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

Merton College MS. 170

Former shelfmark: O. 2. 6

NICHOLAS GORRAN; S. XIV in.

Contents

Language(s): Latin

Originally two separate volumes, brought together for the present binding.

Physical Description

Secundo Folio: constituenda sunt
Secundo Folio: (fol. 52) contra
Form: codex
Support: Parchment
Extent: Originally two separate volumes, brought together for the present binding; 176 leaves (iv + 172)
Dimensions (leaf): 350 × 250 mm.
Dimensions (written): 260 × 185 mm.
The edges heavily retrimmed with loss of marginalia and spattered with red.

Collation

A singleton, 114, 2–412 / 5–1312, 1412(12 canc.); catchwords, in I mostly cropped. II has pencilled quire-signatures of the usual late medieval form. Quires are lost after 4.

Decoration

On fols. 1 and 51 are large and handsome red and blue flourished initials with partial bar borders. According to G. Pollard, in the unpaginated Addenda and Corrigenda of 1940 to S. Gibson, Statuta Antiqua (Oxford, 1931), the initial on fol. 1 is by the same hand as that in the University’s Registrum A, fol. 8, which he dates to 1311–13. This will apply to the initial on fol. 51 as well, and perhaps to others in the set. Blue initials flourished in red; red and blue paraphs and running heads. At the ends of quires are pencilled the number of the coloured initials and paraphs.

Binding

Standard Merton s. xvii, resewn on four bands and rebacked in modern times; formerly chained from the usual position. At the foredge of fol. iv, formerly the pastedown in an earlier binding, are the marks of two straps. Fols. i-iii, 170–2 are paper binding leaves, the innermost modern, the others s. xvii, the two outermost from the same printed book as in MS 11. Previously rebound in 1436–7.

History

Provenance and Acquisition

Given to the College as two separate volumes by William Reed in 1374: UO49. 94, 96. Part of a set of ten, of which eight survive: the others are MSS 166, 168–9, 171–2. On fol. ivv: ‘In hoc uolumine continentur postille [Nicholai Gorhamover line] super Euangelium Mathei’; in the hand of William Reed, ‘Liber M. Willelmi Reed episcopi Cicestrensis quem emit a [uenerabili patreover line] domino Thoma Tryllek’ episcopo Roffensi. Oretis igitur pro utroque’; in the hand of Walterus Roberti, ‘Liber domus scolarium de Merton’ in Oxon’ in communi libraria eiusdem et ad usum communem sociorum ibidem studencium cathenandus. Ex dono uenerabilis patris domini Willelmi tercii episcopi Cicestrie. Oretis igitur pro eodem et benefactoribus eiusdem ac fidelium animabus a purgatorio liberandis’; an erased single-line inscription. For Reed, see MS 8.

Inside the front board is a sheet of paper with a table of contents, s. xvii, ‘F. 3, 6’, s. xvii (canc.), ‘O. 6. 10. Art.’, s. xvii, canc. and replaced with ‘O. 2. 6’ in red ink and ‘CLXX)’ in pencil; the College bookplate.

Merton College MS. 170 – Part I (fols. 1–50v)

Contents

Language(s): Latin

fol. iv blank.

1. (fols. 1–50v)
NICHOLAS GORRAN OP, Commentary on Matthew
Incipit: Matheus. Presens prologus in tres partes diuiditur ...; Liber generationis ...; Sicut fluuius de loco uoluptatis egrediens
Explicit: (ends impf. in 14: 34) sed progressum ecclesie ad||

pr. Cologne 1472 &c; Stegmüller, Bibl. 5777.

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: Parchment

Layout

Ruled with crayon in 2 cols of 60 lines.

Hand(s)

A single practised English gothic rotunda bookhand. Both parts, but especially II, are heavily corrected and annotated in anglicana hands, including that of William of Nottingham. On fol. 5v is a note by Thomas Gascoigne (Ball, Gascoigne, p. 137).

History

Origin: S. XIV in. ; script of English appearance.

Merton College MS. 170 – Part II (fols. 51–169v)

Contents

Language(s): Latin

2. (fols. 51–169; 169v blank)
NICHOLAS GORRAN OP, Commentary on Luke
Incipit: Disciplina medici exaltabit capud ...; Inter figuras animalium celestium
Incipit: Lucas ...; Huic operi duplex prohemium premittitur ...;
Incipit: Quoniam quidem ...; Liber iste diuiditur in prohemium quod hic incipit
Explicit: non more duracionem continuam &c. amen.
Final rubric: Expliciunt postille fratris Nicholai de Goram super Lucam quibus qui usi sint rogent pro anima domini Hugonis de Notingham qui in omnibus expensas exhibuit satis largas et etiam pro anima fratris W. de eadem per cuius laboriosam diligenciam sunt sic scripte [followed by several more words, erased].

Pecia marks up to lxviii. Heavily annotated in a neat early anglicana hand: at the foot of fol. 75v two distichs: ‘Si sequeris fugiet, si fugeris umbra sequetur’, and ‘Vlcera uox rauca corruptus anelitus albor’. The annotator frequently quotes earlier authorities: Bede, Comestor, Basil, Jerome, Augustine, Ambrose, Seneca, Gilbert, Origen, the Gloss, Richard of St Victor, Bernard, Chrysostom, Theophilus, Anselm.

pr. Cologne 1537; Stegmüller, Bibl. 5780.

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: Parchment

Layout

Ruled with crayon in 2 cols of 65 lines.

Hand(s)

The gothic rotunda bookhand of William of Nottingham (for whom see MS 168). Both parts, but especially II, are heavily corrected and annotated in anglicana hands, including that of William of Nottingham.

History

Origin: S. XIV in. ; England, Oxford

Additional Information

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. 67–8; Powicke, no. 551.

Funding of Cataloguing

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

Last Substantive Revision

2019-07-02: First online publication

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