Beinecke MS 350               Germany (Basel?), s. XV^^med
Vincent of Beauvais, Speculum historiale

Restricted material. May not be seen without the permission of the appropriate curator.

This catalogue entry should be read in conjunction with that of MS 350A.

ff. 1r-239r //Post mortem honorii theodosius eiusdem nepos cepit anno
dominj cccc. xxv. et mundi vero m. cccc lxxxviij.  et imperauit solus annis
iij. huius anno primo wandali
mauritaniam inuaserunt...coronant cesarem et augustum appellant pipinium
uero filium eius regem ytalie ordinatum collaudant.  Explicit tercia pars
speculi historialis.

     Books 21-25 (numbered 20-23 in the Douai edition of 1624).  The text begins
imperfectly and is apparently lacking Book 20 (see collation below) and
the table of contents for Book 21 similar to those preceding ch. 22
(ff. 51v-53r); ch. 23 (ff. 108v-110r); ch. 24 (ff. 161r-163r).  Each book is
divided into chapters signalled by Roman numerals and rubrics: Book 21 = 111
chs., Book 22 = 135 chs., Book 23 = 110 chs., Book 24 = 176 chs.

     Paper (watermarks: Briquet Tete de boeuf 15056), ff. i + 239 + ii,
281 x 210 (205 x 150) mm.  2 cols., 38-48 lines, with a greater number of
lines on parchment leaves.  Frame-ruled in hard point or lead; prickings
in upper, lower and outer margins.
     I^^16 (-1), II-XV^^16.  Leaf and quire signatures (e.g., e vi, e vij, etc.)
lower right corner, recto, indicate that the first four gatherings are
missing; catchwords in lower margin under inner column, verso.
     Written by a single scribe in a well-formed running hand with batarde
shading and flourishes in the upper and lower margins that are often decorated
with red.  The same scribe also wrote the Hystoria Tartarorum in MS 350A.
A somewhat later hand, s. xv/xvi, added running titles in the upper margin
in italic script.
     Rubrics, Roman numerals and some simple plain initials in red.
     Binding: s. xv.  Sewn on four tawed, twisted, double supports laced into
grooves extending ca. 25 mm. on the inside of beech boards and pegged.  The
spine is square and lined with vellum extending onto the inside of the boards
between sewing supports.  Covered in brown leather blind-tooled with concentric
frames, the center panel filled in with small, square bird tools.  The entire
binding was tooled upside down.  Impressions of the tools go through to the
wood.  Four fastenings, the clasps on the upper board.  Restored; endbands added
and clasps wanting.  On the glue left from the original pastedowns, now wanting,
are the offset impressions from a single, heavily annotated manuscript document
that was cut in half vertically; dated 1437 from the Council of Basel.

Written in the middle of the 15th century, as indicated by the overall
appearance of the codex and the design of the watermarks, either in Germany
or perhaps in Basel where the document once serving as pastedowns was
presumably written (see Binding above); previously bound together with
Beinecke MS 350A.  For the relationship of MSS 350 to 350A see the
Provenance and Select Bibliography of MS 350A.  Purchased through C. A.
Stonehill by Thomas E. Marston (bookplate) in 1957, and subsequently presented
to Mrs. L. C. Witten by him.  Presented to the Beinecke Library
by an anonymous donor in 1965.

Barbara A. Shailor