Cantatorium folio with Alleluia chants (from Laon BM 239, fol. 89)

Laon (France)

F-x1cq

Evanston, IL, Northwestern University, Music Library, MS 1600 (NW-S2-5)

General Information

Title Cantatorium folio with Alleluia chants (from Laon BM 239, fol. 89)
Shelfmarks Evanston, Northwestern University, Music Library, MS 1600 (NW-S2-5)
Former Shelfmarks Music MS Box 2 (small)
Page/Folio Reference f. 89
Material Parchment
Place of Origin Laon, northern France
Date of Origin Late 9th century (ca. 875–900)
Script, Hands

Caroline minuscule. Annotation in a later cursive hand.

General Remarks

This folio is securely identified as the missing fol. 89 of Laon BM 239, one of the earliest surviving cantatoria. It transmits a sequence of Alleluia chants, several of them resurrection-themed. The parchment has suffered severe damage from humidity, leading to shrinkage, warping, and tearing.

Book Decoration and Musical Notation

  • Musical Notation

    Lotharingian adiastematic neumes and litterae significativae, written above the text.