Exeter College MS. 39

Thomas Waleys, Expositio super duos nocturnos psalterii (Pss. 1–38); England, s. xiv

Language(s): Latin

1. (fols. 1^r–222^v)

Thomas Waleys, Expositio super duos nocturnos psalterii (Pss. 1–38).

Incipit: Beatus qui custodit uerba prophetia ⟨libri huius. Apoc.⟩ 22. Crisostomus omelia super Matheo imperfecta dicit sic. Quemadmodum non prodest cibus

Explicit: [fol. 2^r] ad temptaccionem etc. non in glosa.

Incipit: I. Beatus vir qui non abiit etc. Psalmista in principio sui libri pulchre et racionabiliter proponit

Explicit: [fol. 94^v] peccatum luxurie [quod ciuitatem ipsius anime] ||

Incipit: || [fol. 95^r] cura, in quibus videt

Explicit: [fol. 129^v] gentium principium est [verbum Dei Joh. 8] ||

Incipit: || [fol. 130^r] quod ciuitatem ipsius anime

Explicit: [fol. 130^v] habeat maximam ||

Incipit: || [fol. 131^r] et verbum Dei

Explicit: et linguam suam custodit ab angustiis animam suam.

Pr. London, 1481 (STC 19627, s.n. Perez de Valentia, Jacobus), Rome, 1611 (s.n. Iorgius, Thomas) etc.; Stegmüller, Bibl., 8245; Kaeppeli 3890.

The text’s disturbed appearance above is due to the misplacing of the leaf numbered 130, properly the first leaf of quire 9. If that is restored to its proper position, between fols. 94^v and 95^r, the text reads consecutively. On fol. 67^r there is, however, a blank space equal to 37 lines in the text of Ps. 15, in 1611 edn. 145/6 to 145/50. On fol. 145^rv the text following the commentary on Ps. 25 is the prologue to the second nocturn which begins after a blank space on fol. 146^r On the author see Smalley, Friars, 75–108; ead., ‘Thomas Waleys O. P.’, Archivum Fratrum Praedicatorum, 24 (1954), 50–107 (this work 66–71); BRUO; Sharpe, Latin Writers.

2. (fols. 222^v–257^v)

A subject index,

referring to the text of 1 by the numbers of psalms and verses which were added to the text throughout in ink and crayon.

Incipit: Ad euidenciam et intellectum habendum sequuntur tabule ... Abhominari

Explicit: Penitencia ... crucifixi pertingens 16.14. Idem ||

The index ends unfinished despite vacant space.

Fol. I^rv is blank except for three brief textual references on the recto.

Physical Description

Secundo Folio: cunda sunt.

Form: codex

Support: parchment FHHF

Extent: 257 leaves, many damaged by damp at the top, preceded by one 18th-century paper flyleaf and one medieval membrane flyleaf and followed by another 18th-century paper flyleaf.

Dimensions (leaf): 320 × 215 mm.

Dimensions (column): 260–65 × 80–85 mm.

Dimensions (column): 245–55 × 80–85 mm.

Foliation: Pencil numbers by the 18th-century binder on first rectos.

Collation

1–7¹² 8¹⁰ 9¹² (wants 1) 10¹² 11¹² (one leaf, fol. 130, = quire 9 leaf 1) 12–20¹² 22¹² (11, 12 canc.). Quire signatures in crayon, a j–xvj, on rectos.

Layout

1: two columns, c. 50 lines.

2: two columns. Both parts ruled in crayon and occasional drypoint

Hand(s)

Anglicana formata by several scribes writing very similar hands, punctuated only by very occasional low and medial points.

Decoration

1: one 6-line and one 2-line blue lombard flourished red on fols. 1^r and 2^r respectively, both extended into borders. A coat of arms has been excised from the lower border on fol. 1^r and may have been duplicated by another in the same position on fol. 2^r which appears to be original: see further, History. The decoration otherwise consists of two-line blue lombards flourished red at the beginning of each psalm, red and blue paraphs, red-and-blue running numbers of psalms; lemmata underlined red.

2: red and blue two-line lombards, red and blue paraphs.

Binding

Sewn on five bands. Standard Exeter binding: imple and quite elegant, calf over millboards, the calf bearing blind decoration of a floral type, early 19th century. On the spine is a red leather label with a gold title. Endbands are uncoloured.

History

Origin: s. xiv ; England

Provenance and Acquisition

Unknown. There is a title and price on fol. ii^v: ‘Wallensis super duos Nocturnos psalterij. Item tabula super eosdem. Precium istius libri 40 s’, s. xv¹.

Recorded at Exeter c. 1600 as Ecloga, no. 25; then in CMA, no. 52.

The coat of arms on fol. 2^r is or a plain cross between four lions rampant argent crowned or.

Exeter library identifications are, on the pastedown, ‘P8–8 Gall’, deleted, ‘173–H–4’, ‘Ex. Coll. Oxon’, the book stamp and ‘Coxe Cat. no. xxxix’. On fol. ii^v is bookplate 1. On the spine is a round paper label with ‘4’ on it.

Record Sources

Andrew G. Watson, A descriptive catalogue of the medieval manuscripts of Exeter College, Oxford (Oxford: Oxford University Press), 2000.

Availability

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

Abbreviations

View list of abbreviations and editorial conventions.

Last Substantive Revision

2020-04-29: First online publication

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