MS. Lat. liturg. b. 1

Summary Catalogue no.: 30557

Secular Ferial Choir Psalter with Antiphons, Use of Rome; Italy, Reggio-Emilia (?), 16th century, beginning

[items 1–3 occupy quires I–XXII]

1. (fols. 1r–2r)

Rubric: ‘Ordo psalterij secundum morem et consuetudinem romane curie ...’. Hymns for Matins on Sundays during the year with rubrics and music (square notation on staves of four red lines): Primo dierum omnium (Chevalier, no. 15450) and Nocte surgentes uigilemus (Chevalier, no. 12035), followed by antiphons without music.

2. (fols. 2v–215v)

Psalms for Sunday Matins and Lauds, Prime, Matins and Lauds during the week, Little Hours, Vespers on Sunday and during the week, and Compline in secular use. Psalms are written with each verse starting on a new line, without numbers, most preceded by a rubric ‘psalmus dauid’ or ‘psalmus’. Punctuated throughout with colon, used to mark metrum and minor pauses, and punctus used to mark the ends of verses. Psalms are accompanied by antiphons, versicles, responses, etc. with rubrics and music within the section for Vespers (fol. 178r and after). Subdivisions within psalms are not indicated, apart from 118, subdivided into eleven 16-verse units. Psalms, canticles, creeds and hymns (with music, square notation on staves of three or four red lines) are in the following order:

Sunday Matins (fol. 2v)

1–3, 6–20
Te deum laudamus (‘Canticum Ambrosij et Augustini’) (fol. 22r)

Sunday Lauds (fol. 23v)

92, 99, 62, 66
Benedicite omnia opera (‘Canticum trium puerorum’) (fol. 25v)
148–150, written without breaks as a single text
Eterne rerum conditor (Chevalier, no. 647)
Ecce iam noctis tenuantur umbra (Chevalier, no. 5129)
Benedictus dominus deus (‘Canticum zacharie prophete’) (fol. 29v)
Iam lucis orto sidere (Chevalier, no. 9272)

Prime (fol. 31r)

21–25, 53, 117, 118: 1, 118: 17
Athanasian Creed (Quicumque uult ... ) (‘Symbolum athanasij’) (fol. 40v)
Sumno refectis artubus (Chevalier, no. 19210)

Monday Matins (fol. 43v)

26–37

Monday Lauds (fol. 60r)

50, 5
Confitebor tibi domine (Isaiah 12) (‘Canticum esaie prophete’) (fol. 62v)
Splendor paterne (Chevalier, no. 19349)
Consors paterni luminis (Chevalier, no. 3830)

Tuesday Matins (fol. 64v)

38–49, 51

Tuesday Lauds (fol. 78v)

Ego dixi (Isaiah 38: 10–21) (‘Canticum ezechie’) (fol. 79r)
Ales diei nuncius (Chevalier, no. 795)
Rerum creator optime (Chevalier, no. 17322)

Wednesday Matins (fol. 81r) 5

2, 54–61, 63, 65, 67

Wednesday Lauds (fol. 95r)

Exultauit cor meum (1 Samuel 2: 1–11) (‘Canticum Anne primo Regum’) (fol. 96r)
Nox et tenebre et nubila (Chevalier, no. 12402)
Nox atra rerum (Chevalier, no. 12396)

Thursday Matins (fol. 98r)

68–79

Thursday Lauds (fol. 119r)

Cantemus domine (Exodus 15: 1–20) (‘Canticum Moysi’) (fol. 120r)
Lux ecce surgit (Chevalier, no. 10811)
Tu trinitatis unitas (Chevalier, no. 20713)

Friday Matins (fol. 123r)

80–88, 93, 95–96

Friday Lauds (fol. 137v)

Domine audiui (Habakkuk 3) (‘Canticum abachuc’) (fol. 138v)
Eterna celi gloria (Chevalier, no. 609)
Summe deus clementie (Chevalier, no. 19636)

Saturday Matins (fol. 141v)

97–108

Saturday Lauds (fol. 162r)

Audite caeli (Deuteronomy 32: 1–44) (‘Canticum moysi’) (fol. 163r)
Aurora iam spargit (Chevalier, no. 1633)

