Acts of the Council of Constantinople with an additional pasted miniature(8th century-14th century)

Nikola Benin, Ph.D

Contents: ff. 4-134: Acts of the Council of Constantinople (680), dated to the 2nd quarter of the 9th century; f. 134v: A pasted-in miniature from a Gospel-book or Gospel lectionary, of the Annunciation to Zacharias (Luke I:11), dated to the 4th quarter of the 8th century or 1st quarter of the 9th century, pasted in beneath the text on f. 134v. Beneath the image are the words 'angelus d[omi]ni stans a dextris altaris incensi'. ff. 1, 137: Now Royal MS 13 D I*, f. 21. These are two halves of a leaf from a 14th century Psalter, used as flyleaves when the present manuscript was rebound in the 17th century. The two halves have now been joined together and in the 1870s they were bound with other leaves from the same Psalter (some from the bindings of other Cotton manuscripts, some from Royal MS 13 D I) as Royal MS 13 D I*, f. 21. Decoration Added framed miniature in brown, red, green and yellow of the Annunciation to Zacharias (Luke 1:11) (f. 134v). Initials in silver, now oxidised, or brown. Rubrics in silver, red or brown capitals. Neums in the margins (ff. 67v, 92r).

• Materials: Parchment and ink.
• Dimensions: 320 x 270mm (written space: 265 x 175mm).
• Foliation: ff. i +136 (ff. i, 135 and 136 are flyleaves + 1 unfoliated parchment leaf at the beginning, +1 parchment leaf following f. 134 + 2 unfoliated paper flyleaves at the end; ff. 1 and 137 have been removed and rebound in BL Royal 13 D. I*).
• Collation: ff. 4-136: i6(ff. 4-9), ii-iii8(ff. 10-25), iv6(ff. 32-37), v8(ff. 38-45), vi6(ff. 46-51), vii-ix8(ff. 52-83), x6(ff. 84-90), xi8(ff. 91-98), xii6 (ff. 99-104), xiii-xiv8(ff. 105-120), xv6(ff. 121-126), xvi8 (ff. 127-136).
• Script: Caroline minuscule.
• Binding. BM/BL in-house. Rebound in 1958.

Ownership

Origin: Germany, W. (ff. 4r-134v); Germany, (?) Aachen, Court of Charlemagne (added miniature on f. 134v). Provenance: Athelstan, King of England (reigned 924–939): donated by him to Bath Abbey: a 10th-century inscription on f. 5r states, 'hunc codicem aethelstanus rex tradidit D[e]o et alme Christi genetrici sanctisque Petro et Benedicto in Bathonie civitatis coenobio ob remunerationem suae animae. Et quisquis hos legerit caracteres, omnipotenti pro eo proque suis amicis fundat preces'. The Benedictine cathedral priory of St Saviour, St Peter and St Paul, Bath, Somerset: in the book-list of the library made by J. Leland, De Rebus Britannicus Collectanea (1533-36) (see Ker , Medieval Libraries (1964), p. 7). (?)Thomas Cranmer, archbishop of Canterbury (d. 1556), perhaps in his library (see David G. Selwyn, The Library of Thomas Cranmer (Oxford: Bibliographical Society, 1996), p. 192, no. 58). Sir Robert Bruce Cotton (b. 1571, d. 1631), 1st baronet, antiquary and politician: his name inscribed (f. 134v); included in the book-list of c.1616 (Add MS 35213, f. 43v) and in the early catalogues of his collection (Harley MS 6018, no. 183 and Additional MS 36789, f. 130; see Colin G. C. Tite, The Early Records of Sir Robert Cotton’s Library: Formation, Cataloguing, Use (London: The British Library, 2003), p. 123). Two half-leaves from a 14th-century Psalter were used as upper and lower flyleaves, numbered ff. 1, 137 in Cotton Claudius B V when it was rebound in the post-medieval period (see Carley and Tite, 'Cotton as Manuscript Collector' (1992). The two halves have now been joined together and in the 1870s they were bound with other leaves from the same psalter (some from the bindings of other Cotton manuscripts, some from Royal MS 13 D I) as Royal MS 13 D I*, f. 21. Sir Thomas Cotton (b. 1594, d. 1662), 2nd baronet, son of Sir Robert, he added to the collection His grandson, Sir John Cotton (b. 1621, d. 1702), 3rd baronet: bequeathed the entire Cotton collection of books and manuscripts to trustees ‘for Publick Use and Advantage’, (Acts of Parliament: 12 and 13 William III, c. 7 of 1701). Formed one of the foundation collections of the British Museum in 1753.

Bibliography

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