Manuscript Description London, British Library MS Egerton 913 | |
Title: | Confessio Amantis |
Author: | Gower |
Contents: | Confessio Amantis (incomplete) |
Language: | English and Latin |
Date Range: | 1400-1425 |
Scribal Hands: | Examples of the hand. Click on the link above for full details and images of individual letter forms. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Examples of the hand. Click on the link above for full details and images of individual letter forms. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() Examples of the hand. Click on the link above for full details and images of individual letter forms. ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Dialect: | Hand 1 Gowerian/colourless; Hand 2 Gowerian/colourless; Hand 3 Gowerian/colourless/E.Anglia |
Material: | Paper |
No of Folios: | Marbled + 4 newer paper flyleaves + 2 older paper flyleaves, not original + 1-47 (of which much of lower outer half of 47 torn away) + 4 newer flyleaves + marbled. |
Pagination: | Modern pencil foliation usual place 1-47. |
Quiring: | 116 (1-16) catchword on 16v; 216+4 (17-36, where four leaves by scribe B inserted between 10 and 11 of original quire), catchword on 36v; 312-1 (missing 5th leaf between 41 and 42). NB. changes of quire / insertions are changes in hands. |
Signatures: | Signatures of roman numerals j to viij in first half of quires 1 and 2, arabic numbers 1-4 and 6 on first 5 leaves of quire 3, all in usual place of lower outer corner of rectos only. |
Catchwords: | ff16v and 36v only, by Hand A, half way down lower margin and running up to right frame line, with sleigh either sides and under in same ink. |
Page Size: | 292 x 208 |
Frame: | Simple square extending to edges, same throughout MS, fine grey lines. |
Writing Space: | 221 x 122 (ruled for, but lines of text only c. 80 mm wide). |
Marginal Headings: | 'Amans' and 'Confessor' in right margins. Latin verse portions are set in text space, except prose in Latin is set in margins either to left or right of text; Latin prose portions written in margins are in smaller script but otherwise same as text, and written by the scribes of each section |
Flourished Initials: | 2-3 line red lombard initials, plain with no penwork, appears same red throughout. |
Other Names (not owners): | Second older flyleaf at front, 'Purchased of Tho. Thorpe / 13 July 1841' and below in same hand, 'It formerly belonged to Gough, and / is Lot 4323 of his Catalogue, in 1810'. |
Miscellaneous Info: | Note extra space left on f30v. Scribe B finishes Latin verse of 8 lines at top of page, then space left (about 3 lines) and then he writes in smaller script but in main column a Latin prose 'hic loquitur quod septem sunt peccata mortalia'' (3 ' lines) and then a much larger space, ca. 7-8 lines left blank, before at bottom 6 lines of English beginning, 'Mi Sone as I þe shall enforme'' as if section beginning f31 had already been written so using up space before scribe A comes back in. |
Further Information: | Gower edition by Macaulay. |