Epistle Book, in Latin
Manuscript
ca. 1300-1350 (made)
ca. 1300-1350 (made)
| Place of origin |
This Epistles Book was made in Italy, during the first half of the 14th century. It is decorated with penwork initials, decorated and historiated initials. Umbria, in Central Italy, has been identified as its place of production, although the choice of decorative motifs and colours, including slate blue, pink, and grey shows affinities with that found in manuscripts produced in Bologna around 1300.
The manuscript comprises readings for the Temporale, i.e. for the moveable feasts of the year, which were dependent on the date of Easter; the Sanctorale, i.e. the fixed feasts which did not change every year, such as those celebrating particular saints; and the Common of the saints, i.e. a collection of texts relating to a category of saints, in opposition to the Proper of the saints which is tailored to specific feasts.
An inscription mentions the date 1368 on the first folio, suggesting the manuscript has been inventoried during that year. A note, in a late 15th century cursive script, on a parchment strip used as a stub to sew fol. 94 suggests that by that time, the manuscript was still in Italy and associated with the Franciscan Order. It was still in Italy, more specifically in Rome, in the 19th century.
The manuscript comprises readings for the Temporale, i.e. for the moveable feasts of the year, which were dependent on the date of Easter; the Sanctorale, i.e. the fixed feasts which did not change every year, such as those celebrating particular saints; and the Common of the saints, i.e. a collection of texts relating to a category of saints, in opposition to the Proper of the saints which is tailored to specific feasts.
An inscription mentions the date 1368 on the first folio, suggesting the manuscript has been inventoried during that year. A note, in a late 15th century cursive script, on a parchment strip used as a stub to sew fol. 94 suggests that by that time, the manuscript was still in Italy and associated with the Franciscan Order. It was still in Italy, more specifically in Rome, in the 19th century.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Epistle Book, in Latin |
| Materials and techniques | Ink, pigments and gold on parchment. Leather binding on wooden boards. Metal bosses. |
| Brief description | Manuscript, Epistle Book, with readings from the Epistles, prophetical texts from the Bible and Apocalypse, in Latin |
| Physical description | Foliation: parchment. i (17th-century paper, watermark) + 103 ff. Number of lines: 21 lines (2 columns). Language: Latin. Script: rounded Italian Gothic bookhand. Textual content: ff. 1r-75r: Readings for the Temporale. This section begins with a historiated initial showing St Paul writing at his desk (f. 1r) and contains many other historiated initials, though it is often difficult to establish a direct link between the figure depicted and the text. ff. 75r-87v: Readings for the Sanctorale. In this part, many specific feasts are illustrated with historiated initials, starting with the Conversion of St Paul (f. 75v) ff. 87-103v: The Common of the saints. This last section is only illustrated with decorated initials. Decoration: Major and minor initials as well as borders are painted in slate blue, pink, grey, orange, ochre and brushed gold. The major initials and 2-line minor initials are decorated with floral and figural ornaments. 1-line initials are written in blue with red penwork. Binding: 14th century binding made of soft leather stained yellow over wooden boards with rounded edges. It also has corner metal bosses and central bosses on each side. Traces of clasps are visible. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Unique |
| Object history | (1) A note on a parchment strip used as a stub to sew fol. 94r suggests a Franciscan association as early as the 15th century. The note mentions Fra Cristoforo Santi, a master of theology based in Assisi in the last two decades of the 15th century. (2) Inscribed on f.i recto 'Rugieri A 4' in an 18th century Italian hand. (3) Bought for the South Kensington Museum in Rome, presumably by J.C. Robinson in 1860. |
| Summary | This Epistles Book was made in Italy, during the first half of the 14th century. It is decorated with penwork initials, decorated and historiated initials. Umbria, in Central Italy, has been identified as its place of production, although the choice of decorative motifs and colours, including slate blue, pink, and grey shows affinities with that found in manuscripts produced in Bologna around 1300. The manuscript comprises readings for the Temporale, i.e. for the moveable feasts of the year, which were dependent on the date of Easter; the Sanctorale, i.e. the fixed feasts which did not change every year, such as those celebrating particular saints; and the Common of the saints, i.e. a collection of texts relating to a category of saints, in opposition to the Proper of the saints which is tailored to specific feasts. An inscription mentions the date 1368 on the first folio, suggesting the manuscript has been inventoried during that year. A note, in a late 15th century cursive script, on a parchment strip used as a stub to sew fol. 94 suggests that by that time, the manuscript was still in Italy and associated with the Franciscan Order. It was still in Italy, more specifically in Rome, in the 19th century. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Other number | KRP.D.18 - NAL Pressmark |
| Collection | |
| Library number | MSL/1861-1-25 |
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| Record created | May 31, 2018 |
| Record URL |
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