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Manuscript Description
Cambridge, Cambridge University Library Dd.3.13
 
Title:Piers Plowman, C version
Author:Langland
Contents:Langland, Piers Plowman, C version; begins imperfectly, missing two leaves at front of volume; first line is 'Hoc vt agas melius iustus et esto pius' ends imperfectly in second passus of dobest, last line is '& wonede wel elingly & wolde nat be riche'.
Language:English and Latin
Date Range:Late 14th century; Luard says, 'The handwriting is inferior and not later than the close of the XIVth century'.
Scribal Hands:
Examples of the hand. Click on the link above for full details and images of individual letter forms.
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Dialect:LP : 7230; Grid : 359 213; County : Gloucs
Material:Parchment
No of Folios:Grey heavy paper matches pastedown + 6 blank new heavy paper + 2 new parchment stubs + ff 3-99 + 7 new parchment stubs + 6 heavy blank new paper + 1 grey heavy matches pastedown.
Pagination:Modern pencil numbering folios in upper outer corners recto; also medieval Roman numeral foliating agrees with modern, stops at 70 (lxx); thus both allow a number for lost folios of which there are several, see collation below, and modern binder has added a new parchment stub wherever a folio is missing.
Quiring:8s; collation on first full-sized folio, heavy paper, at end of volume, numbered 'viii
a8 (wants 1, 2) b-g8 h8 (wants 1, 8), i-m8 n8 (wants 4-8) o2 (both gone) 95 ff (out of 106; 1, 2, 57, 64, 100-6 lost).
Signatures:Signatures may have been just each quire, no letters; some roman numerals i through iiij survive on the verso of first four leaves of each quire, eg 'ij' on f74v, which is second leaf of quire beginning f73.
Catchwords:By the scribe, extreme lower edge of page if survive at all, most have been cropped completely; see f48v where part of second word 'Ascendit' survives; written close to gutter, centering on right frame line.
Page Size:295 x 173
Frame:Square running to edges, not ruled within, faint grey lines.
Writing Space:Ruled for 245 x 133, many lines not that long.
Incipits and Explicits:Usual explicits and incipits for passus.
Title by Scribe:None contemporary; much later hand writes 'Piers Plowman Pag. 5' at top of f3 (first page of text).
Flourished Initials:No red or blue, faint yellow wash on initials each line throughout volume and initials of other important words, and on most letters of Latin lines.
Further Information:Luard, 1.75-6.
Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York, King's Manor, York YO1 7EP