Collection ID: 0023 | Metadata type: TEI | TEI XML | Data

Title

Les dits moraulx des philosophes

Other related names

• Guillaume, de Tignonville, -1414, translator (http://viaf.org/viaf/24145932)
• La Vacherie, Pierre de, former owner (http://viaf.org/viaf/293661996)
• Amherst, William Amhurst Tyssen-Amherst, Baron, 1835-1909, former owner (http://viaf.org/viaf/49332641)
• Anderdon, Oliver, former owner
• Morris, Lydia Thompson, 1849-1932, former owner (http://viaf.org/viaf/46630004)

Funders

• Council on Library and Information Resources

Call number

Lewis E 209
(Philadelphia, United States, Free Library of Philadelphia, John Frederick Lewis Collection of European Manuscripts)

Alternate identifiers

• https://know.freelibrary.org/Record/1641471

Publisher

Free Library of Philadelphia

Language

Middle French (ca. 1400-1600)

Origin

Place

Bourges, France

Summary

This manuscript is an illuminated copy, dated 1473, of Guillaume de Tignonville's French version of The Dicts and Sayings of the Philosophers, a genre with origins in eleventh-century Arabic literature. The text is a compilation of teachings grouped under philosophers from Greek, biblical, and legendary traditions, with this manuscript offering twenty philosophers. Each chapter begins with a half-page miniature depicting one of the philosophers with a three-quarters foliate border. At the end of the manuscript is an early nineteenth-century index of the philosophers (fol. 74v) and description of the manuscript, which affiliates it with William Caxton's printing of an English translation (fol. 75r). The nineteenth-century red velvet binding bears the crowned escutcheon of William Tyssen-Amherst, 1st Baron Amherst of Hackney.

Notes

• A section of fol. 24 has been cut out and patched with a new piece of parchment, which is coming loose. Some smudging and wear to the borders and miniatures
   

Extent

Iv+75+xlix; 276 x 200 mm bound to 290 x 220 mm

Foliation

Modern foliation in pencil, lower right recto

Collation

Structure uncertain

Support

Parchment

Catchwords

Horizontal catchwords in ink, lower right verso, mostly trimmed away, except for one visible on fol. 32v

Binding

Nineteenth-century red velvet with clasps; on the upper cover is the silver escutcheon, crowned, of William Amhert Tyssen-Amherst, Baron Amherst of Hackney (1835-1909)

Layout

One column of thirty-three lines; frame-ruled in red ink; written area: 190 x 140 mm

Decoration

Twenty large arched miniatures of philosophers appear at the beginnings of chapters, with foliate borders surrounding three quarters of the page (fol. 1r, Sedechias speaking with disciples; fol. 4r, Hermes; fol. 10v, Tac seated, pulling a castle toward him by means of an inscribed band; fol. 12r, Zaqualquin writing his books; fol. 14r, Homer embracing a maiden holding the scales of justice in one hand and a mirror of nature in another; fol. 15v, Zalon with disciples; fol. 17v, Hippocras seated; fol. 21r, Diogenes writing his books; fol. 24r, Socrates standing outside the city; fol. 31r, Plato speaking; fol. 37v, Aristotle possible receiving divine wisdom; fol. 43v, Alexander the Great displaying his book; fol. 57v, Ptolemy speaking; fol. 58v, Assaron speaking; fol. 52r, Overse (Onese) speaking; fol. 62v, Cardage (Macdarge) speaking; fol. 64v, Thales (Thesile) with his books; fol. 66v, Saint Gregory the Great reading; fol. 68r, Galen with open texts behind him; fol. 71r, Protege speaking); the name Alexandre is written in larger letters at the beginning of paragraphs in the Alexander chapter (fols. 43v-55v; in other Dits moraulx manuscripts (cf. Houghton Library MS Typ 207), these passages are themselves illustrated); blank sheets of paper have been tipped in facing each miniature, likely when the manuscript was rebound in the nineteenth century

