Old and New Testaments in the Later Version of the Wycliffite Bible with prefatory epistles, Prefatory epistles, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Prologue to Joshua, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Prologue to 1 Kings, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 3 Kings, 4 Kings, Prologue to 1 Chronicles, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Prologue to 1 Ezra, Commendation of Ezra, 1 Ezra, 2 Ezra, Prologue to Tobit, Tobit, Prologue to Judith, Judith, Prologue to Esther, Esther, Prologue to Job, Job, Prologue to psalms, Psalms, A list in English of weekly canticles: Confitebor tibi domine, Ego dixi, Exultauit cor meum, Cantemus domino, Domine audiui, Audite celi; and daily canticles: Benedicite omnia opera, Benedictus dominus deus, Magnificat and Nunc dimittis., Athanasian Creed, Sarum calendar-lectionary in English, Prologue to Proverbs, Proverbs, Prologue to Ecclesiastes, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Wisdom, Prologue to Ecclesiasticus, Ecclesiasticus, Prologue to Isaiah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations of Jeremiah, Prayer of Jeremiah, Prologue to Baruch, Baruch, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, 1 Maccabees, 2 Maccabees, Prologue to Matthew, Matthew, Prologue to Mark, Mark, Prologue to Luke, Luke, Prologue to John, John, Prologue to Romans, Romans, Prologue to 1 Corinthians, 1 Corinthians, Prologue to 2 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Prologue to Galatians, Galatians, Prologue to Ephesians, Ephesians, Prologue to Philippians, Philippians, Prologue to Colossians, Colossians, Prologue to 1 Thessalonians, 1 Thessalonians, Prologue to 2 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, Prologue to 1 Timothy, 1 Timothy, Prologue to 2 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Prologue to Titus, Titus, Prologue to Philemon, Philemon, Prologue to Hebrews, Hebrews, Prologue to Acts, Acts, Prologue to Catholic epistles, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude, Prologue to the Apocalypse, Apocalypse, Capitula-list for gospels, epistles and the Apocalypse — 1408; England

Title

Old and New Testaments in the Later Version of the Wycliffite Bible with prefatory epistles, Prefatory epistles, Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy, Prologue to Joshua, Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Prologue to 1 Kings, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, 3 Kings, 4 Kings, Prologue to 1 Chronicles, 1 Chronicles, 2 Chronicles, Prologue to 1 Ezra, Commendation of Ezra, 1 Ezra, 2 Ezra, Prologue to Tobit, Tobit, Prologue to Judith, Judith, Prologue to Esther, Esther, Prologue to Job, Job, Prologue to psalms, Psalms, A list in English of weekly canticles: Confitebor tibi domine, Ego dixi, Exultauit cor meum, Cantemus domino, Domine audiui, Audite celi; and daily canticles: Benedicite omnia opera, Benedictus dominus deus, Magnificat and Nunc dimittis., Athanasian Creed, Sarum calendar-lectionary in English, Prologue to Proverbs, Proverbs, Prologue to Ecclesiastes, Ecclesiastes, Song of Songs, Wisdom, Prologue to Ecclesiasticus, Ecclesiasticus, Prologue to Isaiah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations of Jeremiah, Prayer of Jeremiah, Prologue to Baruch, Baruch, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, 1 Maccabees, 2 Maccabees, Prologue to Matthew, Matthew, Prologue to Mark, Mark, Prologue to Luke, Luke, Prologue to John, John, Prologue to Romans, Romans, Prologue to 1 Corinthians, 1 Corinthians, Prologue to 2 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Prologue to Galatians, Galatians, Prologue to Ephesians, Ephesians, Prologue to Philippians, Philippians, Prologue to Colossians, Colossians, Prologue to 1 Thessalonians, 1 Thessalonians, Prologue to 2 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians, Prologue to 1 Timothy, 1 Timothy, Prologue to 2 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Prologue to Titus, Titus, Prologue to Philemon, Philemon, Prologue to Hebrews, Hebrews, Prologue to Acts, Acts, Prologue to Catholic epistles, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1 John, 2 John, 3 John, Jude, Prologue to the Apocalypse, Apocalypse, Capitula-list for gospels, epistles and the Apocalypse — 1408; England

Shelfmark

MS. Fairfax 2

Place of origin

England

Date

1408

Language

Latin

Middle English (1100-1500)

Contents

Form

codex

Support

parchment, paper flyleaves; lower part of some leaves cut off in quires II, VII, XVIII, XXXIV, XL, XLIII

Physical extent

392 leaves, c.

