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

MS. Hatton 38

Summary Catalogue no.: 4090

Gospels in Old English; s. xii/xiii, perhaps Canterbury

Contents

Summary of Contents: The Gospels in the West Saxon translation, incorporating Latin gospel texts: Gospels: Mark (fols 1-28), Gospels: Luke (fols 29-61, 63-77), Gospels: Matthew (fols 78-126), and Gospels: John (fols 128-67). As Skeat (1874) first noticed, Luke 16.14 ‘ealle’ - 17.1 ‘leorningcnihtum’ is missing (fol. 61v), which shows that the manuscript is derived from Oxford, Bodleian Library Bodley 441, in which a leaf with this part of the text is also missing. Liuzza, in his study of textual variants among manuscripts, has established that Hatton 38 is a copy of Royal 1 A. xiv, which is itself a copy of Bodley 441 (1994, Introduction, pp. lix-xxiii).

Language(s): Old English and Latin

1. (fols 1r–28v)
Gospels: Mark

(Cameron B.8.4.10.2)

Rubric: (fol. 1r) Initium sancti euuangeli s(e)c(und)d(u)m marcu(m).
Incipit: (fol. 1r) Ecce mit | to angelu(m) meu(m) ante faciem tua(m). qui preparabit uia(m) | tuam ante te. | Her ys godspelles angin hælendes cristes | godes sune.
Explicit: (fol. 28v) hyo þa | fulfelde bodeden sƿa ƿid sƿa al. þas hlafordes ƿeorces | ˥ his bispelles fulfellende mid felgenden tacnen. am(en)
Ker 1957, pp. 386-87
Liuzza 1995, pp. 32-33
2. (fols 29r–77r)
Gospels: Luke

(Cameron B.8.4.10.3)

Incipit: (fol. 29r) Nu ƿe ƿilleð her eoƿ areccan lucas boc þas | halgan godspelleres forþan þe ƿitodlice | manega þohte þare þinge race geende | berden þe on us gefylde synde:
Explicit: (fol. 77r) And hyo | þa hyo gebiddende gecyrden into ierusalem mid | muchelere blisse. ˥ ƿæren efre in þare temple | heriende ˥ bletsiende god. AMEN
Ker 1957, pp. 386-87
Liuzza 1995, pp. 32-33
3. (fols 78r–126r)
Gospels: Matthew

(Cameron B.8.4.10.1)

Rubric: (fol. 78r) Liber generationis ie(s)u chr(ist)i filii dauid filii abraham
Incipit: (fol. 78r) Soðlice ƿel is to understanden þæt | æfter matheus gerechednysse her is | on cneornysse boc.
Explicit: (fol. 126r) ˥ læreð þær hyo healden eal | le þa þing. þe ic eoƿ bebead. ˥ ic beo mid eoƿ ealle | dages oððe ƿorulde ændenge. AMEN
Ker 1957, pp. 386-87
Liuzza 1995, pp. 32-33
4. (fols 128r–67v)
Gospels: John

(Cameron B.8.4.10.4)

Rubric: (fol. 128r) In principio erat uerbum. Her onginð þæt | godpell þe Iohannes se godspellere geƿrat on | patmos þam eiglande.
Incipit: (fol. 128r) On anginne ærest ƿær ƿord.
Explicit: (fol. 167v) gyf þa ealla | geƿritene be heom sylfe ƿæren. ac syo ƿerld be | clyppen ne mihten þa ƿriteres þe hie ƿriten | scolden on boken
Ker 1957, pp. 386-87
Liuzza 1995, pp. 32-33

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: Parchment. Leaves are arranged HFHF throughout.
iii + 61 + i + 105 + iv leaves. Fol. i-iii and 168-171 are blank parchment flyleaves, probably medieval. Fol. 171 is now pasted to another modern paper flyleaf.
Dimensions (leaf): 238 × 158 mm.
Dimensions (written): 168 × 107 mm.
Foliation: (i-iii), 1-171.

Collation

According to Liuzza (1995), the collation is as follows: 18 (fols 1-8), 28 (fols 9-16), 38 (fols 17-24), 44 (fols 25-28), 58 (fols 29-36), 68 (fols 37-44), 78 (fols 45-52), 88 (fols 53-60), 98+1, fol. 62 is a supply leaf (fols 61-69), 108, fol. 77v is blank (fols 70-77), 118 (fols 78-85), 128 (fols 86-93), 138 (fols 94-101), 148 (fols 102-09), 158 (fols 110-17), 1610, fols127 r-v are blank (fols 118-27), 178 (fols 128-35), 188 (fols 136-43), 198 (fols 144-51), 218 (fols 152-59), 208 (fols 160-67).

Condition

The pattern of the wormholes on the flyleaves corresponds to those on the first and last pages of the text.

