Burney MS 257

ff. 2r-4v: Laurent de Premierfait, compendium to Thebais (ascribed in the manuscript to Laurencius Campannus).

ff. 4v-210r: Statius, Thebais (imperfect, wanting Book V, 728-753, Book VI, 1-18, and the rhymed epitome to book VI).

ff. 210v-222v: Laurent de Premierfait, a summary of Thebais by chapters (ascribed in the manuscript to Laurencius Campannus).

ff. 222v: François de Rohan, archbishop of Lyons, address to the canons of Poitiers about the election of Louis de Husson, count of Tonnerre, 1521, added in the 16th century.

ff. 223r-224v: Latin verses, including distichs on Petrarch's Trionfi (f. 224v), added in the 16th century.

ff. 225r-226r: Laurent de Premierfait, preface to Achilleis (ascribed in the manuscript to Laurencius Campannus).

ff. 226r-248v: Statius, Achilleis.

Decoration:

Attributed to the Cité des Dames Master (ff. 137v-144v and 162v-168r), the workshop of the Virgil Master (ff. 10v-11r), the Orosius Master (ff. 226v-239v), a Netherlandish illuminator working in Paris, and at least two other hands working in related styles (see Meiss, French Painting (1974), I, pp. 379, 400, 409).

128 large miniatures, usually with figures in semi-grisaille with pale blue sky and green earth (2 in full colour on a diaper ground of gold and blue or gold and red, ff. 10v, 11v).

Large and small gold initials on blue and red grounds, some with foliate decoration.

Running book roman numbers in gold, blue, or red with penwork decoration. Geometric line fillers in gold, red, and blue.

Partial bar borders and initials with ivy leaves in gold, red and blue (ff. 4v, 20v, 105r, 122r, 137v, 157v, 177r, 193r, 226v, 230r, 232r, 239v, 241r, 245v).

The subjects of the miniatures are as follows:

f. 4v: Statius presents the text;

f. 6r: Oedipus gouges out his own eyes, beside Jocasta, Eteocles and Polinices;

f. 6v: Tisiphone, holding snakes with both hands, before a city in flames;

f. 8r: view of Thebes, with Polinices exiled outside the gate and Eteocles enthroned in a hall;

f. 9r: Jupiter enthroned with gods and goddesses;

f. 10v: Jupiter enthroned, before him Juno kneeling and Mercury (with a dog’s head);

f. 11v: Polinices and three companions on horseback in front of the city gate;

f. 13v: Polinices and Tydeus fighting;

f. 15r: the banquet of the Adrastus;

f. 16v: Adrastus tells Polinices and Tydeus the story of the dragon and Coroebus;

f. 17v: Coroebus fights the dragon;

f. 19r: Polinices kneels before the enthroned Adrastus;

f. 20v: Laius rises from the Underworld, shown as a hell-mouth, and approaches a statue of Mercury;

f. 22r: Laius arrives in Thebes and speaks to Eteocles in bed;

f. 23v: Adrastus promises his daughters in marriage, Argia to Polinices and Deipyle to Tydeus;

f. 25r: the wedding feast;

f. 26r: the married couples at the temple altar of Pallas;

f. 27r: Polinices and Argia in bed together;

f. 28v: Tydeus goes to Thebes and addresses Eteocles;

f. 29v: Tydeus rides out of Thebes, an olive branch in his hand;

f. 30r: Tydeus stands on a cliff, throwing rocks at the attacking Thebans;

f. 33r; Tydeus with the bloody corpses of the slain Theban force, and Maeon leaving to take the news back to Thebes;

f. 35r: Tydeus hangs the Theban armour on an oak tree as a tribute to Pallas;

f. 36v: Eteocles is woken from his bed;

f. 38r: Eteocles enthroned receives news of the defeat from the wounded Maeon;

f. 39r: the Thebans rush to the site of the battle to seek their dead;

f. 41v: Venus kneels before two statues depicting Jupiter and Mars;

