Hard-coded id of currently selected item: . JSON version of its record is available from Blacklight on e.g. ??

Metadata associated with selected item should appear here...

Cotton MS Cleopatra C VIII, ff 4–37

Record Id:

041-001103780

Hierarchy Root Ancestor Record Id:

032-001101582

MDARK:

ark:/81055/vdc_100000001660.0x000057

LARK:

SLARK:

ark:/81055/vdc_100056570770.0x000001

Format:

ISAD(G)

Reference (shelfmark):

Cotton MS Cleopatra C VIII, ff 4–37

Title:

Prudentius, Psychomachia; Pseudo-Columbanus, Precepta Vivendi (imperfect)

Scope & Content:

These folios contain an illustrated copy of Prudentius's Psychomachia made between the late 10th and early 11th century, with Old English titles and glosses added in the early 11th century.

Contents:

ff. 4r-37r: Prudentius, Psychomachia, with Old English titles and glosses added in the early 11th century.

f. 37r: a list of which Virtue fights which Vice.

f. 37v: Pseudo-Columbanus, Precepta Vivendi.

Decoration:

Miniatures drawn with black, red, green and blue lines, depicting Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac (f. 4r), Lot and his wife taken prisoner and Abraham chasing Lot's captors (f. 4v), Abraham, Lot and Lot's wife returning (f. 5r), Abraham and Melchisedec making a sacrifice and Abraham and Sarah hosting the three angels (f. 5v), Prudentius kneeling before an altar (f. 6v), Fides fighting and defeating Veterum Cultura Deorum (f. 7r), Fides crowning the Virtues (f. 7v), Libidio fighting Pudicitia (ff. 7v-8v), Pudicitia cleans her sword (f. 9v), Pudicitia puts her sword under an altar (f. 10r), Patientia surrounded by men with torches (f. 10r), Patientia fighting Ira and Ira eventually committing suicide (ff. 10v-12v), Patientia walking with Job through a battle (f. 12v), Patientia talking to Job and Patientia talking to other Virtues (f. 13r), Superbia riding a horse with a lion's skin on its back (ff. 13v-14r), Superbia trying to trample Spes and Humilitas (ff. 14r, 15v), Superbia falling (f. 15v), Humilitas standing over Superbia (f. 16r), Spes offering a sword to Humilitas to decapitate Superbia (f. 16v-17r), Humilitas (according to the Latin title) ascending to heaven (f. 17v), Luxuria at a feast (f. 18r), Luxuria preparing for battle and riding a chariot (f. 18v-19r), Luxuria dancing accompanied by musicians (f. 19v), Sobrietas chastising the Virtues (f. 19v), Sobrietas confronting Luxuria, panicking her horses and causing her death (ff. 21r-22r), Jocus putting down his cymbals on the death of Luxuria (f. 22r), Amor (f. 22v), Pompa (f. 22v), Voluptas running through thorns (f. 23r), the Virtues trampling Luxuria's treasure (f. 23r), Avaritia by a stream and gathering gold and loot (f. 23v), Avaritia nursing Vices (f. 24r), Avaritia blinding men and causing crimes (f. 24v), Avaritia offering a man a round object and driving people towards a fiery pit (f. 25r), Avaritia disguising herself as Frugi (ff. 26v-27v), Avaritia fighting Largitas while men collect coins falling from a sack (ff. 27v-28v), Largitas distributing Avaritia's treasure and addressing a crowd (f. 29r), Pax defeating Metus, Labor and Vis (f. 30r), the Virtues sheathing their weapons (f. 30r), the Virtures rejoicing (f. 30v), Concordia (f. 30v), figures standing and on horseback (f. 31r), the Virtues outside an urbs (f. 31v), Discordia, in disguise, attacking Concordia and being stopped by the Virtues (f. 31v), Faith addressing other Virtues (f. 34r), Fides and Concordia laying the foundation of a temple (f. 34v), the Temple of the Lord (f. 35r), Sapientia (f. 36r), Prudentius (f. 36v). (Image descriptions based on Ohlgren, Anglo-Saxon Textual Illustration (1992), pp. 75-88.) Miniatures framed with lines in red and black.

