Add MS 6060

BEAUVALE CHARTULARY: chartulary of the Carthusian Priory of Beauvale, co. Nott.; 1486, with later additions. Latin and French. Origin: England. Compiled down to 1486 at the instance of Nicholas Wartre, Prior, see colophon, f. 122v. The latest dated item in the main hands of the chartulary is a fine of Michaelmas 1478 (f. 63v). The MS. was used by Robert Thoroton in his Antiquities of Nottinghamshire (1677), see Thoroton's History of Nottinghamshire, ed. J. Throsby, ii (1797),

pp. 242-246, 314. See also: Davis, Cartularies, no. 42; a note by T. L. Cursham, Gentleman's Magazine, lxxxiv(1) (1814), p. 108; Monasticon, vi, pp. 11-14;

M. Thompson, The Carthusian Order in England (1930), pp. 158-166, 314. For papal documents, see W. Holtzmann, Papsturkunden in England, iii (1952),

p. 101. The entries consist of royal and private charters, papal documents and episcopal charters, arranged in sections: documents are numbered within the sections, each section bearing a contents list, which usually precedes the entry, although some lists are placed out of order (eg. ff. 65v-66). The entries are arranged as follows: (a) royal and other foundation charters. ff. 10-15v, 16v-28v;- (b) topographical entries. ff. 29-77;- (c) apostolic privileges, chiefly concerning the Carthusian order in general. ff. 78v-88v;- (d) material concerning appropriated churches. ff. 92-104;- (e) papal documents, unlisted and unnumbered. ff. 104v-122v. Other material not in the contents lists, including royal charters, papal privileges, etc., occurs, ff. 33, 77, 88v-91, 104. The latest inserted item is dated 1506 (ff. 90v-91). Nine folios from a 15th-cent. English antiphoner, formerly used as fly-leaves and end-papers, are bound as ff. 1-9. Marginals: contemporary chapter headings and insertions (see f. 78); some 16th-17th cent. notes on the text, ff. 11v, 18-18v, 32, 52, including memoranda in the hand of a 16th-17th cent. owner (ff. 11v, 18v). The name 'J. Watkinson' in a 17th-cent. hand, probably an owner, ff. 5v, 6v. Inside the front board in a late 17th-cent. hand is the inscription 'This Leiger Book contains Vicarial Endowments of Selston and Griesley Notts and Farnham Yorksh'. Used, bef. 1677, by Robert Thoroton, see above. Owned, bef. 1814, by William Stretton, Esq., of Lenton Priory, whose signature occurs, ff. 3v, 9. Stretton found the MS. 'among some old books in a lumber room at Nottingham, where it had probably lain since the days of Thoroton', see two letters, bound as ff. 123-126v, from the Rev. Thomas Leeson Cursham, D.C.L., vicar of Mansfield, who acquired the volume from Stretton, to Henry Ellis. Presented by the Rev. Thomas Leeson Cursham, 8 April 1815.

Vellum; ff. 126+(33 (a)-(b), 59 (a)-(c), 64*). 305 x 220mm. Gatherings (ff. 10-122) generally of eight (vii lacks 8?), iv10, vi6. Some quires marked on the first folio recto bottom right-hand corner as follows: xij (f. 10), xxiij (f. 18), xvij (f. 33(a)), xxviij (f. 42), xij (f. 50), vij (f. 56), xv (f. 60). Catchwords, ff. 17v, 52v, 74v, 82v, 98v, 104v, 106v, 114v. Signatures, bottom left-hand corner recto: arabic numerals, ff. 107-110; roman numerals, ff. 115-118. Three cursive book scripts: A. ff. 10-35v, 46v, 49v, 55v, 65v-66, 67v-77, including contents lists for material in hand B;- B. ff. 36-64 passim;- C. ff. 77v-122v. Headings, etc., in red, initials in red and blue. Material in hand B (ff. 36-64v passim) bears initials in red and blue penwork and other decoration as follows: (a) pen drawings of leaves, flowers, scrolls and grotesques, some coloured in red and brown, chiefly at foot of page, ff. 38-52v passim. The illustration on f. 47 has been cut out;- (b) initial and half-border with leaf decoration and grotesques, in green, red, mauve, blue and gold. Pen drawings of leaves at foot, coloured brown. f. 36;- (c) initial decorated in gold, blue and brown, f. 38v. Former fly-leaves and end-papers are now ff. 1-9: five leaves were formerly at the front of the MS. in the order 3, 1, 2, 5, 4; ff. 6-9 were placed at the end of the MS. Offsets from ff. 3 recto and 9v occur on the binding boards. The fly-leaves were placed in their present order when the MS. was rebound at the British Museum in 1899. Original boards covered in brown leather, spine modern.