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Harley MS 4843

Record Id:

040-002050686

Hierarchy Root Ancestor Record Id:

040-002050686

MDARK:

ark:/81055/vdc_100000000859.0x000169

LARK:

SLARK:

Format:

ISAD(G)

Reference (shelfmark):

Harley MS 4843

Title:

Lives of St Cuthbert and other texts relating to the Cathedral Priory of St Cuthbert, Durham

Scope & Content:

The manuscript includes a collection of lives of St Cuthbert, lives of other saints and historical texts relating to the Cathedral Priory of St Cuthbert, Durham:

f. 1r: Life of St Nicasius, incipit 'Sancti Nicasius quirinus et scroniculus (sic) socii' (added).

f. 1v: Table of contents.

ff. 2r-7v: Life of St Cuthbert (the so-called 'Irish Life of St Cuthbert'), rubric: 'Incipit prefacio de ortu sancti Cuthberti de historiis hibernensium excerpta et translata', incipit: 'Cum per annos plurimos.'

ff. 7v-9v: Life of St Cuthbert, rubric: 'Incipit de ad natu eius in scocia', incipit: 'Postquam beatus puer Cuthbertus.'

ff. 9v-15v: Bede, Metrical Life of St Cuthbert, incipit (preface): 'Domino in christo dilectissimo Johanni presbitero Beda', incipit (text): 'Multa suis dominus fulgescere lumina.'

ff. 15v-32r, Bede, Prose life of St Cuthbert, incipit (preface): 'Domino sancto ac beatissimo Patri Eadfrido', incipit (text): 'Principium nobis scribendi de vita beati Cuthberti.'

ff. 32r-32v: Bede, Historia ecclesiastica gentis anglorum (excerpt), incipit: 'Erat in eodem monasterio frater.'

ff. 32v-47v: Life of St Cuthbert (miracles), incipit: 'Deus omnipotens iuste misericorde et misericorditer iustus gentem Anglorum', preceded by a table of contents.

ff. 47v-61v: Brevis relatio, rubric: 'Brevis relatio de sancto Cuthberto et quomodo corpus eius dunelmum venit...', incipit: 'Venerabilis qui domini famulus Cuthbertus.'

ff. 62r-67v: Life of Bede, incipit (preface): 'Inter catholicos sacre scripture expositores qui secundo', incipit (text): 'Humane salutis auctore'; including added notes at the end (ff. 67r-67v).

ff. 68r-155v: Reginald of Durham, Libellus, preceded by a letter to Aelred of Rievaulx, incipit (letter): 'Piissimo domino et patri Etheldredo', an apologia, incipit: 'Verbi dei predicator', a preface, incipit: 'Sepius multa', a sermon 'de octo tabernaculorum', incipit: 'Quam dilecta et diversa', and a table of contents, incipit (text): 'Venerandus confessor Cuthbertus non mortis dolore.'

ff. 155v-156v: Life of St Jerome, incipit: 'Post obitum gloriosi ieronimi heresisfacta surrexit.'

ff. 157r-181v: Reginald of Durham, Life of St Oswald, incipit (preface): 'Venerabili in christo domino et patri henrico quondam dunolmensium scriptori Reginaldus', incipit (text): 'Veteres celestis depositi thesauros libet effodere.'

ff. 182r-183v: Bede, Life of St Aidan, incipit: 'Est insula que vocatur hii.'

ff. 184r-185v:Life of St Edwin, incipit: 'anno ab incarnatione domini nostri iesu christi mcxxxiii interfacto in pugna edwino.'

f. 185v: A note in English about the name of Christ, entitled 'ihc est amor meus', with a monogram 'IHC' and, below, a drawing of a monk pronouncing the words 'ihu merry.'

ff. 186r-186v: A list of churches in England dedicated to St Cuthbert, with a memorandum.

ff. 187r- 217v: A historical compilation relating to Durham: 'De origine monachatus cum aliis de statu monachali', incipit: 'Quia de ortu sacrostancte religionis monachorum';

ff. 218r-222v: 'Brevis relacio de oracionis', incipit: 'Inter omnia vite humane opera'; colophon: 'Amen W. Tode Monachus.'

ff. 223r-223v: Extract from the Stimulus amoris, title: 'Qualiter se debet habere sacerdos cum ad celebrandum accedit. Scribitur in quodam tractatu intitulato stimuli amoris libro secundo ca^oxvi^oubi sic dicitur', incipit: 'Ad missam celebrandam sex considera attendenda.'

