The Wanderings and Homes of Manuscripts — John Shaqi
The Wanderings and Homes of ManuscriptsJames, M. R. (Montague Rhodes)
History
The Wanderings and Homes of Manuscripts
James, M. R. (Montague Rhodes)
Book collecting; Books -- History -- 400-1450; Books -- History -- To 400; Manuscripts
There is still much to be done in the investigation of the history and
relationships of Greek MSS. In spite of the numberless editions of the
great authors, and the labour that has been lavished upon them, I
believe that scholars would agree that in very few cases, if any, is the
transmission of the text at all perfectly known. For some writings we
have too little MS. evidence, for some so much as to be embarrassing. In
no case can we afford to neglect and to leave unrecorded anything that a
MS. can tell us as to its place of origin, its scribe, or its owners.
Names and scribblings on fly-leaves, which to one student suggest
nothing, may combine in the memory of another into a coherent piece of
history, and show him the home of the book at a particular date, and by
consequence unveil a whole section of the story of its wanderings. With
one little instance of this kind I will bring to an end my remarks on
this first and shorter portion of my subject. In the library of Corpus
Christi College at Cambridge is a Greek Psalter written in the middle
of the twelfth century. On one of its last pages is scribbled in Greek
letters by a later hand the name of John Farley ("[Greek: Hiôhannês
pharlehi]"). Only about five-and-twenty volumes away from this stands a
MS. containing letters written by the University of Oxford on public
occasions. One of these is signed by J. Farley. A little enquiry elicits
the fact that John Farley was official scribe of that University near
the end of the fifteenth century. The Greek Psalter, then, was pretty
certainly at Oxford in Farley's time. What do we know of Greek MSS. then
at Oxford? We know that Bishop Robert Grosseteste of Lincoln owned such
things, and that he bequeathed his books to the Franciscans of Oxford at
his death in 1254; and when we examine the Psalter again, we find that
it is full of notes in a hand which occurs in other Greek MSS. known to
have belonged to Grosseteste, and which I take to be Grosseteste's
autograph. So the mere occurrence of John Farley's name helps us to
write the history of the book from within a hundred years of its making
until the present day. Procured by Grosseteste some time before 1254, it
passes to Oxford, and remains there till the Grey Friar's Convent is
dissolved by Henry VIII. Then there is a gap of a generation at most.
Matthew Parker, Archbishop of Canterbury, acquires it (believing it,
absurdly enough, to have belonged to Archbishop Theodore in the seventh
century), and bequeaths it to his college of Corpus Christi in 1574.
LATIN MSS.
We turn to the Latin division, and here the difficulty of selecting
lines of procedure is very great. A paragraph of historical preface, at
any rate, must be attempted.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account