Merton College MS. 26

Former shelfmark: B. 3. 4

JEROME etc. ; S. XV ex.

Language(s): Latin

fols. i–v blank.

1. (fols. 1–45; 45v-6v blank)

Jerome, Commentary on Matthew

Rubric: Incipit prefacio sancti Hieronimi presbiteri super Mattheum

Incipit: Plures fuisse qui euuangelia scripserint

Incipit: Liber generacionis...; In Ysaia legimus Generacionem eius quis enarrabit

Explicit: non ignorat eam diem in qua se scit futurum cum apostolis

Final rubric: Finit liber quartus commentarii beati Hieronymi presbiteri super Matheum

CPL 590; CCSL 77 (1969); Stegmüller, Bibl. 3372; Lambert 217.

2. (fols. 47–53)

Victorinus of Pettau (revised by JEROME) Commentary on the Apocalypse (Recensio breuior Hieronymi)

Rubric: Incipit prologus beatissimi Ieronimi ad Anatolium de explanacione apocalipsis

Incipit: Diuersos maxima discrimina transcendentes inueniunt casus

Incipit: Principium libri beatitudinem legenti audienti et seruanti promittit

Explicit: qui cum Cherintho sentiunt

CPL 80; CSEL 49 (1916), pp. 11–154; Stegmüller, Bibl. 3457; Lambert 490, 1.

3. (fols. 53–4)

De Monogramma Christi

Incipit: Hec est sapiencia et intellectus id est sapere et intelligere

Explicit: que pater possint in sua potestate

ed. G. Morin, Anecdota Maredsolana III (3) (Maredsous, 1903), pp. 195–8, repr. PL Suppl. 2. 287–91; Lambert 508. All of the other known copies of this work are Continental and from the ninth century, except for BL Harl. 3049, s. xv, from Durham.

4. (fols. 54–6v)

Syagrius, Regulae definitionum contra haereticos prolatae

Rubric: Regule diffinicionum sancti Ieronimi contra hereticos

Incipit: Omne quod est aut ingenitum est aut genitum aut factum

Explicit: collata credentibus conferebantur

CPL 560; ed. K. Künstle, Antipriscilliana (Freiburg, 1905), pp. 142–59; Lambert 506.

5. (fols. 57–68; 68v blank)

Ps.-Jerome (Cummean), Commentary on Mark

Rubric: Incipit prefacio sancti Ieronimi presbiteri super Marcum

Incipit: Omnis scriba doctus in regno celorum similis est homini patrifamilias

Incipit: Initium euangelii Iesu Christi filii Dei sicut scriptum est in Ysaia

Explicit: et Luca concordans enarrat

Final rubric: Explicit commentarium beati Hieronymi presbiteri super euangelium Marci

CPL 632; PL 30. 589–644; Lambert 473.

6. (fols. 69–136v; 137–9v blank)

Pelagius, Commentaries on the Pauline Epistles

Rubric: Hieronimi presbiteri breuiarium incipit feliciter

Incipit: Primum queritur quare post euangelia que supplementum legis sunt

Incipit: Romani sunt qui ex Iudeis gentibus

Incipit: Paulus. Querimus quare Paulus scribat cum Saulus ante sit uocatus

Explicit: ceterum maiora crimina et que puniuntur cese uictime non remittunt

Final rubric: Expliciunt annotationes super epistolam ad Hebreos

Rom.-Philemon. CPL 728, 759; Stegmüller, Bibl. 6355–67; Lambert 481–2; ed. A. Souter, Texts & Studies, 9. 1–2 (Cambridge, 1926), repr. PL Suppl. 1, pp. 1110–1374 (ending with Philemon). Ps.-PELAGIUS, In Hebraeos (‘In primis dicendum est cur apostolus in hac epistola non seruauerit morem suum … Multipharie …; Per multos inquit prophetas et diuerso modo maioribus’) CPL 1122a; Stegmüller, Bibl. 6368; ed. E. Riggenbach, Die älteste lateinischen Kommentare zum Hebräerbrief (Leipzig, 1907), pp. 206–212; Lambert 485 (not this copy). Apparently copied from Oxford, Balliol Coll. 157 (not listed by Lambert), made for William Gray, bishop of Ely, probably between 1447 and 1454 (A. Souter in Proc. British Acad. 7 [1915/16], 277; Mynors, Balliol, p. 141).

7. (fols. 140–215; 215v-18v blank)

Jerome, Commentarii in IV Epistulas Paulinas (Galat., Ephes., Tit., Philemon.)

