Merton College MS. 178

Former shelfmark: A. 1. 8

BEDE, HAIMO, JOACHIM OF FIORE; S. XIV in.

Language(s): Latin

1. (fols. 1–32)

BEDE, Commentary on the Canonical Epistles

Rubric: Incipit prologus uenerabilis Bede presbiteri super septem canonicas epistolas.

Incipit: ⟨I⟩acobus, Petrus, Iohannes, Iudas, septem epistolas ediderunt

Explicit: sed ante omne seculum et nunc et in omnia s. s. amen.

CPL 1362; CCSL 121 (1983), pp. 179–342.

2. (fols. 32–133)

HAIMO OF AUXERRE, Commentary on the Apocalypse

Rubric: Incipit epithoma succincte expositionis super librum Apocalipsis.

Incipit: ⟨L⟩egimus in ecclesiastica historia beatum Iohannem a Domiciano impiissimo Cesare in Pathmos insula relegatum exilio

Explicit: et in gratia terminum poneret.

Final rubric: Explicit Haymo super Apocalipsim.

PL 117. 937–1220; Stegmüller, Bibl. 3072, 3122.

3. (fols. 133–4)

IOACHIM OF FIORE, De Septem Sigillis

Incipit: ⟨S⟩ub hoc tempore continetur de Abraham Ysaac et Iacob

Explicit: in ea gaudium sempiternum amen.

Ed. M. Reeves and B. Hirsch-Reich, RTAM 21 (1954), 239–47; copies, not this one, listed in Reeves, The Influence of Prophecy in the Later Middle Ages (Oxford, 1969), p. 515.

(fol. 134v)

Two anonymous draft letters of spiritual edification, one short, the second long, in an anglicana hand, s. xiv ex., cropped at the foot.

Physical Description

Secundo Folio: mundi quod per se

Form: codex

Support: Parchment

Extent: 138 leaves (ii + 136)

Dimensions (leaf): 280 × 190 mm.

Dimensions (written): 255 × 150 mm.

The edges heavily retrimmed and spattered with red.

Collation

1–11¹², a bifolium; framed catchwords.

Layout

Frame-ruled with pencil in 2 cols of 42–4 lines.

Hand(s)

The same scribe as MS 127: a single proficient cursive hand, probably French. Here too he ‘chamfers’ the lower outer corners of the written space, and provides running heads.

Decoration

None: unfilled spaces for coloured initials and rubrics.

Binding

Standard Merton s. xvii; sewn on five bands; formerly chained from the usual position. Fols. i-ii, 135–6 are paper binding leaves, the outermost from the same printed book as in MS 45. On fol. 134 are marks of two clasps and of the large iron chain-staple.

History

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

Provenance and Acquisition

UO47. 230, bequeathed by John Staveley (for whom see MS 81), valued at 10s.

Inside the front board is a sheet of paper with a table of contents and ‘E. 5, 4’ (canc.), s. xvii, and ‘O. 7. 6. Art:’, canc. and replaced with ‘A. 1. 8 (CLXXVIII)’ in red; the College bookplate.

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, p. 71; Powicke, no. 257.

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

2019-07-15: First online publication

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