Beinecke MS 594
England, s. XV
Latin-English vocabulary

ff. 1r-22v	Here follow the headings and incipits of all chapters.

f. 1r	Nomina pertinencia humano corpori. Hoc caput: anglice a hede ...
f. 3r	Nomina ecclesie nessessaria. Hoc altare, Hec ara: a hawtere ...
f. 4r	Nomina animalium domesticarum [sic]. Hic bextrarius [sic]: anglice a stede ...
f. 5r	Nomina animalium ferorum. Hic leo: anglice a lywn ...
f. 5v	Nomina avium domesticorum [sic]. Hic gallus: anglice a cok ...
	Nomina avium ferorum [sic]. Hic regulus: anglice a wrene ...
f. 6v	Nomina pissium aquarum rece[n]cium. Hic crocodolus: anglice a codlyng ...
	Nomina piscium marinorum. Hec aurata: anglice a sedow ...
f. 7r	Nomina vermium. Hic draco: a dragon ...
f. 7v	Nomina muscarum. Hic apes, -pis: anglice a bee ...
f. 8r	Nomina metallorum. Hoc aurum: for gold ...
	Nomina lapidum. Hic lapis, Hec petra, Hoc saxum: a stoune ...
f. 8v	Nomina pertinencia coquine. Hic archimacherus: a master coke ...
f. 9r	Nomina pertinencia botularie. Hic botularius: a botelere ...
	Nomina pertinencia panatrie. Hic panatrius: a pantre ...
f. 9v	Nomina vestimentorum. Hec vestis, Hoc vestimentum, Hoc indumentum : anglice clothe 
...
f. 10r	Nomina pertinencia camere. Hic camrius, Hic et hec sinista: anglice a schamberleyne ...
f. 10v	Partes domus. Hic paries, -tis, Hic murus: a walle...
f. 11v	Nomina ecclesiasticorum. Hic papa: anglice pope [this lemma deleted] ...
f. 12r	Nomina dominorum temporalium. Hic imperator: an emperoure ...
	Nomina armorum. Hec arma, Hec armatura: wepyn ...
f. 13r	Nomina bladorum et arborum. Hec seges, Hoc satum ... : corne ...
f. 14r	Nomina esscarum. Hoc prandium, Hoc epulum: anglice mete ...
f. 15r	Nomina infirmitatum. Hec pustula: anglice a whele ...
f. 15v	Nomina mulierum cum suis instrumentis. Hec imperatrix: anglice a hempryse ...
f. 17r	Nomina terrarum. Hec terra, Hec ruus, -i [sic] ... : anglice the fyld ...
f. 17v	Nomina aquarum. Hoc mare, Hic pelagus, Hic equor: anglice the see ...
f. 18r	Nomina planetorum [sic]. Hoc celum, Hic polus: anglice hewyn ...
f. 19r	Nomina domorum. Hoc monasterium: anglice a mynster ...
f. 20r	Nomina artificium cum suis instrumentis. Hic cultor, Hic et hec agricola: a lond tyllere ...
f. 20v	Cuperus cum suis instrumentis. Hic carpentarius : a carpenter ...
f. 21r	Panducsator cum suis instrumentis. Hic panducsator: a brever ...
	Pistor cum suis instrumentis. Hic pistor: anglice a baker ...
f. 21v	[various trades, tools etc.] Hic fossor: anglice a dyker ...

Edited after this manuscript as "A pictorial vocabulary" by T. Wright, Anglo-Saxon and Old 
English Vocabularies. 2nd ed. by R.P. Wuelcker (London, 1884), v. 1, 745-814, with manual 
facsimiles of most illustrations. The first ed. appeared as A Volume of Vocabularies (London, 
1857), 244-279.


Paper, ff. I + 23 + II, 220 x 150 mm. 4ø folding. Watermark: hand topped with a star?? The 
paper is badly damaged.

Collation impossible due to tight binding and repairs (leaves pasted onto stubs).