ff. 224r-231v: Life of William of St Calais (Carilef), bishop of Durham, incipit: 'Anno ab incarnacione domini millesimo octogesimo interfecto a suis parochianis', with a letter of William of St Calais to the monks of Durham at the end.

f. 231v: A poem entitled 'Etas beate marie virginis patet per versus', incipit: 'Virgo parens vixit.'

ff. 232r-232v: A short biblical genealogical history, incipit: 'Cayn nascitur et soror eius.'

ff. 233r-242r: Life of St Bartholomew of Farne, incipit (preface): 'Beatissimis in christo patribus', incipit (text): 'Igitur Bartholomeus ex prouincia Witebi.'

f. 242v: A short text on the history of Britain and Durham up to 1196, incipit: 'Anno mundi 3533 divisa est britania in quinque regna.'

ff. 243r-246r: A poem on the Battle of Neville's Cross of 1346, incipit: 'O miranda bonitas.'

f. 246v: A poem preceded by a note: 'Urbanus papa ordinavit quod matutine de sancta maria dicerentur cotitie et iste vespere et solempnis eius missa celebraretur in die sabbat', incipit: 'Godaruus rex danmarchie habuit duos fratres hingnar et ubba.

ff. 247r-251v: A poem on St Cuthbert, incipit: 'Sanctus Cuthbertus anglorum tutor.'

ff. 251r-253v: Johannes Alt, Poem on St Cuthbert, dedicated to Prior Thomas Castell of Durham (1494-1519) and dated 1502, incipit: 'salva certa salus.'

f. 254r: A short poem on the death of Thomas Becket, incipit: 'Anno milleno centeno septuageno.'

f. 254r: A short text on the genealogy of the Virgin Mary, incipit: 'Anna et emeria fuerunt sorores', with verses, incipit: 'Perfidus aspiciant petrum.'

f. 254v: 'Cantorie ecclesie dunelmensis' with a list of names of decessed brethren for commemoration, including: bishops of Durham Walter Skirlaw (f. 1406) and Thomas Hatfield (d. 1381) and others.

f. 254v: A poem incipit 'Terras Cuthberti.'

ff. 255r-256r: 'De morte Golomichaelis', incipit: 'In fuga memorata.'

ff. 256r-258r: Inscriptions beneath the figures of kings and bishops in front of the entrance to the choir of the Durham cathedral.

ff. 258v-259v: A historical text entitled, 'De dilatatione fidei christiane et ortu religionis', incipit: 'Licet per apostolos et alios christi discipulos.'

ff. 260r-262r: William Tode, Sermon in English on the 'trouble or temptacion at the hours off death', signed 'dompnus Williamus Tode a^oxⁱ 1528.'

ff. 262r-263v: Life of St Jerome, entitled 'Interpretatcio nominib. sancti Jeronimi presbiteri cardinalis', incipit: 'Ieronimus a ietar (?) quod est sanctum et nemus.'

ff. 264r-267r: A short treatise on the mass and confession, rubric: 'De missa et primo unde exordium sumpserit', incipit: 'Missam in primis dominus noster iesus christus sacerdos secundum ordinem melchisedech.'

ff. 267v-274v: 'De septem peccatis mortalibus' attributed here to Jean Gerson, incipit: 'Si vanam tui laudens et propriam excellenciam que finisti aut optasti.'

ff. 275r-275v: Life of St Augustine (fragment), incipit: 'Sanctus Augustinus dicit.'

f. 276r: An extract from a chronicle covering the period between the battle of Bannockburn (1314) and beheading of Richard FizAlan, Earl of Arundel in 1397.

Collection Area:

Western Manuscripts

Project / Collection:

Harley Collection

Hierarchy Tree:

[{ "id" : "040-002050686", "parent" : "#", "text" : "Harley MS 4843: Lives of St Cuthbert and other texts relating to the Cathedral Priory of St Cuthbert, Durham" , "li_attr" : {"class": "orderable"} }]

Hierarchy Record Ids:

032-002045828
040-002050686

Is part of:

Harley MS 1-7661 : Harley Manuscripts

Harley MS 4843 : Lives of St Cuthbert and other texts relating to the Cathedral Priory of St Cuthbert, Durham

Hierarchy:

032-002045828[4842]/040-002050686

Container:

View / search within Archive / Collection: Harley MS 1-7661

Record Type (Level):

File

Extent:

Paper and parchment codex

Digitised Content:

Languages:

English
Latin

Scripts:

Latin

Start Date:

1523

End Date:

1533

Date Range:

c 1528

Era:

Access:

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User Conditions:

Physical Characteristics:

Materials: Paper with two parchment leaves (ff. 2 and 176).

