MS in Latin on vellum, Guilford, England, 17 January 1215, 1 f., 19x21 cm, (14x19 cm), 13 long lines in a fine English court documentary script, flourished capitals, by Richard Marsh, Chancellor of England, with the Great Seal of England in dark green wax.

Binding: England, 1960-es, green quarter morocco gilt folding case.

Provenance:1. Cistercian Abbey of St. Mary, Beaulieu, Hampshire (1215-ca. 1539); 2. Edward Michell, Monkton House near Chippenham, Wiltshire; 3. Edward Michell's mother; 4. Philip Bliss, Oxford (1787-1857); 5. Sotheby's 21.8.1858:95; 6. Sir Thomas Phillipps, Cheltenham, Ph 18143 (1858-1872); 7. Katharine, John, Thomas & Alan Fenwick, Cheltenham, (1872-1946); 8. Sotheby's 11.11.1946:136; 9. Bernard Quaritch Ltd., London.

Commentary: Written only a few months before the completion of Magna Carta. Here the Great Seal of England is present, while it is missing on the 4 copies of the original Magna Carta.

Exhibited: University of Oslo. Library of Law Faculty: Opening exhibition of Domus Bibliotheca, 5-27 May 1994.

MS in French and Latin on vellum, Wasingham, England, 6 February 1297, 1 f., 36x51 cm, (30x47 cm), 45 long lines in a rounded court documentary script, ascenders on the first line, decorated opening initial, red wax seal of the bishop of Durham, thong of 1 more seal.

Binding: England, 1946-1971, display box.

Provenance: 1. Sir Thomas Phillipps, Cheltenham, Ph 27718 (-1872); 2. Katharine, John, Thomas & Alan Fenwick, Cheltenham, (1872-1946); 3. Robinson Bros., London (1946-1977); 4. Sotheby's 14.6.1971:1417; 5. Hoffman & Freeman (1971-1974); 6. Bernard Rosenthal Collection, San Francisco, I/234 (1974-1989); 7. Bernard Quaritch Ltd., London.

Commentary:Armed with this treaty of alliance between England and Flanders, the 3 bishops were at the date of this inspeximus on their way to the French king to negotiate a truce between the allies and France. The negotiation failed, as was intended, and Edward led an expedition to Flanders in August 1297.

The treaty is printed in Rymer, Foedera, I, 1816, 850, but the inspeximus seems to be unrecorded.

MS in Latin on vellum, Lacock, Wiltshire, England, 6 March 1311, 1 f., 22x35 cm, (16x29 cm), 24 long lines in a fine English court documentary script, decorated opening letter, 3 seals of mandorla form, 6.6x3,5 cm, 5,8x3,2 cm and 6,5x4,5 cm, of the Bishop of Salisbury (green wax), the Abbess, and the Convent (brown wax).

Provenance: 1. Augustinian Abbey of St. Mary, Lacock, Wiltshire (1311-); 2. Sir Thomas Phillipps, Cheltenham, Ph 32677 (-1872); 3. Katharine, John, Thomas and Alan Fenwick, Cheltenham (1872-1946); 4. Robinson Bros, London (1946-1981); 5. Sotheby's 13.4.1981:105g; 6. Bernard Quaritch Ltd., London.

Commentary: Lacock Abbey, a house of Augustinian canonesses, was founded in 1229 by Ela, heiress of William, Earl of Salisbury, and wife of William Longspée. The Bluet or Blut family of Lackham were notable benefactors.

Exhibited: Comité International de Palaéographie Latin (CIPL) at Senate House, University of London , 3 September 2008.

MS in Latin on vellum, Waterlere, Germany, 1332, 1 f., 51x36 cm, (42x31 cm), 63+4 long lines in a fine Gothic documentary script, important words in red, initials touched with red, a 3- line and a 4-line flourished initial in red.

Provenance: 1. Jacques Rosenthal (Hans Koch), München (1965); 2. Bernard Rosenthal Collection, San Francisco, I/182 (1965-1989); 3. Bernard Quaritch Ltd., London.

