Petrus Riga, Matthieu de Vendôme — 13th century, first half; English

Title

Petrus Riga, Matthieu de Vendôme — 13th century, first half; English

Shelfmark

MS. Bodl. 656

Date

13th century, first half

Language

Latin

Contents

Form

codex

Support

parchment

Decoration

Initials, fols. 1–136. (Pächt and Alexander iii. 386)

Provenance

Lessness Or Westwood, Kent, Augustinian abbey of St Thomas the Martyr: 'Hic est liber ecclesie beati Thome martiris de Lyesnes, de dono fratris Thome de Sandwyco quem qui ei abstulerit aut super eo fraudem fecerit, nisi eodem ecclesie pleno satisfecerit Anathema sit Maranatha' (s. xiv in; at foot of fol. 1r). (MLGB3: evidence from an ex-libris inscription or note of gift to an institution).

William Brewster gave it to the Bodleian 7 May 1715. CMA 9071. (MLGB3)

Title

Codex comprising Parts of the Aurora of Petrus de Riga, 'Incipit Liber Thobie elegiaco metro conscriptus' and various poems

Shelfmark

MS. Bodl. 656

Summary

Comprises:

(fol. 1). Parts of the Aurora of Petrus de Riga (with no title or author's name), consisting of an elegiac paraphrase of the following books of the Old Testament. There are some marginal notes. The selection of books is the original one, the volume not being imperfect.

Leviticus (beg. 'Vox autem domini');

Numbers (fol. 16);

Deuteronomy (fol. 26v);

Joshua (fol. 30v);

Judges (fol. 34v);

Ruth (fol. 40v);

four books of Kings (fol. 41v);

two books of Maccabees (fol. 66);

'Recapitulationes hystoriarum', 23 lipogrammatic elegiac distinctiones, but the titles 'sn a', 'sn b', etc., have been misread by the scribe as 'sententia a', etc.: all but the last refer to the Old Testament (fol. 75);

Tobit beg. ('Qui legis hystoriam', fol. 83);

Esther (fol. 91v).

(fol. 96) 'Incipit Liber Thobie elegiaco metro conscriptus' beg. 'Ex agro ueteri'), preceded by the 'Epistola ad Bartholomeum metropolitanum Turonensem archiepiscopum' (1174-1206), in which the author's name occurs as Matthaeus (Vindocinensis): at end 'Exsplicit THOBIAS . Anima auctoris & scriptoris ... requiescant in pace. Amen.'

(fol. 137). Various poems:

An elegiac poem on moral virtue, especially prudentia, magnanimitas, sobrietas, justitia beg. 'Quatuor eximias');

(fol. 144v) Similar verses on the Eucharist beg. 'Tollimur e medio', ends, at the end of a gathering, 'rex super astra sedens', but ten more lines are supplied on an inserted piece of parchment): the rest of the volume is in a hand of the early part of the 13th century;

(fol. 146) A passage from the Poetria Nova of Geoffrey de Vinsauf beg. 'Neustria sub clipeo', ends 'lacrima mundi');

(fols. 146, 151v) Verses on differences of apparently similar words beg.'Ni superes tu qui super es');

(fol. 146) Epitaphs, epigrams, etc., among which are 'Epitaphium regis Henrici' beg. 'Sufficit hic tumulus', Henry 2nd?), 'Epitafium Wintoniensis episcopi', i.e. Godefridus de Lucy (d. 1204), with several other epitaphs on him (partly by 'magister Seron', 'Willelmus Auenant', '... sch. de Leircestria'), and 'Epitaphium Marci prions.'

Throughout the volume a smear of yellowish green paint is used to call attention to a word or passage.

Date

written chiefly in about A.D. 1200 in England

Language

Latin

Physical facet

On parchment, with some illuminated capitals, etc.

Physical extent

164 Leaves

Custodial history

'Hic est liber ecclesie beati Thome martiris de Lyesnes de dono fratris Thome de Sandwyco, quern qui ei abstulerit aut super eo fraudem fecerit, nisi eidem ecclesie pleno satisfecerit Anathema sit Maranatha' (13th century): bp. Godfrey (see above) was a son of the founder of Lesnes or Westwood abbey in Erith, and was himself a benefactor to it.