National Library of Sweden, A 50
Breviary
Sweden, Uppsala, 1485
paper and mixed
431 leaves
210 × 145 mm
2 units
Latin
Unit 1
This calendar is almost identical to the one in Breviarium Upsalense (printed 1496). Feasts in A 50 but not in Breviarium 1496 are: St Alban, the Seven sleepers and the Octave of St Michael; 27 March is marked as Resurrection day. Feasts in Breviarium Upsalense 1496 not in A 50 are: St Ansgar, St Thomas of Aquino, Compassion of Virgin Mary (6 May), Division of Apostles, St Katarina of Sweden, St Brynolf, St Helen of Constantinople and the Octave of All saints. Notable feasts:
f. 1r: St Henrik (19 Jan.);
f. 1r: Translation of St Erik (24 Jan.);
f. 1v: St Sigfrid (15 Feb.);
f. 3r: St Erik (18 May);
f. 3v: St Eskil (12 June);
f. 3v: St Botulf (17 June);
f. 4r: St Botvid (28 July);
f. 4r: St Olof (29 July);
f. 4r: St Elin (30 July);
f. 5r: Feast of the relics (23 Sep.):
f. 5v: St Birgitta (7 Oct.).
Unit 2
The temporale begins with the first Sunday of Advent and ends with the Twenty-fifth Sunday after Trinity. Two larger rubrics denote subsections:
f. 200ra: rubric in red: ‘Sequitur vigilia sancte trinitatis Ad vesperas super omnia laudate Antiphone’;
f. 237ra: underlined in red: ‘Incipiunt capitula et ewangelia Dominicalia cum suis omeliis [...] Dominica 2a post trinitatis Capitulum’.
The sanctorale begins with the vigil for St Andrew and ends with a commemoration for St Linus. Notable feasts:
ff. 264rb–266ra: St Henrik, ‘Gaude coetus fidelium’ AH 26, no. 32;
ff. 280vb–283ra: St Sigfrid, ‘Celebremus carissimi’ Nilsson (2010);
f. 300ra: St Erik (rubric with instructions);
ff. 301vb–303vb: St Eskil, ‘Iam dies adest’ AH 43, no. 219;
ff. 319rb–322ra: The patron saints of Sweden, ‘Iocundare mater ecclesia’ Lundén (1933);
ff. 322ra–322rb: St David (collect and reading);
ff. 326va–327rb: St Botvid (collect and reading);
ff. 329rb–331ra: St Elin, (begins with reading and hymn ‘Felix parens’) ‘Salve decus patriae’ AH 26, no. 31;
ff. 370ra–372rb: St Birgitta, ‘Birgittae matris inclitae’ AH 25, no. 58, Undhagen (1960).
ff. 421ra–423rb: Common for apostles;
ff. 423rb–424va: Common for evangelists;
ff. 424va–425vb: Common for a martyr;
ff. 425vb–427rb: Common for many martyrs;
ff. 427rb–428va: Common for a confessor and bishop;
f. 428va: Common for a confessor not bishop, imperfect, ends in the second nocturn.
One leaf has been torn out between f. 428 and f. 429; ff. 429–431 torn out leaving only the upper inner corners intact.
Support
Unit 1
Watermark 1
ff. 1r–7r,Watermark 2
ff. 8r–18r,Watermark 3
ff. 19r–30r,Watermark 4
ff. 31r–78r,Unit 2
Support 2
ff. 80r–85v, 88r–93v, 95r–250v, 252r–257v, 260r–431vWatermark 1
ff. 80r–85v/88r–93v/95r–118v/252r–257v/260r–265r/267r–278v,Watermark 2
ff. 119r–154v/279r–302v/387r–420v,Watermark 3
ff. 155r–166v,Watermark 5
ff. 183r–228v,Watermark 6
ff. 229r–250v/303r–370v,Foliation
Collation
Condition
Unit 1
Three leaves missing, torn out, between f. 7 and f. 8, first two belonging to the first quire, the third to the second. A hole in the middle of the page on f. 5, probably from something burning which left a mark in the same shape on f. 4v.Layout
Script
Unit 1
Semi-hybrida consistently using unlooped ascenders on ‘l’, ‘h’ and ‘b’, looped ascenders on ‘d’. For ‘r’ both r rotunda and the figure 4-abbreviation are used.
Unit 2
Semi-hybrida consistently using unlooped ascenders on ‘l’, ‘h’ and ‘b’, looped ascenders on ‘d’. For ‘r’ both r rotunda and the figure 4-abbreviation are used.
Decorations
Unit 1
Plain 2-line initials in red, litterae notabiliores in red or touched in red. Black rubrics underlined in red.
Unit 2
Plain 2-line initials in red, litterae notabiliores in red or touched in red. Black rubrics underlined in red.
(f. 250v) Simple drawing in red ink of a balding man's face.
Binding
Medieval binding. Brown leather over wooden boards. 4 double raised bands and 2 endbands. 2 hooked clasps. Spine in brown ink: ‘230’; in black ink on a white label and again stamped in gold underneath: ‘A 50’. Former librarian Sten G. Lindberg identified the binding as the work of Archbishop Jakob Ulvsson's bookbinder, active in Uppsala in the 1490s, see The National Library of Sweden, Sten G. Lindbergs arkiv, B 13c ‘Jakob Ulfssons bokbinderi’. He is possibly identical to Hans bokabinder, citizen in Uppsala, SDHK, no. 33208; Collijn U 387:22, ‘Bokbindare i Sverige, 1400-talet’; Dahlbäck (1991), p. 370.
Paste-downs are made up of fragments from at least two manuscripts. One is an ordinal (12th/13th century) covering one fourth of the LCI and half of the RCI. The text on the LCI is from the Common of confessors and virgins, that on the RCI is probably the end of the feast of Catherine and the beginning of the Common of apostles. The other two fragments cover three fourths of the LCI and half of the RCI. The texts are un-identified but both may be from the same manuscript. The text on the left cover is a list of various terms, e.g. annosus, amor, hospes, barba, all with explanations in hexameter(?).
3-line blind tooling. Double frames at top and bottom, single frame on sides. Two rectangular panels in the centre square separated by a gutter, also blind tooled: a foliaged staff (LCO) and birds (RCO). The panels are blind stamped with circles arranged in corresponding pairs. The motifs, same on both front and back, from top to bottom, left to right are: lion - falconer, pelican - lion with cub, rose - rose, lion with cub - pelican, stag - lion.
Origin
Sweden, Uppsala 1485. Finished 24 July and written by Laurentius Gregorii according to the colophon on f. 420v, see Hedlund (1977), p. 41. The liturgical content in the calendar supports an origin from Uppsala, see Helander (2001), p. 218, and Moberg (1947), vol. 1, p. 91.
Provenance
The manuscript belonged to the Antiquities archive. The signum ‘230’, written in brown ink in the centre of the spine, is found in Peringskiöld's inventory from the 1720s, U 90:2, f. 14r, (corrected from 229) with the title: ‘Laurentii Gregorii Liber precum def.’. The current signum is established in Helin's catalogue from the 1720s, U 91:2:2.
Acquisition
From the Antiquities Archive to the Royal Library in 1780.
- Hedlund (1977), p. 41.
- Haapanen 1927, p. 58.
- Hedlund (1980), plate 114.
- Helander (2001), pp. 217–218.
- Moberg (1947), vol. 1, pp. 91–92, 213–233 (Hymn texts).
