The James Catalogue of Western Manuscripts

Fly-leaves composed of 2 late deeds nearly erased.

Vol I

1. f.1. Incipit prefacio uenerabilis bede presbiteri in ecclesiastica hystoria gentis anglorum ad regem celwulfum.
Gloriosissimo regi celwulfo.
Ending: Mandare studuimus, the last paragraph of the Preface being as usual placed at the end of Lib. v.
f.1 Capitula libri primi
f.1b Text. Britannia oceani insula
Ends f.44a apud omnes fructum pie intercessionis inueniam. Amen.
It contains the fragment of the Hymn of Caedmon in Anglo-Saxon. f.32b

2. f.44 De obitu uenerabilis bede presbiteri .vii. kal. Junii. explicit liber quintus ecclesiastice historie gentis anglorum quam uen. Beda presbiter natus ex eadem gente edidit
f.3 Dilectissimo in Christo lectori Cuthwino Cuthbertus con-discipulus.
The Saxon passage is given, but the Latin version of it omitted. f.43b
Ends f.44b: sed breuitatem sermonis inerudicio lingue facit.

3. On the lower margin of ff.6b-38b is written in a hand of cent. xiv, xv, a tract on ecclesiastical discipline.
De domus sue (?) disposicione . dicitur autem bene prepositus familie sue quando regit eam honeste.
The next sections are
De neophitis non ordinandis.
De solempniter penitentibus.
The last is De infamibus. Ending
debet postulari ab uxore Di. xxviij de hiis.

This MS. is described as C² in Mayor and Lumby's edition of books iii., iv. (p.414). It was used by Whelock for his edition of the History in 1643, and is quoted by him as MS. T.

Vol II.

1. Incipit Vita sancti Basilii Cesariensium archiepiscopi f.1(44)
(in red capitals).
Basilius itaque solus ut sic dicam in terra equalem.
Ends f.53b: conscripta cum eo in celesti libro . in gloriam et laudem d.n. I.C. cui cum patre est gloria simul et sancto ac uiuifico spiritu nunc et semper et in sec. sec. Amen.
Expl. uita S. Basilii cesariensium archiepiscopi.

2. f.53b Inc. vita Sancte Evfrosine uirginis
Fuit uir in Alexandria nomine paphnutius.
Ends f.57b: usque in presentem diem . glorificantibus deum patrem et filium et spiritum sanctum cui est honor et gloria in sec. sec. Amen.
Expl. uita S. Evfrosine uirginis.

3. f.57b Inc. Passio S. Agnetis uirginis
Seruus Christi Ambrosius uirginibus sacris.
Ends f.60b: in conspectu dei ualeam inuenire . prestante d.n. I.C. cui est honor et gloria in sec. sec. Amen.
Expl. Passio S. Agnetis uirginis.

4. f.60b Inc. Passio gloriosi Vincentii martiris
Probabile satis est ad gloriam vincencii martiris.
Ends f.64a: multipliciter prestantur beneficia . ad laudem et gloriam nominis Christi . qui cum patre et spiritu sancto vivit et regnat deus in sec. sec. Amen.
Expl. Passio S. Vincentii martiris.

5. f.64 Inc. passio S. Thome Archiepiscopi et martiris
In blacker ink and a closer hand, but still of cent. xii.
Sacrosanctam ecclesiam iugiter impugnat hostis antiquus.
-ad uirtutem poterunt animare.
Predictus igitur beatissimus Thomas londoniensis urbis indigena.
By John of Salisbury [Hardy II. p.321).
The hand changes again to a smaller one on f.67.
Ends f.69b: illo hec et plura que referre longum est operante qui solus est super omnia deus benedictus in sec. sec. Amen.
Expl. passio S. Thome archiep. Cantuariensis.

6. f.69b Inc. Passio S. Laurentii archidiaconi et martiris
Postquam peracta sunt omnia de sancto syxto.
Ends imperfectly f.71b: Beatus autem iustinus presbiter optulit sacrificium laudis . et participati sunt omnes.

There are neat marginal notes in the MS. in Bishop Jewel's hand(?), and passages in Greek from Sozomen and Socrates interlined.

Vol III.

