A metallurgical experiment book of the type circulated among those interested in alchemy, mining, and metallurgy in the sixteenth century ...
Description:
Binding: Original stiff parchment over paper boards, remnants of two thong ties on the upper cover, slits for similar ties, now missing, on the lower cover; front cover lettered in very faded gothic script, apparently by the scribe: "PROBIER BUCH | ANDREAS OBERLENDER | 1532 |". A title has also been supplied by a modern hand in old style on the backstrip. Plain edges., Denis Duveen, acquired from Dr. Ernst Weil (bookseller), London, 1949; Mellon MS 104, acquired with the Duveen collection. Gift of Paul and Mary Mellon, 1965., Red inks used for tabular data and infrequent sketches of alchemical apparatus in the text., and Script: Written by a single copyist writing a practiced German secretary hand, partly in a modified Fraktur, partly in a more italic cursive, and occasionally (as in the title page) in a formal gothic script; a few additions at the end in a later hand.
Subject (Name):
Oberlender, Andreas
Subject (Topic):
Alchemy--Early works to 1800, German literature--Early modern, 1500-1700, Manuscripts, Medieval--Connecticut--New Haven, Marcasite, Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts in Beinecke Library, and Metallurgy--Early works to 1800
Manuscript on parchment of a book of hours in the Premonstratensian use
Description:
In Latin., Script: Written by a single copyist in two sizes of liturgical gothic script., One miniature, f. v verso: Saul on the Road to Damascus, an addition (between 1500 and 1510) of fair quality, in an arched frame, brown and gold; a scatter border of flowers and insects on a beige ground, brown edging. Large initials, one (f. 4r) 8-line (45 x 45 mm.) on burnished gold with tooling, the others either on burnished gold with tooling (ff. 1r, 38r, 72v, 127v) or on pink and blue grounds (ff. 154r, 161r, 193v), set in full scatter borders of acanthus twigs (either gold with pink and brown or red, blue, and/or pink), flowers and, in some cases, birds, over compartmentalized (blue/gold, pink/beige, blue/dark blue, beige/brown), beige and parchment (with and without a background of black pen flecks) grounds; some borders without bounding lines. On f. 1r, an unidentified coat of arms in each corner of the border. Upper left and lower right, sable, in chief 2 wreaths vert with dots gules and or, in base a rose per pale gules and argent, barbed vert, seeded or. Upper right, or, a bear (?) rampant argent, langued gules. Lower left, ermine, a fess gules with 4 plates, cottised sable. Small initials, 3-line, gold, either filled with pink with gold filigree on a blue ground decorated with acanthus and black flecks, or filled with blue on a pink ground decorated with black filigree; some with additional flowers or pink and blue acanthus; all associated with short border strips, as above. Numerous 3- and 4-line initials, blue, filled with red curling acanthus drawn in pen, surrounded by red or crimson penwork. 2- and 1-line initials in red or blue. Rubrics throughout., Pieces of the illuminated borders have been cut from ff. 4, 38, 127, 154, and 193. Ink has run or been rubbed in several places, including ff. v verso and 1r., and Binding: Sixteenth century. Sewn on three double vegetable fiber cords laced into wooden boards. The book is so tightly bound that it is impossible to determine whether or not the sewing is original. No endband grooves. Edges gilt. Covered in dark brown calf with a panel stamp of the Virgin and Child on a crescent, within a flambent aureole in the center of each board, hearts pierced with an arrow and a dagger (?) in a diamond, stars in circles above and below the central stamp, all within a vine scroll border. Traces of one fastening, two later fastenings added. Rebacked, very possibly by the binder who rebacked MS 7 as there is a similar, unusual, endcap treatment.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Catholic Church and Premonstratensians.
Subject (Topic):
Books of hours, Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript fragment on parchment of a hymnal containing a variety of hymns, some unidentified, including Thomas Aquinas (Corpus Christi).
Description:
In Latin., Script: written in a formal gothic script (littera textualis formata)., and Decoration: 2- to 12-line initials at the beginning of hymns are in red; only those that begin with the letter "I" are set apart from the text; 1-line initials at the beginning of verses are in red; rubrics are written in red in the same script as the text; punctuated with the punctus.
Manuscript fragment on parchment of a hymnal containing portions of five hymns on: St. Martin (11 November); St. Elizabeth (19 Novembers); St. Catharine of Alexandria (25 November); St. Andrew (30 November); and St. Nicholas (6 December).