Layout

Each Gospel begins on a new quire. Ruled in pencil, single bounding lines. 25 lines. As Liuzza (1995) has noted, the scribe is not consistent about which horizontal lines extend across the page: generally the first and third, last and antepenultimate; but often the first two and last two; the first and last two; or the first two, the forth from the last and the last. Rulings were done page by page, not across two leaves. The layout matches in open two pages within the quire. For example,

  • 45r: one line at the top, two lines (with one-line space between the lines)
  • 45v-46r: one line, two lines (2)
  • 46v-47r: one line, two lines (2)
  • 47v-48r: one line, two lines (2)
  • 48v-49r: two lines (1), two lines (1)
  • 49v-50r: two lines (1), two lines (3)
  • 50v-51r: one line, one line
  • 51v-52r: one line, one line
The space between lines is approximately two times minim height.

Hand(s)

Apart from some corrections, the manuscript is written in one hand, although the ink changes from black to brown and back again at several points. Some ink changes are probably due to the scribal corrections: for example, in fol. 152v/16-17, deleted letters are visible under the overwritten letters; the passages in different ink colour are in narrower and smaller letters in for example, fols 17v, 18r, 23r, 26v, and so on. Correction is 'in a good hand' (Ker 1957, p. 387). Liuzza suggests that Hatton 38 was copied by 'an astute scribe', who was 'capable of correcting his text in isolation' (1995, p. lxxiii). The main scribe also corrected the text he had copied too.

Fols 1r–167v: Angular script which retains insular letter forms. Some letters are given hairlines. The following description is based on Liuzza (1994, pp. xxxiii-vi). ‘a’ is Caroline. The height of ‘a’ and ‘e’ are the same in the combination ‘æ’. The initial ‘æ’ has an uncial 'a'. ‘d’ is insular. The same size and shape as ‘ð’. ‘e’ is Caroline. ‘f’ is insular. Both insular and Caroline ‘g’ used before fol. 128. After fol. 133, Caroline ‘g’ is used for the velar stop and the affricate and insular ‘g’ is used from the palatal continuant and fricative. The insular ‘g’ is in a shape of '3' with a flat top, and its loop finishes with a downward hairline to the left at the end of the loop, whereas the loop of the Caroline ‘g’ is almost closed, and it also has a hairline at the upper right corner of the bowl. ‘h’ is insular in Old English, but the Caroline form appears in proper names and in the sequence ‘ch’ for the palatal affricate. ‘p’ the straight descender. ‘r’ is insular in Old English, Caroline in Latin. Round ‘s’ commonly. Caroline ‘s’ and occasionally long ‘s’, where the descender finishes on the writing line with a serif. ‘ð’ is the same size and shaped as ‘d’. The crossbar has a very distinct upward serif at the right end, and does not transect the upstroke. ‘ascenders’ are shorter than the height of the minim, and sometimes split at the top. ‘descenders’ turn to the left, except ‘p’. Descenders of the final lines of the page are sometimes very long and calligraphically emphasised. ‘accents’ are few, but the forms ‘ic’ and ‘ich’ are usually marked, as are some long monosyllables, the prefix ‘a-’ and an ‘i’ next to other minims. ‘þ(æt)’ with a crossbar, which slants from the upper right to the lower left. The head of ‘˥’ is curved and the downstroke is nearly vertical and sometimes turned up the right at the end. Its descender does not extend below the writing line. ‘st’ ligatures are often used. s. xii/xiii

Fols 13v and 70v, margins: these two additions are contemporary and probably one annotator. Extra rulings are given in the margin. Caroline ‘a’. ‘e’ often has a hairline elongated tongue. Insular ‘g’ is '5'-shaped. ‘ð’ is the same size and shaped as ‘d’. The crossbar extends only to the right of the ascender, and has a very distinct downward serif at the right end. ‘˥’ has a very wavy head.xii/xiii

Fol. 119r: Liuzza (1994) identifies that a later hand has supplied an omission to Mathew 25:34 (p. xxxiv). Contemporary with the main hand. ‘a’ is Caroline. ‘e’ is Caroline, and its head is small. Insular ‘g’ is in a shape of '5'. ‘h’ is insular. High ‘s’, of which descender finishes on the writing line with a serif. ‘ð’: its crossbar has a very distinct upward serif at the right end, and does not transect to the left of the upstroke. ‘ascenders’ are shorter than the height of the minim, and wedged. ‘descenders’ turn to the left. s. xii/xiii

Decoration

Initials (Pächt and Alexander iii. 279)

Large decorated initials, alternately red or blue with pen ornament of the other colour. The text is indented where the large initial appears, and approximately 1/5 of the letter is placed in the margin. Green is used in the large initials at the beginning of each Gospel. They are of s. xii/xiii. Rubrics are sometimes in red, and some capital letters within the text are also coloured.

Additions: Missing text (Luke 16.12-17.1) is supplied on fol. 62, which is a supply leaf of s. xvi. Parker's red pencil marks Gospel name and chapter numbers in the upper right hand corners. There were probably also ribbons attached at the beginning of each Gospel: the trace of ribbons are visible, although the ribbons are now lost.

