Record of the benefactors of the Benedictine Monastery of San Benito in Valladolid: MS Charles Fairfax Murray 28

Titles

Record of the benefactors of the Benedictine Monastery of San Benito in Valladolid

Entities

• Other

Categories

• Illuminated manuscript
• Manuscript

Description

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Parchment, 55 fols., 355 x 255 mm (233 x 173 mm), two columns, 36-54 lines, ruled in plummet, pink or brown ink

BINDING: Early sixteenth century, Spain, brown leather over wooden boards, sewn on six supports, blind-stamped with mudéjar ornament and panel stamps formed of scrolls inhabited by birds and animals, four gilded catch plates with trefoil design on lower cover (two at fore-edge, one at head and one at tail), remains of four leather straps with gilded metal fittings on upper cover, seven (out of original eight) gilded corner-pieces (four on upper cover, three remaining on lower cover) with three different shields of arms: Papal tiara and crossed keys, Castile and Leon quarterly, and Castile and Leon quartered with Navarre and Aragon, chain attachment on lower cover, blind-stamped inscription in the borders of panel stamps on upper cover: BENEDITV[M] SID DVLCE NO[MEN] DO[MIN]I N[OST]RI IH[ES]V XPI ET GLORIOSISIME VIRGINIS MARIE MATRIS EIVS, blind-stamped inscription in the borders of panel stamps on lower cover: ante deum stantes non sitis corde vagantes, label on lower cover protected by three horn plates held within a metal frame with floral border containing birds and eight lines of text written in gold on alternate blue and red grounds: Este es el libro / de las memorias / de los bien fecho/res e amigos de / este monasterio / d[e] sant benito ha/se de leer en conven/to dos vezes en el ano

SECUNDO FOLIO: sacrificios et oraciones

SCRIPT: Gothic bookhand (textualis) with additions in Gothic and Humanistic cursive hands

CONTENTS
fols. 3r-54v Record of the benefactors of the Benedictine Monastery of San Benito in Valladolid (ed. Colombás 1963)

DECORATION
Fifteenth century
Four framed column miniatures [10-11 ll.] with the arms of Castile and Leon (quarterly) surmounted by a royal crown and supported by two angels kneeling in a landscape, the miniature on fol. 6r accompanied by a partial floral and spraywork border with birds and ape, and a gold and blue bar with acanthus between the text columns (fols. 5v, 6r, 6v).

Four shield of emblematic arms within laurel wreaths supported by kneeling angels in lower borders: fol. 15r Popes’ arms; fol. 16r Archbishops’ arms; fol. 17r Bishops’ arms; fol. 18r Nobles’ arms.

Sixteenth century
Large framed miniature showing the royal arms of Spain surmounted by a royal crown within a pomegranate wreath, upheld by a nimbed spread eagle, and supported by two angels standing in a landscape, each holding a sheaf of arrows (emblem of the Catholic kings of Spain) and a blank scroll, with full acanthus and floral border containing animals, birds, insects, pomegranates, and, a fountain with a columbine, birds and a pinnacle flanked by putti and topped with a crown (fol. 7r); full-page framed miniature with the arms of Philip II of Spain and the first three lines of text written in gold ink on red ground in the lower border (fol. 10r); two framed column miniatures [15 ll.] separated by a red band with gold foliate ornament and showing (left) a bust-length portrait of Philip III of Spain wearing the collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece and (right) a towered gateway with a bell surmounted by a phoenix among flames and flanked by a scroll inscribed with the motto EX ME IPSO RENASCOR (fol. 11v); framed column miniature [15 ll.] with bust-length portrait of Philip IV of Spain wearing the collar of the Order of the Golden Fleece (fol. 12r); small shield of arms of Don Frances de Alava surmounted by a coronet (fol. 13r); framed column miniature [16 ll.] showing (left) Don Fernando de Astúniga reading in a study and (right) his coat of arms surmounted by a green hat with six tassels on either side and upheld by angels kneeling in a landscape, with full floral and acanthus border inhabited by animals, birds, insects and hybrids (fol. 32v), and a matching three-sided border on the facing recto (fol. 33r); framed column miniature [15 ll.] with the shield of arms of Doctor Talavera de Maldonado resting on two lions and framed within a pink stone arch (fol. 33v); framed column miniature [16 ll.] with the shield of arms of Alvar Gonçáles de Léon within a laurel wreath held by four putti with two-sided floral and acanthus border inhabited by birds, insects and a hybrid (fol. 34v); framed miniature [17 ll.] extending across both text columns showing (left) Don Alonso de Valdevieso, Bishop pf Leon, enthroned, blessing, and holding a blank scroll and a crosier, and (right) his shield of arms surmounted by a green hat with nine tassels on either side and upheld by two angels kneeling in a landscape (fol. 39v).

