PRoMs - The Production and Reading of Music Sources

Mise-en-page in manuscripts and printed books containing polyphonic music, 1480—1530

Manuscript: Seville, Spain, Biblioteca Capitular y Colombina, MS 7-1-28

Manuscript type: choirbook

RISM siglum: E-Sc 7-1-28

DIAMM Source Key: 1981

Folio(s): All folios

Date: Late 15th century

Location of origin: Seville, Spain

Provenance

1. Late 15th century (c. 1490?), possibly in Seville. 2. Bought in 1534 by Hernando Colón (*1488, †1539), an illegitimate son of the sailor Cristóbal Colón. 3. Colón bequeathed his library (the so-called "Fernandina" or "Colombina") to his nephew Luis. 4. Collection passed to chapter of Seville Cathedral in 1552.

Bibliography

Anglès 1941, 30, facs. 20, Anglès 1941–71, I, 103-6; V, 25-32; X, 31-3; XIV, 26-30; XXXIII, passim; Anglès 1947, 3ff, 8-9; Stevenson 1960, 122-4, 194-9, 201-49, passim; Lawes 1960; Haberkamp 1968; Census-Catalogue 1979-88, III, 142, IV, 475; Sáez Guillén 2002, 411-415.

Basis for description: original

Seville, Spain, Biblioteca Capitular y Colombina, MS 7-1-28, All folios

Physical description

Material: paper

Number of leaves: i + 98 + i

Format: upright

Page dimensions: 218 x 150

Quire structure: Text version

Title page / Frontispiece: Later addition to front endleaf recto: 'Cantilenas vulgares puestas en musica por varios Españoles'

Other devices: 1. Original ink foliation recto top right, ii–cvii. Folios i, vi, x xiii, xxiii, lvii, lix, lxvi missing, numbers lxxiiii, lxxxii and lxxxxii omitted.
2. Modern pencil foliation recto bottom left, 1-98
3. Modern pencil foliation recto bottom right, 1-99 (including rear endpaper)

Page details (zoom):

Preparation and Copying

All folios

Preparation

Disposition of Voice Parts Key

Pricking never
Ruled grid normally,
barely visible
Ruling pattern fairly regular
stave often not aligned to bounding lines
Staves omitted from grid never
Incomplete staves never
Medium and colour of grid Frequency Folios Note
hard point normally very faint
Colour of staves Frequency Folios Note
reddish brown always
Ruling medium Frequency Folios Note
single rastrum always 16-mm rastrum for 6-stave ruling (ff. 1r-76v, 79r-98v) 13.5-mm rastrum for 7-stave ruling (ff. 77r-78v)
Indentation for initials Frequency Folios Note
single normally 1r-76v, 79r-98v for 6-stave ruling
none rarely 77r-78v for 7-stave ruling
Extra space between voice parts Frequency Folios Note
empty ruled staves on grid normally
Space provided for separate text Frequency Folios Note
not in dedicated space always
Adhoc adaptation Frequency Folios Note
partial additional staves rarely 20r, 55r, 71v, 78v, 80r
made for complete additional staves rarely 72r-73r, 80r
notation extended into margin occasionally
notation and staves extended into margin occasionally
staveline added occasionally
Indentation for initials filled in rarely 52r

Copying of text and music

Language(s) French, Latin, Spanish
Order of Copying music first
always
Presence/absence of text Voice part Frequency Folios Note
fully texted with one text all except bassus rarely 63v, 75v-76r, 78v, 95v-96r
fully texted with one or two texts discantus often
provided with one or two incipits all except discantus often
untexted all except discantus rarely 64v, 66v-67r, 68r, 74v-75r, 77r-78r
provided with single incipit discantus rarely 66v-67r, 68r, 77r-78r
fully texted with one or two texts all voice parts occasionally
untexted all voice parts rarely 55r, 59v-60r, 88v-90r, 91r
partially texted with one text all voice parts rarely 59v-60r
provided with single incipit all voice parts rarely 60v-61r, 90v-91r, 97v-98r
fully texted with one or two texts all except tenor rarely 62v, 87v-88r
untexted tenor rarely 16v-17r, 45v-46r, 64r, 73v-74r
partially texted with one text tenor rarely 93v
provided with single incipit tenor rarely 62v, 79r, 87v-88r
provided with one or two incipits bassus rarely 16v-17r, 45v-46r, 63v-64r, 73v-74r, 75v-76r, 78v-79r, 93v, 95v-96r
fully texted with one or two texts altus rarely 79r
untexted bassus rarely 67v, 77r, 97r
provided with single incipit all except discantus and bassus rarely 67v, 77r, 97r
Music
Colour(s) of notation brown
Colour of notation note <p>various shades</p>
Type(s) of notation void mensural
Monophonic notation present
61r, 88v,
incipits
Level of calligraphy fair
Level of calligraphy note less care taken over notation generally in latter part of manuscript, from f. 42v onwards
Non verbal performance instructions Folios Note
repeat signs 79r, 80v-81r, 93v
signes-de-renvoi nearly always used when voice part crosses opening
end symbol normally a double barline
Later changes Folios
f. 12r: erasure on first two staves f. 68v: later addition to blank ruled page ff. 79v-80r: fifth voice added in lower margin ff. 82v-83r: notation crossed out 12r, 68v, 79v-80r, 82v-83r
Text
Types of script hybrida
Types of script note numerous hands, with greater degrees of cursivity (and haste) towards the end of the manuscript
Level of calligraphy poor,
less care taken over script towards the end of the manuscript
Colour(s) of text brown
various shades
Multiple texts yes
common
Text repetitions fairly few
Abbreviations some
Non underlaid vocal text additional
usually over blank staves, occasionally in margins
Liminary text composer sometimes named in upper verso of opening; 'duo', 53r,
53r

Decoration

Level of Decoration fair
Decoration initial type Frequency Folios Initial type(s) Size position Description Discrepancies
initials planned often 44v-46r, 47r-59r, 61v-76v, 79r-v, 80v-98v first stave of page indented Some cue letters in margin. Sometime no initial planned at copying stage, as discantus has first letter copied in text underlay.
penned initials often 1r-44r, 46v, 59v-61r, 80r calligraphic , calligraphic with decoration First stave of page indented, initials lower down the page are placed in margin. One stave tall, T for Tenor sometimes up to two staves tall. In same (or similar) ink to the text and notation (a reddish brown). Initials on ff. 1r-44r appear to be in one hand, all others in various different hands. Initials for voice names often include the voice name vertically within the initial. ff. 1-5r: voice names for lower voices (without initials) written with broader nib in margin.