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Manuscript Description
London, British Library, MS Arundel 59
 
Title:Regiment of Princes, Secretum Secretorum
Author:Hoccleve and Lydgate
Contents:Regiment of Princes ff1-89v; Two blank folios; Secreta Secretorum ff90-130v
Language:English
Date Range:1450-1475
Scribal Hands:
Examples of the hand. Click on the link above for full details and images of individual letter forms.
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Material:Paper
No of Folios:2 newer paper folios, the first of which is marbled on recto to match pastedown + 89 folios + 2 blank folios + ff90-130 + 1 heavier paper perhaps contemporary with text paper but which does not match the other half of f130 + 2 newer paper of which third is marbled on verso to match pastedown.
Pagination:Modern pencil foliation, usual place, does not count flyleaves or two blank leaves between booklets; scribe numbered folios in each quire, lower right corner, usually 1-20 in arabic numerals with dot each side, exception being last quire of booklet one, ff80-89 plus 2, where numbered only 1 to 1-6 on folios 80 to 85. Note that there are strings between 85 and 86 so the scribe possibly knew this was going to be an incomplete quire, so he waited to number until after copying so that he would know how many folios would comprise this quire. He then forgot: with strings there, this is clearly a quire of 12 with the last two folios blank and unnumbered. Same scribe's numbering in second booklet for two full quires of 20 (ff. 80-129) and last folio (130) is a single.
Quiring:20s
Catchwords:By the scribe, in black ink with red sleigh under (curve inward on left side, straight up-and-down on right side).
Page Size:283 x 208
Frame:Hardly visible: appears to be just a straight line for left margin
Writing Space:205 x ca. 100
Incipits and Explicits:No titles for either text but sub-headings within in spaces left for them, eg 'Here the Epistil of the translatour' on f101. Explicit only on f89v; on f130v, 'Explicit Regimine Principum'
Marginal Headings:In Booklet 1, red sleighs under glosses and catchwords and double slash to left of first line each stanza. In Booklet 2, red wash or shadowing each initial (ie first letter each line, each gloss, each title and proper names in all of these; red sleighs or sleighs without right side under some proper names in text, under titles, under glosses, under catchwords; red 'nota' marks that look like 'a's to left of first line each stanza.
Flourished Initials:Booklet 1 (1-89), red shadow or wash on all initials, ie first letter each line and first of glosses. Booklet 2 (90-130), 2-3 line plain blue initials, red penwork around in concentric squares the outer one being crenelated.
Other Names (not owners):The arms of T. Wall, Windsor Herald on f1, middle right margin; above the coat of arms, mostly rubbed out, 'T wall wyndsor H[erald]. On f89v: between end text and heading for 'Verba compilatoris ad librum' is added by Wall, 'Thomas Wall Wyndsor herault' and between heading for 'Verba compilatoris...' beginning of that is added by Wall, 'TWWH'. On f92 where the first epistle of Secretum begins, between end of prologue and heading for first epistle, Wall writes, 'Wall
between heading and beginning of first epistle he writes, 'Wyndesor H'. On f130v added by a 16th century hand: 'This boke belongyth vnto T. Wall alias Wyndesor herault at armes which he bought of henry at the tauerne within buschops gate at London the yere of our Lord 1525 wyttenesse Robert Lytylboureng Saywell & c' the viijth day of may Qui bien gaigne et qui plus fort despent Riens ne Luy fault pour mucer son argent Who gettyth mouche money & dooth despend more Nedyth no coffre to key vp hys store'. 'Jo. Starkey' in the top right margin, f1 stamped box with 'Soc. Reg. Lond. ex dono Henr. Howard Norfolciensis', lower right margin, f1 'Robert Cotton Bruceus' lower margin, f1 'NA[..]syng We Wythe gothe' (late 15th-16th c. hand, upper margin f1, partly smudged out.
Further Information:Arundel Catalogue gives the following information (pp. 12-13, 59) Paper, in folio, ff130, formerly belonging to T. Wall, Windsor Herald, whose arms are emblazoned on the first leaf, and afterwards to Sir Robert Cotton. 1. Thomas Occleve's Poem De reginime principum fol. 1/p. 13 2. A book falsely ascribed to Aristotle, called Secretum secretorum or Secrets of Philosophers in English verse, the first part by John Lydgate, and the conclusion, as it would seem, by Benedict Burghe. f90. It begins; 'God Almyghti saue and conserue oure Kyng.' The following entry occurs in the margin of f115. 'Here deyde the translatour and noble poete Dane Johne Lidgate, and his folwer gan his prologe in this wise, per Benedictum Burghe.'
Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York, King's Manor, York YO1 7EP