Medieval & Renaissance Manuscripts

MS. 25
Medieval English Statutes
Contents:
  1. Confirmation of Magna Charta by Edward I, 1297
  2. Charter concerning the forest
  3. Provisio of Merton, 20 Henry III 3, 1235-1236
  4. English Statutes in Latin and Anglo-Norman French
  5. A Mercatorial Charter
  6. Text on the Magna Charta
  7. English Statutes in Latin and Anglo-Norman French
Date of origin:14th century.
Place of origin:England

Support: Parchment codex.
Foliation: Two sets of modern foliation in lead are visible. The second modern foliation is found in the bottom margin of every recto only through f. 11. Gatherings are signed in lead in a modern hand on the lower left recto of the first leaf.
Dimensions:145mm x 105mm (leaves), 102mm x 73mm (ruled space)
Collation:iii 110 26 38 (-8) 4-88 9-1212 1310 1412 1514 1610 1710 (-10) iii Catchwords are present on the last folia of all but the last four quires.
Script:All three hands are in littera gothica cursiva anglicana. Hand #1 opens the manuscript and is responsible for the bulk of its texts, covering ff. 1r-147r (quires 1-15). At f. 148r (beginning of quire 16), hand #2 begins a short stint that covers through f. 154r. Hand #3 picks up at f. 155r.

Binding:White doeskin on boards. The two each front and back fly-leaves are the same color and grade of parchment as the paste-downs, so they must have been added when the manuscript was rebound in the present binding. On the spine, the title "STATUTA ANGLIAE/ MS. SAEC XIV" is impressed in gold letters upon a piece of dark leather.
Additions:Marginal annotations are found in the bottom margins of ff. 55r, 134v, and 147r; the hand for each is different than the others. The annotation on f. 55r is the 16th-century name of "Willyam Maule" boxed in a scroll design.
Provenance: Ms ex libris of Henry Fayringdun and of William Maulein 15th and 16th century hands respectively. On the verso of the original vellum wrapper, there is a sticker "Church Congress Exhibition" with the number 93 written in lead in a modern hand. Another modern hand has written "Stat. E. i/ From Prinn Library". There is also written in lead in a modern hand the number "26961". On the back-cover paste-down in the bottom-right corner, a number is written: "8293/SCZV".