Advanced Search   *   Manuscripts   *   Scribes   *   Authors   *   Letters
Home   *   About the Project   *   Bibliography
Funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council
Find What? Search by
Manuscript Description
London, British Library MS Egerton 2863
 
MS Appellation:En2 (Manly and Rickert)
Title:Canterbury Tales
Author:Chaucer
Contents:Canterbury Tales
Language:English
Date Range:1425-1450
Scribal Hands:
Examples of the hand. Click on the link above for full details and images of individual letter forms.
**************

Dialect:Standardised/N.Norfolk/Lincs
Material:Parchment
No of Folios:214 (many pages cut out)
Quiring:8 (when complete)
Catchwords:Yes, unembellished; some folios which should have had catchwords are missing.
Page Size:338 x 220
Frame:2 x vertical, 4 x horizontal, enclosing top and bottom lines; ruled with geay or black fine lines.
Writing Space:217 x 100 (for verse) ruled for 217 x 115
Incipits and Explicits:Red
Marginal Headings:Red
Running Titles:Red, with 'The' on verso and name of pilgrim on recto.
Table of Contents:Incomplete at beginning and end.
Illuminated Initials:Gold initials, red and blue ground, white highlights, sprays from corners with green leaves, gold fruits or buds or trefoils.
Paragraph Marks:One-line blue paraphs with red pen-work; in prose texts alternating blue paraphs with red pen-work and gold paraphs with blue pen-work; blue paraphs with red pen-work precede names of authorities in margins.
Other Names (not owners):Inside front cover, plate 'From the Library of Laurence W. Hodson, Compton Hall, near Wolverhampton'. Note on fiiiv (foliated ii and pasted onto the page) written 19th or 20th century 'This book formerly belonged to the Priory of Southwick in Hampshire & was given by Rich. Norton Esq. to his brother John Chichely Esq. Mr John Urry of Christ Church Oxon made use of this MS in his edition of Chaucer printed at London 1721 Vide Preface Art. +'
Further Information:According to Mosser (2010), 'A. I. Doyle identifies the En2 scribe in the following MSS, all of which have a Devonshire or Southwestern provenance (private communication): 1. British Library MS Harley 45 2. Pennsylvania University MS English 3 3. Bodleian MS Douce 291 (Middle English Vegetius in prose [John Walton's?]; see Lester 1988 [facsimile] and Watson 1979, no. 195).
Centre for Medieval Studies, University of York, King's Manor, York YO1 7EP