Vatican City, Biblioteca Apostoolica Vaticana, Reg. lat. 338 "Leges Ribuaria" and "Salica'' (both imperf.); Metrical Calendar from York (frag.), Amalarius, "Eclogae de ordine romano;' six alphabets, liturgical forms from a pontifical, "Psalter of St. Jerome;' monastic hymnal (imperf.), etc., added charms against fever and hemorrhage (OE)

Abstract

478. Vatican City, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana,

Reg. lat. 338

"Leges Ribuaria" and "Salica'' (both imperf.);

Metrical Calendar from York (frag.),

Amalarius, "Eclogae de ordine romano;'

six alphabets, liturgical forms from a pontifical,

"Psalter of St. Jerome;' monastic hymnal (imperf.), etc.,

added charms against fever and hemorrhage (OE)

[Ker 390; Gneuss 914]

HISTORY: Two damaged manuscripts, both probably from northern France (though Lapidge 1993: 352-3, following Bannister, suggests Germany), brought together into one, probably in the 16c. The first, Part A, from the first half of the 9c, contains Carolingian laws, the "Leges Ribuaria" and "Salicae;' the second, Part B, from the late 10c or early llc, contains various liturgical works. Part A was added to in the 9c at ff. 31r-33v, and the same reader/contributor annotated f. 3r in the bottom margin. Ff. 2r and 63v show 11c pen-trials. Part B was annotated by two A-Shands of the l lc, items 6b on f. 91 r and 9b on f. 1 ll v and several have suggested or implied that it was in England for a time (Dumville 1992: 86, 136-7, P. Stokes 2014); there are also pen-trials and notes of a similar date on ff. 73r, 77r, 92v-93r, 97v, 103v, 104r, 113v, 114r (a prayer), 116r, 117r-118v, 119r, and 125v-126r, where they include a statement of confession 'Confiteor deo 7 sante marie 7 omnib<us> santis eius 7 uobis pater 11 quia pecaui nimi<s> in dictis in facti<s> in loco'. The added journey prayer on f. 114r includes neumes, which Bannister considered probably English (1913: 1.11, no.24). Part B was presumably exposed to a fire (or possibly acid) and is burnt and shriveled at the beginning, so that f. 64 is illegible, f. 65 is fractionally legible, f. 66 about two-thirds legible, and f. 67 about 90 per cent. legible on the recto and fully legible on the verso.

Part A belonged to the French antiquary Paul Petau (1568-1614), whose accession number 'T. 40' occurs on f. lr, and he wrote on f. 2r 58 'Fragmenta Legis Ripuarire et | Salicre'. Underneath his son, Alexandre Petau (1610-72), has written 'De ordine Romano et missa | Breuiariu(m) Psalterij | hymnj: so indicating that Parts A and B were probably combined by him. In 1650, the Petau library, including this manuscript as a whole, was bought by Queen Christina of Sweden. Following her death in Rome in 1689 her manuscripts went to the Vatican in 1690, where this one received the stamp of Pope Alexander V III (1689-91) on ff. 3r and 67r (see also description of Reg. lat. 204 [ 4 77), "History" and Callmer 1977: 156, 170-1, 217-34, 220-2). The combined parts have been restored, with some fusing of new membrane onto damaged leaves, and the whole provided with an early 20c binding showing the stamp of Benedict XV (1914-22) on the spine. Part A shows a 15c ink foliation in the top right-hand corner of recto leaves, supplemented by a 19c ink foliation (with f. 7 numbered 6a) that continues into Part B, but both have been superseded by the machine-made foliation in the bottom right-hand corner of recto leaves; however, even this foliation omits f.108bis. The manuscript was incorrectly designated "Reg. Lat. 388" by Ker (Cat.).