Manuscript on parchment of Diodorus Siculus, Bibliotheca Historica, Books I (parts 1 and 2)-II, in an unidentified and freely adapted Italian translation (e.g., the opening portion of Book II is greatly abbreviated).
Description:
Binding: Fifteenth century, Italy. Sewn on four tawed skin, slit straps nailed in channels on the outside of wooden boards. Yellow edges. Pink, green and cream endbands sewn on five cores. Covered in dark red goatskin with corner tongues, blind-tooled with a central ornament in a panel bordered with rope interlace in concentric frames. Two fastenings, leaf-shaped catches on the lower board and the upper board cut in for the clasp straps. Rebacked twice., Purchased from L. C. Witten in 1955 by Thomas E. Marston., Script: Written in an elegant, upright mercantesca script by a single scribe, below top line., and Spaces for headings and decorative initials remain unfilled. Initial on f. 1r later addition.
Subject (Geographic):
Egypt--History--To 640 A.D
Subject (Name):
Diodorus,--Siculus
Subject (Topic):
History, Ancient, Literature, Medieval--Translations, Manuscripts, Medieval--Connecticut--New Haven, and Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts in Beinecke Library
Manuscript on parchment of Leonardo Bruni, De bello italico adversus gothos, in the Italian version by Ludovico Petroni made in 1456. Preceded by the letter of Leonardo Bruni to Giuliano Cardinal Cesarini (1398-1444).
Description:
Binding: 18th-19th centuries, Italy. "Alla rustica" with grey-green paper added over the spine and part of the boards. Edges yellow., Partial border in inner margin of white vine-stem ornament, f. 1r, on blue, green and pink ground with white and blue dots. In lower border terminals extending in ink hair spray with green, pink and blue flowers and gold balls frame central medallion with a crude outline drawing of a head in profile (later addition?). Two decorated initials, 4- to 3-line, gold on blue, pink and green grounds with white vine-stem ornament. On f. 1r initial joined to partial border. Heading on f. 1r in red., and Script: Written by a single scribe in fere-gothic script, above top line.
Subject (Geographic):
Rome--History
Subject (Topic):
Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, Italian literature--15th century, Literature, Medieval--Translations, Manuscripts, Medieval--Connecticut--New Haven, and Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts in Beinecke Library
Lawrence Justinian, Saint, 1381-1456 Tavelli, Giovanni, 1386-1446
Published / Created:
[between 1450 and 1500]
Call Number:
Beinecke MS 796
Image Count:
466
Resource Type:
Archives or Manuscripts
Abstract:
Manuscript on paper (sturdy) of Laurentius Iustinianus (Lorenzo Giustiniani, 1381-1456), De disciplina et spirituali perfectione monasticae conversationis (De disciplina spiritualium), Italian translation by Iohannes de Tossignano (Giovanni Tavelli da Tossignano, 1386-1446, bishop of Ferrara 1431-1446).
Description:
Binding: Of the original binding the wooden boards (and the gilt and gauffered edges) survive. The boards are now covered with brown 19th-century marbled paper and the spine with cloth-reinforced beige marbled paper. On the latter (now detached) a paper label with handwritten 19th-century inscription: "146. / Anonimo. / Della disciplina et perfectione / de la monastica conversatione. / Cartaceo. / secolo XV."., Collection of Bernard M. Rosenthal, Berkeley (MS 136). Purchased from him in 1994 on the Edwin J. Beinecke Fund., Headings in red ink of various darkness. On f. 1r the Prologue opens with an 8-line Gothic foliate initial L in purple and blue, heightened with white penwork, on a square golden background, containing a stylized flower in purple and yellow with green foliage and ending in blue, purple and green acanthus leaves; on the same page a full floral border in blue, purple and green with a multitude of hairy gold balls. On all the remaining pages the decoration was not executed: the rectangular spaces with guide letters for initials are blank. A 4-line initial was planned f. 5r at the beginning of the text, a 3-line initial at the beginning of chapter 2 (f. 10r), and 2-line initials at the beginning of the other chapters., and Script: Copied by one hand in Italian Gothica Hybrida Libraria/Currens.
Subject (Name):
Lawrence Justinian,--Saint,--1381-1456
Subject (Topic):
Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, Literature, Medieval--Translations, Manuscripts, Medieval--Connecticut--New Haven, Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts in Beinecke Library, and Monastic and religious life
Manuscript on paper of 1) Leonardo Bruni, La prima guerra punica, in an anonymous Italian translation. 2) Leonardo Bruni, Vita di Dante. 3) Leonardo Bruni, Vita di Francesco Petrarca.
