Boccaccio — 15th century, third quarter (before 1467); French, Anjou (?)

Title

Boccaccio — 15th century, third quarter (before 1467); French, Anjou (?)

Shelfmark

MS. Douce 213

Place of origin

French, Anjou (?)

Date

15th century, third quarter (before 1467)

Language

Middle French (ca. 1400-1600)

Contents

Form

codex

Support

paper (except for fols. 7, i, xii, parchment); watermarks, according to Bozzolo, Briquet 1739 (recorded 1458-78), and a bell mark not in Briquet.

Physical extent

12 + cclviileaves

Hands

Cursive book hand by two scribes: the first, and more skilled, wrote only the first seven and a half lines of text on the opening illuminated page of the text (fol. i); the second used a more current hand.

Decoration

Fine miniature (fol. i r): a man reading the tales to a group of hearers, while a scribe writes them down.

Border.

Initials.

Binding

18th cent. with armorial device and legend 'Lud. Mag. Minst. 1695': Marquis de Paulmy (1722-87) (E. Olivier, G. Hermal, R. de Roton, Manuel de l'amateur de reliures armoriées françaises, XVIIe sér., Paris, 1929, pl. 1722).

Acquisition

Bequeathed to the Bodleian in 1834

Provenance

Tentatively attributed to Anjou by Pächt and Alexander, presumably on art historical grounds. Space left for a coat of arms, fol. i r.

Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy: perhaps made for him. Identifiable by second folio in the inventory of his library, 1469 (Corpus Catalogorum Belgii V: Dukes of Burgundy (2016), 5.484 (pp. 222-3); visible in later inventories of the Burgundian library, 1487 and 1536 (ibid., 8.82, p. 300 and n.)

Antoine-René de Voyer d'Argenson, Marquis de Paulmy (1722-87) (evidence of the binding). Note (by Paulmy?) that he also possessed another MS. of this translation on parchment with more miniatures dated 1408.

Justin MacCarthy-Reagh: his sale, May 1789, lot 1646; bought for £2 by:

Francis Douce, 1757–1834

Title

'... Le liure des Cent Nouuelles [or, "Le liure de cameron autrement surnomme de prince Galeoth"] que fist et composa ... Jehan Bocasse de Certald' the Decameron of Boccaccio

Shelfmark

MS. Douce 213

Summary

Prefixed is a prologue by the translator. A long colophon states that the book was translated first into Latin and secondly into French at Paris 'en lostel de noble homme ... Bureau de Dampmartin ... par moy Leurens de Premierfait famillier du dit Bureau. Lesquelles deux translacions par trois ans faites furent acompliés le vje iour de Juing lan MCCCC et xiiij.' Fols. 7, i, xii are parchment, and the middle one bears a miniature of a man reading the Tales to a group of hearers, while a scribe writes them down. The owner of this volume in the latter part of the 18th century notes that he also possessed another MS. of this translation on parchment with more miniatures dated 1408.

The 18th cent. binding bears an armorial device with the legend 'Lud. Mag. Inst. 1695', referring to Louis XIV of France.

Date

written in about the middle of the 15th cent.

Language

French

Physical facet

On paper, with one large miniature and border, binding: 18th cent.

Physical extent

12 leaves, in double columns