Birth scroll containing the Life of St. Marguerite

Contents

Vie de Sainte Marguerite in verse, incomplete

At the beginning above the text is an illuminated miniature in gold and colours, measuring 6 x 5½ cm., somewhat faded and rubbed. It depicts the Saint with a halo, standing and beckoning with her left hand to three sheep in a field, one of them grazing. She wears a close fitting upper garment in pale pink and a pale yellow skirt, apparently laced down the front: she has black pointed shoes. The first initial A is in blue and gold, other painted capitals are in alternate red and blue. Begins: Apres la saincte passion Jhesucrit et lascension. These are the first two lines of MS. 1555 of the Bibliothèque Nationale, as printed by A. Joly. [Cf. entry for MS.804.] Numbers in brackets below relate to the numbered lines in this transcript, though there are variations in the present version. End of recto: De laisse pour votre seigniour [210] Lamite de mon creatour. [211] Beginning of verso: Et quant elle fut releuee [441] Le coulonp unit alie tout droit [442] These contain considerable variations from Joly's text. End of verso: Lors ueissiez epressement [638] De toutes parties ere molt longuement. The second line does not appear in Joly's text. This example of the 'Vie de Sainte Marguerite' does not show many signs of having been used as a Birth-girdle: the text was left unfinished by the scribe. In Joly's Transcript there are 661 verses.

c. 1485

1 volume Scroll. gothic char. 125 x 9 cm. On vellum: written on two strips sewn together. There is a small hole affecting the second and third lines of the text. Written on both sides in a neat gothic script: there are 302 lines in all (216 recto, 86 verso), and the poem is unfinished.

Purchased 1929.

Database description transcribed from S.A.J. Moorat, Catalogue of Western Manuscripts on Medicine and Science in the Wellcome Historical Medical Library (London: Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine, 1962-1973).

Wellcome Images holds photographs of some parts of this manuscript: Saint Margaret, Virgin and Martyr, colour photograph at L32828B, A numerical table, based upon the work of Johannes Reuchlin, using Hebrew letters, right hand column, and numbers, colour photograph at L0038185, Four numerical calculation tables, based upon the work of Johannes Reuchlin, using Hebrew letters, right hand column, and numbers, colour photograph at L0038184, Astronomical star signs with their numerical calculation based upon the work of Johannes Reuchlin, colour photograph at L0038183, Astronomical figures with their equivalent numerical calculation based upon the work of Johannes Reuchlin, colour photograph at L0038182

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