Beschreibung:

Cutting with a large decorated initial from a copy of Augustine of Hippo, Commentary on John, in Latin, manuscript on parchment [Germany (probably north west), late twelfth century] Large cutting, with remains of two columns, 18 lines in an angular German Romanesque bookhand with pronounced clubbing to ascenders and a strong ct-ligature (with parts of tractate 100 and 101), capitals touched in red, red rubrics, end of one text at foot of column with three last lines of reduced length, these marked by double penlines bisected by small strokes to produce a downward pointing triangular ‘tail’ to the column (this elsewhere predominantly a Carolingian feature: cf. the copy of Jerome, Letters, from c. 800, now Cologne, Dom Hs. 35, see Glaube und Wissen, 1998, no. 10, illustration on p. 93), one large initial ‘H’ (opening “Haec domini verba ubi …”), formed of interlocking bars heightened with orange and green, and enclosing a spray of detailed white vine foliage on green and yellow grounds, recovered from a binding and hence with some areas of discolouration and wear as well as stitch-holes, overall fair and presentable condition, 243 by 248 mm. The script and early German adaptation of white-vine decoration here agrees closely with examples from north western Germany (cf. BnF. latin ms. 16187: Avril and Rabel, Manuscrits enluminés d’origine germanique, I, 1995, no. 108; and Cologne, Dom. Hss. 162-163: Glaube und Wissen im Mittelalter, 1998, no. 72).