London, British Library, Royal 8 C. vii Composite Miscellany of theological and devotional works, bound with Ælfric, "Lives of Saints" fragments

Résumé

294. London, British Library, Royal 8 C. vii

Composite Miscellany of theological and devotional

works, bound with Ælfric, "Lives of Saints" fragments

[Ker 260, Gneuss 476]

HISTORY: A miscellaneous compilation of leaves and quires from at least six manuscripts of widely differing dates and apparently unrelated components, but the core is a 15c collection of theological and devotional texts of 122 leaves (ff. 21-123), mostly written by one scribe (the latest text by this scribe being Thomas a Kempis, "De imitatione Christi:' ca. 1418). The third part is a 13c Calendar from Tewkesbury, but this does not determine the provenance of the other parts. Two leaves used as flyleaves are from a volume containing Saints' Lives by JElfric of the early l lc. Owned (and given its present shape?) by the manuscript collector John Theyer (1597-1673), signature on f. 9r. Leaves and gatherings were thrown out on guards in the B.L. rebinding of 1984. The film predates this treatment.