Terce (fol. 168r)

Nunc sancte nobis spiritus (Chevalier, no. 12586)
118: 33, 118: 49, 118: 65
Rector potens (Chevalier, no. 17061)

Sext (fol. 172r)

118: 81, 118: 97, 118: 113
Rerum deus tenax uigor (Chevalier, no. 17328)

None (fol. 175r)

118: 129, 118: 145, 118: 161

Sunday Vespers (fol. 178v)

109–113 Lvcis creator optime (Chevalier, no. 17328)
Magnificat (fol. 183v)

Monday Vespers (fol. 184r)

114–116, 119–120
Immense celi conditor (Chevalier, no. 8453)

Tuesday Vespers (fol. 187v)

121–125
Telluris alme conditor (Chevalier, no. 20265)

Wednesday Vespers (fol. 191r)

126–130
Celi deus sanctissime (Chevalier, no. 3483)

Thursday Vespers (fol. 194r)

131–132, 134–136
Magne deus potentie (Chevalier, no. 10935)

Friday Vespers (fol. 200r)

137–141
Hominis superne conditor (Chevalier, no. 7963)

Saturday Vespers (fol. 206r

) 143–147
Iam sol recedit igneus (Chevalier, no. 7963)

Compline (fol. 211v)

4, 30, 90, 133
Te lucis ante terminum (Chevalier, no. 20136)
Tu autem in nobis es domine ... (Jeremiah 14: 9) (‘Capitulum’)
Nunc dimittis (fol. 215v)
Antiphon Salua nos domine uigilantes with music.

Fols. 111 and 120 (containing parts of psalms 76–77, 89 and Cantemus domine) are a replacement bifolium by a different scribe and decorator. There are illuminated initials at the beginning of psalms 1, 21, 26, 38, 52, 68, 80, 97, 109, 114, 121, 126, 131, 137 and 143 (see ‘Decoration’). Leaf containing the beginning of psalm 109 has a full illuminated border.

3. (fol. 216r–v)

Hymn Custodes hominum psallimus (Chevalier, no. 4163) added on a leaf, originally ruled, otherwise blank, in a 17th-century hand responsible for corrections in the hymnal (see below).

[item 4 occupies quires XXIII–XXVIII]

4. (fols. 217r–267r)

Hymnal with detailed rubrics and music for the first strophe of most hymns (square notation on staves of three or four red lines). Contains hymns for the year from Advent to Pentecost, followed by hymns for feasts and saints’ days, including those for Prosper (fol. 240r) and Chrysanthus and Daria (fol. 250r) (see ‘Provenance’). The hymnal and hymns within the psalter contain many corrections over erasures in a 17th-century hand, aiming to bring them into conformance with the revised text of hymns, found in the Roman Breviary (1631), following the reform of Pope Urban VIII.

(fols. 217r–236v) Conditor alme (Chevalier, no. 3733), Uerbum supernum prodiens a patre (Chevalier, no. 29391), Uox clara ecce intonat (Chevalier, no. 22199), Christe redemptor omnium ex patre (Chevalier, no. 2960), A solis ortu usque cardine (Chevalier, no. 26), Enixa est puerpera (Chevalier, no. 5491), Hostis herodes impie (Chevalier, no. 8073), Audi benigne conditor (Chevalier, no. 1449), Ex more docti mystico (Chevalier, no. 5610), Iam christe sol iustitie (Chevalier, no. 9205), Aures ad nostras deitatis (Chevalier, no. 1612), Uexilla regis (Chevalier, no. 21481), Pange lingua gloriosi prelium (Chevalier, no. 14481), Lustris sex qui iam peractis (Chevalier, no. 10765), Ad cenam agni prouidi (Chevalier, no. 110), Rex eterne domine (Chevalier, no. 17393), Aurora lucis rutilat (Chevalier, no. 1644), Tristes erant apostoli (Chevalier, no. 20589), Iesu nostra redemptio (Chevalier, no. 9582), Eterne rex altissime (Chevalier, no. 654), Ueni creator spiritus (Chevalier, no. 21204), Iam christus astra (Chevalier, no. 9215), Beata nobis gaudia (Chevalier, no. 2339), Adesto sancta trinitas (Chevalier, no. 487), Tu trinitas laudabilis (Chevalier, no. 20707), Pange lingua gloriosi corporis (Chevalier, no. 14467), Sacris solemnijs (Chevalier, no. 17713), Uerbum supernum prodiens nec patris (Chevalier, no. 21398), Doctor egregie paule mores (Chevalier, no. 4791). Fol. 236v contains a rubric ‘In cathedra sancti petri ad uesperas et ad nocturnum hymnus’, whereas fol. 237r contains the final lines of the hymn Aurea luce et decore roseo (Chevalier, no. 1596), beginning ‘te cui manet ...’. Most of the hymn is missing because of the loss of a leaf after fol. 236.

