This list of liturgical manuscripts in British libraries is intended to provide a small amount of information about as many sources as possible, about 4400 in all, in order to remind users what type of liturgical book is preserved under a particular shelfmark, and its provenance. It may also alert users to the existence of books they did not know about, employing the search facilities for key words.
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Name of a library (please note the abbreviations) |
|
|---|---|
| Type of a manuscript | |
| Provenance of a manuscript | |
| Type and provenance | |
|
Type and library |
|
| Date and library |
The information is taken from four reference works
Column 5: Kmss - N. R. Ker: Medieval Manuscripts in British Libraries, I: London (Oxford 1969); II: Abbotsford-Keele (1977); III: Lampeter-Oxford (1983); IV: Paisley-York (1992) by N. R. Ker and A. J. Piper
Column 6: Klib - N. R. Ker: Medieval Libraries of Great Britain: A List of Surviving Books (first edition London 1941; 2nd revised edition 1964); Andrew G. Watson: Supplement to the second edition (1987)
Column 7: F - W. H. Frere: Bibliotheca Musico-Liturgica. A Descriptive Handlist of the Musical and Latin-Liturgical Mss. of the Middle Ages Preserved in the Libraries of Great Britain and Ireland, 4 fascicles in 2 volumes, London 1894, 1901, 1930, 1932 (reprint Hildesheim 1967)
Column 8: D - S. J. P. Van Dijk: Handlist of the Latin Liturgical Manuscripts in the Bodleian Library Oxford (typescript, Bodleian Library, 1957)
These have been supplemented, mostly for manuscripts in the British Library, from my own notes. Where differing or conflicting information was given, I have tried to conflate the descriptions, sometimes, however, I have given more than one entry for the same source.
In the file "Terms and abbreviations" I have explained the conventions followed in the list. In the file "Types and books"" you can find an overview of the considered source types. To download the database click on WORD or PDF
The list has grown somewhat unsystematically over several years, and not all inconsistencies of presentation have been ironed out. The accuracy of the information cannot, of course, be guaranteed. Corrections will be introduced in future versions of the list, and I should be very grateful to learn of errors. Despite the obvious imperfections and limitations of the list, I hope that users will find useful information more often than they are sent on a wild goose chase.