Glossed portable psalter; England (Reading?), 12th century, third quarter

Title

Glossed portable psalter; England (Reading?), 12th century, third quarter

Shelfmark

MS. Auct. D. 4. 6

Place of origin

English, Reading, Benedictine abbey(?)

Date

12th century, third quarter (1158–1165?)

15th century

14th century

Language

Latin

Middle English (1100-1500)

English

Contents

Form

codex

Support

parchment

Physical extent

173 leaves

Hands

Formal proto-Gothic book hand; black ink for the main text and brown ink for the gloss. Alexander (1978) considered the scribe of the text and the artist of the initial D on fol. 91r (Johannes?) to be the same person. This scribe also wrote Cambridge, Gonville and Caius College MS. 177/210, parts of Oxford, Bodleian Library MS. Rawl. A. 416 and London, British Library, Cotton MS. Vitellius A. viii, all manuscripts from Reading Abbey (Coates, 1999).

Decoration

Gold Beatus-initial, occupying two-thirds of a page, with arabesque designs on pink background (rubbed), fol. 1r. The opening words are in 2-line red and green capitals. 7-line gold, red, blue and green initial, decorated with coiled tendrils and acanthus leaves, with outline formed by bodies of two winged dragons biting each other’s tails, at the beginning of psalm 51 on fol. 47r (addition, 12th-century, end (?)). 5-line gold initial in a square frame filled with blue, decorated with a winged dragon, animal heads, coiled tendrils and acanthus leaves at the beginning of psalm 52 on fol. 48r (addition, 12th century, end (?)). 4- to 6-line initials with floral designs in red, blue and green at the beginnings of psalms 26 (fol. 21v), 38 (fol. 35r), 68 (fol. 59v), 80 (fol. 75r), 97 (fol. 89r), 101 (fol. 91r), 109 (fol. 104r), Pusillus eram (fol. 133v) and the first canticle (fol. 134r). Initial D(omine) of psalm 101 has the words ‘Ioh anes me fecit Rogerio’ against the coloured ground (one of the Penitential Psalms, beginning ‘Domine exaudi orationem meam ...’, psalm 101 was sometimes chosen to contain portraits of donors). 2-line gold initials on coloured backgrounds with arabesque designs at the beginnings of psalms 46 (fol. 42r), 49 (fol. 44v), 50 (fol. 46r) and 53 (fol. 48v). 3-line gold initial M(agnus) with outline formed by the bodies of two winged dragons joined together by an animal mask at the beginning of psalm 47 (fol. 42v) (addition, 12th-century, end (?)).

2- to 3-line initials in red, blue and green, most with arabesque designs, at the beginning of psalms, canticles, litany and prayers.

1-line red, blue and green initials at the beginnings of verses and periods.

Profile head of a bearded man with leafy scrolls emerging from his mouth, added in the margin on fol. 82r, 15th century (?); faded arabesque designs added in the margins on fols. 96v, 99r and 101r.

Binding

Brown leather over pasteboard, 18th century, first half. Blind double fillet lines and blind roll arabesque border round the outer edge of both covers. Rebacked in the 20th century in the Bodleian with the original spine relaid. Sewn on four cords; four raised bands on spine. Gilt lettering on spine ‘NE . A . 3 . 7 .’ (see Summary catalogue, vol. 1, p. xii). Late 18th-century paper label on spine ‘D 4 6’. Fly-leaves made of 18th-century laid paper, no watermarks.

Acquisition

Bodleian Library: acquired between 1613 and 1620. 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). Former shelfmarks: ‘NE A. 3. 7’ (fol. ii verso) (see Summary catalogue, vol. 1, p. xii); ‘Bodl. 47’ (fol. i recto).

Provenance

The volume may be one of the glossed psalters described on fol. 8v in the ‘Fingall Cartulary’ (London, British Library, Egerton MS. 3031), the earliest surviving list of books of the Benedictine Abbey of the Virgin Mary and St John the Evangelist, Reading (see Sharpe, Carley, Thomson and Watson, 1996, p. 422; Coates, 1999, p. 25). Made for Roger, identified as either Roger Sigar, known to have given a glossed psalter to the Abbey, or as Roger, Reading’s fifth abbot (1158–65) (see Coates, 1999, p. 113). Includes a litany for the use of Winchester.

Presumably at Reading Abbey c. 1314 and c. 1497 (see fols. 157v–158r).