Harley MS 3078

Origin:

Southern France (Moissac).

Provenance:

The Benedictine abbey of St Peter, Moissac, Tarn-et-Garonne, France, owned in the (?) 18th century: inscribed in a modern hand, possibly of the 18th century, on f. 2r: 'Ex Abbatia Moissiacensi'; perhaps their unidentified shelfmark 'No. 9' on f. 2r (see Wright, Fontes Harleiani (1972), p. 241).

Nicolas Joseph Foucault (b. 1643, d. 1721), marquis de Magny, statesman and archaeologist: his book-plate with the legend 'EX BIBLIOTHECA | NICOLAI JOSEPH FOUCAULT | COMITIS CONSISTORIANI' with his arms [sable] a lion rampant, dexter, crowned [argent], as supporters two lions [argent]; a couronne de marquis surmounting the shield (pasted inside upper cover); and his armorial binding (see Wright, Fontes Harleiani (1972), p. 155).

Thomas Ballard, bookseller and book auctioneer in London; his sale, 20 February 1720/21, lot 15, bought for Edward Harley through Nathaniel Noel (see Diary, ed. by Wright and Wright (1966), I, p. 89 n. 11; Wright, Fontes Harleiani (1972), p. 62).

The Harley Collection, formed by Robert Harley (b. 1661, d. 1724), 1st earl of Oxford and Mortimer, politician, and Edward Harley (b. 1689, d. 1741), 2nd earl of Oxford and Mortimer, book collector and patron of the arts, inscribed as usual by their librarian, Humfrey Wanley '23 die Februarij 1720/21' (f. 1r).

Edward Harley bequeathed the library to his widow, Henrietta Cavendish, née Holles (b. 1694, d. 1755) during her lifetime and thereafter to their daughter, Margaret Cavendish Bentinck (b. 1715, d. 1785), duchess of Portland; the manuscripts were sold by the Countess and the Duchess in 1753 to the nation for £10,000 (a fraction of their contemporary value) under the Act of Parliament that also established the British Museum; the Harley manuscripts form one of the foundation collections of the British Library.