Manuscript on paper of Girolamo Morlini (c. 1480-after 1528), Novellae. The manuscript is an exact copy of the edition Naples, Giovanni Pasquet de Sallo, 1520. It reproduces all the features of its printed model, including frontispiece woodcut, foliation and signatures. Soon after its publication the book was suppressed because of the obscenities many Novellae contain
Description:
In Latin., Script: Copied by one hand in clear Humanistica Cursiva; titles in Capitalis., 2-line initials (Capitalis) in black ink. Renaissance initial in pen and ink on f. 2r; space for an initial, with guide-letter, on f. 4r. The frontispiece is a pen-and-ink copy of the original woodcut, showing the author in his study, seated at his desk, with a clock and an armillary sphere, under a starry sky with sun and moon., Numerous pages are damaged by the acid ink., and Binding: Paper (or thin parchment) over pasteboard; on the spine gold-tooled bordeaux leather label with the title "MORLINI. / NOVEL.". Mark of a red seal on the rear cover.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Morlini, Girolamo, 16th cent.
Subject (Topic):
Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, Latin literature, Medieval and modern, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript on parchment of 1) Copy of passage omitted from Institutiones VII.9 and supplied in a later hand. 2) Prefatory material. 3) Lactantius, Divinarum Institutionum Libri VII. 4) Lactantius, De Opificio Dei. 5) Lactantius, De Ira Dei
Description:
In Latin., Script: Written by a single scribe in a "fractured" gothic script. Marginal notations by several later writers, one of whom made extensive corrections to the text and added Latin translations for the Greek passages., Ten neat gold initials, 9- to 8-line, infilled and surrounded by white vinework on blue, pale green, and pale red grounds, with white dots and pale yellow highlights (ff. 9r, 33v, 53v, 77r, 100r, 119v, 144r, 163r, 163v, 177v). Greek quotations in red (only for ff. 1r-88r). Capitals and paragraph marks, alternating red and blue for ff. 2r-8v., and Binding: Eighteenth century. Brown calf case, gold- and blind-tooled with interesting pictorial tools.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Lactantius, approximately 240-approximately 320.
Subject (Topic):
Apologies, Christian literature, Latin, Church history, Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript on parchment of Julius Caesar, Commentarii de Bello Gallico; Commentarii de Bello Civili; De Bello Alexandrino; De Bello Africo; and De Bello Hispaniensis
Description:
In Latin., Script: Written by a single scribe in a small elegant humanistic bookhand., Fine initials, gold capitals, 9- to 5- line, edged in yellow, filled with white-vine ornament, on blue, green, and red ground, decorated with yellow dots. Headings in red., and Binding: Fifteenth century. Wound sewing on four slit straps. Colored beaded endbands sewn onto cores of tawed skin laced and nailed into wooden boards. All edges gilt. The sewing straps are laced through tunnels in the edges of the boards and nailed in channels on the outside, protruding well above the face. Covered in dark brown goatskin, blind-tooled with an eight-pointed star and corners filled in with rope-tool interlace interspersed with copper-colored dots, in a border of rectangular tools. Four catches on the lower board and stubs of red cloth (velvet?) straps lined with parchment held to the upper with star headed nails
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut, New Haven., and Rome
Subject (Name):
Caesar, Julius.