Script

Bâtarde

Provenance

• Canopy above the philosopher Assaron shows a date: "FAIT LAN MIL CCCC LXXIII I APVRIL" (fol. 58v); the band held by the philosopher Tac is inscribed, though mostly illegible: the last word is "Floren[?]" (fol. 10v); Pierre de la Vacherie, secretary of Louis XI of France (ca. 1473; owner inscription, Pierre de la Vacherye Secretaire du Roy, fol. 15r); Mr. Meyrick ( sold June 1806), and assessed by "B.N." on back flyleaf; William Amherst Tyssen-Amherst, Baron Amherst of Hackney (1835-1909; silver crowned escutcheon on upper cover, bookplate with motto Victoria Concorde Crescit inside upper cover); other signatures on front flyleaf include Oliver Anderdon and Dr. Ferriar, possibly the doctor and antiquarian John Ferriar (1761-1815); given to the Free Library of Philadelphia by Lydia. T. Morris, February 1928 (stamp designating the manuscript as a gift of Miss Lydia T. Morris and Free Library stamped accession number 321774)
   

Keywords

• 15th century
• French
• Illumination
• Miniature
• France
• Philosophy
• Literature -- Prose

Licenses

• Text

  These images and the content of Free Library of Philadelphia, Lewis E 209: Les dits moraulx des philosophes are free of known copyright restrictions and in the public domain. See the Creative Commons Public Domain Mark page for usage details, http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/.

  URL

  http://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

• Text

  To the extent possible under law, Free Library of Philadelphia, Special Collections has waived all copyright and related or neighboring rights to this metadata about Free Library of Philadelphia Lewis E 209: Les dits moraulx des philosophes. This work is published from: United States. For a summary of CC0, see https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/. Legal code: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/legalcode.

  URL

  https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/legalcode

Table of contents

• fol. 1r — Les dits moraulx des philosophes, Guillaume de Tignonville
• fol. 74v — Table of contents
• fol. 75r — Description of manuscript

Decorations

• Front cover — Silver coat-of-arms, William Amhurst Tyssen-Amherst, Baron Amherst of Hackney (1835-1909)
• Inside front cover — Bookplate, Free Library of Philadelphia
• fol. 1r — Large miniature, Sedechias speaking with disciples
• fol. 1r — Decorated initial S
• fol. 4r — Large miniature, Hermes
• fol. 4r — Decorated initial H
• fol. 10v — Large miniature, Tac seated, pulling a castle toward him by means of an inscribed band
• fol. 10v — Decorated initial T
• fol. 12r — Large miniature, Zachalon writing his books
• fol. 12r — Decorated initial Z
• fol. 14r — Large miniature, Homer embracing a maiden holding the scales of justice and a mirror of nature
• fol. 14r — Decorated initial H
• fol. 15v — Large miniature, Zalon with disciples
• fol. 15v — Decorated initial Z
• fol. 17v — Large miniature, Hypocras seated
• fol. 17v — Decorated initial Y
• fol. 21r — Large miniature, Diogenes writing his books by his barrel
• fol. 21r — Decorated initial D
• fol. 24r — Large miniature, Socrates standing outside the city
• fol. 24r — Decorated initial S
• fol. 31r — Large miniature, Plato speaking
• fol. 31r — Decorated initial P
• fol. 37v — Large miniature, Aristotle, possibly receiving divine wisdom
• fol. 37v — Decorated initial A
• fol. 43v — Large miniature, Alexander the Great displaying his book
• fol. 43v — Decorated initial A
• fol. 57r — Large miniature, Ptolemy speaking
• fol. 57r — Decorated initial P
• fol. 58v — Large miniature, Assaron speaking
• fol. 58v — Decorated initial A
• fol. 62r — Large miniature, Onese speaking
• fol. 62r — Decorated initial O
• fol. 62v — Large miniature, Cardage speaking
• fol. 62v — Decorated initial C
• fol. 64v — Large miniature, Thales with his books
• fol. 64v — Decorated initial T
• fol. 66v — Large miniature, Saint Gregory the Great reading
• fol. 66v — Decorated initial S
• fol. 68r — Large miniature, Galen with open texts behind him
• fol. 68r — Decorated initial G
• fol. 71r — Large miniature, Protege speaking
• fol. 71r — Decorated initial P