The Illustrated Old English Hexateuch, Cotton Claudius B.iv: The Frontier of Seeing and Reading in Anglo-Saxon England

448 Pages·49.278 MB·English

by  Benjamin C. Withers

The Illustrated Old
English Hexateuch,
Cotton Claudius B.iv
The Fron tier of Seeing and Reading
in Anglo-Saxon England
Benjamin C. Withers
THE BRITISH LIBRARY
and
UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO PRESS
Toronto Buffalo
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© University of Toronto Press Incorporated 2007
Toronto Buffalo London
Printed in Canada
Published in North America in 2007 by
University of Toronto Press Incorporated
Toronto and Buffalo
ISBN 978-0-8020-91048
First published in 2007 by
The British Library
96 Euston Road, London NWI 2DB
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
A catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library
ISBN
978-0-712~4()-0
Printed on acid-free paper
Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication
Withers, Benjamin C.
The illustrated Old English Hexateuch, Couon Claudius B.iv: the
frontier of seeing and reading in Angl(>.Saxon England/ Benjamin C.
Withers.
(Studies in book and print culture)
Includes bibliogrdphical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-802().9 J 04-8
ISBN-10: ().802().9104-0
I. British Library. Manuscript. Cotton Claudius B.IV. 2. British
Library. Manuscript. Cotton Claudius B.IV - Illustrations. 3. Bible. O.T.
Hexateuch - Manuscripts. 4. Book design - England - History-To 1500.
5. Literacy- England - History- To 1500. I. Title. II. Series.
BSI32.W58 2007 222'.10529 C2()06.904172-5
University of Toronto Press acknowledges the financial assistance to
its publishing program of the Canada Council for the Arts and the
Ontario Arts Council.
University of Toronto Press acknowledges the financial support for
its publishing activities of the Government of Canada through the
Book Publishing Industry Development Program (BPIDP).
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For Hugh, William, and Jennifer
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Contents
List ofm ustralions ix
Ac.ltnowledgments xiii
mquently
Abt!mriations and Cited Soun:ts xv
Introduction 3
1 Manuscript as Medium: Design and Construction of
the Illustrated Book I 7
2 Style, Date, and Origin 53
3 Iconographic Dependence, Anistic Innovations,
and Adaptive Creations 86
4 Authority, Authors, Authorization 133
5 Audience, Literacy, and the Social Roles of Reading
and Viewing 159
6 Rubrics, Genealogies, and Genesis 183
7 Picturing the Life ofJ oseph 223
8 The Sayable and Seeable: The Manuscript and
the Phenomenal Landscape 265
Notes 295
Bibliography 399
Index 421
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Illustrations
1 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 19 recto 5
2 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 2 verso-3 recto 19
3 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 28 verso-29 recto 20
4 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 113 verso 24
5 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 150 verso 27
6 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 148 verso 28
7 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 110 verso 29
8 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 78 recto 30
9 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 7 verso 31
10 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 16 verso-17 recto 33
11 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 50 verso-51 recto 34
12 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 38 recto 36
13 Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Junius 11, page 41 38
14 London, British Library, Tiberius B.v, part 1, folio 82 recto 39
15 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 17 verso 41
16 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 27 verso 42
17 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 41 verso-42 recto 45
18 Cotton Claudius B.iv folio 36 recto 55
19 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 14 verso 56
20 London, British Library, Stowe 944, folio 6 57
21 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 26 verso 65
22 London, British Library, Add. MS 34890 folio 73 verso 66
23 Cotton Claudius B.iv folio 18 verso 68
24 London, British Library, Tiberius B.v, part I, folio 8 recto 69
25 London, British Library, Tiberius B.v, part I, folio 3 recto 70
26 London, British Library, Tiberius B.v, part I, folio 6 verso 71
27 Cambridge, Corpus Christi College, MS 23, folio 29 verso 72
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x List of Illustrations
28 London, British Library, Harley 603 folio 26 recto 73
29 Collon Claudius B.iv, folio 128 recto 75
30 British Library, Cotton MS Caligula A.xv, folio 122 verso 77
31 London, British Library, Harley 603 folio 28 recto 78
32 Collon Claudius B.iv, folio 142 recto 79
33 Cambridge, Corpus Christi College, MS 389, folio 17 verso 80
34 London, British Library, Cotton Tiberius A.iii, folio 2 verso 81
35 London, British Library, Royal MS I.E. vi, folio 30 verso 82
36 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 30 verso-31 recto 88
37 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 97 recto 91
38 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 102 recto 92
39 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 35 verso 93
40 Collon Claudius B.iv, folio 122 recto 95
41 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 125 verso-126 recto 96
42 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 125 verso: detail 97
43 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 125 verso: detail under raking light 98
44 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 27 recto 99
45 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 43 verso I 00
46 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 46 verso IOI
47 Collon Claudius B.iv, folio 34 verso I 03
48 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 68 verso l 07
49 Collon Claudius B.iv, folio 69 recto I 08
50 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 69 verso-70 recto 109
51 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 70 vers<>-71 recto 110
52 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 71 vers<>-72 recto 111
53 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 72 verso-73 recto 112
54 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 73 vers<>-74 recto 113
55 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 74 vers<>-75 recto 114
56 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 75 versc>-76 recto 115
57 Collon Claudius B.iv, folios 76 vers<>-77 recto 116
58 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 73 recto 122
59 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 112 recto 123
60 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 81 recto 125
61 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 88 recto 126
62 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 73 verso: detail 129
63 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 99 vers<>-100 recto 135
64 Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale, lat. l, folio 27 verso 146
65 Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale, lat. 1, folio 415 verso 147
66 New York, Pierpont Morgan Library, M. 709, folio 122 verso 150
67 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 103 recto 151
