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Detailed record for Additional 20787
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| Title |
The Law Code of King Alfonso X ('el Sabio'), Primera Partida |
| Origin |
Spain (Castile or Leon) |
| Date |
4th quarter of the 13th century |
| Language |
Spanish (Castilian) |
| Script |
Gothic |
| Artists |
Decorated in the same workshop as the Cantigas de Santa María: El Escorial, Biblioteca del Monasterio,ms Escurialense T-I-1, 'Codice Rico' (see Bonet, Primera Partida (1975), pp. XX-XXI). |
| Decoration |
20 miniatures in colours and gold (ff. 1, 1v, 54, 60v, 62v, 75, 79v, 80v, 82v, 86v, 89, 92v, 96v, 101v, 104v, 105v, 106v, 112v, 114, 117v). 7 historiated initials in colours and gold, some with pen-flourishing in red and blue, some with blue and rose frames (ff. 1, 1v, 3, 3v, 4, 16v, 37). Large initials in red or blue with red and blue pen-flourishing. Rubrics in red. Maniculae. |
| Dimensions in mm |
360 x 240 (150 x 220), in two columns |
| Official foliation |
ff. 120 (+ 2 unfoliated paper flyleaves at the beginning and at the end) |
| Collation |
i-xii10 (ff. 1-120). Catchwords |
| Form |
Parchment codex |
| Binding |
Post-1600. French 19th century red morocco with gold tooling and Rothesay heraldic stamp in the centre. |
| Provenance |
Alfonso X, King of Castile and Leon, (reigned 1252-1284), probably produced in his royal scriptorium, according to Herriott, 'A Thirteenth Century Manuscript' (1938).
Juan Hapo', inscribed in t a ?15th-century hand with notes and pen-trials in Spanish and Latin on a rear flyleaf (f. 120v)
The Bishop of Cuenca, perhaps owned by him: the inscription, 'episcopus Con[c]hen[sis] D. R.' and 'Vester D. conchen[sis]' in a ?16th-century hand (f. 120v).
Charles Stuart, Baron Stuart de Rothesay (b. 1779, d. 1845), diplomat and collector, his heraldic stamp on the binding and in his sale, Sotheby's, May 1855, lot 241(a note on f. [ii] recto); bought by the British Museum. |
| Notes |
The earliest known copy of the first part (Primera Partida) of Alfonso's code, and the only illuminated text.
The code is in seven parts, 'Las Siete Partidas', each divided into titles and then into laws.
. |
| Select bibliography |
Pascual de Gayangos, Catalogue of the Manuscripts in the Spanish Language in the British Museum, 4 vols (London: British Museum, 1875-1893, repr. 1976), II, p. 36.
J. Homer Herriott, 'A Thirteenth Century Manuscript of the Primera partida', Speculum 13 (1938), 278-94 (pp. 286-94).
Juan Antonio Arias Bonet, Alfonso X el Sabio: Primera Partida según el manuscrito Add. 20.787 del British Museum (Valladolid: Universidad de Valladolid, 1975), [an edition of this manuscript].
Antonio Garcia y Garcia, 'Tradicion manuscrita de las Siete Partida', in Espana y Europa, un pasado juridico comun, ed by Antonio Perez Martin, Actas del I Simposio Interncional del Derecho Comun, Murcia, 26-28 March 1985 (Murcia: Publicaciones del Instituo de Derecho Comun, Universidad de Murcia, 1986), 655-99 (no. 60, p. 686).
Mariana, M Sánchez, 'El Libro en la Baja Edad Media. Reino de Castilla', Biblioteca del Libro, 54 (1993), p. 195.
Janet Backhouse, The Illuminated Page: Ten Centuries of Manuscript Painting in the British Library (Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1997), no. 73.
Jerry R. Craddock, The Legislative Works of Alfonso X, el Sabio: a critical bibliography (London: Grant & Cutler, 1986), p. 47, Ah41.
Las Siete Partidas, trans. by Samuel Parsons Scott, (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2001), [a translation of the text].
Margaret Scott, Medieval Dress & Fashion (London: British Library, 2007), pls 38, 39.
'Bibliografía Española de Textos Antiguos' (Philobiblon bibliographical database), MS 1112, online at http://pb.lib.berkeley.edu/xtf/servlet/org.cdlib.xtf.dynaXML.DynaXML?source=/BETA/Display/1112BETA.MsEd.xml&style=MsEd.xsl&gobk=http%3A%2F%2Fpb.lib.berkeley.edu%2Fxtf%2Fservlet%2Forg.cdlib.xtf.crossQuery.CrossQuery%3Frmode%3Dphilo%26everyone%3D20787%26city%3D%20%26library%3D%26shelfmark%3D%26subject%3D%26text-join%3Dor%26browseout%3Dlibrary%26sort%3Dcity [accessed 22.02.2017].
Alberto J. Canto Garcia et al, Alfonso el Sabio (Murcia: Novograf, 2009), pp. 222, 502-04 [exhibition catalogue].
Joseph O'Callaghan, Alfonso X, the Justinian of his Age: Law and Justice in Thirteenth-century Castile (Ithaca and London: Cornell University Press, 2019), pp. ii, 4, 13. |
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1
King Alfonso and his subjects |
1v
The king dictates to his scribes and presents the book to God |
f. 3
God and Christ |
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f. 3v
Articles of Faith |
f. 4
Sacrament of Baptism |
f. 16v
The Pope and bishops are honoured |
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f. 37
A bishop performing an exorcism |
f. 54
The Pope and kneeling monks |
f. 60v
Clerics keeping their vows |
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f. 60v
Clerics making and keeping vows |
f. 62v
Excommunication ceremony |
f. 62v
Excommunication ceremony |
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74v
Text page |
f. 75
Building a church |
79
Text page |
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f. 79v
The king and bishops |
f. 80v
The king instructing monks and friars |
f. 82v
Burial |
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86v
Things of the church that should not be alienated |
89
The right of patronage |
f. 92v
Bishop and clergy with gifts |
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f. 96v
Simony |
f. 101v
Knights desecrating a church |
104v
Giving the first fruits to God |
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f. 105v
Offerings |
f. 106v
Tithing |
f. 112v
Clergy receiving payment |
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f. 114
Contributions by churches |
f. 117v
A feast day mass |
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