History of Jason (Caxton): London, British Library, C.10.B.3 = IB.55002
Summary:
Physical Description:
Object Description:
Form: Codex
Material: Paper
Size: 262 mm x 185 mm (dimensions of all - size of leaves)
Collation:
- 'Without the blanks. Leaves [a]2, 3 and [t]5 are mutilated, the
missing text being supplied, not always correctly, in pen-and-ink facsimile
by John Whitaker [...]. Leaves [a]2, 3, 7, 8, and [b]1 are mounted. Leaves
[a]2 and 3 can be shown to derive from the copy now at Cambridge UL Inc.3.J.1.1[4244]
(De Ricci 64:2) by the similarity of rubrication supported by the distribution of watermarks and variant sates of typesetting'. (BMC XI, 107)
Rubrication and decorated initials:
- Number of hands: 2
- Summary:
Leaves [a]2 and 3 derive from the copy now at Cambridge UL (De Ricci 64:2) with the different style of rubrication
from the main hand.
- Hand: initials
Hand decoration:
'On [a]2a the text is enclosed in black and gold bands between red rules; elsewhere the text is enclosed in red rules, these decorations presumably executed by John Whitaker'. (BMC XI, 107)
Additions:
'[John] Whitaker's free renderings have given rise to spurious variants in Blades and Duff, while the fals readings of the BL copy were also followed by Munro and Crotch. See Oates 4059 and Buhler (1940a)'. (BMC XI, 107)
Binding Description:
'Bound in the private bindery of King George III, in gold-tooled straight-grain red morocco with his arms'. (BMC XI, 108)
Accompanying Material:
None.
History:
- Provenance: From BMC XI, 108
'Leaves [a]2 and 3 can be shown to derive from the copy now at Cambridge UL (De Ricci 64:2) [...]. The Cambridge copy belonged to Edward Harley, 2nd Earl of Oxford, then to the bookseller Osborne and, after 1751, to the Early of Dysart, in whose library it remained until 1938. According to R. Minshull's 1792 catalogue (BL Add. MS 19755, leaf 59r), Harley was then in possession of these copies of Jason, abd as the exchange of leave presumably took place while both copies were in the possession of the same owner, it seems likely that one of these was the copy now in Cambridge UL and another the BL copy. In this case the latter can be identified as the copy which, according to De Ricci (64:1) passed from Harley to Osborne (Cat. 1752, bi. 2250), then James Wet, his sale (March 1773, lot 2480) to John Ratcliffe, then his sale (March 1776, lot 1665) to G. Nicol for King George III'.
Thomas Skeffyngton, mid 16th century (sig. [g]5v)
Probably:
Edward Harley, 2nd Earl of Oxford, before 1729-42.
Thomas Osborne, bookseller, 1743-52.
James West, by 1772.
John Ratcliffe, 1773-76.
G. Nicol for King George III, 1776.
King George III (with his Library's press-mark 167.b.6).
Image Gallery:
Works referred:
Administration Information:
- Images scanned and initial data added by Caroline Bardell and Jamil Teja on 13/1/14;
updated by Satoko Tokunaga on 14/08/14; TK in June 2015.