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The Bible leaves, assigned the shelfmark VFL MS 60a–b, present wonderful examples of the profuse and colorful penwork produced in Bologna and Padua in the thirteenth and fourteenth century. The delicate flourishing begins around a colored initial, and extends up and down the margin alongside the entire column of text. The text presents selections from 1 Paralipomenon, 7–9, and 2 Paralipomenon, 22–24, and is written on thin, creamy vellum.
The veterinary leaves, assigned the shelfmark VFL MS 61a–b, are a rare survival from a manuscript of veterinary medicine composed by Giordano Ruffo (d. 1256), entitled De medicina equorum (On horse medicine). The text on the leaf illustrated here describes an ailment of the horse’s tongue and its suggested cure. It is written on a piece of spotted goatskin, which provides an opportunity for students to learn how to distinguish the skin of one animal from another used as writing material. These leaves are likewise decorated with beautifully flourished penwork initials; titles of illnesses and their cures, as well as chapter numbers, are transcribed in red.
Our thanks go to the Saint Louis University Library Associates for their generous funding of these new manuscript leaves for the medieval and Renaissance manuscript teaching collection. If you have questions about these materials or wish to view them or use them for a class, please contact Susan L’Engle in the Vatican Film Library.
