Manuscript on paper of a common-place book. The main texts of the manuscript, which are primarily devotional in nature, were written in East Anglia by an unidentified scribe toward the end of the 15th century; a second individual, identified as Robert Melton of Stuston in Suffolk, added numerous accounts and notes at the end of the 15th and beginning of the 16th century
Description:
Robert Melton was the co-executor of the estate of John Cornwallis (d. 1506), Lord of the Manors of Brome, Stuston, Okley, and Thranston, whose family possessed Brome Hall from early in the 15th to the 19th century., In Middle English., Watermarks: similar to Briquet Armoiries 1038 for part of quire I and all of II; similar to Briquet Main 11399 for remainder of quire I, all of quires III and IV, part of V; similar to Briquet Navire 11971 on ff. 68, 79 only; similar to Briquet Lettre P 8586 on ff. 72, 75; similar to Briquet Main 11152 on ff. 73, 74; unidentified watermark on f. 81., Script: Written primarily by two persons: Scribe 1) ff. 1r-26v, 28r-44r, 68r-77r, 79v, 80v-81r. Written in small, well formed Anglicana script with first line of each text in formal bookhand. Scribe 2: ff. 27r-v, 45r-60r, 62v-67v, 77v-78v, 80r, 81v. Written in a large sprawling script; no ornamentation. A third person added art. 17 at a later time., Only scribe 1 included decoration. Initials in red, 4- to 2-line, with penwork flourishes in brown; initial strokes in red. Portions of text underlined in red; rhyming verses often bracketed, in red, at end of lines. On f. 14v, a fine half-page drawing in red and brown of the monogram IHS which incorporates both a heart pierced by a lance and vine patterns and tendrils. Art. 4 is illustrated with drawings of dice, in red, in outer margins., First leaves heavily stained; lower right corner waterstained ff. 1-43., and Binding: Between 1490 and 1500. Original sewing with long stitches through a thick rectangular piece of leather on the outside of a vellum wrapper. Contemporary scroll design added to upper cover with unidentified inscription, in red, mostly illegible.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Melton, Robert.
Subject (Topic):
Devotional literature, English (Middle)., English poetry, Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript on parchment, in a single hand, of the "second version" of John Hardyng's Chronicle. While the manuscript has lost perhaps 36 leaves from the beginning of the work, it is textually complete from the reign of Vortigern on. There is a final entry referring to Elizabeth Woodville as the queen of Edward IV. The final leaves of the volume contain an anonymous sixteenth-century poem, A lamentable complaint of our saviour Christ; an eighteen-line carol in Middle English which begins "By resone of ii and power of one;" and a page of notes in a single sixteenth-century hand on executions at Smithfield in London between 1531 and 1534
Description:
In Middle English., Ownership inscription of "John Ravell" at the end of the Chronicles text, along with other notes., Layout: single columns of approximately 42 lines., Script: English bookhand., Binding: seventeenth-century full calf. Red leather spine tag, gilt: "M. S. Hist: of England / From Vortvmrk to Edw. 4.", and Previous shelfmark: MS. L. J. I. 10.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Hardyng, John, 1378-1465?
Subject (Topic):
English literature, English poetry, Manuscripts, Medieval, and Narrative poetry, English (Middle)
In Middle English., Watermarks: unidentified flower similar in design to Briquet Fleur 6654-56., Script: Text written in sprawling English secretary by two scribes, who added notes to mark sections in the margins., Several crude initials and line-fillers in red and brown. References to and quotations from the Bible, as well as running headings and marginalia, underlined in red., Water stains on many folios at front and back, not affecting text., and Binding: Seventeenth century. Red spattered edges. Brown spattered calf, blind-tooled.
Manuscript, on parchment, of Peter Idley's Instructions to his son, an adaptation (ca. 1445-50) of Albertano of Brescia's treatises addressed to his own sons. The manuscript was produced in England at the end of the fifteenth century and is written in anglicana and secretary script
Description:
In Middle English and Latin., Idley's Liber Secundus, a separate poem, follows the Instructions on f. 31v., Fragments of late thirteenth-century graded calendar used as pastedowns., Numerous sixteenth-century ownership inscriptions of Thomas Dowse on flyleaves., Verses from William Warner, Erasmus, and Shakespeare copied on flyleaves in sixteenth-century hands., and Binding: contemporary white leather over wooden boards; spine sewn on five double tawed leather thongs; remnants of clasp (three foliate metal pins) on upper cover.
Subject (Name):
Idley, Peter, d. 1474?
