| Description | Thirteenth- or fourteenth-century manuscript volume containing a Latin text beginning 'Incipit liber qui vocatur via vel dieta salutis', attributed to St Bonaventure. Suggested by Ker to be a fourteenth-century French production. With four prefatory (binding) leaves of a Latin poem on prosody, the Doctrinale of Alexander de Villa Dei (early fourteenth century, fols. iii-vi). The main text concludes with '...amen' on folio 87v and it is followed by the set of 'themata dominicalia' derived from the Dieta (fol. 87v). This is followed by a table of the chapters of the nine parts of the Dieta (fol. 98v) and an incomplete table of contents referring to the leaf numbers of this particular manuscript up to folio 77.
Parchment, 173 x 125mm. ff. ii (paper) + iv + 101 + ii (paper), foliated (i-vi), 1-45, 45*, 46-100 (101, 102). The foliation, except 45*, is medieval. 36 long lines (fewer in quire 8). Collation: 1-7(12), 8(14), 9(3, fols. 98-100). Single horizontal bounding lines (upper), except fols. 13r-14v (double, upper); single vertical bounding lines throughout. Ruled in pen or crayon. Ad hoc signatures in red ink on the first halves of quires. All but quire 8 in a single hand, both gothic bookhand. Two varieties of initials: i) 6-line, blue and red, with ornament in both colours (see fol. 1r); ii) 2-line, blue or red, with ornament of the other colour (see fols. 1v, 2v). French binding, calf, eighteenth century. There are rust marks from the strap-and-pin fastening of an earlier binding (see fols. iii, iv, 100). Instances of errata (dittography) have been struck through in rubrication ink (see fols. 58r, 58v). Most catchwords between quires and some nota annotations in the margins have floral flourishing drawn in ink and their petals tipped with rubrication ink (see 'vsus' on folio 20r and 'prudens' on folio 36v). A lion drawn in ink with floral detail tipped in rubrication ink embellishes the catchword 'carnali bestialitate' on folio 24v.
Parchment of varying quality, generally rather poor. Two large defects on ff.56 and 57 have been roughly sewn up. Very marked difference between the hair and flesh sides in quire 8. |
| AdminHistory | Saint Bonaventure (San Bonaventura): born, c1217; original name Giovanni Di Fidanza (John of Fidanza); entered the University of Paris, 1235; received the master of arts degree, 1243; joined the Franciscan order; studied theology in the Franciscan school at Paris, 1243-1248; named Bonaventure, 1244; leading theologian, minister general of the Franciscan order, and cardinal bishop of Albano; author of several works on the spiritual life; recodified the constitution of his order, 1260; died, 1274. |
| CustodialHistory | From the Carmelite convent library at Dijon: 'Ex bibliotheca pp Carmelitarum Diuionensium', on the verso of fol. iii, sixteenth century. A pressmark, '10 liber lirarie', is written on fol. 1r, fifteenth century. Sold in the Libri sale 28 March 1859 to Sir Thomas Philipps as lot 312. Sir Thomas Phillipps (1792-1872), baronet, an antiquary and bibliophile whose collection included c60,000 manuscripts of various kinds. old after Sir Thomas's death, some to the German government, and were dispersed to several libraries. Formerly Phillipps MS 16307, until his sale, 21 March 1895, lot 247 to Maggs (£3). Anonymous sale at Sotheby's, 6 April 1925, lot 581. The manuscript was later part of the library of Charles Kay Ogden (1889-1957), linguistic psychologist, founder of the Orthological Institute and originator of the language system Basic English, whose interests in language systems are reflected in the subject matter of his collection, which comprised individual manuscripts and manuscript collections dating from the 14th to the 20th century. |