Oxford, Bodleian Library, Hatton 116

Number of Hands: 2

Hand: main text

Scope: sole

Script: English Vernacular Minuscule

Ker reference: Ker 333 SC1

Description: Pages 1-395. 'A handsome, round, large hand of a type found commonly in West of England manuscripts of s. xii' (Ker 1957, p. 406). This Worcester hand is rounded, but degrees of angularity are also creeping in. The general aspect is slightly backward-leaning. The bodies of the letters are large in relation to the ascenders and descenders. LUNA dates the manuscript to the second half of the twelfth century, but that is almost certainly too late, since the manuscript is blind-ruled. Worcester manuscripts (which this is) are crayon-ruled from about the 1130s and 40s. Treharne (2000) dates this hand and manuscript to s. xii2/4 (pp. 25-26). That dating is re-confirmed here, probably closer to the middle of the century than earlier, even though the ruling is blind. Palaeographical affinities can be found with the Worcester manuscripts, Worcester Cathedral Libary F. 82 and F. 83, both datable to s. xiimed. Small extracts of these manuscripts appear in Thomson 2001 (pl. 42 (a)-(f)). See Ker 1957, p. 406; Treharne 2000, pp. 25-26.

Summary of the characteristics of the hand:

• a is Caroline, where the bow sometimes touches the preceding letter.
• The e of æ is very slightly taller than the top of a.
• Insular, rounded d is used in English, but with relatively high back, slightly shorter than that of ð; straight-backed d with an oblique serif to the right is used in Latin.
• f is Caroline and sits on the line, with the mid-stroke often touching the following letter in ligature. The head of f is occasionally slightly flattened.
• g is Caroline with a closed bowl, and is thus eight-shaped, one of Ker's (1957) defining characteristics of s. xiimed hands. From its top bow, it often ligatures with the following letter.
• h is Caroline.
• p has a well-defined horizontal foot (again, typical of mid-twelfth-century hands).
• r is consistently Caroline, with a curved serif.
• s is Caroline, with a determined onset stroke. Its head is occasionally slightly flattened.
• The cross-bar of the t is often pierced by the stem, a feature seen in mid-twelfth-century script.
• þ has a large bowl, and a descender that is slightly short in relation to the rest of the graph.
• The ascender of ð is higher than other ascenders, and the cross-bar curves up on the right.
• ƿ has a large pointed bowl, and short, straight descender.
• y is rounded, sits just on the line, or slightly below, and is consistently dotted in the middle of the v-shaped limbs.
• ascenders end in oblique serif rising from the left to the right or have a wedge.
• descenders are generally short and straight, with the exception of p, which has a straight foot across the descender. Occasionally, descenders curve gently to the left.

Punctuation:

• Punctuation in the form of a semicolon at the end of a sentence occurs regularly up to p. 19, but seldom after that.
• The punctus is frequently used, and sits on the line.
• Hyphens are used throughout at line ends, and at placed at a slight angle.

Abbreviations:

• Abbreviation marks are curved at the right, ending in a blob.
• The abbreviation for 'that' consists of a þ with the abbreviation mark to the right of the ascender.
• 'Men' is abbreviated to M (often uncial in shape) with a macron above it.
• 'leofestan' is usually abbreviated simply to l with a line through it.
• 'Drihten' is abbreviated with a macron over the t.
• The ˥ is formed with a 45º angle between headstroke and descender, and usually with a pronounced upward tick to the left of the headstroke.The tail tends to curve just below the line to the left.

Ligatures:

• The st ligature is used but not consistently.
• The or ligature where the r is 2-shaped is used but not consistently.

Litterae Notabiliores:

The Litterae Notabiliores are closely related to those seen in other Worcester manuscripts of this date, and slightly earlier. They are red, pen-drawn, and display little roundels in the leg or the bowl. glosses and alterations

Hand: glosses

Scope: minor

Scribe: Tremulous Scribe

Script: English Vernacular Minuscule

Description: There are several layers of glosses by the Tremulous Hand.

Date: s. xiii1