Eton, Great Britain, Eton College Library, MS 178, All folios
Physical description
Material: parchment
Number of leaves: vi + 126 + vi
Format: upright
Page dimensions: 595 x 425
Quire structure: Text version
Index / Table of Contents: Two indices, on f. 1r (complete) and f. 126v (partial)
Other devices: 1. Modern foliation, pencil top right
2. Original quire signatures (A 1-8, B 1-8, etc.), ink bottom right.
3. Later 16th-century foliation, ink top right.
The parchment flyleaves are from a 12th-century Bible copied by an English hand.
Page details (zoom):
Preparation and Copying
All foliosPreparation
Disposition of Voice Parts Key
Signe de renvoi
| Pricking |
normally,
five patterns (Williamson 2010): i) pricking in upper and lower margins for boundary lines, quires a and g (ff. 1-7, 30-37) ii) pricking in upper and lower margins for boundary lines, and fifteen holes often duplicated in outer margins for staves, quire h (ff. 38-45) iii) pricking in upper margin and sometimes lower margin for boundary lines, fifteen holes were pricked for staves, quires b, c, i, k, l (ff. 8-17, 46-69) iv) pricking in upper margin for boundary lines, fifteen holes for staves in outer margins, the fifteenth often duplicated, quires d, f and q (ff. 18-29, 88-95) v) pricking in upper and lower margins for boundary lines, pricking in outer margin often trimmed, quires r, t, v, x, z, bb, ee (ff. 96-126 |
| Ruled grid |
always,
single line to left and right, sometimes double line for text (where present). Horizontal frame line across the entire page, sometimes also at bottom (but there only between the vertical bounding lines). |
| Ruling pattern | fairly regular |
| Staves omitted from grid | rarely |
| Incomplete staves | never |
| Medium and colour of grid | Frequency | Folios | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| black ink and pencil | always | black ink for boundary lines, faint double parallel lines for text | |
| Colour of staves | Frequency | Folios | Note |
| black | always | ||
| Ruling medium | Frequency | Folios | Note |
| straightedge | always | ||
| Indentation for initials | Frequency | Folios | Note |
| all staves indented | sometimes | 8r-17v, 62r-77v, 111r-118v | all staves indented, staves extended to left boundary line when no initial is needed (i.e. usually) |
| single | occasionally | 1v-7v, 62r-69v | stave indented as necessary, at the start of each voice part; some deviation from this pattern |
| single | sometimes | 18r-25v, 78r-110v, 119r-126v | 18r-25v: first stave indented on verso only, for all other initials notation is indented on stave 78r-110v, 119r-126v: first stave indented on each page, for all other initials notation is indented on stave |
| Extra space between voice parts | Frequency | Folios | Note |
| empty ruled staves on grid | often | ||
| staves not ruled on grid | occasionally | 7v | |
| Space provided for separate text | Frequency | Folios | Note |
| not in dedicated space | rarely | 27r | in lower margin |
| Adhoc adaptation | Frequency | Folios | Note |
| notation extended into margin | sometimes | ||
| made for complete additional staves | occasionally | 5r, 13v-14v, 17v-20r, 23r, 40v-41r, 59v-60r, 65v-66r, 67v-68r, 72v-73r, 74v-76r, 88v, 89v-90v, 103v-105r, 119v, 121v | |
| partial additional staves | rarely | 28v, 51r, 81r, 83r, 91r, 93v, 103r | |
| Indentation for initials filled in | sometimes | 8r-17v, 62r-77v, 111r-118v | all staves indented, staves extended to left boundary line when no initial is needed (i.e. usually) |
| notation and staves extended into margin | sometimes | ||
| staveline added | occasionally |
Copying of text and music
| Language(s) | Latin |
|---|---|
| Order of Copying |
music first
always |
| Presence/absence of text | Voice part | Frequency | Folios | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| fully texted with one text | all voice parts | always |
Music
| Colour(s) of notation | black red dark brown |
| Type(s) of notation | full mensural |
| Type of notation note | asymmetrical teardrop shape, with red coloration, intermingled with void coloration towards the end of the manuscript |
| Monophonic notation | absent |
| Level of calligraphy | high |
| Non verbal performance instructions | Folios | Note |
|---|---|---|
| end symbol | single or multiple black lines, often touched with red or occasionally other colours (e.g. blue) |
Text
| Types of script | textura |
| Types of script size position | underlaid text |
| Level of calligraphy | high |
| Colour(s) of text | black red brown |
| Multiple texts | no |
| Text repetitions | few |
| Abbreviations | fairly many |
| Non underlaid vocal text | none |
| Liminary text | Voice names in left or outer margins on second and subsequent openings of each piece, rarely on first opening; Composer attributions in upper margin of recto; Indication of range of voices (22 notarum, 23 notarum, etc); 27r: 'Antiphona hec Christi laudem sonat atque...' in lower margin; 14v??: chant source written in red within stave lines |
Decoration
| Level of Decoration | high |
| Decoration initial type | Frequency | Folios | Initial type(s) | Size position | Description | Discrepancies |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| penned initials | occasionally | plain initials | under stave, slightly larger than script of underlaid text | small blue, red or black initials | ||
| initials planned | rarely | 26r | cue letter for initial, no indent | |||
| penned initials | sometimes | calligraphic , calligraphic with decoration, calligraphic with grotesque heads | one stave tall, at the start of first voice or each voice part indented, sometimes positioned mid-stave where necessary | calligraphic (brown/black) initials with brown/black flourishing; used in conjunction with monochrome painted, flourished initials | ||
| painted initials | often | decorated, decorated with grotesque heads, historiated, zoomorphic initial | one stave tall, at the start of first voice or each voice part indented, sometimes positioned mid-stave where necessary | Multicoloured painted and illuminated initials were reserved for the first opening of each piece Some foliate or zoomorphic designs historiated ff. 26v-27r: company of angels Coats of arms of Eton College and of its Provost, Henry Bost (d. 1502), are found in decorated initials. | ||
| penned initials | sometimes | decorated with grotesque heads, flourished, plain initials | one stave tall, at the start of first voice or each voice part indented, sometimes positioned mid-stave where necessary | blue initials with red pen flourishing, red initials with black/brown pen flourishing, | ||
| Other decoration frequency | Folios | Other decoration type(s) | Size position | Description | Discrepancies | |
| occasionally | banner | banners sometimes found within the initials | ||||
| often | decorative final long | elongated and expanded vertically, often touched with red | ||||