Language(s): Latin
1. Fol. 1:
Incipit: Natus in excelsis tectis cartiginis alte | Romanis ducibus […]
Five lines of verse, introduced by a blue paraph, apparently Terence’s epitaph.
2. Fols. 1–23:
Incipit: Poeta cum primum animum ad scribendum appulit ⟨.⟩d sibi negocij credidit […] [fol. 1v, the periocha] Sororem falso creditam meritricule genere andrie glicerium viciat pamphilus grauidaque facta […] Simo Sosia Dvos istec intro auferte abite sosia ades
Explicit: quod restat Valete plaudite ego calliopius recensui
Terence,
Andria Preceded by the prologue and c. Sulpicius Apollinaris, ‘Periocha’, ed. Robert Kauer and Wallace M. Lindsay, Comoediae, 2nd edn. (Oxford, 1958), unpaginated.
3. Fols. 23v–47:
Incipit: Si quisquam est qui placere se studeat bonis quam plurimis […] [fol. 24, the text] Phedria adolescens Parmeno seruus Qvid ergo faciam Non eam ne nunc quidem cur accersor vltro
Explicit: Ite hac vos valete et plaudite quia ego Calliopius recensui
Terence,
Eunuchus Preceded by the prologue.
4. Fols. 47v–70v:
Incipit: Ne cui sit vestrum mirum Cur partes seni poeta dederit […] [fol. 48, the periocha] In miliciam proficisci natum cliniam amantem antiphilam compulit durus pater […] [fol. 48v, the text] Cre Me Quanquam inter nos nuper noticia admodum est
Explicit: fiat vos valete et plaudite quia ego calliopius recensui
Terence,
Heauton timorumenos Preceded by the prologue and periocha.
5. Fols. 71–92:
Incipit: Postquam poeta sensit scripturam suam obseruari et aduersarios rapere in peiorem […] [the text] Mitio [later] Storax non redijt hac nocte a cena eschinus neque seruulorum quisquam
Explicit: habeat in istuc finem faciat Esch Recte M Plaudite Calliopius recensui
Terence,
Adelphoe Preceded by the prologue.
6. Fols. 92v–111:
Incipit: Vxorem duxit pamphilus phylumenam cui quondam ignorans virgini vicium obtulit […] Prologus Hechira est huic nomen fabule hec cum data est noua […] [fol. 93v, the text] Philorcium Syra Per pol quam paucos reperias meretricibus
Explicit: feci imprudens quam sciens ante hunc diem unquam Plaudite Calliopius recensui
Terence,
Heyra Preceded by the periocha and two prologues (no break between them). The top half of fol. 92v is blank.
7. Fols. 111v–132v:
Incipit: Postquam poeta vetus poeta [sic for poetam] non potest ⟨r⟩etrahere a studio et tradere […] [fol. 112, the periocha] Premotis frater abierat peregre demipho relicto athenis antiphone filio Chremes […] [the text] Dauus Geta Amicus meus et populanis Geta heri
Explicit: Iam faxo huc aderit vos valete et plaudite Quia ego calliopius recensui etc.
Final rubric: TERENCIJ AFFRI Comedia Phormio Explicit
Terence,
Phormio Preceded by the prologue and periocha. Fol. iirv is bounded, and fol. iiirv has the top bounding line.
Form: codex
Support: Vellum (FSOS/FHHF)
i + 134 (numbered fols. 1–132, ii, iii) + i (numbered fol. iv, pasted to a vellum stub, part of the original book),
Dimensions (leaf): 274 × 187 mm.
Collation
1–168 178 (–7, a stub with the modern fol. iv now pasted to it; –8). Catchwords at the centre of the leaf. All leaves in the first half of each quire were originally signed with a letter and an arabic number, many now cut away; in this system, quires 1–16 = a–r.
Layout
Writing area 148–152 × 72 mm. presumably in this size so as to facilitate added commentary.
Written in long lines, 25 lines to the page. No prickings; bounded in brown crayon, no rules. Written above top line.
Hand(s)
Written in anglicana/secretary heavily influenced by humanistica. Punctuation by point and occasional punctus elevatus and virgula. The same scribe is responsible for our MS 84.
Decoration
No headings. All of the texts are presented as prose.
At the heads of each play, 4-line champes, often with natural scenes within the gold leaf capital.
Demivinets, with gold leaf and flowers at fols. 1 and 71; a floral border at fol. 92v, elsewhere floral sprays.
Texts and scenes introduced by 3-line blue lombards on red flourishing.
See AT, no. 611 (60).
Binding
A modern replacement. Sewn on five thongs. At the front, one modern paper flyleaf; at the rear, one modern paper flyleaf (iv, sewn to the stub following iii).
Provenance and Acquisition
‘Sum Ben’ Jonsonij Liber’ (fol. 1 margin). Listed among his five MSS by C. H. Herford and Percy Simpson, Ben Jonson (Oxford: Clarendon, 1925), 1:262–3, along with our MS 192.