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List of Illustrations xi
68 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 103 recto: detail 152
69 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 100 verso 161
70 Utrecht, University Library, MS 32, folio 45 recto 163
71 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 6 verso 164
72 London, British Library, MS Additional 49598, folio 118
verso 166
73 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 38 verso-39 recto 169
74 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 155 verso 175
.75 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 20 verso-21 recto 185
76 Cotton Cl.audius B.iv, folio 21 recto 187
77 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 1 verso-2 recto 188
78 St Mary's Church at Breamore, Hampshire 194
79 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 9 recto 197
80 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 9 verso-I 0 recto 198
81 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 10 verso-I I recto 199
82 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 11 verso-12 recto 200
83 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 12 verso 201
84 Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Junius 11, page 51 205
85 Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Junius 11, page 53 206
86 Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Junius 11, page 54 207
87 Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Junius 11, page 56 208
88 Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Junius 11, page 57 209
89 Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Junius 11, page 58 210
90 Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Junius 11, page 59 211
91 Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Junius 11. page 62 212
92 Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Junius 11, page 63 213
93 Oxford, StJohn's College Library, MS 17, folio 8 217
94 Bayeux Tapestry, detail 219
95 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 52 verso-53 recto 225
96 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 53 verso-54 recto 235
97 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 54 verso-55 recto 239
98 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 57 verso-58 recto 240
99 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 58 verso-59 recto 241
I 00 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 59 verso-60 recto 244
101 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 60 verso-61 recto 245
102 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 61 verso-62 recto 246
103 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 62 verso-63 recto 250
104 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 63 verso-64 recto 252
105 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 64 verso-65 recto 253
106 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 65 verso-66 recto 254
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xii List of lllusirations
107 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 66 verso-67 recto 257
108 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folios 67 verso-68 recto 258
109 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 139 verso 267
110 Cotton Claudius B.iv, folio 140 recto 268
111 Rome, Abbazia di San Paolo fuori le Mura, folio 50 verso · 270
112 Swarzenski, Monuments of Romanesque Art, plates 58-9 279
113 London, British Library, Arundel MS 155, folio 10 recto 281
114 London, British Library, Tiberius B.v, part I, folio 4 verso 290
115 London, British Library, Tiberius B.v, part I, folio 5 recto 291
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Acknowledgments
This project began nearly fifteen years ago under the guidance of Michael
Camille. I am forever grateful for Michael's manner as an adviser, par
ticularly his infectious enthusiasm and his generosity in sharing his
broad knowledge of medieval art. If there is any merit to this study it
derives from what little I could learn during his all-too-short time with us.
I would also like to thank Allan Frantzen, who read and encouraged
my research while it was still at a formative stage, as well as Adam Cohen
and Herbert Kessler, whose critique and encouragement has been espe
cially welcome as the project neared its end. I also need to express my
profound gratitude to Timothy Graham and Paul Szarmach for the
opportunity to participate in the National Endowment for the Humani
ties Summer Seminar for College Teachers at the British Library that
they organized for the summer of 2001. Tim and Paul set up for us an
intellectual environment whose rigour was exceeded only by its openness
and friendliness. My experience in this seminar, especially of Paul's
wisdom as a discussion leader, Tim's excellent lectures on codicology and
palaeography, and the unparalleled access to manuscripts that they
arranged with the British Library, changed the direction of this study. In
that regard, too, I am especially grateful to the staff in the Manuscript
Reading Room at the British Library and most notably to Michelle Brown
for her attention to my study and the kindness with which she gently
corrected some of my more egregious errors.
I have enjoyed the support of several sources while my work on
Claudius B.iv developed. The Whiting Foundation Dissertation Year Fel
lowship at the University of Chicago allowed me the complete its first
iteration. Several grants from Indiana University, South Bend, including
a Summer Faculty Fellowship, two Faculty Research Grants, a Chancellor's
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xiv Acknowledgments
Research Support Grant, and a fellowship from the Indiana University
President's Arts and Humanities Initiative, enabled the work to con
tinue. A research grant from the University of Kentucky helped bring the
book to its conclusion.
As important as this funding has been, I have benefited from a more
profound resource over the years: the help and advice of a number of
colleagues and friends. These include Jonathan Alexander, Rebecca
Barnhouse, Marian Bleeke, Dan Connolly, Patrick Connor, William
Diebold, Nicholas Doane, Mary Dockray-Miller, Anthony Droege, Heide
Estes, Tom Finn, Martin Foys, Richard Gameson, David F. Johnson,
Catherine Karkov, Kevin Kiernan, Susan Kim, Stacy Klein, Tuck Langland,
Wendy Larson-Harris, Suzanne Lewis, Richard Marsden, Karen Mathews,
Asa Mittman, Robert S. Nelson, Mary Richards, Sharon Rowley, Judy
Stubbs, Patricia Ward, Dana-Linn Whiteside, and Jonathan Wilcox. I
thank Tamea Rector who edited a preliminary version of this book. I owe
a great debt to Anonymous Reader B, whose careful reading and exten
sive comments for the University of Toronto Press saved me from many
embarras.sments and mistakes. Those that remain are my own. Finally, I
thank the team at the University ofT oronto Pres.s responsible for turning
my typescript into the book now before you: John StJames,Jill McConkey,
Barb Porter, Ani Deyirmenjian, and Val Cooke.
The illustrations of Claudius B.iv are reproduced by permission of the
British Library and those ofJ unius 11 are reproduced by permission of
the Bodleian Library, the University of Oxford. Other permissions are
indicated as appropriate in the captions.
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