Description:
Binding: Twentieth century, England (?). Hard-grained, brown leather case. Gold-tooled title and date on spine: "L. Bruni Guerra Punica/ Vite di Dante e Petrarca/ MS. Sec. XV". Bright blue marbled edges., Decoration of poor quality: 12-line divided initial in red and blue, f. 1r; 5-line blue initial with red penwork decoration, f. 51v; 5-line divided initial red and blue, f. 51r. Plain red and blue initials, 4- to 3-line, alternate throughout. Headings in bright red., Purchased from H. P. Kraus in 1957 by Thomas E. Marston., Script: Written by two scribes: ff. 1r-51v in humanistic semi-cursive script, above top line; ff. 51v-59v in fere-humanistic script, above top line., and Watermarks: similar to Briquet Monts 11684.
Subject (Name):
Dante Alighieri,--1265-1321 and Petrarca, Francesco,--1304-1374
Subject (Topic):
Biography--Middle Ages, 500-1500, Literature, Medieval--Translations, Manuscripts, Medieval--Connecticut--New Haven, Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts in Beinecke Library, and Punic wars
Manuscript on parchment (hair side yellow and speckled) of Walter Burley, De vita et moribus philosophorum; an abridged translation that contains only 77 lives.
Description:
Belonged to Giuseppe (Joseph) Martini from whom it was acquired by H. P. Kraus, who sold it in 1956 to Thomas E. Marston., Binding: Nineteenth century, Italy. Tan calf, blind- and gold-tooled. Head and fore edge bluish green; lettering on tail edge. In panels on spine: "Detti de' filosofi/ MSS. in Perg./ Sec. XV"., Script: Written in a humanistic hand both above and below top line by Johannes Nydenna de Confluentia, who would sometimes complete the final word of the final line of text (recto only) by writing the letters down between the outer vertical bounding lines., and Space left for decorative initial on f. 1r later filled with plain initial and a stylized sprig of flowers, in turquoise. Plain intials throughout text alternate in red and blue.
Subject (Topic):
Biography--Middle Ages, 500-1500, Literature, Medieval--Translations, Manuscripts, Medieval--Connecticut--New Haven, Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts in Beinecke Library, and Philosophy, Ancient
Manuscript on parchment (palimpsest: written over an unidentified canon law text, 1250-75) of Epitome of Aristotle's Ethics translated into Italian by Taddeo d'Alderotto (ca. 1235-1295).
Description:
Binding: ca. 1900, England or U.S.A. (?). Quarter bound in orange goatskin with a gold-tooled label on spine ("Aristotle. Ethica, in Italian. XIVth Century") and marbled paper sides. Edges gilt., Script: Written in a calligraphic notarial hand with tall ascenders and strongly looped forms of letters d and b, above top line., and Spaces left for decorative initials remain unfilled.
Subject (Name):
Alderotti, Taddeo, 1223-1295 and Aristotle
Subject (Topic):
Ethics, Italian literature--To 1400, Literature, Medieval--Translations, Manuscripts, Medieval--Connecticut--New Haven, and Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts in Beinecke Library
Manuscript on parchment of 1) Curtius Rufus, Historia Alexandri Magni, translated into Italian and supplemented with material from Plutarch by Pier Candido Decembrio. 2) Pier Candido Decembrio, Comparazione di Cesare e d'Alessandro Magno.
Description:
Binding: 15th-16th centuries, Italy. Sewn on four tawed skin, slit straps laid in channels on the outside of wooden boards and pegged. Gilt edges. Covered in brown goatskin with corner tongues, and blind-tooled with a ropework star inside painted (red) and blind-tooled circles inside a floral border, all with metallic annular dots. There are traces of four leaf-shaped fastenings, the catches on the lower board, the upper one cut in for fabric straps attached with star-headed nails. Rebacked twice., One illuminated intial, 6-line, gold against blue, green and pink ground with white vine-stem ornament, extending into inner margin to form a partial border; terminating at top and bottom in pen inkspray with buds in green and pink and gold balls with hair-line extensions. Plain initials, 3- to 2-line, in blue, mark text divisions; headings in pale red., Purchased from Lathrop C. Harper in 1949 by Thomas E. Marston., and Script: Written by a single scribe in a slightly rounded humanistic bookhand with many cursive elements, below top line.
Subject (Name):
Caesar, Julius, Decembrio, Pier Candido,--1399-1477, Plutarch, and Rufus, Curtius
Subject (Topic):
Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, Italian literature--15th century, Literature, Medieval--Translations, Manuscripts, Medieval--Connecticut--New Haven, and Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts in Beinecke Library