Manuscript leaf from a Psalter (or Book of Hours), in Latin, produced in France (Amiens?)

Text: From a Psalter (or Book of Hours), in Latin

Script: Textualis Formata (Textus Quadratus)

The text shows part of Psalm 18. There are fourteen lines of text. Lines are ruled in black with dark brown ink. There are five one-line initials in gold on blue and mauve ground with white tracery, and five illuminated one line initials alternating in burnished gold and blue with extensive and delicate penwork in blue or red extending into the margins. There are six line fillers, three of which are inhabited with a rooster, a hare and a face. The versals on the two sides of the leaf are of a very different nature.

Although the leaf was acquired as coming from a Book of Hours the date is really too early for it to be classified as such, and is more likely to be from a Psalter.

Recto side:

1 suum : et ipse tanquam spons(us) [Psalm 18

2 [18:6] procedens de thalamo suo . [line filler]

3 E xultavit ut gigas ad curre(n)-

4 dam via(m) : [18:7] a su(m)mo celo egressio ei(us) .

5 E t occursus ei(us) usq(ue) ad su(m)mu(m) ei(us) .

6 nec e(st) qui se abscondat a calore ei(us) .

7 [18:8] L ex d(omi)ni immaculata co(n)ver

8 tans a(n)i(m)as testimonium d(omi)ni fi-

9 dele sapientiam prestans p(ar)vul(is) .

10 [18:9] I usticie domini recte letifica(n)

11 tes corda : preceptum domini lu-

12 cidum illuminans oculos . [line filler] [‘Rooster’

13 [18:10] T imor domini sanctus perma-

14 net in s(e)c(u)l(u)m s(e)c(u)li : iudicia domini

Verso side:

1 vera iustificata in semet ipsa . [line filler] [‘Face’

2 [18:11] D esiderabilia super aurum et la-

3 pidem preciosum multum : et dul-

4 ciora super mel et favum . [line filler] [‘Hare’

5 [18:12] E tenim servus tuus custodit

6 ea in custodiendis illis retribu-

7 tio multa . [line filler]

8 [18:13] D elicta q(ui)s intelligit meis mu(n)-

9 da me : [18:14] (et) ab alienis parce servo tuo .

10 S i mei n(on) fuerint dominati t(un)c

11 immaculatus ero et emunda-

12 bor a delicto maximo . [line filler]

13 [18:15] E t erunt ut complaceant elo-

14 quia oris mei : et meditatio cor-

Notes:

A Letters: a,b,c,d,e,f,g,h,i,l,m,n,o,p,q,r,s,t,u/v,x.

Versals: D,E,I,L,S,T.

B Alternative forms of letters ‘r’(2) and ‘s’(2).

C Fusion between letters ‘bo’, ‘da’, ‘de’, ‘do’, ‘ha’, ‘pa’, ‘pe’, ‘po’, ‘oc’, ‘od’ and ‘os’.

D Elision between letters ‘ci’, ‘fi’, ‘gi’, ‘ru’, ‘rv’ and ‘ti’.

E Ligature between letters ‘st’, e.g. in ‘custodit’ (verso, line 5).

F Bifurcation of ascenders of letters ‘b’, ‘l’ and ‘h’.

G Abbreviation for ‘us’ in ‘eius’ (e.g. recto, lines 4, 5 and 6).

H Abbreviation for ‘ue’ in ‘usque’ (recto, line 5).

I Abbreviations for ‘seculum’ and ‘seculi’ (recto, line 14).

J Abbreviation for ‘quis’ (verso, line 8).

K Use of the crossed Tironian ‘et’ (verso, line 9).