Initials in red and green. Titles and rubrics in red. The phrase EXPLICITH LIBER PSYKEUMAKHIAE' transliterated in Greek letters in red (f. 37r).

Collection Area:

Western Manuscripts

Project / Collection:

Cotton Collection
England and France 700-1200 Project

Hierarchy Record Ids:

032-001101582
040-001103779
041-001103780

Is part of:

Cotton MS : Cotton Manuscripts
Cotton MS Cleopatra C VIII : Prudentius, Psychomachia; Pseudo-Columbanus, Precepta Vivendi (imperfect); Collection of canon law, including…

Cotton MS Cleopatra C VIII, ff 4–37 : Prudentius, Psychomachia; Pseudo-Columbanus, Precepta Vivendi (imperfect)

Hierarchy:

032-001101582[1201]/040-001103779[0001]/041-001103780

Container:

View / search within Archive / Collection: Cotton MS

Record Type (Level):

Item

Extent:

Part of Cotton MS Cleopatra C VIII

Digitised Content:

Languages:

English, Old
Latin

Scripts:

Greek
Latin

Start Date:

0975

End Date:

1099

Date Range:

4th quarter of the 10th century-11th century

Era:

Access:

Please request the physical items you need using the online collection item request form.

Digitised items can be viewed online by clicking the thumbnail image or digitised content link.

Readers who have registered or renewed their pass since 21 March 2024 can request physical items prior to visiting the Library by completing
this request form.
Please enter the Reference (shelfmark) above on the request form.

If your Reader Pass was issued before this date, you will need to visit the Library in London or Yorkshire to renew it before you can request items online. All manuscripts and archives must be consulted at the Library in London.

This catalogue record may describe a collection of items which cannot all be requested together. Please use the hierarchy viewer to navigate to individual items. Some items may be in use or restricted for other reasons. If you would like to check the availability, contact our Reference Services team, quoting the Reference (shelfmark) above.

User Conditions:

Letter of introduction required to view this manuscript

Custodial History:

Origin: Canterbury, Southeastern England.

Provenance:

? Christ Church Cathedral, Canterbury: see Wieland, 'Anglo-Saxon Manuscripts' (1987), p. 216; Old English translations of the titles and glosses added in the early 11th-century. Since the main body of the text has been associated with Christ Church Canterbury, the glosses may have been made there as well; however, Stokes argues this does not resemble other hands from Canterbury at this period without ruling out a Canterbury attribution (Stokes, English Vernacular (2014), p. 130); it is possible that one of the artists who worked on this manuscript also worked on the York Gospels, York, Minster Library, Add 1 (see Heslop, 'De luxe' (1990), p. 167).

Sir Robert Bruce Cotton (b. 1571, d. 1631), 1st baronet, antiquary and politician.

Cotton’s collection was augmented by his son, Sir Thomas Cotton (b. 1594, d. 1662), 2nd baronet, and grandson, Sir John Cotton.

Sir John Cotton (b. 1621, d. 1702), 3rd baronet: bequeathed the entire Cotton collection of books and manuscripts to trustees ‘for Publick Use and Advantage’, 12 and 13 William III, c. 7. Formed one of the foundation collections of the British Museum in 1753.

Information About Copies:

Full digital coverage available for this manuscript: see Digitised Manuscripts at http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts.

Material Type:

Archives and Manuscripts

Legal Status:

Not Public Record(s)

Names:

Prudentius, Aurelius Clemens, 348-c 405,
   see also http://isni.org/isni/0000000121178930,
   see also http://viaf.org/viaf/100010336
Pseudo-Columbanus,
   see also http://isni.org/isni/0000000079763668,
   see also http://viaf.org/viaf/315194726

Subjects:

Theology

Places:

Canterbury, England