Subject (Topic):
Conduct of life, Didactic poetry, English, English poetry, and Youth
Manuscript on parchment of 1) John Lydgate (ca. 1370-ca. 1451), Life of Our Lady. The beginning is missing (Book I, verses 1-70 ). 2) The Privity of the Passion, an anonymous English translation, here attributed to Walter Hilton (d. 1396), of part of Ps.-Bonaventura, Meditationes vitae Christi
Description:
In Middle English with some Latin., Script: Probably copied by one scribe, writing Gothica Cursiva Libraria (Secretary). The headings in art. 2 are in a larger form of the same script, more close to Anglicana., In art. 2 the scribe left space for 2-line initials (a 3-line initial at the opening) and generally wrote guide-letters, but initials were never added and all other forms of decoration are missing., Low quality parchment, with holes and irregular edges. The upper outer corner of f. 79 is torn away with loss of text., and Binding: Twentieth century. Glossy brown leather over pasteboard, both covers framed with blind-tooled fillets; spine with four raised bands; in the second compartment the gold-tooled inscription "LYDGATE - LIFE OF OUR LADY"; at the bottom: "C. 1450". Sprinkled edges.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Lydgate, John, 1370?-1451?
Subject (Topic):
Devotional literature, English (Middle), English poetry, Literature, Medieval, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript, on vellum, in a single hand, of the complete text of Love's translation of the Meditationes vitae Christi, a text often attributed to Pseudo-Bonaventure or Johannes de Caulibus. The manuscript also contains John Lydgate's Fifteen joys of Our Lady and the anonymous poems, The fifteen ooes of Christ and The charter of Our Lord Jesus Christ
Description:
In Middle English., Layout: single columns of 45 lines., Script: English bookhand., Decoration: illuminated initial and three-quarter border on first page of text; three other illuminated initials with gold., Verse ownership inscriptions of Erkynwald Gyttyns on three back flyleaves, accompanied by pen trials and sketches., Ownership inscription of Francis Layton on verso of third front flyleaf., and Binding: eighteenth-century half calf over marbled boards.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Love, Nicholas, active 1410. and Lydgate, John, 1370?-1451?
Subject (Topic):
Devotional literature, English (Middle), English literature, English poetry, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript on paper of 1) Thomas Hoccleve, Complaint. 2) Hoccleve, Dialogue with a Friend. 3) Hoccleve, Tale of Jereslaus' Wife. 4) Prose moralization of the text in art. 3, preceded by a prologue in verse. 5) Hoccleve, How to Learn to Die. 6) Hoccleve, The Joys of Heaven, in prose, preceded by a prologue, in verse. 7) Hoccleve, Tale of Jonathas, preceded by prologue. 8) Prose moralization of the tale in art. 7. 9) John Lydgate, Dance of Macabre. 10) Hoccleve, Regiment of Princes
Description:
In Middle English., Script: Written in a current mixed hand, Anglicana with Secretary forms, by a single scribe who wrote in a more cursive and compressed style of script for the prose sections of text., Blue initials, 6- to 2-line, for major text divisions, with several distinct styles of red flourishing. Headings and marginal notes in red; paragraph or stanza marks alternate red and blue. Written by a scribe who paid careful attention to the presentation of the text: stanzas are divided by red lines that extend width of written space; metrical arrangements are marked by brackets in red; notes are added, in red, in outer margins and preceded by blue paragraph marks that are often joined together to form a vertical wavy line. In addition, the scribe has also paid attention to minor ornamental features: decorative flourishes, mostly in red, have been added to many lower margins; ornamental ascenders in top line of text extend into upper margin and are often decorated with red., and Binding: Twentieth century. Tan pigskin, blind-tooled, with title, in gold, on spine: "Hoccleve/ Manuscript/ XV Cent." Edges spattered red.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Hoccleve, Thomas, 1370?-1450?
Subject (Topic):
English literature, English poetry, Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript leaf, on parchment, containing portions of the life of Saint Mary of Egypt and the opening of the life of Saint Alphage
Description:
In Middle English., Leaf has been trimmed for use in a binding., Layout: single-column. Now 28 lines., Script: early Anglicana., and Decoration: rubricated.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Topic):
English literature, English poetry, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript, on parchment, in a single hand, containing the text of William of Nassington's poem. The Speculum vitae is followed by several other devotional texts in prose and verse, including Walter Hilton's prose commentary on Qui habitat and Bonum est; and poems on Purgatory, the evils of covetousness, a prayer to Jesus, and two dialogues, one between Christ and Man, and the second between Christ and a sinner
Description:
In Middle English, with rubrics in Latin., Ownership inscription for the Francisan convent at Lichfield?, dated 1486., Layout: double columns of 50-58 lines., Script: English bookhand., Decoration: initials in red and blue penwork., and Binding: original wooden boards, rebacked.
Subject (Geographic):
England., Connecticut, and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
William, of Nassington, -1354. and Franciscans
Subject (Topic):
Devotional literature, English (Middle), English literature, English poetry, English prose literature, Manuscripts, Medieval, and Purgatory