Manuscript Description USA, Princeton, NJ, Princeton University Library, Department of Rare Books and Special Collections MS Garrett 136 | |
MS Appellation: | olim Phillipps 2298 |
Title: | Confessio Amantis |
Author: | Gower |
Contents: | Gower, Confessio Amantis, version A, ff1-191 |
Language: | English and Latin |
Date Range: | 1390-1415 |
Scribal Hands: | 1: one hand throughout, though variable in size and formality, not a professional book hand. Examples of the hand. Click on the link above for full details and images of individual letter forms. |
Dialect: | County; N Warwicks |
Material: | Parchment |
No of Folios: | 2 heavy paper flyleaves (modern, originally blank) + 1-191 + 2 heavy paper flyleaves |
Pagination: | Modern pencil in upper outer corner recto, 1-191. |
Quiring: | Difficult to tell as so tightly bound; probably 8s. |
Catchwords: | None |
Page Size: | 232 x 160 |
Frame: | 4 x vertical; 2 x horizontal with top line having tops of minims along top frame line; no pricking since not ruled, fine brown-grey lines. |
Writing Space: | 186 x 126 in 2 columns, 58 + 10 + 58 |
Incipits and Explicits: | Incipits for each book in space of 3-4 lines left for them, written by scribe as he went along in same ink as text, with blue paraph preceding, no red flourishing; no rubric text anywhere in MS. |
Marginal Headings: | |
Flourished Initials: | On f1 an 8-line blue initial with red flourishing all down left side, much damaged; 1-3-line blue initials with red pen-work flourishing. |
Other Names (not owners): | Note on f ii (second paper flyleaf) 'This MS is presumed to be contemporaneous with / the Author, and written probably about the / year 1400, as the 'Confessio Amantis' was / probably finished in 1393.'[erasure] / Note from LONGMAN. 'It is highly probable that / this is a contemporary MS. As the writing abounds / with Saxon characters and abbreviations.' (by first hand writing in font like print); then a second hand adds, writing cursive modern, 'This [sic] the handwriting of / Revd Henry I['.]y of Harmon / or at least the same occurs in all of / the MSS I believe that belonged to him.' |
Miscellaneous Info: | NOTE except at beginning of each book, eg top 12 lines of f1ra for prologue, 8 lines top of f8vb for Liber Primus, etc. the Latin portions missing, just English. Ends f191rb 'Oure Ioy may be endeles / ' Amen Amen Amen / ' Explicit iste liber'. |
Further Information: | de Ricci. |