No ruling. The script  is on two columns (on f. 9v col. b is blank and has been used for drawings).

Slovenly written mostly by one hand in Gothica Cursiva Currens (Secretary), with calligraphic 
extensions on the top line. The headings of the chapters are in Northern Gothica Textualis 
Libraria or more often in a somewhat more solemn form of Secretary. 

The majuscules are heightened in red. In the middle section of the manuscript the chapter 
headings are marked by a pointing hand; in the final section (ff. 20r-22v) horse-headed (?) 
dividers are used. Some initials in the headings are decorated with human heads. Numerous 
coarse pen-drawings in the margins, in black and red, more or less loosely illustrating the text. 
These are the principal ones, with their Latin captions when available:
f. 1r: a human head; a heart pierced by an arrow
f. 1v: two hands (manus), one of them holding a dog on a leash
f. 2r: a human head cut off by a sword (capud, gladius)
f. 3r: chalice (calix), book (liber), bell (campana)
f. 4r: horse (ecus)
f. 5r: deer (damus)
f. 5v: cock (gallus), crane (crus)
f. 6v : fish (pissis)
f. 7r: dragon (more like a fish, draco)
f. 7v: butterfly (papilio)
f. 8r: melting-pot (metallorum), stones (lapis)
f. 8v: gridiron (gratus)
f. 9r: cup (siphus), jugs (olla), salt cellar (salinum)
f. 9v: flowering (?) heart (twice), dog, shirt (vestimentum), bull
f. 10r: man's head with hat, fish, aquatic bird
f. 11r: house (domus)
f. 11v: book (liber)
f. 12r: crown (corona), sword (gladius), shield (scutum)
f. 12v: club (clava), lance piercing a heart (lancea, cor)
f. 13v: sheaf of corn (garba, seges)
f. 13v: leek (porrum)
f. 14r: table with bread, cheese etc. (mensa, panis, casius)
f. 14v: vegetable (artocopus)
f. 15r: bone, a sick person (infirmitas)
f. 15v: crowned lady's head (regina)
f. 16r: cradle (cunia)
f. 16v: reel (alabrum), a heap of stones (congeries)
f. 17r: land,  road,  mountain (terra, via, mons)
f. 17v: smoking chimney (fumus), water 
f. 18r: well  (fons), lavatory (cloaca)
f. 18v: two stars (Iubiter)
f. 19r: church (ecclesia)
f. 20r: ship, boat (navicula)
f. 20v: axe (dolebrum)
f. 21r: basket (?), baker's shovel  (pila)
f. 21v: spade (vanga), rabbit (?), bunch of grapes (uva)
f. 22r: sickle (fals), forester with horn (lucarius)
f. 22v: bow and arrow, arrow

Binding s. XIX: blind-tooled brown calf over cardboard boards. Spine with gold-tooled title: 
"OLD ENGLISH VOCABULARY. MS. XV. CENT." Red marbled endpapers. 

On f. 23r a few coarsely written notes and, by another hand, writing Gothica Cursiva Libraria 
(Secretary), formulas for concluding letters "In my moste harty maner that I can. With harty 
commendatyons I have. My hartely commende unto you ..." (all s. XV). On front fly-leaf v a 
note in English by Frederick J. Furnivall (1825-1910), dated 10 March 1873, on the bibliography 
and provenance of this manuscript. Albert Denison, 1st Baron Londesborough (1805-1860), 
according to T. Wright (1st edition cited above, p. 244). Henry H. Gibbs, Baron Aldenham (1819-
1907),  St. Dunstan's, 1869 (autograph note on front fly-leaf v). Aldenham Library sale, 24 
March 1937. Collection of Norman H. Pearson, MS 273. Bequest of Norman H. Pearson, 1976.

Bibliography: D. O'Donnell, "Beinecke MS 594: A Second Look at a Well-Known Nominale"

Albert Derolez

R 06.06.08