f. 43v: Tydeus reports back to Adrastus and Deiphile;

f. 45v: Adrastus looking up at a statue of Mars;

f. 46v: animals are sacrificed and the seers Amphiaraus and Melampus are consulted;

f. 48v: Capaneus;

f. 50: Capaneus and his knights on horseback, facing Amphiaraus;

f. 52r: Argia, carrying her son Thessander, urges Adrastus to start a war on Thebes;

f. 52v: the armies march to war;

f. 54r: the armies led by Polinices, Tydeus and Hippomedon;

f. 56r: Amphiaraus in conversation with a prince;

f. 57v: Parthenopaeus says goodbye to his mother Atalanta;

f. 59v: the leader of the Bacchants addresses Bacchus (depicted with a long beard and a woman's body), with Eteocles watching;

f. 61r: Eteocles seeks advice from Tiresias the seer;

f. 62v: Manto shows Eteocles three corpses;

f. 64v: Manto and Tiresias see into the Underworld;

f. 66r: Bacchus rides out in his chariot (depicted with a long beard and a woman's body);

f. 67v: the Argives encounter Hypsipyle with the child Opheltes;

f. 70v: Hypsipyle and Opheltes before Adrastus;

f. 72r: the women of Lemnos kill all the men and boys;

f. 74r: the city of Lemnos, with women murdering men;

f. 75v: Hypsipyle and Thoas on a burning ship;

f.77v: the Argonauts approach Lemnos by sea, but the Lemnian women fight them off;

f. 79r: the Argonauts land on Lemnos and the women greet them;

f. 79v: the Argonauts depart Lemnos, leaving Hypsipyle and the Lemnian women;

f. 81r: A dragon devours Opheltes, and Capaneus kills the dragon;

f. 83r: Hypsipyle and Adrastus mourn over the dead body of Opheltes;

f. 84r: mourners with the body of Opheltes;

f. 87v: Adrastus, Hypsipyle, Euridice and Lycurgus in discussion beside two empty coffins;

f. 90r: the tomb of Opheltes;

f. 91r: King Adrastus, sitting in front of his tent, with a man playing on a harp (Apollo?);

f. 93r: Adrastus, sitting in front of his tent, is presented with a cup of wine;

f. 96v: youths speak to Adrastus;

f.98: Adrastus watches the discus contest;

f. 100r: Adrastus watches the boxing contest between Capaneus and Alcidamas (shown as fighting with rocks in slings);

f. 102r: Adrastus watches the wrestling contest between Tydeus and Agylleus;

f. 104v: Jupiter enthroned gives his orders to Mercury (shown with a dog’s head);

f. 105r: Mercury visits the house of Mars and asks him to start the war;

f. 106v: a personification of Panic comes to Adrastus and the Argives;

f. 108r: Bacchus (depicted as a woman) appeals to Jupiter on behalf of Thebes;

f. 109v: the city of Thebes, with a band of warriors gathered outside;

f. 113r: two princes in conversation in a tent outside the city of Thebes;

f. 114r: fighting outside the city walls;

f. 116v: the Argives kills two tigers sacred to Bacchus;

f. 119v: Jocasta, supported by her two daughters, appeals to Polinices;

f. 120v: Amphiaraus fighting in his chariot;

f. 122r: Amphiaraus drives his chariot into the abyss, where he is met by five Underworld figures;

f. 124v: Adrastus and Palemon outside the gate of Thebes;

f. 127v: Adrastus offering a green crown to the kneeling Thiodamas. Thiodamas prays before the statue of Cybele;

f. 130v: the battle rages;

f. 132r: Tydeus is mortally wounded by Melanippus, Tydeus then slays him and eats his head;

f. 137v: Polinices tries to kill himself beside the bleeding corpse of Tydeus;

f. 139v: Soldiers in discussion over a corpse;

f. 140v: Tisiphone lures Polinices away and the Thebans seize the corpse of Tydeus;

f. 142r: the armies battle in the river Ismenos;

