Portable Psalter; Flanders, region of Bruges (?), c. 1265–1275, with additions in England, c. 1400

Title

Portable Psalter; Flanders, region of Bruges (?), c. 1265–1275, with additions in England, c. 1400

Shelfmark

MS. Auct. D. 4. 3

Place of origin

additions England

Flemish, region of Bruges (?)

Date

additions c. 1400

c. 1265–75

Language

Latin

Contents

Form

codex

Support

parchment

Physical extent

230 leaves Leaves were trimmed in rebinding, occasionally causing the loss of text and decoration.

Hands

Formal Gothic book hands (c. 1300 and c. 1400), black and dark grey ink.

Decoration

Gold KL monograms on blue and pink backgrounds in the calendar.

Miniatures with the Labours of the Months set within architectural niches: January: man with winged headgear warming himself by the fire and drinking out of a bowl February: woman with a candle March: man pruning a tree with an axe April: man wearing a foliate chaplet and holding his hands up, as if dancing May: man with a hawk June: man carrying wood on his back July: man mowing hay with a scythe August: man reaping grain September: man cutting grapes; a basket of grapes in his hand October: man sowing November: man knocking down acorns for pigs December: man slaughtering a pig.

Half-page historiated initials on gold backgrounds at liturgical divisions. Some initials are decorated with tendrils, extending into margins, ending with floral decorations or human heads (fols. 87v and 109r). fol. 35r, Psalm 26 (initial D(ominus)), The Anointing of David. This subject was used to illustrate psalm 26 in northern France, but not in the Bruges–Ghent region during the 13th century (Carlvant, 1986, p. 93). Bruges–Ghent psalters with Davidic cycles have David pointing to his eyes at psalm 26. However, the same subject occurs in Oxford, Bodleian Library MS. Laud Lat. 85, contemporary with MS. Auct. D. 4. 3 and possibly made in the Same workshop (Carlvant, 1978, p. 93), and in a late 13th-century psalter from the diocese of Thérouanne, Paris, Bibliothèque nationale MS. lat. 1076 (Carlvant, 1986, p. 93). fol. 53r, Psalm 38 (initial D(ixi)), King David pointing to his mouth before a male saint, holding a book. fol. 69r, Psalm 51 (initial Q(vid)), King David and the Devil, red-headed, white, hairy. fol. 70r, Psalm 52 (initial D(ixit)), King David speaking to a shepherd (?), holding a staff. fol. 87v, Psalm 68 (initial S(aluum)), King David praying in waters; half-figure of Christ above, with cruciform halo, blessing. fol. 109r, Psalm 80 (initial E(xultate)), King David playing three bells. fol. 128v, Psalm 97 (initial C(antate)), Two clerics singing from a book on a lectern. fol. 131v, Psalm 101 (initial D(omine)), King David kneeling before an altar with a chalice. fol. 149v, Psalm 109 (initial D(ixit)), Trinity: two seated figures with cruciform halos, one hand raised, another holding a book; nimbed white dove descending from a cloud.

2- to 3-line gold initials on pink and blue backgrounds, decorated with white floral, arabesque and bird designs at the beginnings of psalms, canticles, prayers and litany. Some initials are decorated with gold tendrils on blue and pink backgrounds, extending into the margins; the tendril on fol. 7v ends with a human head.

1-line alternating blue and gold initials, decorated with contrasting red and blue penwork, at the beginnings of verses and periods.

Red and blue penwork line-endings.

Binding

Faded red tawed leather over wood boards with a slightly rounded bevel, possibly original. Sewn on four double leather cords; four raised bands on spine. Paper label on spine with printed ‘D. || 4. 3.’; ‘103’ written on spine in white paint. Fragments of two leather straps (now lost) on the upper cover and two catches made of yellow metal on the lower cover. Gilt edges of textblock (gilding post-dates the binding (?)). Fols. i and 227, probably originally pastedowns, were already detached from the covers in the 15th century (fol. i recto contains late 15th-century additions).

Acquisition

Bodleian Library: bought from Robert Scott in 1671; came to the Library in September 1671 (see Summary catalogue, vol. 2, part 2, pp. 801–2). The shelfmark ‘Auctarium’ was given c. 1789, when books then considered most valuable in the Library were moved to the Auctarium (one of the schools in the Bodleian Library quadrangle) (see Summary catalogue, vol. 1, pp. xiv, xxxix–xl). Earlier shelfmark: ‘Hatton 27’ (fol. 1r).

Provenance

The psalter has many similarities in the calendar, script, codicological features and decoration with Oxford, Bodleian Library MS. Laud Lat. 85 and may have been produced in the same workshop (Carlvant, 1978, pp. 93–5; and 1986). Both psalters were brought to England in the 14th century, where litanies were replaced with new, largely identical standard Sarum texts. According to Carlvant, MS. Laud Lat. 85 contains no clear indication of its destination and its calendar entries are too sparse to allow conclusions (1978, p. 93; 1986, p. 94). The calendar of MS. Auct. D. 4. 3 has saints venerated in north-eastern France, but also in Bruges, such as Donatianus and Basil. This is not unique, as MS. Douce 49, made for the use of the diocese of Thérouanne, also has saints venerated in French Flanders, as well as Donatianus and Basil. The calendar of MS. Douce 49, however, has more features associated with the diocese of Thérouanne and the region of St-Omer, such as Audomar (9 September) in red. The psalter may have been made for a lay patron: its textual contents are simple and the calendar is not graded.