MS in Latin on vellum, Barcelona, Spain, 7 June 1401, 1 f., 31x43 cm, (24x38 cm), 31 long lines in Gothic documentary script, notarial mark twice. Annotated on reverse.

Provenance: 1. Dolphin, Oxford (1960); 2. Bernard Rosenthal Collection, San Francisco, I/103 (1960-1989); 3. Bernard Quaritch Ltd., London.

Commentary: This MS is attesting to the continuation of the practice of domestic slavery.

MS in Latin with legal terms in Anglo-Saxon, proper names and endorsement in Middle Scots, on vellum, Falkland, Scotland, 24 April 1417, 1 f., 21x33 cm, (13x26 cm), 20 long lines in a Scottish secretary documentary script, large initial with penwork infill, Great Seal of Scotland in white wax, diam. 10 cm, showing the Governor Robert duke of Albany, seated, with a mounted knight in armour on the other side.

Binding: Barking, Essex, 1995, red cloth gilt folding case, by Aquarius.

Provenance: 1. Robert Stewart, Duke of Albany, Scotland (1417-); 2. Jeremy Griffiths, Oxford.

Commentary: The charter includes the Anglo-Saxon terms "Outfangandthief" and "Infangandthief", which is quite remarkable for a Scottish document. The terms refer to the jurisdiction over thieves both within and without the lands being granted.

The seal is showing the Governor in the place of King, James I, who, at this time was still a prisoner of the English, and was not crowned until his release in 1424. Both charter and seal are unrecorded.

Several witnesses of interest: Robert's eldest son Murdach spent many years in prison in England after being captured at the Battle of Homildon in 1402. He was executed before Stirling Castle on 25th May 1425 on a charge of high treason. Robert's other son, John Stewart, is famous for leading 6000 Scots to France and defeating the English at the Battle of Beauge, and was made Constable of France. He later raised another force of 10.000 men, but was defeated with great slaughter by the English on the 17th August 1424 at the battle of Verneuil.

MS i in Latin on vellum, Buda, Hungary, 25 April 1464, 1 f., 27x53 cm, (16x40 cm), 24 long lines in Hungarian secretary documentary cursive script, first line with calligraphic ornamentation, with the Great Royal seal of Hungary in red wax, diam. 7 cm.

Provenance: 1. Hartung & Hartung, München, Auktion 63, 13.11.1990:84.

Commentary: An exceptionally rare document, issued by Hungary's celebrated renaissance king, Matthias Corvinus.

MS in Latin on vellum, Kirkwall, Orkney, 3 April 1565, 1 f., 18x45 cm, (10x38 cm), 15 long lines in a cursive secretary documentary script, flourished initial, notarial manual, episcopal seal in red wax of Adam Bothwell, diam. 6 cm, showing St. Magnus within arches of the Cathedral.

Binding: Barking, Essex, 1993, red cloth gilt folding case, 73x53 cm, by Aquarius.

Provenance: 1. Cathedral of St. Magnus, Kirkwall, Orkney (1565); 2. June O'Donnell (-1979); 3. Alan Thomas, London (ca. 1979-1992); 4. Shirley Thomas, London (1992-1993); 5. Sotheby's 21.6.1993:11(18).

Commentary: Adam Bothwell was bishop of Orkney and Shetland 1559-93. He performed the marriage of Mary Queen of Scots to Bothwell, and christened James VI.

Magnus was co-earl of the Orkneys with Håkon Pålssøn. On 16 April 1115 he was killed by his cousin, Håkon, King of Norway. Magnus was subsequently venerated as a martyr. His sister-son, Earl Ragnvald, started the building of the Cathedral to his honour in 1137. Besides the Nidaros Cathedral in Trondheim, the Magnus Cathedral is the most substantial Norwegian building preserved from the Middle Ages.

Any document from the Orkneys are of the greatest rarity. MSS 1676/1-2 are the only ones in a private collection.