(fols. 237r–242v) Ut queant laxis resonare (Chevalier, no. 21039), Antra deserti teneris (Chevalier, no. 1214), O nimis felix meritique celsi (Chevalier, no. 13311), Ista dies eximia (Chevalier, no. 9124), Carnem longis ieiunijs (Chevalier, no. 2642), Aurea luce et decore (Chevalier, no. 1596), In maria uite uiam (Chevalier, no. 8671). (fol. 243r–v) Martine celebri plaudite nomini (Chevalier, no. 11186) added over erasure, a hymn to St Martina, whose relics were discovered in Rome in 1634. The hymn was probably composed by Pope Urban VIII and was added to the hymnal as part of his reform of the Roman Breviary. Capital C belonging to a hymn which originally occupied this space was left uncorrected. Rubric ‘In festos. Mart. V. et M. ad Uesperas hymnus’ added in the upper margin.

(fols. 243v–244v) De sacro tabernaculo (Chevalier, no. 4252), Nardi marie pistici (Chevalier, no. 11846).

(fols. 244v–245r) Miris modis repente (Chevalier, no. 11599), written over erasure in a 17th-century hand. The capital belonging to an earlier hymn was erased and overwritten with plain ‘M’ in black ink.

(fol. 245v) Gaude mater pietatis (Chevalier, no. 6876), imperfect at the end owing to the loss of one leaf after fol. 245, ending ‘et helyas iubar magnum ...’.

(fol. 246r) Final lines of Panis angelicus (Chevalier, no. 14544), beginning ‘per tuas semitas duc nos quo ...’.

(fols. 246r–262r) Nouum sydus exoritur (Chevalier, no. 12374), Aue maris stella (Chevalier, no. 1889), Quem terra pontus ethera (Chevalier, no. 16347), O gloriosa domina excelsa (Chevalier, no. 13042), Tibi christe splendor (Chevalier, no. 20455), Christe sanctorum decus (Chevalier, no. 3000), Adsunt festa letitie (Chevalier, no. 550), Dies reluxit agia (Chevalier, no. 550), Christe redemptor omnium conserua tuos famulos (Chevalier, no. 2959), Iesu saluator seculi redemptis (Chevalier, no. 9677), Exultet orbis gaudiis (added over erasure, Chevalier, no. 5891), Eterna christi munera apostolorum gloriam (Chevalier, no. 590), Deus tuorum militum (Chevalier, no. 4533), Martyr dei qui unicum patris (Chevalier, no. 11228), Sanctorum meritis inclita gaudia (Chevalier, no. 18607), Eterna christi munera et martyrum uictorias (Chevalier, no. 598), Rex gloriose martyrum (Chevalier, no. 17453), Iste confessor domini colentes (Chevalier, no. 9131), Iesu redemptor omnium perpes (Chevalier, no. 9628), Iesu corona celsior (Chevalier, no. 9494), Ihesu corona uirginum (Chevalier, no. 9507), Uirginis proles opifexque matris (Chevalier, no. 21703), Huius obtendu deus alme (Chevalier, no. 8162), Urbs beata hierusalem dicta pacis (Chevalier, no. 20918), Angularis fundamentum (Chevalier, no. 1082).

