Ars Nova on red-line staves, though punctus divisionis used frequently to divid up tempus groups, even in tempus imperfectum. Tenor is isorhythmic.

1-2v

parchment

RISM B/IV 2: A 14th century parchment manuscript meas. 180 x 132 mm. and consisting of 334 folios. This theological miscellany is written in several hands, and contains an exposition on the Psalms by Michael of Corbeil, a speculum sacerdotum by Richard of Leicester, the Moralia of Pope Gregory and other similar works. The foliation is in modern pencil at t.r.r., and there are 28-30 lines to the page from f. 3-114v and 35-40 lines to the page in double columns from f. 115-334. The binding is of rough calf over pulp boards, and the leaves are edged with red. On the outside of the front cover is a piece of white paper bearing the summary title "Exposition on the Psalms. Latin. Liber artis praedicandi Gregorii, expositio in Job, etc." Initials are in blue, red and green, rubrics in red. The polyphony is to be found on the front flyleaves f. 1-2v, a single bifolio which formed the middle of a gathering originally. Thus f. 1v-2 preserves a complete motet, though both Tr and T are missing for the Mot on f. 1. The T of item 2 alternates groups of black and red notes. The three-part Kyrie on f. 2v is fortunately complete because it was notated in score. All the margins have however been cut down slightly so that clefs, notes and parts of words are often missing. There are 8 red five-line staves per page for the motets and 9 for the Kyrie. The notation is Ars Nova, though the punctus divisionis is used frequently to divide up tempus groups, even in tempus imperfectum. The motet tenor is isorhythmic too, which suggests a date preferably after 1350. A later hand has written at the top of f. 2: "Thomas Northall solvit domino Johanni Wynton v s. viii d." Invocations to St. Osyth in the body of the manuscript may suggest connections with the priory of that name near Colchester. Formerly in the National Library of Wales at Aberystwyth, where it bore the signature Gwysaney 19, SM 19914 was bought from Sotheby's in London by the Huntington Library as lot 203 on June 15, 1959. The Gwysaney manuscripts were formerly the property of Robert Davies of Llanerch and Gwysaney (c. 1658-1710).

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