Hands

textura, black and brown ink, probably the work of several contemporary scribes

Decoration

6-line gold initials on blue and pink background and three-quarters borders made of gold, pink and blue bars, decorated with foliage, at the beginning of prefatory epistles (fol. 1r) and Genesis (fol. 3r).

4- to 6-line blue initials decorated with red penwork at the beginnings of Exodus and other books.

3- to 4-line similar initials at the beginnings of prologues.

2-line blue initials decorated with red penwork at the beginnings of chapters.

2-line plain red or blue initials in the capitula-list.

Blue KL monograms, decorated with red penwork, and decorative penwork strips separating months in the calendar-lectionary.

Penwork initials are by two artists, the second more professional than the first. The first is responsible for fols. 1–72v (quires I–IX), 129r–168v (quires XVI–XXI), 187v–193v (calendar-lectionary, part of quire XXIV) and 371r–385r (quires XLIX–L); the second is responsible for fols. 73r–128v (quires X–XV), 169r–187r (quires XXII–XXIII and part of quire XXIV) and 194r–370v (part of quire XXIV and quires XXV–XLVIII) (see Collation and Provenance). The quire containing the calendar-lectionary and Athanasian Creed is the only quire that contains the work of both artists. One artist was responsible for the calendar-lectionary and Quicumque vult, and the other for the preceding and following texts.

Post-medieval drawings of a human figure pointing to the text (fol. 53v) and hands (fols. 75v, 77v).

Rubrics underlined in red; blue paraphs.

Binding

Brown leather over thick pasteboard, 17th century. Gilt fillet-line border with floral corner-pieces round the outer edge of both covers. Gild decoration at the centre of both covers. Re-backed in the Bodleian (note on the lower pastedown) with the original spine re-laid. Six raised bands on spine, framed by gilt fillet lines. Gilt floral strips at the top and bottom of the spine, and on the raised bands (mostly lost). ‘Fairfax 2’ written in white paint on spine. Two decorated metal clasps. Laid paper pastedowns and flyleaves, and additional 19th-century paper flyleaves. Fol. 388 was probably a pastedown of a medieval binding; there is an erased note in an early modern hand on fol. 338v.

Acquisition

Bodleian Library: bequeathed by Thomas Fairfax in 1671.

Provenance

The date on fol. 385r may have been altered to avoid censorship, but, according to Watson (1984), examination under UV light suggests that the scribe first wrote ‘M.ccc’ and the ‘and’ symbol, erased the later, wrote it in the right place, and then forgot to insert the fourth ‘c’.

Contains late 15th-century marginal additions, such as nota and other comments, including Of ymages in þis c [chapter] at Isaiah, 44, fol. 233v. The note may be in the hand that added gerard in the lower margin of the psalter, fol. 169r.

Possibly in use in a secular church in the 15th and 16th centuries. St Francis is added to the calendar-lectionary, late 15th century. According to Pfaff (2009, p. 327), Frances is a unique example of a major friar-saint who became ‘widely present in English secular liturgy’. Notes feria, added in a 16th-century hand in the psalter, appear next to liturgical divisions according to secular use. Possibly still in use at Reformation when titles ‘pope’ were erased in the calendar-lectionary.

‘the 29th of Aprill 15(?)58’, 16th century (fol. 377v).

Thomas Fairfax (1612–1671); see Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.

Title

The Bible in English, in the second version of Wyclif

Shelfmark

MS. Fairfax 2

Summary

The Bible in English, in the second version of Wyclif, but with prologues in the Old Testament of the earlier version, with a running commentary in the top margin, and numerous glosses. The prologues to Isaiah (here prefixed to Jeremiah) and Baruch are in the later version, and Wisdom has none.

Colophon: 'The err of the Lord m.ccc [c erased] and viii ϸis book was endid' (fol. 385). After the Psalms (fol. 188) is a table of lessons, epistles, and gospels for the year, according to the use of Sarum.

Date

Written in 1408 in England

Language

English

Physical facet

On parchment, in double columns, binding, brown leather stamped and gold-tooled, with two decorated metal clasps, 17th-century English work

Physical extent

389 Leaves