(fols. 262r–267r) Music and hymns added over erasures: Alma redemptoris mater (Chevalier, no. 861), Salue regina mater misericordie (Chevalier, no. 18147), Lauda mater ecclesia (Chevalier, no. 10210), Aeterni patris unice (Chevalier, no. 667), Quicumque christum queritis oculos (Chevalier, no. 16557), Amor iesu dulcissime (Chevalier, no. 1001), Ave regina celorum (Chevalier, no. 2070), Regina celi letare (Chevalier, no. 17170).

Language(s): Latin

Physical Description

Secundo Folio: Nocte surgentes (hymns, fol. 2r)

Form: codex

Support: parchment; paper fly-leaves; many leaves repaired with pieces of parchment; parchment strip used to repair fol. 176 left an imprint on the verso

Extent: 270 leaves

Dimensions (leaf): c. 403 × 274 mm.

Leaves were trimmed in rebinding, occasionally causing the loss of decoration

Foliation: Modern, in pencil and purple crayon; i–ii + 1–268.

Collation

(fols. i–ii) fol. i is a paper fly-leaf, conjoint with the upper pastedown, with modern paper bifolium pasted to the recto; fol. ii is a paper fly-leaf | (fols. 1–210) I–XXI (10) | (fols. 211–216) XXII (6) | (fols. 217–236) XXIII–XXIV (10) | (fols. 237–245) XXV (10−1) missing 1 | (fols. 246–254) XXVI (10−1) missing 1 | (fols. 255–262) XXVII (8) | (fols. 263–267) XXVIII (4−1+2) 4th leaf cancelled; 4th and 5th are an added bifolium | (fols. 268–269) fol. 268 is a paper fly-leaf; fol. 269 is a paper fly-leaf conjoint with the lower pastedown. Vertical catchwords, written upwards, survive in most quires, but have been excised in quires 3, 15, 20, and erased in quire 24

Layout

Ruled in ink for tops and bottoms of minims, with single vertical bounding lines extending the full height of page; 18 lines per page; written below the top line; written space: c. 292 × 180 mm.

Hand(s)

Formal Gothic book hand, black ink; rubrics, antiphons, versicles, responses, etc. are in a smaller script

Musical Notation:

Square notation on staves of three or four red lines.

Decoration

Historiated initials, most 5 to 6 lines high, on gold background, decorated with coiled tendrils, foliage, flowers, grotesques, animal heads and masks at textual divisions.

fol. 2v, Psalm 1 (initial B(eatus)), King David, kneeling, playing psaltery, looking up at the face of God in the sky in rays of light; in a landscape. Letters e and a of ‘Beatus’ are capitals decorated with penwork in black ink.
(full border) Scrolls with foliage and flowers on gold background, vases, masks, grotesques, human figures, supporting architectural decorations; coat of arms in the lower margin (see ‘Provenance’).
fol. 31r, Psalm 21 (initial D(eus)), 4-line initial infilled with half-figure of a young man with raised hands (rubbed).
fol. 43v, Psalm 26 (initial D(omine)), Half-figure of a young man pointing to his eyes in a landscape.
fol. 64v, Psalm 38 (initial D(ixi)), Half-figure of King David pointing to his mouth.
fol. 81r, Psalm 52 (initial D(ixit)), The Fool, running, dressed in rags and headdress decorated with feathers, holding an animal leg (bone (?)), with a cloven hoof; in a landscape.
fol. 98r, Psalm 68 (initial S(aluum)), Young man submerged up to his chin in water.
fol. 123r, Psalm 80 (initial E(xultate)), Young man in white robe and red cap playing an organ.
fol. 141r, Hymn Summe deus clementie (Chevalier, no. 19636) (initial S(umme)), 2-line initial decorated with coiled tendrils, foliage and flowers.
fol. 141v, Psalm 97 (initial C(antate)), Clerics in white robes, of different ages (including a young boy), singing from a book open on a lectern.
fol. 178v, Psalm 109 (initial D(ixit)), Trinity: God-the-Father crowning Christ, white dove hovering above; badly rubbed.
(full border) Coiled scrolls with foliage, flowers and vases on gold background; cherub in the upper margin (all badly rubbed, lower margin with much of its decoration cut off).
fol. 183v, Magnificat (initial M(agnificat)), Foliage and two symmetrically placed grotesques; Annunciation: the Virgin Mary, kneeling before a lectern with an open book, Gabriel holding a lily, white dove.
fol. 184r, Psalm 114 (initial D(ilexi)), Young man, standing with clasped hands over a nude young boy, lying on the ground; in a landscape.
fol. 187v, Psalm 121 (initial L(etatus)), Half-figure of King David with raised hands.
fol. 191r, Psalm 126 (initial N(isi)), Stonemason, working on a wall of a building.
fol. 194r, Psalm 131 (initial M(emento)), Half-figure of King David with hands crossed on his chest, looking up at the face of God in the sky in rays of light.
fol. 200r, Psalm 137 (initial C(onfitebor)), Half-figure of King David with raised hands, looking up at two angels, praying on clouds above.
fol. 206r, Psalm 143 (initial B(enedictus)), King David (defaced), seated, with hands joined in prayer, in a landscape, looking up at rays of light.