Binding

s. xviii binding is now disintegrated. Parchment flyleaves are probably medieval.

History

Origin: 12th century, late, or 13th century, early ; England, perhaps Canterbury (palaeographical and art historical evidence)

Provenance and Acquisition

Later medieval history is unknown.

John Parker (1548-1618), son of Archbishop Mathew Parker (his signature may be seen on the verso of fol. i)

Christopher, Lord Hatton, whose signature is on the recto of fol. ii; belonged to him when used by Francis Junius (1589-1677) for his 1665 edition of the Gospel.

Acquired by the Bodleian Library with other Hatton manuscripts in 1671.

Record Sources

Description created for The Production and Use of English Manuscripts 1060 to 1220 by Takako Kato with the assistance of Molly Hogan, Hollie Morgan and Sanne van der Schee (2010; 2013). Previously described in the Summary Catalogue (1937).

Digital Images

The Production and Use of English Manuscripts 1060 to 1220, fol. 13v and fol. 70v

Surrogates

R. M. Liuzza and A. N. Doane, Anglo-Saxon Manuscripts in Microfiche Facsimile (Binghamton, NY: Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, 1995), vol. 3: Anglo-Saxon Gospels

Bibliography

    Online resources:

    Printed:

    Grunberg, M., The West-Saxon Gospels: A study of the Gospels of St. Matthew with Text of the Four Gospels (Amsterdam: Scheltema and Holkema NV, 1967)
    Hardwick, Charles ed., Gospels According to Saint Matthew in Anglo-Saxon and Northumbrian Versions, Synoptically Arranged, with Collations of the Best Manuscripts (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1858)
    Junius, Francis and Marshall, Thomas ed., Quatuor D. N. Jesu Christi Evangeliorumversiones perantiquae duae, Gothica scil. et Anglo-Saxonica: Quarum illam ex celeberrimo Codice Argenteo nunc primum depromsit Franciscus Junius F. F. Hanc autem ex Codicibus MSS. collatis emendatius recudi curavit Thomas Mareschallus, Anglus: cujus etiam Observationes in utramque Versionem subnectuntur. Accessit + Glossarium Gothicum cui praemittitur Alphabetum Gothicum, Runicum +c. opera ejusdem francisci Junii., 2 vols (Dordrecht: Henricus and Essaeus, 1665)
    Ker, N. R., Catalogue of Manuscripts Containing Anglo-Saxon (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1957; repr. 1990)
    Lenker, Ursula, Die Westsächsische Evangelienversion und die Perikopenordnungen im angelsächsischen England, Münchener Universitäts-Schriften, Philosophische Fakultät, Texte und Untersuchungen zur Englischen Philologie, 20 (Munich: Wilhelm Fink Verlag, 1997)
    Liuzza, R. M., '378. Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS. Hatton 38 (4090): "West Saxon Gospels"', in Anglo-Saxon Manuscripts in Microfiche Facsimile, ed. by R. M. Liuzza and A. N. Doane (Binghamton, NY: Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies, 1995), vol. 3: Anglo-Saxon Gospels, pp. 32-33
    ---, ed., The Old English Version of the Gospels: Notes and Glossary, EETS, OS 314 (London: Published for the Early English Text Society by Oxford University Press, 2000)
    ---, ed., The Old English Version of the Gospels: Text and Introduction, EETS, OS 304 (London: Published for the Early English Text Society by Oxford University Press, 1994)
    ---, 'Scribal Habit: The Evidence of Old English Gospels', in Rewriting Old English in the Twelfth Century, ed. by Mary Swan and Elaine M. Treharne (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000), pp. 143-65
    Madan, Falconer, and others, A Summary Catalogue of Western Manuscripts in the Bodleian Library at Oxford (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1895-1953), item 4090
    Reimann, Max, Die Sprache der mittelkentischen Evangelien: Codd. Royal I A xiv und Hatton 38 (Berlin: W. Portmetter, 1883)
    Roberts, Jane, Guide to Scripts Used in English Writings up to 1500 (London: British Library, 2005)
    Skeat, Walter W., ed., The Gospel According to Saint John: in Anglo-Saxon and Northumbrian Versions, Synoptically Arranged, with Collations Exhibiting all the Readings of All the MSS (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1878)
    ---, The Gospel According to Saint Luke: In Anglo-Saxon and Northumbrian Versions, Synoptically Arranged, with Collations Exhibiting all the Readings of all the MSS (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1874)
    ---, The Gospel According to Saint Mark: In Anglo-Saxon and Northumbrian Versions, Synoptically Arranged, with Collations Exhibiting all the Readings of all the MSS (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1871)
    ---, The Gospel According to Saint Matthew : In Anglo-Saxon, Northumbrian, and Old Mercian Versions, Synoptically Arranged, with Collations Exhibiting all the Readings of all the MSS (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1887)

Last Substantive Revision

2024-01-09: Matthew Holford: converted description from English Manuscripts 1060-1220.