Dimensions: 330 x 230 mm (text space: 210 x 150 mm).

Foliation: ff. 276 (+ 5 unfoliated modern paper flyleaves: 2 at the beginning and 3 at the end; f. 1 is a modern paper leaf mounted on a guard).

Script: Gothic cursive.

Binding: British Museum/British Library in-house binding.

Custodial History:

Origin: England (Durham).

Provenance:

William Tode (or Tod), Prior of Durham, and subsequently canon 1541-1567 (first prebendary of the fifth stall in Durham), copied by him in c. 1528: inscribed 'Calamo Willelmi Tode pingitur iste libellus' (f. 276v), and a colophon at the end of a sermon: 'Amen. dompnus Willelmus Tode anno Christi 1528' (f. 262r).

John Eyrsdon (fl. 1507-1557), Benedictine monk at Durham Cathedral Priory (c. 1507-1539), prior's chaplain (1512/3), refectorer (1531), minor canon in the new foundation until 1548 (see 'Consortium of European Research Libraries Thesaurus' http://thesaurus.cerl.org/record/cnp01138932 [accessed 18. 02. 2013]): inscribed: 'Liber do[m]pni joh[ann]is Eyrsdon' (f. 276v).

William Hacfurth, Benedictine monk at Durham Cathedral Priory (signed a printed copy of Peter Comestor, Historia scholastica (Basil 1486) as 'liber dompni Willelmi Hacfurth monachi dunelm.' in the York Minster Libarary, see A Catalogue of the Printed Books in the Library of the Dean and Chapter of York (York: John Sampson 1896), f. 114): inscribed: 'S[um] Will[el]m[i] Hacfurth' (f. 276v).

The Cathedral of St Cuthbert, Durham: perhaps passed to the cathedral library from Eyrsdon or Hacfurth.

Added table of contents, 17th/18th century (ff. 1r-1v).

Thomas Tempest (d. 1692), 4th baronet, county Durham, in his library: inscribed 'Sr. Thomas Temp[es]t Baronet' (f. 3r).

James Woodman (d. 1728), bookseller at Russel St., Covent Garden, London, in partnership with D. Lyon, acquired from him by Edward Harley on 1 July 1725.

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.

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.

Administrative Context:

England (Durham).

Publications:

A Catalogue of the Harleian Manuscripts in the British Museum, 4 vols (London, 1808-1812), III (1808), no. 4843.

Two lives of Saint Cuthbert, ed. by B. Colgrave (Cambridge, 1940), pp. 28-29.

Medieval Libraries of Great Britain: A List of Surviving Books, ed. by Neil R. Ker, 2nd edn, Royal Historical Society Guides and Handbooks, 3 (London: Royal Historical Society, 1964), p. 73.

C. E. Wright, Fontes Harleiani: A Study of the Sources of the Harleian Collection of Manuscripts in the British Museum (London: British Museum, 1972), pp. 142, 148, 325, 330, 359.

A. I. Doyle, ‘The Library of Sir Thomas Tempest: Its Origins and Dispersal’, in Studies in Seventeenth-Century English Literature, History and Historiography: Festschrift for Professor T. A. Birrell on the Occasion of his Sixtieth Brithday, ed. by G. A. M. Janssens and F. G. A. M. Aarts (Amsterdam: Rodopi, 1984), pp. 83-93.

Medieval Libraries of Great Britain: A List of Surviving Books ed. by N. R. Ker, Supplement to the Second Edition, ed. by Andrew G. Watson, Royal Historical Society Guides and Handbooks, 15 (London: The Royal Historical Society, 1987), p. 30.

Matthew L. Holford, Keith John Stringer, Border Liberties and Loyalties: North-East England, C. 1200 - C. 1400 (Edinburgh University Press, 2010), pp. xviii, 33, 36.

Material Type:

Archives and Manuscripts

Legal Status:

Not Public Record(s)

Names: