FLORES BERNARDI; S. XII ex.

Title

FLORES BERNARDI; S. XII ex.

Shelfmark

Merton College MS. 41

Place of origin

England

Date

S. XII ex.

Language

Latin

Contents

Form

codex

Support

Parchment

Physical extent

A fragment of an originally much larger book. 122 leaves (vi + 116)The edges heavily retrimmed and spattered with red.

Hands

English gothic rotunda bookhands except for quires 3 and 4, in a neat early gothic hand, s. xiii med.

Decoration

Unfinished: unfilled spaces for coloured initials and rubrics; spasmodic rubrication; red highlighting and underlining.

Binding

Standard Merton s. xvii; sewn on four bands; formerly chained from the usual position. fols. ii and 115 are blank paper binding leaves. fol. iii has verdigris stains from a central strap, and a rust mark near the head, probably from a chain-staple. fols. iv-vi have rust marks from two clasps. None of these marks occur on fol. i.

Provenance

Perhaps originally a Franciscan book. At the head of fol. vivis ‘Istum librum reparauerunt Magister Willelmus Emyldon M. Ricardus Langstone M. Thomas Bloxham M. Ricardus Scarburgh Magister Iohannes Yonge’. Emyldon was fellow 1441–52, Langstone c. 1446–52 (when he died), Bloxham c. 1449–61, Scarborough c. 1449, still in 1464, Yonge c. 1449–61 (BRUO 642, 1098, 204–5, 1651–2, 2135). The quire-numbers, which begin at 1, may be part of their work.

Inside the front board is a sheet of paper with a table of contents and ‘N. 4. 2. Art:’, s. xvii, the second canc. and replaced with ‘C. 1. 2 (XLI)’ in red. The College bookplate. ‘2’ is inked on the foredge.