Codices Vossiani Latini
Under the Contents TAB you will find three links.
The Manuscript link will lead you to images of that particular manuscript. The images offer an exact copy of the manuscript held at Leiden University Library, and include all spines, covers, and flyleaves.
The Summarized description in English link will lead you to key information on that particular manuscript, taken from the catalog of the Codices Vossiani Latini, published in four parts by K.A. De Meyier in 1973, 1975, 1977 and 1984 (with P.F.J. Obbema) respectively,
The following steps have been taken in order to improve the accuracy and currency of the information provided.
- Date: sometimes the library catalog of Leiden University and/or the MMDC (Medieval Manuscripts in Dutch Collections) database offer more recent information on when the manuscript was written; this information has been added if diverging from De Meyier’s dates. Links to both resources are offered in the metadata.
- Contents:
- De Meyier’s abbreviated citations with regard to critical editions and literature on the manuscripts have been expanded into full references.
- The critical editions mentioned by De Meyier are often outdated. This shortcoming has been mitigated as much as possible by updating the literature on each manuscript, thereby pointing the reader to the most recent editions. This update has been compiled based on datasheets provided by Leiden University Library and the online database Medioevo Latino, which aims to provide an exhaustive bibliography (literature and critical editions) with regard to medieval sources). As most manuscripts contain several different texts, the bibliographic references have been arranged accordingly, i.e. by text. If certain references treat the manuscript in its entirety, or if it is not clear which part of the manuscript is treated, these have been arranged under ‘General literature’. It should be noted that only those bibliographic references that actually cite the Vossiani manuscripts have been taken into account (which is not necessarily the case when it comes to the critical editions of the sources contained within the manuscript).
- Author: Latin author names have been anglicized (but are kept in their original form when discussing the contents). The dates of birth and death of the author have also been added, when known.
- Origin and provenance: here too, more recent information as found in the library catalog of Leiden University and/or the MMDC has been added. Past owners are mentioned when known, and their dates of birth and death have been added when possible.
- Description: the aim has been to offer a readable text rather than an enumeration of the manuscripts’ codicological characteristics. The description offered here is entirely based on De Meyier’s catalog.
- Classification: consistency has been chosen over quantity (usually a periodization + a few thematic keywords). As many manuscripts have heterogeneous contents, the classification terms have been attached to each separate text, rather than to the entire manuscript
The Description in De Meyier Catalog link will lead you to the description of the particular manuscript by De Meyier in his catalog mentioned above.
De Meyier’s catalog can also be found in full under the Catalog TAB. De Meyier’s catalog is substantially more detailed than the summary, particularly in terms of codicological and paleographical aspects of the manuscripts. The catalog is in Latin, and so it may be most useful in accompanying detailed study of the manuscript.