Two initials formed of graded grey acanthus on gold grounds: fol. 29r [A, 18 ll.] Shield of arms of Alfonso Sanches de Logroño; fol. 30r [A, 22 ll.] Shield of arms of Alonso de Avila; ink drawing of an identical initial [A, 22 ll.] left incomplete, but intended for the arms of Juan Alfonso de Logroño, as revealed by the text beneath (fol. 29v).

Blue and mauve initial [U, 14 ll.] enclosing the arms of Gutierre de Cárdenas on gold ground and extending into a partial acanthus, floral and spraywork border containing animals and birds (fol. 31r).

Two initials formed of graded blue acanthus on gold grounds with full floral and acanthus borders containing jewels and birds: fol. 41v [A, 16 ll.] Shield of arms of Cornejo impaled with Tovar; fol. 42v Shield of arms of Gonçalo Arias.


Seventeenth century
Shiled of arms of Bentura de Onís within a laurel wreath (fol. 36v); framed column miniature [13 ll.] with shield of arms of Joseph Gonzáles surmounted by a coronet, with full floral and spraywork border (fol. 38v).

ORNAMENTATION
Fifteenth century
Pink or blue initials [7-9 ll.] formed of acanthus with floral infill on black ground, and acanthus or floral and spraywork extensions forming partial borders, some accompanied by birds, hybrids and putti (e.g. fols. 3r, 26v); graded blue or mauve initials [4-5 ll.] formed of acanthus and filled with foliage and flowers on gold grounds; gold initials [2-7 ll.] on blue and pink or blue and mauve grounds with delicate white filigree; gold or blue initials [2-5 ll.] on tan and/or blue grounds with delicate white ornament; pink initials [12 ll.] with blue pen-flourished infill and extensions; alternate gold and blue initials [3-6 ll.] with elaborate blue or red pen-flourished infill and extensions; alternate gold and blue one-line initials with blue or red pen flourishing; calligraphic capitals [1-14 ll.] highlighted in yellow or green, the largest ones with cadel-like marginal extensions; alternate gold and blue paraph marks.

Sixteenth century
Graded pink initials [1-11 ll.] formed of and filled with acanthus on brown grounds with gold ornament, occasionally accompanied by full or partial compartmentalised floral and acanthus borders (e.g. fols. 32v, 33r, 34r); gold epigraphic capitals [3-6 ll.] on red grounds; brown ink initials [3 ll.] with foliate motifs in thin yellow wash on plain parchment grounds; red penwork initials [3-4 ll.] with reserved ornament.

Seventeenth century
Gold epigraphic capital [E, 5 ll.] on blue ground with foliate scrollwork (fol. 38v); red penwork initials [1-2 ll.].

PROVENANCE
Made at the Benedictine monastery of San Benito, Valladolid, after 1454; still there in the eighteenth century, according to the ownership inscription on fol. 4r: Fundacíon de San Benito; classmark ‘N 431’ written in black ink inside upper cover; nineteenth-century inscription on fol. 2r: Fr. Martin Granado Alonso Hijo profeso y conventual del Monasterio de San Martin de Santiago natural y residente (desde la epoca de m exclaustracion verificada en cua[tro] de Septe de 1835 asta el presente de 1843) en la Villa de la Mota del Marques leyo trec veces este libro de memorias de los Bienechores y amigos del Monasterio de N.P.S. Benito el Real de Valladolid. La Mota y octubre cinco de mil ocho-cientos cuarenta y tres. Fr. Martin Granado Alonso; Charles Fairfax Murray (1849–1919); his gift, 1904.

COMMENTS


EXHIBITIONS:

Notes

History note: Made at the Benedictine monastery of San Benito, Valladolid, after 1454; still there in the eighteenth century, according to the ownership inscription on fol. 4r: Fundacíon de San Benito; classmark ‘N 431’ written in black ink inside upper cover; nineteenth-century inscription on fol. 2r: Fr. Martin Granado Alonso Hijo profeso y conventual del Monasterio de San Martin de Santiago natural y residente (desde la epoca de m exclaustracion verificada en cua[tro] de Septe de 1835 asta el presente de 1843) en la Villa de la Mota del Marques leyo trec veces este libro de memorias de los Bienechores y amigos del Monasterio de N.P.S. Benito el Real de Valladolid. La Mota y octubre cinco de mil ocho-cientos cuarenta y tres. Fr. Martin Granado Alonso; Charles Fairfax Murray (1849–1919); his gift, 1904.