Regula Salvatoris and a collection of Revelations

Italy, Florence, 15th century, second quarter.

parchment

i, 41, i' leaves

215 × 150 mm

Latin

1 (ff. 2r–20r) Birgitta Birgersdotter, Regula Salvatoris (The Birgittine rule)

Rubric: Hic incipit Regula Saluatoris data diuinitus ab ore christi deuotissime sponse sue domine Brigide cuius religio debet esse monialium ad Reuerantiam gloriose uirginis marie Que quidam Regula dicte domine data fuit miro modo In castro Wazteno in regno Suecie Incipit prologus

Incipit: IN dominio Regis nouergie qui est ad septentrionem

Explicit: et cogitent in cordibus suis quod terra sint et in terram reuertentur

Final rubric: Explicit Regula Saluatoris data diuinitus ab ore christi deuotissime sponse sue Sancte brigide Deo gratias

Note: Text corresponds to §§1-317 of the Phi-version in Eklund's edition.

Edition: Eklund (1975), pp. 175–219.

2 (ff. 20r–39r) Revelations drawn from different texts

Rubric: Reuelatio prima Christus loquens sponse sue beate Brigide exponit illud capitulum quod est ante principium regule quod loquitur de uineis dissipatis

Incipit: PEr illas uineas dissipatis de quibus modo dixi

Explicit: post istam ecclesiam simili modo edificabuntur sicut modo uides

Final rubric: Laus tibi christe

Note:

The chapters are rubricated as 24 ‘Revelationes’ and 1 ‘Enarratio’. The texts are drawn from Regula Salvatoris, Constituciones, and Revelaciones Extravagantes. For identification of the texts see Hollman (1956), p. 71.

ff. 39v–S41v: traces of ruling, but no text.

Physical Description

Secundo folio

ualde paucos palmites

Support

Binding/Endleaves

Locus: ff. LCI, SL1r–SL1v, SR1r–SR1v, RCI

Support: Parchment

Leaf dimensions: 215 × 150 mm

Textblock

Locus: ff. 1r–41v

Support: Parchment

Leaf dimensions: 215 × 150 mm

Foliation

Modern foliation in pencil.

Collation

Formula: 1(1+8), 2-5(8)

Note: Viscoll collation

Catchwords: Catchwords in the same ink and by the same hand as the main text.

Condition

Textblock

Textblock probably trimmed at a later date, as can be seen by the slightly mutilated marginal additions, e.g. f. 9r.

Layout

Locus: ff. 2r–39r

Columns: 1

Ruled lines: 27

Written area: 120 × 90 mm

Note: Ruling in light brown ink.

Script

Textblock

Hand 1

Southern textualis.

Additions

Binding/Endleaves

(LCI) Top left corner: National Library book label; in pencil by a modern hand: ‘L 60/ 12/ 6 -’. Middle of page in brown ink by an early-modern(?) hand: ‘ordo sancte Brigide ad ipsa institutus et ordinatus anno domini 1367 sub regula sancti Augustini, a Gregorio undecimo fuit approbatus e confirmatus anno Domini 1376 et est 16 Religio que militat sub regula tanti magni patris e nota quod sunt amplius triginta Religiones quae militant sub regula eius et ideo merito Magnus Pater appellatur Laus Deo Et omnes qui militant sub regula eius tenentur ieiunare eius Vigilia’. Bottom of page: Ex libris of previous owner G. H. Stråle.

(f. L1r) Top of page in pencil by a modern hand: ‘Regula S. Salvatoris cum Revelat. Extravagant.’.

(f. L1v) Top of page in black ink by a modern hand: ‘Förvärfvad till Kongl Biblioteket 9 Febr. 1887 genom byte med G. H. Stråle. Köptes af honom i Paris 1885 hos Tross för 600 fr.’.

Textblock

(ff. 9r–18v) Comments and manicules in brown ink in the margins by an early-modern(?) hand. The comments range from one word to 4 lines and they may be by the same or a similar hand as the one that has made the note on (LCI).

Decorations

Textblock

Description:

Main text in dark brown ink, rubrics in red, line fillers in red. For a discussion of the illumination see Aili (2003), p. 107.

Initials:

(f. 2r): Opening foliate initial I over 17 lines. Letter outlined in ink and painted yellow and shades of blue with white highlights, details in green, red, and pink; framed in a gold. The letter has a column-like shape with vegetative ornaments. The entire page is surrounded by a frame consisting of complex leaf and flower shapes, three putti and several different birds. The colours match the initial. (f. 4r): foliate initial P over 8 lines (+ extending into the margins). Outlined in ink and painted. Main colours: pink, red, green, blue and yellow. Framed in gold. Letter shape a combination of architectural elements and vegetative shapes. (ff. 2v–19v), (f. 21r): plain initials in godl or blue over 3 lines. Surrounded by a complex flourished geometrical and vegetative pattern in red or blue ink which extends along the margin. (f. 20r): foliate initial P over 7 lines (+ extending into the margins). Similar in style and colours to the opening initial. (ff. 22r–38r): foliate initials over 3 lines similar in style and colours to the opening initial.

Illuminations:

(f. 1v): Birgitta receives the rule of her order from heaven. In a note to former librarian Harry Järv, François Avril ascribes the illumination to Battista di Biagio Sanguigni, active in Florence 1430–1440.

Edges:

gold edging

Binding

Description:

Late medieval or early-modern binding. Brown leather over wooden boards. 4 raised bands and endbands. Scallop-shaped brass bosses in corners.

Binding dimensions: 225 × 160 × 30 mm

Tooling:

Blind tooled, concentric sets of panels/frames, three of which contain complex knotwork decoration. The loops in the knotwork are inlaid or studded with gold or some other metal.

Condition: Leather worn and lower part of Spine cracked. Bottom endband damaged. Several small holes on LCO. LCO ,  RCO holes from clasps and catchplates, clasps missing.