Biblia Sacra Latina, Versio Vulgata

F-jl6b

Toronto, ON, The Robertson Davies Library at Massey College, Gurney FF 0001

General Information

Title Cambridge Bible Fragment
Material Parchment
Place of Origin Cambridge, England
General Remarks

Note from Otto Ege:

The only Bible known to Western Europe for the thousand years from 400 to 1400 was this version by St. Jerome. In the early part of the 13th century it is almost impossible to distinguish the book hands of France from those of England. The decorative initials, color of ink, and texture of vellum are the clues which aid in assigning provenance, as in this instance. Not many fragments of this age and size are known to have survived the destruction and dispersal of English monastic libraries which was ordered by Henry VIII in the year 1539.

This small size lettering, seven lines to the inch, is formed with the skill and precision that made the 13th century noted for the finest calligraphy of all time. To write seven lines to an inch, maintain evenness throughout, and have each letter clear and precise is a great achievement for any scribe, yet in the 13th century this was not an exceptional accomplishment.

Original Condition

Page Height 275 mm
Page Width 202 mm
Height of Written Area 192 mm
Width of Written Area 112 – 113 mm
Number of Columns 2
Width of Columns 53 – 55 mm
Number of Lines 60
Line Height 2 – 3 mm
Ruling Yes
More about the Condition

The vellum is thin and soft with ink lining, visible binding holes, and minimal yellowing, though there is obvious dirt in the bottom corner recto and a stain on the bottom right verso. The ink used for the body of the text is brown. On the recto there is a small marginal note at line 55 on the first column in brown ink and a "54" written in pencil.

Current Condition

Dimensions 275 x 202 mm

Book Decoration and Musical Notation

Description

Decoration in the form of book name and chapter numbers red and blue with some minor squiggle emphasis.