Praegothica

Note from Otto Ege: A Lectionary contains selected readings from the Epistles and Gospels as well as the Acts of the Saints and the Lives of the Martyrs. These were read by the sub-deacon from a side pulpit. This practice necessitated that they be written in a separate volume, apart from the complete Missal. The fine large book hand shown here, suited to easier reading in a dark cathedral, is a revival of the script developed nearly four centuries earlier in scriptoria founded by Charlemagne. Maunde Thompson calls this Lombardic revival the finest of all European book hands. Even the 15th century humanistic scribes could not surpass it for beauty and legibility.

The tone or hue of ink frequently helps allocate a manuscript to a particular district or century. Ink of brown tone is generally found in early manuscripts, less frequently after 1200 A.D.

The vellum is thin, supple, and yellowed. There is visible grain of the animal's fur, made more explicit by enlarging the image, and a few holes remain as evidence of binding on the left side of the recto. The ink is primarily dark brown with minimal fading; three lines on recto are in red, and the initial "I" on line 11 recto is in red and blue. The number "143" appears in the top right corner of the recto in pencil. 

Initial in red and blue on recto around lines 10-14. Red initial from lines 5-10 on verso. There is one line in red on verso (line 4) and the last three lines only the start and end of the lines. Initials have a curved tail. The recto initial is also decorated in blue and has an elongated red tail with blue decor.