Decorated initials: see above.

Borders: see above.

2-line red or blue initials with contrasting purple or red penwork, and 2-line blue initials with purple penwork at the beginnings of psalms, canticles and hymns.

1-line alternating red and blue initials with contrasting purple or red penwork at the beginnings of periods and verses.

Rubrics in red ink.

Binding

Brown leather over pasteboard, 19th century (perhaps made for the Bodleian). Borders made of crossing single and triple blind fillet lines with cross-shaped decorations in the corners on both covers. A diamond-shaped figure at the centre of both covers, made of floral blind roll border, framed by double blind fillet lines. The diamond-shaped figure is inside a rectangular frame, made of two blind roll floral borders, framed by blind fillet lines. Five decorative raised bands on spine, framed by triple blind fillet lines. Gilt lettering on spine ‘PSALTERUM’ and ‘MS. || Lat. Liturg. || b... .’ (damaged). Marbled paper pastedowns and fly-leaves. Floral blind roll decorations on turn-ins and edges of covers. Damaged, lower board detached. Similar to MS. Lat. liturg. a. 2 and MS. Lat. liturg. a. 3.

History

Origin: 16th century, beginning ; Italian, Reggio-Emilia (?)

Provenance and Acquisition

Hymns in honour of Prosper of Reggio and Chrysanthus and Daria, patron saints of Reggio, suggest that the psalter was made for use in Reggio-Emilia. Shield of arms, gules, cross keys argent, of Reggio (?) (Pächt and Alexander, 1966–73) on fol. 2v.

A near-contemporary addition, partially erased: ‘V(iginto)(?) octo di givgno mastro nycolo librar(i)o de andrioli vel alias ⟨de transteverio(?)⟩ religio questi presenti sara (?)’ (fol. 264v, cf. Pächt and Alexander, 1966–73).

Many 17th-century corrections aiming to bring the text of hymns into conformance with the recension of the Roman Breviary (1631) by Pope Urban VIII. A hymn to St Martina, whose relics were discovered in Rome in 1634, probably composed by Pope Urban VIII, added over erasure.

Bodleian Library: former Bodleian shelfmark: ‘MS. Liturg. Misc. 411’ (fols. i verso, 1r).

Record Sources

Elizabeth Solopova, Latin Liturgical Psalters in the Bodleian Library: A Select Catalogue (Oxford, 2013), pp. 613–21. Previously described in the Summary Catalogue.

Summary Catalogue, vol. 5, p. 834

Digital Images

Digital Bodleian (9 images from 35mm slides)

Bibliography

Printed descriptions:

Weale, W. H. J., A descriptive catalogue of rare manuscripts and printed books, chiefly liturgical (London: Bernard Quartich, 1886), no. 19.

Frere, no. 155.

S. J. P. van Dijk, Latin Liturgical Manuscripts in the Bodleian Library, Oxford, vol. 2: Office Books (typescript, 1957), p. 134

Pächt and Alexander (1966–73), vol. 2, no. 1000, pl. LXXXII.

Abbreviations

View list of abbreviations and editorial conventions.

Last Substantive Revision

2024-08: Convert full description from Solopova catalogue.

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