MS in Latin on vellum, Verona, Italy, October-November 1274, 1 f., 40x11 cm, (38x10 cm), 62 long lines in Italian rounded documentary script, notarial mark, 4 lines in Italian added later on reverse.

Context: From the complete archive of 918 documents from 1274 - ca. 1600, that belonged to the Colloredo family in Friuli and Udine in North-East Italy, and its collateral branches, e.g. Mansfeld, Mels and Waldsee in Austria and Slovenia.

Provenance: 1. Colloredo-Mansfeld family, Friuli and Udine (1274-1974); 2. Bernard Rosenthal, San Francisco (1974-1989).

Commentary: Many members of the Colloredo Mansfeld family were involved in politics, literature, the military and European diplomacy.

The documents in MSS 568 and 569 are confined to various areas of the Veneto, particularly Friuli, province of Udine and Pordenone, which is one of the areas of Italy which has consistently defended and maintained is cultural, folkloristic and linguistic traditions, as well as its religious and legal institutions. In the present MSS traces of the local dialects, derived form Ladino roots, are frequently found, particularly in personal and geographical names, in the names of weights and measures.

Traces of legal institutions typical of the ancient Lombard culture are found in the present documents: Masnada, the men and women of "masnada" were virtually slaves and could be sold, traded or given as gifts (MSS 568/ 07, /82, /84, /105). Morgingagrius, a sort of dowry given by the husband to his new bride (MSS 568/118, /131, /227). Montadura (MS 568/131).

The Castello di Colloredo, near Udine, built in 1305, was destroyed in the great Friuli earthquake of 1976. If the present archive still had been housed there, it would have been destroyed as well.

MS in Latin on vellum, Avignon, 24 June 1321, 1 f., 44x56 cm, (26x47 cm), 20 long lines in papal chancery script, decorated opening initial, ascenders on letters on first line, lead seal in yellow and red cords, 13 lines annotations in upper margin.

Provenance: 1. Papal Chancery, Avignon (1321; 2. l'Art Ancien, Zürich (1960); 3. Bernard Rosenthal Collection, San Francisco (1960-1989); 4. Bernard Quaritch Ltd., London.

MS in Latin on vellum, Italy, Mantua, 25 October 1490, 1 f., 44x56 cm, (20x43 cm), 24 long lines in an upright humanistic book script, by Sigismondo Golfo(?), the secretary of the Marquis of Mantua, and subscribed by him, first line in very large capitals in burnished gold, large illuminated initial F, 12x6 cm, with white-vine interlace against a ground of blue, pink and green, 2 roundels in colour, one with the Gonzaga device of a muzzle with a scroll across with the inscription "Bider Kraft" (rightous strength).

Context: The chancery copy of the decree is likely to be still in the Mantuan archives, most probably in the "Copialettere in busta 2903, f II 9/133, 134 or 135".

Provenance: 1. Christoforo Poggi, Bologna (from 1490); 2. Rizzo, Milano (until 1989); 3. Sam Fogg Rare Books Ltd., London.

Commentary: Christoforo Poggi was secretary to Giovanni Bentivoglio, lord of Bologna. Both Poggi and Golfo were humanist writers. Golfo instructed and provided books for Francesco Gonzaga's wife, the great Renaissance patron and collector, Isabella d'Este. Poggi was also a humanist writer, which may account for the unusual richness in the decoration of the decree, probably painted by one of the illuminators who decorated books prepared for Isabella d'Este and Francesco Gonzaga.

MS in Latin on vellum, Roma, Italy, 26 April 1568, 1 f., 49x70 cm, (30x54 cm), 29 long lines in a formal humanistic documentary script, first line in large gold capitals with blue floral decorations, initials and proper names in decorated blue and gold capitals, stamped notarial mark, metal seal case.

Context: 2 more degree diplomas from the University of Roma, MSS 260/67-68.

Provenance: 1. University of Roma (1568); 2. Johannes de Nardis of Aquila (from 1568); 3. Sotheby's 20.6.1989:30.