f. 143r: fighting rages in the river, with dead bodies and weapons floating;

f. 144v: the bleeding corpse of Crenaeus is discovered by his mother Ismene;

f. 146v: bodies and weapons are drifting in the water while Jupiter watches from the sky;

f. 147v: Hippomedon washes up on the shore, where four enemies stand ready to attack;

f. 148v: On the bank of the river a warrior carries away the corpse of the Hippomedon while in the sky Juno appeals to Jupiter;

f. 150r: Atalanta appeals to Diana to protect her son, Parthenopaeus;

f. 151v: Diana meets Apollo near the battlefield;

f. 153r: Atalanta and Diana beside the battle;

f. 154r: Parthenopeus and his horse are fatally wounded;

f. 157v: in the Argive camp, a prince speaks to a warrior and people pray to Juno;

f. 159r: Juno sends Iris to put the Thebans in a stupor. Sleep descends on the Thebans;

f. 160v: Thiodamas the seer urges the Argives to seize the opportunity, and they slaughter the sleeping Thebans;

f. 162v: the Argives kill the sleeping Thebans in their tents;

f. 164v: the squires Dymas and Hopleus try to recover the corpses of Parthenopeus and Tydeus, but they are discovered by a Theban patrol and killed;

f. 166v: the Argive army, headed by Adrastus, Capaneus and Polinices, in front of the city of Thebes;

f. 168r: the Argives assault Thebes;

f. 169v: Tiresias and Manto look into the flames of the altar. Manto tells Menoeceus that his death is prophesied;

f. 171r: Menoeceus plans to sacrifice himself for his country, his parents try to dissuade him;

f. 172v: Menoeceus kills himself on the city walls;

f. 174v: Capaneus challenges Jupiter;

f. 177r: the Thebans chase away the Argives;

f. 178r: the furies Tisiphone and Megaera plan the coming fratricide;

f. 179v: Megaera visits Polinices;

f. 181r: in the city, Eteocles offers a sacrifice to Jupiter. Outside Polinices has a vision of Argia;

f. 182r: Eteocles prepares to fight;

f. 183v: Jocasta pleads with Eteocles, Antigone pleads with Polinices;

f. 185r: Eteocles and Polinices ride against each other;

f. 186r: Piety in a black robe comes between the brothers;

f. 187v: Eteocles spears Polinices while Adrastus and Tisiphone look on;

f. 189v: The bodies of Eteocles and Polinices. Antigone leads the blind Oedipus to the battlefield and Jocasta attempts suicide;

f. 190v: Creon succeeds to the throne of Thebes and addresses Oedipus and Antigone;

f. 193r: Theban dead are cremated on a pyre;

f. 194v. Creon before the pyre of Menoeceus;

f. 195v: the Argive widows come for the bodies of their husbands;

f. 197r: Argia and Antigone petition Creon to allow them to bury Polinices’ body, and the other Argive women petition Theseus of Athens to help them;

f. 198v. Argia pulls the body of Polinices from a pile of corpses;

f. 200v: the Argive women bear their dead away from the battlefield;

f.202r: the bodies of Eteocles and Polinices are burned, Argia and Antigone are led away;

f. 204r: Theseus and Hippolita arrive in a horse-drawn carriage;

f. 205v: Theseus and his army outside Thebes;

f. 207v: Theseus kills Creon;

f. 226v: Thetis sees Helen and Paris on a ship;

f. 230r: Thetis exchanges wreaths with Achilles, who is dressed in women's clothes, beside the four daughters of Licomedes on the right;

f. 232: Thetis presents Achilles as her daughter to Licomedes;

f. 234r: a city with a king, queen and knights;

f. 239v: Ulysses and Diomedes arrive at Scyros, where they are entertained by Lycomedes;

f. 241r: Lycomedes holds a feast for Ulysses and Diomedes;

f. 245v: Achilles sets sail from Scyros with Ulysses and Diomedes, leaving behind Deidamia.