Collections

Bound illustrated manuscript of Sir Walter Scott, Marmion, mid- to -late nineteenth century.

This collection contains a contemporary red morocco-bound calligraphic manuscript prayer book in three parts. The cover has elaborate gilt borders, and the spine has gilt compartments and lettering, with marbled endpapers. The first and largest section, Explications des Cérémonies de l'Église avec les Prières, contains prayers keyed to specific moments of the Mass, accompanied by twelve colored vignette illustrations. The two shorter appended sections are "Les Sept Psaulmes de la Pentience" (Seven Penitential Psalms), and "Les Litanies des S.ts" (Litanies of the Saints), both of which have titles written in gold ink on a blue wash background, similarly within the blue and red borders of the first part, but with initial letters gilt on a blue wash. The half-title includes a note by one of the manuscript's owners, A. [Arthur] Dinaux (1795–1864), on the book's provenance. The note explains the contents of the book and notes a former owner had written on a flyleaf that it "qu'il provenait de l'oncle germain de M .Aubrey le 14 février 1765(?). C'est la seule date qu'on découvre dans ce manuscrit." The flyleaf is no longer present with this manuscript.

Album amicorums were an early friendship and autograph book. This volume is bound in contemporary calf skin with a gilt embossed plate on both covers and the bookbinder's mark WL; all edges are gilt. It is in a modern slipcase. The manuscript is ink on paper comprised of 173 leaves with twenty-eight miniatures in gouache including one full-page allegorical depiction on the verso of the first leaf, twenty-four coats of arms (two mounted) mostly with motto and entry, two full-page depictions of women's costumes (one with coat of arms), and one depiction of a flag-waving lansquenet, a German mercenary foot soldiers, as well as nine text entries without pictorial contribution. Most of the entries date 1605-1609, all written in Latin, mainly by students or scholars from the University of Freiburg im Breisgau belonging to notable families of Southwest Germany and Alsace.

This collection consists of a print on demand facsimile of Livre des merveilles du monde (BNF FR2810)based on the Marco Polo - The Book of Wonders. This one-of-a-kind reproduction is the only numbered large size format Book of Wonders in genuine calf skin leather." (with certificate of authenticity).It is an illuminated manuscript made in France between 1410 to 1412 containing several texts regarding commercial, religious, and diplomatic contact between Europe and Asia. The authors of these texts include Marco Polo, Odoric of Pordenone, Wilhelm von Boldensele, Uzbeg, Benedict XII, John Mandeville, Hayton of Corycus, Riccoldo da Monte di Croce, and others. It contains 297 folios, and 265 miniatures produced by several Parisian workshops, thought to be those of Boucicaut Master, the Bedford Master and the Mazarine Master.

Leaf from a manuscript Book of Hours in Latin with a miniature of St. Margaret, France, late 15th century.

A portion of a manuscript on vellum. It was originally a leaf from a liturgical manuscript, likely written in France in the 15th century. The leaf was re-used in an edition of the Missale Romanum, liklely in France after 1582, which used red and black ink. The sheet (of which this is not the entire part) was used to mask the part of the former, which had been inked red, but which were not intended to be printed in red in the book, so that only the heading would show through the 'window' cut in the vellum.

Qur'an, 1849, 0.03 cubic feet, housed in contemporary gilded red morocco with flap, and finely calligraphed in Naskh script.