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

St John's College MS 254

Indenture; Book of Hours (fragment); Charter

Physical Description

MS 254 is an eighteenth-century album of miscellaneous items, supplementing those in MS 253.
There is a description of MS 254 as a whole in Stewart Tiley's unpublished descriptive catalogue of the post-1500 western manuscripts at St John's College, Oxford (2018).
The present description (which covers only the western medieval components in MS 254) uses the modern pencil foliation in the album and the item numbers from Tiley's description.

History

Provenance and Acquisition

MS 254 was assembled by the antiquary John Pointer (1668-1754).

MS 254, item 3

Contents

Language(s): Latin

3. The document itself unfoliated, but attached to fol. 3:
Indenture

In the library’s Supplement to Coxe (see bibliography), this document is described as a “tripartite indenture between James de Haurell’ on the one part and Roger Duke, Thomas Bukerell, and John fitz Vitalis on the other, concerning the sale of premises in the parish of St Michael Queenhythe, London, 1224-5” (p. 13).

On both fol. 3 of the album and the verso of the indenture itself, Pointer has written ‘An Old Lease bearing Date ye 9th year of K. Hen. 3d’.

Physical Description

Form: sheet
Support: Vellum.
Extent: 1 leaf. A chirograph with two indented edges.
Dimensions (leaf): 170 × 245 mm.

Layout

In 18 long lines.

Hand(s)

Written in English cursive documentary script (Curvisa Anglicana)

Decoration

None

History

Origin: England; s. xiii

MS 254, item 36 [and item 38]

Contents

Language(s): Latin

36.
[item 36] Fols. 24r-v; [item 38] unfoliated but located between fols. 35v and 36r:

Book of Hours (fragment) Evidently once the outermost bifolium in a quire, with a boxed catchword on the final verso. The staining suggests that this fragment was formerly used as a pastedown. In Tiley's numbering sequence, the two halves of this bifolium are designated items 36 and 38 (they are wrapped around item 37, which constitutes fols. 25-35).

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: Vellum.
Extent: A bifolium.
Dimensions (leaf): approx. 155 × 90-110 mm.

Condition

The outer margin of the final leaf appears to have been trimmed.

Layout

Written in two columns, with 24 lines to the page.

Hand(s)

Written in Gothic textura quadrata(?)

Decoration

Headings in red.

A 4-line champe on gold leaf extended into a full vinet.

The decorative scheme also includes 2-line gold champes and 1-line flourished lombards.

History

Origin: England(?); 14th or 15th century

MS 254, item 39

Contents

Language(s): Latin

39. Fol. 36r-v:
Charter

In the library’s Supplement to Coxe (see bibliography), this document is described as ‘a charter of Thomas Earl of Warwick (1233-1242) granting 13 acres of land on Blackmore Heath (?Warwickshire) to Simon fitz Simon’ (p. 15).

Physical Description

Form: sheet
Support: Vellum.
Extent: 1 leaf
Dimensions (leaf): 150 × 190 mm.

Layout

Written on one side only. In 17 long lines.

Hand(s)

Written in English cursive documentary script (Curvisa Anglicana)

Decoration

None

History

Origin: England; 13th century

Additional Information

Record Sources

This record was created in 2023 as part of the St John’s College Digitization project, and was informed in part by the description of MS 254 in Stewart Tiley's unpublished descriptive catalogue of the post-1500 western manuscripts at St John's College, Oxford (2018). The western medieval components in MS 254 were not included in Ralph Hanna, A descriptive catalogue of the western medieval manuscripts of St. John's College, Oxford (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2002). .

Availability

For enquiries relating to this manuscript please contact St John's College Library.

Bibliography

    Summary Catalogue of Manuscripts 213-310, being a supplement to Coxe’s catalogue of 1852 up to 1956 (a typewritten document with various annotations).

Funding of Cataloguing

Conversion of the printed catalogue to TEI funded by the Thompson Family Charitable Trust

Last Substantive Revision

2023-10: First online publication

See the Availability section of this record for information on viewing the item in a reading room.