Manuscript on parchment of a summary of Giovanni Villani's Croniche
Description:
In Italian., Script: copied by a single hand writing Gothico-Humanistica Libraria on the basis of Italian Hybrida. Pale red headings. Flourished initials with penwork and marginal extensions, 2-line up to f. 16r, generally 3-line from f. 16v onwards. On f. 1r 2-line white vinestem initial incorporated into a border corner piece of the same style. In the lower margin two marks of oval seals (?) and the early number or date "1264"., The manuscript contains the Chronicle of Florence up to 1333, being a summary of the Croniche of Giovanni Villani (c. 1280-1348); the most recent edition of the Croniche is by G. Porta (Parma, 1991). The Compendio presented by our manuscript corresponds to Book 1, ch. 38 up to Book 10, ch. 219 of Villani's work. The author of the summary skips the majority of the chapters of the original and summarizes the ones he retains, placing them generally under Villani's headings without much changing the latter., and Binding: Italian binding circa 16th century: brown leather over wooden boards, both covers blind-tooled with fillets making a rectangular frame inscribed with a lozenge, and decorated with rows of stamps. In the center of the lozenge a cross. Spine with four raised bands. Remnants of four brass clasps attached to the rear cover, one at the upper and lower edges and two at the outer edges; five small brass bosses on each cover. On the spine a parchment label with the handwritten 16th century inscription: "Gio: Villan:"
Manuscript fragment on parchment of Giovanni Boccaccio (1313-1375), Decamerone, 7.8, 30-50 and Decamerone, 7.9, 1-5.
Description:
In Italian., Script: Copied by one hand in Southern Gothica Semitextualis Libraria., and Binding: The leaf has been used as a cover for an archival register (?), the upper part of f. 1r being the front cover. It carries the inscriptions "A", "Gioan Giacomo Saba***".
Manuscript on parchment (palimpsest: written over an unidentified canon law text, 1250-75) of Epitome of Aristotle's Ethics translated into Italian by Taddeo d'Alderotto (ca. 1235-1295).
Description:
In Italian., Script: Written in a calligraphic notarial hand with tall ascenders and strongly looped forms of letters d and b, above top line., Spaces left for decorative initials remain unfilled., and Binding: ca. 1900, England or U.S.A. (?). Quarter bound in orange goatskin with a gold-tooled label on spine ("Aristotle. Ethica, in Italian. XIVth Century") and marbled paper sides. Edges gilt.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Alderotti, Taddeo, 1223-1295. and Aristotle.
Subject (Topic):
Ethics, Italian literature, Literature, Medieval, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript on paper and parchment of (1) Guido delle Colonne (13th cent.), Historia destructionis Troiae: Italian version by Filippo Ceffi (14th cent.); and (2) Boccaccio, Filostrato; with (3) notes on deceased military figures, poems, and pen and ink drawing
Description:
In Italian., Script: Copied by the Florentine scribe, Tedice di Ghuigliadore, while a prisoner in Naples in Gothica Cursiva Currens (Mercantesca)., Decoration: Artt. 1, 2, 6 and 7 are undecorated. In art. 4, there are red headings and paragraph marks; and 4-line red initials at the opening of each book. In art. 5, there are red headings and 2-line red initials. On f. 1r, a 3-line red flourished initial with penwork and a border in a wavy serrated pattern, suggesting a plant issuing from a vase. On f. IVr (art. 3), a full-page pen-and-ink drawing of a battle between the Greek and Trojan armies, with Achilles ("Achille"), Hector ("Ettore"), and Troilus ("Troiolo") in the foreground, and ships at the port and city of Tenedos ("Tenedon") in the background., and Binding: Quarter, reddish brown leather and wooden boards, sewn on four split thongs.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut, New Haven., and Troy (Extinct city)
Subject (Name):
Boccaccio, Giovanni, 1313-1375. and Colonne, Guido delle, active 13th century.
Manuscript on parchment of an anonymous Italian translation of Giordano Ruffo, Liber marescalcia equorum, as well as recipes for various equine illnesses and schematic drawings of bits
Description:
In Italian., Script: main text copied by one hand in Southern Gothica Textualis Libraria., Capitals and headings in red in main text. Diagrams of various bits for horses on ff. 39v and 40r., and Binding: S. XX binding: plain parchment over cardboard.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Rufus, Jordanus, fl. ca. 1225-1250.
