Città del Vaticano, BAV, Vat. lat. 1347
| Library | Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana |
|---|---|
| Shelfmark | lat. 1347 |
| Century | s. IXmed-¾/2/2 |
| General region of origin | Reims |
| Collection | Quadripartitus |
| Collection 2 | Collectio Dacheriana |
| Main author | Bruno Schalekamp |
Vaticano, Citta del, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, lat. 1347 is a ninth-century manuscript of 181 folios in 1 col. (260 x 200 mm) containing various canon law materials such as the Collectio Dacheriana and the Quadripartitus, as well as various episcopal epistles and papal decretals. The codicological composition is unknown as yet. No quire signatures were included. It was written by multiple hands, mostly in Caroline minuscule, in saec. IXmed-¾ according to Kerff or in saec. IXmed-2/2 according to Kéry. A few pages are in Beneventan script, which points to its provenance from Southern Italy, probably Monte Cassino in the early 11th century (Kerff/Kéry). It has been in possession of the Vatican library since 1594.
Contents
Manuscript Vat. lat. 1347 is a relatively bulky, middle to late ninth-century codex and contains a wide range of canonical material. Kerff/Mordek have argued the manuscript was copied in Monte Cassino in the early eleventh century, leading to the creation of MS Montecassino, Biblioteca statale del Monumento nazionale di Montecassino, 541 (ext. 541). Interesting here is that most canonical material has remained the same in the process, with some minor changes, indicating the contents of Vat. lat. 1347 were still relevant a hundred and fifty to two hundred years after its creation.
Vat. lat. 1347 is a well-organized codex, with clear rubrics in Caroline minuscule delineating the long list of canons and helping the reader manage the corpus. The collection itself contains some later corrections but only sparsely. These corrections, however, do give the impression a later editor or reader had another version of the Quadripartitus in front of them, as the corrections sometimes change the composition of complete words or phrases. This being one of the oldest witnesses of the collection, these observations might thus give clues of its 'original' composition.
Furthermore, nearly the whole manuscript includes marginal scribbles of various symbols, which probably functioned as reference points for future study and use. Fol. 9v includes an early modern scribal practice of the alphabet. Fol. 135v includes in the far top left corner a small scribble of a cantus: peccata mea domine. Furthermore, the parchment has been treated and preserved relatively well, indicating it was probably destined to be studied by the very few or possibly used as a showpiece. Only from fol. 172 onward, the manuscript quality begins to deteriorate due to probable water damage. From fol. 178, this picks up to such a degree that certain parts are difficult to read.
| folios | texts |
|---|---|
| Front cover and multiple flyleafs | |
| 1r-63v | Cresconius, Concordia canonum |
| 63v-64r | Definitio fidei of the Council of Chalcedon (451) |
| 64r | The symbol of the Council of Nicaea (325) |
| 64rv | The symbol of the Council of Constantinople (381) |
| 64v-65r | Definitio fidei of the first Council of Constantinople (381) |
| 65r-65v | Two unknown canon law texts |
| 65v-67v | Epistle of pope Leo I to bishop Anastasius of Thessaloniki |
| 67v-69v | Epistle of Jerome to Lucian |
| 69v-71v | Epistle of bishop Mansuetus of Milan to emperor Constantine |
| 71v-72v | The symbol of the synod of Milan (680) |
| 72v | Expositio sancti Augustini |
| 72-73r. | Expositio euangelii beati Gregorii papa omelia VII |
| 73v-74r | Letter of Gregory the Great to Marinianus of Ravenna: Quam sit necessarium... Written in Beneventan script |
| 74r | Unknown short text: Nonnullo stulti dogmate... |
| 74v | Decretal of pope Leo IX to the Italian bishops (1052) on the rapacity of monks: Relatum est auribus... Written in Beneventan script, therefore added much later. Includes a drawing of a bishop-like figure in the margins, possibly referring to Leo IX |
| 75r-76v | Blank pages |
| 77r-78v | Latin glossary on synonyms. Fol. 78r includes a drawing of who can be assumed to be Jesus |
| 79r-v | Collectio canonum Quadripartita (Quadripartitus), book 1. Includes only the title and the first four canons |
| 80r-143v | Collectio canonum Dacheriana (Collectio Dacheriana), in ‘form B’ |
| 143v-144r | Epistle of Aeneas of Paris to Hincmar of Reims: Epistola ad Hincmarum Remensem archiepiscopum |
| 144r-180v | Collectio canonum Quadripartita (Quadripartitus), book 4, including prologue, list of titles, and epilogue |
| Multiple flyfleafs and back cover |
Literature
Bergmann, Stricker, Goldammer, Wich-Reif, Katalog (2005), p. 599; Firey, 'Ghostly Recensions' (2000), p. 75; Florio, Inventarium Vol. 3 (1613), p. 65-67; Géhin, Lire le Manuscrit (2005), p. 213; Kerff, Quadripartitus (1982), p. 27-30; Kéry, Canonical collections (1999), p. 34, 89-90, and 168; Kottje, Die Bussbücher (1980), p. 183-184; Le Bras, ‘Notes pour servir’ (1930), p. 519; Maassen, Geschichte (1870), p. 852-852; Martinelli, Index Inventarii pars 1 (1636), fol. 121v; Merkel, ‘Varia aus italienischen Bibliotheken’ (1876), p. 569-575; Mordek, ‘Dacheriana’ (1986), p. 577, 582, 585-586, 589, and 592; Mordek, Kirchenrecht (1975), p. 172; Munier, Les sources patristiques (1957), p. 15; Schmitz, Bussbücher Vol. 1 (1883), p. 718 and 720; Vol. 2 (1892), p. 472; Selborne, Ancient Facts (1888), p. 230; Zechiel-Eckes, Cresconius (1992), 2.323.
See also Michael Elliot's extensive work and draft editions of the Quadripartitus on his own website: http://individual.utoronto.ca/michaelelliot/.
