside the front board is a sheet of paper with a table of contents and ‘F. 7, 2’ (canc.), s. xvii, and ‘P. 1. 3. Art:’, canc. and replaced with ‘N. 2. 3 (CCVI)’ in red; the College bookplate.