MS. Laud Lat. 16
Summary Catalogue no.: 960
Psalter; Germany, 13th century, first half
Contents
Laid out one month per page, written in red and black, approximately half full, not graded. Includes Gertrude (17 March), Odalric (4 July), Kylian (8 July) and Othmar (16 November). Antoninus of Pamiers (2 September) is added in red in a much more formal script. Other added saints include Dorothy (6 February), Aureus and Justina (16 June) and Margaret (13 July). Some months are preceded by notes on the number of days in each month in the hand of the original rubricator. Also contains added astronomical notes and verses for remembering the ‘Egyptian’ days written one word per month in the upper margin: ‘Augurio decies audito lumine clangor lingquat olus abies coluit colus excute gallum’ (WIC 1752), both 14th century.
Psalms 1–150 in the biblical order, laid out as prose, without titles or numbers. There are textual divisions at psalms 26, 38, 51, 52, 68, 80, 97, 101 and 109 (see ‘Decoration’). Subdivisions within psalms are not indicated, apart from psalm 118, subdivided into twenty-two 8-verse units. Psalm 149 follows the preceding psalm without a break or larger initial. Punctuated throughout with punctus elevatus used to mark metrum and minor pauses. Many erasures and corrections in contemporary and later hands. Antiphons with staveless musical notation are added in the margins in an early 14th-century hand; many are erased and new antiphons with musical notation on four staves are added in a late medieval or early modern hand on fols. 118v–119r. Fragments of parchment tabs at liturgical divisions.
Including Kylian among the martyrs; Augustine (fifth), Willibrord, Othmar and Narcissus among the confessors; Odilia and Verena among the virgins. Followed by collects (fol. 145v):
Ending imperfectly after the first leaf.
Fols. 147r–149v are blank fly-leaves.
Physical Description
Collation
Layout
Ruled in plummet, for tops and bottoms of minims, with single vertical and double horizontal bounding lines, extending the full height and width of page; 16 lines per page; prickings survive; written below the top line; the lower margin on fol. 110v and the upper margin on fol. 111r have added ruling probably for antiphons (cf. fols. 118v–119r).
Hand(s)
Gothic book hands, black and brown ink.
Added antiphons with staveless musical notation, and on four staves (see item 2, above).
Decoration
Miniatures (drawings), calendar tables. Good initials. (Pächt and Alexander i. 112)
Red KL monograms in the calendar; silver bars framing pages on three sides; gold medallions with the Signs of the Zodiac.
10-line gold Beatus-initial on a ground of green, blue, purple, pink and red, decorated with gold coiled tendrils. The opening words of the psalm are written in red, surrounded by a border made of silver bars (fol. 7r). 6- to 8-line similar initials at liturgical divisions, at the beginning of psalms 26 (fol. 26r), 38 (fol. 38r), 51 (fol. 48v), 52 (fol. 49v), 68 (fol. 61r), 80 (fol. 75v), 97 (fol. 88v), 101 (fol. 90v) and 109 (fol. 103r). The initial on fol. 61r is formed by the body of a dragon.
3-line ‘puzzle’ initial at the beginning of psalm 2 (fol. 7v).
2- to 3-line initials, alternately red with blue penwork and green with red penwork at the beginnings of psalms and canticles.
1-line red initials, some decorated with penwork, at the beginnings of verses and periods.
Simple line-endings in red.
Binding
Laud’s binding, 17th century, brown leather over pasteboard. Double blind fillet lines round the outer edge of both covers. Gilt coat of arms of Laud on both covers. Sewn on three double or slit cords, three raised bands on spine. Three paper labels on spine, containing respectively: ‘P (?) || Psalterium. || M. S.’, ‘37’ and printed ‘Laud. Lat. || 16.’. Fragments of the fittings of two ties on both covers. Laid paper pastedowns and fly-leaves.
History
Provenance and Acquisition
Written in Germany, South-West (?) according to Latin liturgical manuscripts (1952); West (?) according to van Dijk (1958); North according to Frere (1894–1932).
Possibly owned by Xanten Cathedral according to S. Krämer, Handschriftenerbe des deutschen Mittelalters (1989).
William Laud, 1573–1645, 1637.
Part of his third donation to the Bodleian, 1639.
Record Sources
Digital Images
Digital Bodleian (full digital facsimile)
Bibliography
Online resources:
Printed descriptions:
Abbreviations
View list of abbreviations and editorial conventions.
Last Substantive Revision
2020-06-05: Description revised for Polonsky digitization project to include additional information from printed descriptions.