Subject (Topic):
Latin prose literature, Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, Manuscripts, Medieval, and History
In Latin., Script: Written in italic script by Piero Cennini (b. 1444)., Fine border and initials by Mariano del Buono. 3/4 white-vine border, f. 2r, infilled green, pink, and blue, against a blue ground, with white dots; putti and birds; at the periphery, flowers, gold dots, and hair-spray, especially profuse in lower margin; supported by a trellis, gold, which expands at regular intervals to form roundels. In upper margin, a blossom with fruits, in lower margin, in separate roundels, a hound chasing a stag, against deep landscape backgrounds. Between roundels with animals, the arms of Joannes Vitez, bishop of Gran, in a complex braided roundel, infilled green and blue with white and yellow filigree, and supported by four putti, two of which play musical instruments. One historiated initial, f. 1r, gold, Cicero reading a book, against a blue ground with stylized clouds, all against a green ground with yellow filigree. Thirty-two 7-, 6-, 5-, and 3-line initials, gold, with white-vine infilled green, pink, and blue, with white dots, against blue ground, with vines extending into margin, gold dots and hair-spray. Twelve 4- and 3-line initials, following f. 178, gold, against pink and blue or pink and green grounds, with white and/or yellow filigree. Following initials, one line of square capitals in brown or alternating red and brown. 1-line square capitals in text., The entire codex, including the binding, is in an excellent state of preservation., and Binding: Fifteenth century. Resewn on seven tawed, slit straps laid in channels and nailed into wooden boards. The spine is square, the edges gilt. Covered in ruby-red goatskin, blind-tooled with concentric panels. The rectangular central panel is reduced to a square with rope interlace and the central ornament is a four-pointed star protruding from a quatrefoil within a circle. Five foliate brass catches on the lower board. Stubs of green fabric clasp straps on the upper board. Rebacked; headbands and a gold-tooled spine added. Two catches and all clasps wanting.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Cicero, Marcus Tullius.
Subject (Topic):
Classical literature, Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, Manuscripts, Medieval, and Philosophy
Manuscript on parchment (goatskin) of 2) Bucolica. 3) Georgica. 4) Aeneis. With commentaries, pseudo-Virgilian tracts, and a miscellany of treatises, many anonymous. Ff. 1-31 are from the first half of the thirteenth century; the rest of the manuscript and the decoration were added half a century later
Description:
In Latin., Script: Two scribes: A copied ff. 1-31 in Southern Praegothica close to late Carolingian script; B copied the rest, starting with the text of Book 5 of Aeneis, in more rapid early Southern Textualis/Semitextualis; his spelling is marked by italianisms., The headings in red are not executed; some added later in Gothica Cursiva Formata (Cancelleresca); instructions for the rubricator are seen ff. 70v-75r. Numerous paragraph marks alternately in red and blue, sometimes black. Plain and flourished initials of various sizes in red and blue (other colours are also used in quires I-IV). Seventeen painted initials decorated with gold balls. From f. 70v onwards there are guide-letters, but all initials and other decoration are missing. A rectangular space of the width of one column was reserved for a miniature on f. 1ra, which was not executed., Ff. 1-31 appear to be palimpsest, with very irregular edges, sometimes repaired by sewing strips of parchment onto them, which are now lost., and Binding: Seventeenth century. White parchment over pasteboard. On the spine with five slightly raised bands red leather label with gold-tooled inscription "VIRGI-/LIUS / M.S." (this title has been completed in black ink with "P(ublius)" , "Eneidos etc." and "membr"); below the label the handwritten date "saec. XIV". Marbled endpapers.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Virgil.
Subject (Topic):
Classical literature, Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, Latin literature, Medieval and modern, Manuscripts, Medieval, and Scholia
Manuscript on parchment (trimmed) of Hebrew Scripture. Written for Jacob, son of Rabbi Benjamin of Montalcino
Description:
In Hebrew., Script: Written in cursive Italian Hebrew script, with square initial letters., The extremely fine decoration is in the Florentine style of the third quarter of the 15th century. Two full-page miniatures: f. 2v David beheading Goliath (Psalms) and f. 110v Job on the dunghill, with the three tempters. Miniatures accompanied by elegantly illuminated full borders of pink and blue flowers with green stems and yellow fruit issuing from yellow vases; gold dots and hair-spray. Putti and brightly colored birds appear among foliate ornamentation. Polylobed and circular medallions with miniatures in borders. Other borders, without miniatures, contain medallions of busts of prophets, some holding scrolls. One border f. 30v without medallions. Borders of ff. 30v, 80r, 111r are less carefully executed than rest of illumination and may be by another artist. The opening word of Psalms 42, 73, 90 and 107, as well as of Job and Proverbs, occurs in a panel with foliate borders in burnished gold. First letter in each chapter of Psalms, and first word in each chapter of Job and Proverbs framed in red or blue (one in gold, f. 111r) with purple or red penwork flourishes., and Binding: Seventeenth century. Red calf over beech boards, gold-tooled with a floral border and flower vases and arabesques in the center. Gilt, gauffered edges and woodblock paste paper endleaves and pastedowns.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Topic):
Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript on parchment of a Liturgical Psalter (Pss. 1-108) with hymns, canticles, and antiphons. Capitals A and B in outer margins every two Psalms, perhaps to denote change in reader. With Hymns for Matins and Lauds
Description:
In Latin., Script: Written in a large round gothic bookhand., One crude historiated initial, 6-line (Ps. 1): David seated on ground with both hands raised in prayer, against a blue ground, the letter-form tan, orange, and red with white filigree; large blue, green, pink, and red acanthus leaves at the corners, against a gold ground, edged with two thick black bands, penwork, gold dots, and hair-spray. In bottom margin a "YHS" monogram, against a blue ground, inside sunburst and green, pink, and blue wreath, supported by large bud from which sprout two large acanthus leaves, red berries, gold dots and hair-spray, as above. 6- or 5-line initials red and/or blue, with large green or red dots, elaborate purple calligraphic decoration, portions filled with green and tan. 2-line initials, red or blue, with calligraphic ornament and flourishes, as above. 1-line initials, blue or red, with guide-letters throughout. On f. 160v a large pen drawing of a hand pointing to text., and Binding: 16th-17th centuries. Sewn on five tawed skin straps. Plain, wound endbands on cores laced into tunnels in the edges of heavy wooden boards. Covered with three separate pieces of dark brown leather (cowskin?) with leather straps extending across the spine and nailed to the boards over the sewing straps. Each board has four corner pieces, a central boss and a strip of metal, probably iron, nailed around the four edges. Strap and pin fastening, the pin on the lower board, stubs of pink, tawed straps attached to the upper one. Fragments from several parchment manuscripts and early printed texts used as binding reinforcements.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Catholic Church
Subject (Topic):
Liturgy, Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, Manuscripts, Medieval, and Psalters
Manuscript on paper of 1) Juvenal, Satirae I-XVI. 2) Persius, Prologue followed by Satirae I-VI.
Description:
In Latin., Watermarks: similar to Briquet Tete de boeuf 14873., Script: Written in humanistic script by a single scribe., Six illuminated initials in blue or green, 6- to 5-line on gold rectangular grounds (ff. 1r, 20r, 32v, 45v, 59r, 76r); smaller initials, in blue, for the remaining satires., and Binding: Sixteenth century (?). Vellum stays and vellum reinforcement of own end leaves. Resewn on three slit straps bound in wooden boards covered in brown leather, blind-tooled, with two catches on the upper board. Too heavily restored to tell much about the binding.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Juvenal.
Subject (Topic):
Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, Manuscripts, Medieval, and Satire, Latin
Manuscript on parchment (hair side quite yellow) of Paulus de Sancta Maria (of Burgos; 1353-1435), Scrutinium Scripturarum. With Passages concerning the conversion of Jews to Christianity; (a) unidentified; (b) Letter of Pope Gregory I to Pascasius, bishop of Naples
Description:
In Latin., Script: Arts. 1 and 3 written below top line in fere-humanistic script by a single scribe who frequently erased and rewrote the text; art. 2 added in another hand. Some later marginalia., Crudely executed initial and full border on f. 9r: gold initial, 11-line, on blue rectangular ground, with white vine-stem ornamentation highlighted in green; border in gold, blue, pale pink, mauve and green, consisting of swirling acanthus leaves, flowers, birds, gold dots and leaves around bar border in upper and outer margin, and with putti supporting laurel wreath (arms effaced) in lower margin. One penwork initial of pathetic quality, 8-line, red and blue divided body accompanied by red and blue penwork designs, on f. 125v. Table of contents (art. 1) and headings throughout, in bright red. Remains of notes to rubricator., and Binding: 18th-19th centuries. Red goatskin, with green, gold-tooled labels. Yellow edges.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut, New Haven., and Naples (Italy)
Subject (Name):
Paulus de Sancta Maria.
Subject (Topic):
Conversion, Christianity, Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, Judaism, and Manuscripts, Medieval