Description:
In Latin., Script: written in gothic script (littera textualis formata)., and Decoration: 2-line initials at the beginning of hymns alternate red and blue; first letter following these initials is a brown capital highlighted with red; 1-line initials at the beginning of verses alternate red and blue; rubrics written in red in the same script as the text; punctuated with the punctus; hyphenation in the same ink as the text.
Manuscript fragment on parchment of a hymnal containing fragments of two unidentified hymns and St. Faith (6 October).
Description:
In Latin., Script: written in gothic script (littera textualis)., and Decoration: one large hymn initial "S" in red with red penwork; 1-line verse initials alternate red and blue; rubrics written in red in the same script as the text; there is no punctuation; hyphenation in the same ink as the text; musical notation on 5-line staves.
Manuscript fragment on parchment of a historiated initial and on the obverse a chant for the sprinkling of water in Paschaltide
Description:
In Latin., Script: written in gothic script (littera textualis)., and Decoration: historiated initial "R"; the initial is blue with white highlights on a gold ground contained within a square green border; the inside of the letter depicts Christ rising from a coffin surrounded by three sleeping guards; musical notation in black on a 4-line staff of lead, yellow, lead, and red lines.
Manuscript on paper (unidentified watermarks) of Georg Rollenhagen (1542-1606), Isagoge in astrologiam. This manuscript is apparently the autograph of the Astrologia iudiciaria sive genethliacum reported to have been composed by this German evangelical minister, rector of the Gymnasium at Magdeburg and poet
Description:
In Latin and German., Script: Apparently copied by one hand writing a small Humanistica Cursiva Currens in many different forms, often difficult to decipher. Headings in the same script or in fancy capitals. The passages in German are in Gothica Cursiva Currens., Astrological diagrams, tables and calculations, all like the text of a rapid execution., and Binding: Original half binding of blind-tooled white pigskin decorated with rolls, the covers in an unorthodox way covered with green-blue blind-tooled parchment (?). On the front cover the gold-tooled initials "IMD" and the date "1599". Spine with three raised bands, with the number "10" painted in red in the second compartment. At the top illegible title label.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Rollenhagen, Georg, 1542-1609.
Subject (Topic):
Astrology, German literature, Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Complete version of the earliest German translation of the Legenda aurea., Teil I: Sommerteil, and Teil II: Winterteil
Description:
2 volumes bound together with discreet foliation., On paper, and Teil II wanting ff. 4, 292.
Subject (Name):
Oelrichs, Johann Carl Conrad, 1722-1798, provenance
Subject (Topic):
Christian saints --Biography --Early works to 1800, Christian saints --Calendar --Early works to 1800, Christian saints --Legends --Early works to 1800, Church calendar --Early works to 1800, Manuscripts, German--Germany, and Manuscripts, Medieval--Germany
Manuscript on paper, composed of two distinct sections, of various religious tracts, mostly unidentified, including Jacobus de Voragine, Legenda aurea; Pseudo-Augustine, Sermo de annuntiatione beatae virginis mariae
Description:
In Latin., Watermarks: Part I: unidentified bull's head. Part II: buried in gutter., Script: Part I (ff. 60): Written in a neat running script by three scribes: 1) ff. 1r-52r; 2) ff. 52r-54v; 3) f. 60r-v. Part II (ff. 132): Written by a single scribe in an elegant running script. Portions of the marginal notes by original scribe have been lost due to trimming., Part I: Small, crude initials in red, some with simple penwork designs; initials strokes, in red. Part II: Headings, paragraph marks, and initial strokes, in red, throughout., and Binding: 15th-16th centuries. Original sewing on three thick, double, vegetable fiber cords laced and pegged in grooves in wooden boards. The grooves for the endband cores, which are also vegetable fiber, start on the spine edge of the boards. The spine of the bookblock is cut off at an angle at head and tail so the braided endbands extend very little beyond the edges. The spine is square and lined all along with tawed skin which extends to the inside of the boards. Covered in tawed skin, originally pink, with two labels at the head of the upper board; on the first, "Passionale ad aduentum domini usque ad festum mathie sancte [?] sermonum collectio [?]," on the second, "G.27". Five round bosses on each board and two strap and pin fastenings, the pins on the upper one. Lower board detached, bosses and fastenings wanting.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Jacobus, de Voragine, approximately 1229-1298.
Subject (Topic):
Christian legends, Christian literature, Latin (Medieval and modern), Manuscripts, Medieval, and Sermons