Portable Psalter and Hours; England, 15th century, middle (c. 1440–1450)

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Title

Portable Psalter and Hours; England, 15th century, middle (c. 1440–1450)

Shelfmark

MS. Rawl. liturg. f. 4

Place of origin

English

Date

15th century, middle (c. 1440–1450)

Language

Latin

Psalter-Hours

1. (fols. 1r–6v) Sarum calendar, not graded, laid out one month per page, written in black, red, blue and gold. Easter on 27 March. The months are headed by notes on the length of the solar and lunar month and verses on the ‘Egyptian’ days which correspond to Hennig’s (1955) set III. At the end of each month is a note on the number of hours in day and night. The feast of relics is on the first Sunday after the feast of Thomas Becket on 7 July.

2. (fols. 7r–33v) Sarum Office of the Virgin for Advent (‘Hic incipiunt matutinae de sancta maria in adventu’) with the Hours of the Cross worked in. Lauds are followed by the memorials of the Holy Spirit, George, the relics, another of the relics, All Saints, Peace, and the start of the Hours of the Cross, ending imperfectly because of the loss of leaves after fol. 19. The beginning of Terce is missing because of the loss of leaves after fol. 22.

3. (fols. 34r–39v) Office of the Virgin from Christmas to Purification (‘A nativitate domini usque ad purificationem beate marie hoc modo dicantur matutine de ea’).

4. (fols. 40r–42r) Office of the Virgin for the year with Hours of the Cross worked in (‘E purificatione uero usque ad adventum domini hoc modo dicantur matutine de sancta maria’). Fol. 42v is ruled, but otherwise blank.

5. (fols. 43r–48r) Seven Penitential Psalms (‘Hic incipiunt septem psalmi penitentiales’).

6. (fols. 48r–49v) Gradual Psalms (‘Hic incipiunt quindecim psalmi’). Only the opening lines of psalms are given, apart from psalms 131 and 132, which are copied in full. Psalm 132 ends imperfectly with the opening words of the last verse ‘et ui ...’ because of the loss of a leaf after fol. 49, and psalm 133 is missing.

7. (fols. 50r–72v) Sarum Office of the Dead (‘Hic incipiunt uigilie mortuorum’). Responsories correspond to nos. 14, 72, 24, 32, 57, 28, 68, 82, 38 in Ottosen (1993).

8. (fols. 73r–80v) Commendation of the Souls (‘Incipit comendacio animarum’), followed by a scribal colophon (see ‘Provenance’).

9. (fols. 81r–186v) Psalms [1]–150, in the biblical order, beginning imperfectly at 3: 4 (‘autem domine susceptor ...’), without numbers, with rubrics ‘psalmus’. Punctuated throughout with punctus used to mark the ends of verses and minor pauses, and punctus elevatus used to mark metrum. There are textual divisions at psalms 26, 38, 52, 68, 80, 97 and 109. Subdivisions within psalms are not indicated, apart from psalm 118, subdivided into eleven 16-verse units. Psalms 148–150 are written as a single text.

10. (fols. 186r–193r) Weekly canticles, with rubrics ‘psalmus’: (1) Confitebor tibi domine (Isaiah 12); (2) Ego dixi (Isaiah 38: 10–21); (3) Exultauit cor meum (1 Samuel 2: 1–11); (4) Cantemus domino (Exodus 15: 1–20); (5) Domine audiui (Habakkuk 3); (6) Audite celi (Deuteronomy 32: 1–44).

11. (fols. 193r–197v) Daily canticles, prayers and creeds, with rubrics ‘psalmus’: (1) Te deum laudamus (fol. 193r); (2) Benedicite omnia opera (fol. 194r); (3) Benedictus dominus deus (fol. 195r); (4) Magnificat (fol. 195v); (5) Nunc dimittis (fol. 195v); (6) Athanasian Creed (Quicumque uult ... ) (fol. 196r).