In England by c. 1400 when the litanies were added.

Rose Tresham, daughter of Sir Thomas Tresham (?) (d. 1471), see ODNB: ‘Lerne to kepe your book(e)s fayre and ockapy them well and vse to clasp them whan you haue done. Rose tressham’ (fol. 6v, 15th century, end; a motto used by Thomas Betson, librarian of Syon Abbey, d. 1516 (see Erler, 2002)). Rose Tresham may have also added ‘Beatus vir’ on fol. 7r and numbered psalms 1–50 (see ‘Text’).

Syon Abbey (?). Rose Tresham may have been the aunt of the nun of Syon Clemence Tresham, who is also known to have owned books (see Bell, 1995, pp. 184–5; Erler, 2002, pp. 142, 146, 148–9). The daughter of James Yate of Buckland (see below) and Mary Fettyplace, Elizabeth Yate, and her aunts Eleanor Fettyplace (d. 1565) and Dorothy Fettyplace (d. 1586) were also nuns at Syon. After the dissolution of the Abbey in 1539 and up to its re-establishment in 1557, Elizabeth, Eleanor and Dorothy lived with a small group of other nuns in Buckland with James Yate. Eleanor, Dorothy and Elizabeth are all known to have owned books (Bell, 1995, pp. 176–7, 194, 196, 197–8; Erler, 2002, pp. 85–99).

‘non christum istum set christum crede per istum’, 15th century, fol. i recto.

Oliver Yate, 16th century. The Yate(s) family acquired the manor of Buckland, Berkshire, in 1544 (The Victoria history of Berkshire, vol. 4, p. 455). It was sold by Henry VIII to John Yate (d. 1576), son of James Yate and Mary Fettyplace. John Yate was succeeded by his son Edward Yate (d. 1596), who was in turn succeeded by his son Edward (d. 1645) (see below). The Yates continued to be Catholics after the Reformation (Wright, 1966, pp. 31–7). John Yate and his wife Mary Justice appear on the list of recusants of Berkshire in 1577 (Wright, 1966, p. 34). (fol. i recto) ‘Oliverus Yate me possidet teste Edwardo Andrewe et Thoma Stynton’ or possibly ‘Thoma Wynton’, followed by a paraph. (fol. ii recto) Legal formulas with the standard fictitious names of the ‘pledges of prosecution’. Some of the Yate family were lawyers: Edward Yate was admitted to the Middle Temple in 1567 and his son Edward in 1596 (Sturgess, 1949). ‘Oliverus Yate queritur de Johanno Johnson in custodia marr(escalli) etc et sunt plegii de prosequendo scilicet Johannes Doo et Ricardus Roo’ (‘Oliver Yate complains of John Johnson, being in the custody of the marshal etc and there are pledges of prosecution, that is to say, John Doo and Richard Roo’). (fol. iii recto, written upside down) ‘A most exquisite booke written with a penn’, ‘worthie’ and ‘Oliver yate oweth this book’. (fol. 223v) ‘Omnes sanctes orate pro nobis’, added at the end of the litany, followed by ‘Oliverus . . .’ (?) (smudged). ‘Ricardus Brome queritur de ... Pope’, ‘Johannes Robert’, ‘Johannes Collyns’, ‘Thomas’, ‘Petrus Busshopp’.

Edward Yate of Buckland, Berkshire, born in 1578. The son of Edward Yate (d. 1596), he was made baronet in 1622, was Sheriff of Berkshire from 1628 to 1629, recusant in 1644 and died in 1645 (see The Victoria history of Berkshire, vol. 3, p. 455; Wright, 1966, pp. 36–7). ‘liber Eduardi Yate Somatochristiani Ex dono ornatissimi viri M agistri Eduardi Yate de Buckland armigeri consanguinei sui datus 7 Julij anno (?) domini 1601o’, fol. 1r (faded because of the application of reagent). Edward Yateis referred to as ‘somatochristianus’ because he became the owner of the psalter while at Corpus Christi College, Oxford (for other attestations of ‘somatochristianus’, meaning ‘member of Corpus Christi College, Oxford’, see Ramminger, Neulateinische Wortliste). Edward Yate received his BA degree whilst at Corpus Christi on 26 May 1601 and MA on 2 May 1606 (Foster, 1891–92, p. 1699).

John Collins: ‘John Collins is the owner of this booke’, 17th century, early, fol. i recto. John Collins is mentioned as a tenant in Buckland in the orders of a Court held in Buckland in 1593 (Wright, 1966, p. 35).

‘John Collins || Mary Collins || Henry Thibe (or ‘Tythe’) || Bartholomeus Stowght || Peter Jackson || Henr’, 17th century, fol. i recto.

‘Oliuer Yates’, ‘Robert Well ...’ (?), ‘Smith John’, ‘John Langdon’, 17th century, fol. 224r.

Christopher, first Baron Hatton (bap. 1605, d. 4 July 1670), see ODNB.

Robert Scott, London bookseller (b. in or before 1632, d. 1709/10), see ODNB: purchased part of the library of Christopher Hatton after his death.