The earlier and later leaves have suffered from damp: but none of the writing is really illegible

1. Prologue.
Þis aerent geƿryt augustinus . ofer sealtne sae . suþan brohte . eorð bugenduū . sƿa hit aer fore adihtnode . dryhtnes cempa . rome papa riht spel monig gregorius . gleaƿ mod geond ƿod . þurh sefan snytro . searo þanca hord . for þaem þe he ma(n)n-cynnes maest gestriende rodera ƿearde . rom ƿarena betst manna mod ƿeligost . merþum gefragost . Seððan me on englesc aelfraed cynnicg aƿęnde . ƿorda gehƿilc . and me his ƿriterum sende . suþ and norþ. het him sƿylcra.. na bringan. be þaere bysene . þaet he his bisceopum sendan myahte . for þaem hi his sume beþorftan. þa þe leden spraece laeste cuþon.
Capitula in Saxon follow.
Text. First line in red capitals much faded, with green initial f.74
ðV LEOFESTA BROÐVR . SPIÐE GREOND-
lice and sƿiþe fremsumlice, etc.
The hand gets gradually larger and of later type: the most decided change seems to be at f.116 after which is not much alteration.
Ends f.157b
sco byrðen minra agenra scylda: Deo gratias. AMHN.
Quis nunc diligitur nisi conscius et cut ueruens . Aestuat occultis animus semperque tacendis.

2. Incipit expositio sancti agustini de secreto gloriose incarnati / (f.156a) onis d.n. I.C. intra cetera et ad locum lege cum timore caute et secrete (corner of leaf gone) et dicam tibi quemadmodum uirgo concepit . et melius est ut in sermone sit uerecundia quam in fide periculum. Da ueniam christe et parce ori meo etc. Ends after seven lines more: hoc conceptionis hereses cum timore et secrete est exponendum.

[f.158a is partly stuck to a flyleaf (f.158) which was once stuck to the cover; the flyleaf has some faint MS.
The last leaves are badly damaged by damp at lower portion of fols.]

Gneuss, H., Handlist of Anglo-Saxon Manuscripts: a List of Manuscripts and Manuscript Fragments Written or Owned in England up to 1100, Medieval and Renaissance Studies 241 (Tempe, AZ, 2001), no. 180 [ff. 72-158; s. x/xi, provenance before 1100 Sherborne?, provenance after 1100 Salisbury]

Gneuss, H. and Lapidge, M., Anglo-Saxon Manuscripts: A Biographical Handlist of Manuscripts and Manuscript Fragments Written or Owned in England up to 1100 (Toronto, 2014), no. 180

Greg, W. W., Facsimiles of Twelve Early English Manuscripts in the Library of Trinity College Cambridge (Oxford, 1913), no. 2.

Horgan, D. M., 'The dream of the rood and a homily for Palm Sunday', Notes and queries, 29 (1982), 388-91.

Horgan, D. M., 'The lexical and syntactic variants shared by two of the later manuscripts of King Alfred's translation of Gregory's Cura Pastoralis', Anglo-Saxon England 9 (1981), 213-21.

Horgan, D. M., 'The distribution of West Saxon dialect criteria in the extant manuscripts of the Pastoral care', Studia neophilologica 54 (1982), 218-35.

Horgan, D. M., 'The relationship between the O.E. MSS of King Alfred's translation of Gregory's "Pastoral care"', Anglia 91 (1973), 154-69.

Ker, N. R., Medieval Libraries of Great Britain, Royal Historical Society Guides and Handbooks 3, 2nd edn (London, 1964)

Ker, N. R., and A. G. Watson, Supplement to Medieval Libraries of Great Britain, Royal Historical Society Guides and Handbooks 15 (London, 1987)

Ker, N. R., Catalogue of Manuscripts Containing Anglo-Saxon (Oxford, 1957), no. 87.

Keynes, S., Anglo-Saxon Manuscripts and Other Items of Related Interest in the Library of Trinity College, Cambridge, Old English Newsletter Subsidia 18 (Binghampton, NY, 1992), no. 17 + pl. XVII.

Morgan, N. and Panayatova, S. (eds.) with the assistance of Rebecca Rushforth, Illuminated Manuscripts in Cambridge : A Catalogue of Western Book Illumination in the Fitzwilliam Museum and the Cambridge Colleges. Part 4, The British Isles, 2 vols. (London, 2013), vol 1. no. 30

O'Donnell, D. P. and Collins, D., Cædmon's Hymn ; a Multimedia Study, Archive and Edition,Society for Early English and Norse Electronic Texts. Series A 7 (Cambridge, 2005)

Strongman, S., 'John Parker's Manuscripts: an Edition of the Lists in Lambeth Palace MS 737', Transactions of the Cambridge Bibliographical Society 7 (1977-80), 1-27, no. 8.

Webber, T., Scribes and Scholars at Salisbury Cathedral (Oxford, 1992)