Double leaf from a Manuscript book

Place of OriginItaly (Naples)

Date1470

Dimensions7 3/8 x 5 3/4 in.

Mediumvellum

ClassificationManuscripts

Object number

1923.15

Not on View

DescriptionThis bifolio contains 35 of the 42 statements comprising the Quicumque, the 6th century profession of Christian faith better known as the 'Athanasian Creed'. The text appears in four blocks of 15 lines each to be read in the following order: (1) omnipotens; (2) catholicam; (3) -quales; and (4) homo ex. While the wording of Quicumque is well established, this folio presents a very good model of the complex abbreviation techniques used by medieval scribes used before printing arrived in Europe in the mid-15th century. Gold and blue initials.

Published ReferencesGwara, Scott, Otto Ege's Manuscripts: a Study of Ege's Manuscript Collections, Portfolios, and Retail Trade with a Comprehensive Handlist of Manuscripts Collected or Sold, Cayce, SC, De Brailes Publishing, 2013, fig. 12, p. 206, repr. p. 225.