Subject (Topic):
Horses, Italian literature, Literature, Medieval, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript on goat parchment of Giordano Ruffo di Calabria's De medicina equorum (Mascalcia) in Sicilian dialect
Description:
Script: copied by one hand in Southern Gothica Textualis Libraria/Formata (Rotunda)., On folio 1r there is a 17-line historiated initial, showing the author presenting his work to Emperor Frederick II on horseback. The initial has been erased and the scene is hardly recognizable., Binding: 16th century light brown leather over wooden boards, both covers blind-tooled with a double frame of multiple fillets, the inner frame divided by two diagonals. Small engraved bronze bosses at the four corners of the inner frames. Remnants of two clasps attached to the front board, with decorated brass catches on the rear board. Rebacked., and In Sicilian.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Name):
Ruffo, Giordano.
Subject (Topic):
Horses, Italian literature, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript on paper. Includes notes on arithmetic and accounting for merchandise; a romance of Tristan; list of spices; astronomical and astrological information; charms and prayers; recipes; extracts in Venetian; and poems
Description:
In Italian and Latin., Watermarks: similar to Briquet Fruit 7372-76, Briquet Cheval 3564, and Briquet Fruit 7341., Script: Written by a single scribe in a neat notarial hand, through f. 67v. Notes added by various hands of 14th-15th centuries., Drawings of ships, towers and merchants in ink, with added yellow, brown, green, red and blue; many diagrams. Crude 2- and 1-line initials in red, with guide-letters for rubricator showing beneath; headings in red., Repair of f. 1 with later paper; some loss of text. Repairs at outer edges on this and other folios do not affect text., and Binding: 18th-19th centuries. Rigid vellum case with paste paper back endleaf and pastedowns. Central fold of each bifolium has been reinforced with a strip of parchment.
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut, New Haven., and Venice (Italy)
Subject (Topic):
Accounting, Arithmetic, Astrology, Astronomy, Medieval, Formulas, recipes, etc, Illumination of books and manuscripts, Medieval, Italian literature, Manuscripts, Medieval, Merchants, Prayers, Tristan (Legendary character), and Economic conditions
Manuscript on paper of a Miscellany of vernacular humanistic prose texts, including works by Giovanni Boccaccio, Petrarch, Francesco Filelfo, and Leonardo Bruni
Description:
In Italian., Watermarks: Briquet Fleur 6655, Echelle 5908, 5910, and similar to Briquet Chapeau 3370., Script: Written in neat humanistic cursive by a single scribe, below top line., Three-quarter border, f. 5r, white vine-stem ornament on blue, red and green ground with grey and yellow dots. In lower border, vine-stem turning into a floral border and brown penwork scrolls with pink, blue and green flowers and gold dots. Illuminated initial, 6-line, gold on blue, green and red ground with white vine-stem ornament joined to inner border. Headings in red. Plain 3-line initials in blue mark text divisions. Guide letters in margins., and Binding: Fifteenth century, Italy. Vellum stays adhered inside the quires. Original sewing on four tawed skin, slit straps laid in channels on the outside of wooden boards and nailed. Edges yellow ochre. A green and natural color, beaded endband is sewn on five cores. The primary one laid in grooves on the outside of the boards. The spine is lined with tawed skin or vellum extending onto the edge of the boards between supports. Covered in tan leather blind-tooled with a potented cross in a central square with rope interlace panels above and below, and a border also filled with rope interlace. Spine: supports defined with double fillets and the panels diapered. Traces of five bosses on each board. Two ivy leaf fastenings, the catches on the lower board, the upper one cut in for green fabric straps attached with star-headed nails. Binding is heavily overoiled.
Subject (Geographic):
Italy., Connecticut, and New Haven.
Subject (Topic):
Humanism, Italian literature, and Manuscripts, Medieval
Manuscript on paper of a miscellany including texts by Leonardo Bruni, Petrarch, Stefano Porcari, Matteo Palmieri, and Giovanni Boccaccio
Description:
In Italian., Watermarks: similar to Briquet Fleur 6651, Briquet Echelle 5910, Briquet Etoile 6070 and one unidentified., Script: Written in a mercantile script (mercantesca) by one hand., Calligraphic initials, 4- to 2-line, in red with purple or blue with red. Rubrics in brownish-red., and Binding: Nineteenth century. Paper binding "alla rustica". On spine, "Miscella di belle lettere".
Subject (Geographic):
Connecticut and New Haven.
Subject (Topic):
Italian literature, Italian poetry, and Manuscripts, Medieval