12. (fols. 197v–199v) Litany (‘Letania maior’), imperfect because of the loss of a leaf after fol. 197; only parts containing archangels and virgins survive. Includes Mary Magdalene, Mary of Egypt, Margaret, Scholastica, Petronilla, Genofeva, Praxedis, Sotheris, Catherine, Prisca, Tecla, Afra and Edith. Followed by collects (fols. 200r–201r): (1) Deus cui proprium est misereri semper et parcere suscipe ... (2) Omnipotens sempiterne deus qui facis mirabilia magna solus ... (3) Deus qui caritatis dona per graciam sancti spiritus tuorum cordibus fidelium infundis ... (4) Deus a quo sancta desideria recta consilia iusta sunt ... (5) Ineffabilem misericordiam tuam domine nobis quesumus clementer ostende ut simul nos ... (6) Fidelium deus omnium conditor et redemptor animabus omnium fidelium defunctorum ... (7) Pietate tua quesumus domine nostrorum solue uincula ... Fol. 201v is ruled, but otherwise originally blank.

Form

codex

Support

parchment; paper fly-leaves

Physical extent

212 leaves

Hands

Formal Gothic book hand, black and brown ink. ' Pauper tyryngton scripsit.', fol. 201r.

Decoration

Gold KL monograms on pink and blue backgrounds, decorated with floral sprays extending into the margins, in the calendar.

9-line initials in gold frames, on gold backgrounds, and full or three-quarter borders, decorated with foliage, flowers and gold discs, at the beginnings of major sections of the offices, Penitential Psalms, Commendation of the Souls, psalms 26 (fol. 95v), 38 (fol. 106r), 52 (fol. 116r), 68 (fol. 126r), 97 (fol. 150r) and 109 (fol. 162r).

5-line initial on gold background and full border, decorated with foliage, flowers and gold discs, at the beginning of psalm 80 (fol. 138r).

3-line initials on gold backgrounds and three-quarter borders, decorated with foliage, flowers and gold discs, at the beginnings of psalms 16 (fol. 87v), 17 (fol. 88v) and 25 (fol. 95r). Decoration on fol. 87v is in a different style from the rest of the manuscript, doubtless by the artist of the missing Beatus-initial, with which fol. 87 was originally conjoint.

3-line gold initials on pink and blue backgrounds, decorated with floral sprays extending into the margins, at the beginnings of the sections of the offices, psalms, canticles, litany and prayers.

Borders: see above.

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

Binding

Brown leather over pasteboard, 18th century (?). Double blind fillet lines round the outer edge of both covers; blind floral roll border on the spine side of the covers. Five raised bands on spine. Gilt lettering on spine: ‘MISSALE || ROMANUM’, framed by double gilt fillet lines, and ‘MS. || RAWL. || LITURG. || f. 4’. ‘144’ painted white on spine. Edges of textblock speckled red. Laid paper pastedowns and fly-leaves.

Acquisition

Bodleian Library: bequeathed by Rawlinson; accessioned in 1756. Former shelfmarks: ‘Misc. liturg. 144’ (upper pastedown); ‘E Codd. Bodl. Miscell Liturg. 144.’ (fol. ix verso). A note about misbound leaves, probably by Madan, dated 1882, fol. i recto.

Provenance

Scribal colophon on fols. 80v and 201r (identical on both leaves): ‘Pauper Tyryngtou nscripsit’ (Terrington in Norfolk (?) or North Yorkshire (?)).

Titles ‘pape’ and the name of Thomas Becket in the calendar, and ‘dompnum apostolicum’ on fol. 199r are erased, doubtless at the Reformation.

Thomas White(fol. ix recto and 1r), 16th century.

Names, apparently by a single scribe, on fol. 121r: John Storre, Josephe Scrinen, Jeremie Dobson, Obadiah Ipse, 16th century.

Richard Rawlinson (1690–1755) , see ODNB: bookplate, upper pastedown.

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