Rubric: Incipit prologus Ieronimi super epistolam ad Galathas

Incipit: Pauci admodum dies sunt quod epistolam Pauli ad Philemonem interpretatus

Incipit: Paulus ...; Non superbe ut quidam putant ...

Rubric: Incipit prologus eiusdem super epistolam Pauli apostoli ad Ephesios

Incipit: Si quicquam est O Paula et Eustochium

Incipit: Paulus ...; Si prepositio misterium eius per quem res agitur ostendit

Rubric: Incipit prologus eiusdem super epistolam ad Titum

Incipit: Licet non sint digni fide

Incipit: Paulus ...; In epistola ad Romanos ita orsus est Paulus seruus Christi

Rubric: Incipit ad Philemonem

Incipit: Qui uolunt inter epistolas Pauli eam recipere que ad Philemonem scribitur

Incipit: Paulus ...; Prepostero ordine atque peruerso

Explicit: quotiens auditus et lectus edificat

CPL 591; PL 26. 307–618; Stegmüller, Bibl. 3381, 3400–02; Lambert 219.

Throughout are chapter-numbers in the margins and in the upper outer corners of each recto, and other annotation, s. xvi in., some in the hand of Fitzjames, some in the hand of his ex dono (see below).

Physical Description

Secundo Folio: fuerunt quos

Form: codex

Support: Parchment

Extent: 223 leaves (v + 218)

Dimensions (leaf): 390 × 255 mm.

Dimensions (written): 260 × 160 mm.

The edges retrimmed, affecting marginalia of s. xvi in., and stained yellow.

Collation

a bifolium, the first leaf the front pastedown, A⁴, 1–5⁸, 6⁶, 7–8⁸, 9⁶, 10–17⁸, 18⁶(+ 1 after 6), 19–25⁸, 26⁴, 27–8⁸, B⁴, the last leaf the rear pastedown; catchwords; quire-signatures of the usual late medieval form. fols. i and 216 are of thick, stiff parchment.

Layout

Ruled with fine pencil in 2 cols of 51–3 lines.

Hand(s)

A single Continental archaizing bookhand, also found also MS 25.

Decoration

English: fol. 1 has a full floral border and 8-line initial in colours and gold; at the bottom are the arms of Fitzjames of Dorset and Somerset, not an integral part of the border but painted over it. Art. 5 opens with an initial and 3-sided floral border in colours and gold. Arts 2, 3, 4, prols. and commentary on each book in arts 6 and 7, open with large champe initials. Blue initials flourished in red.

Binding

s. xv ex.: brown polished leather over wide-bevelled wooden boards with slightly projecting squares, repaired; sewn on five bands, raised and outlined with string. Straps with clasps, now lost, from recesses in the front board to catches at the back, of which the lower remains. Nail-holes show that Fitzjames’ label, 160 × 70 mm., was once on the rear board. The marks of post-medieval chain-staples at the foredge of each board, near the foot at the front, near the head at the back.

History

Origin: S. XV ex. ; English and Continental

Provenance and Acquisition

On fol. v^vis ‘In presenti uolumine continentur opera beati Hieronimi sequentia Ex dono domini Ricardi Fitzjames nuper Cicestrensis episcopi ac Custodis istius Collegii Cuius anime propicietur Deus amen ...’, in the usual untidy secretary hand. For Fitzjames see MS 9. On 31 Dec. 1498 and 14 Jan. 1499 he pledged it to the College in return for the loan of two separate copies of the Decretum, redeeming it on 29 Nov. (Registrum, pp. 227–8, 238).

On the front pastedown: ‘quere titulos folio 5’, s. xvii; ‘N. 2. 14. Art:’, s. xvii, canc. and replaced with modern ‘B. 3. 4 (XXVI)’ in red. ‘14’ is inked on the foredge.

Record Sources

R. M. Thomson, A descriptive catalogue of the medieval manuscripts of Merton College, Oxford (Cambridge: D. S. Brewer), 2009.

Availability

For enquiries relating to this manuscript please contact Merton College Library.

Bibliography

Coxe, pp. 20–1; Powicke, no. 1182; Alexander & Temple, no. 541.

Funding of Cataloguing

Conversion of the printed catalogue to TEI funded by the Warden and Fellows of Merton College .

Abbreviations

View list of abbreviations and editorial conventions.

Last Substantive Revision

2018-08-01: First online publication

A catalogue of Western manuscripts at the Bodleian Libraries and selected Oxford colleges