Dodoens’ Herbal in Glasgow University Library MS Ferguson 7 (ff. 23r–48v; 59r): A Physical Description

Abstract

This essay analyses the physical characteristics of an unexplored handwritten version of Rembert Dodoens’ A Niewe Herball or Historie of Plants kept in Glasgow University Library MS Ferguson 7 (ff. 23r–48v; 59r), which also stands, to my knowledge, as the only manuscript copy encompassing contents included in the English printed edition. A number of its codicological and palaeographic features are described, including, among others, the material, ink, foliation, scripts, abbreviations and marginalia. Like most papers of this class, the essay aims to suggest its most possible date of writing, permitting the research community to use it as a reliable source of evidence for both synchronic and diachronic studies inside an academic context. From a methodological viewpoint, the description is informed by three sources: 1) the computerised photographs of the manuscript; 2) certain information from the volume’s electronic catalogue entry; and 3) some data kindly offered via email by various staff members of the Archives and Special Collections Section of Glasgow University. All in all, the examination of the text eventually leads to propose the early seventeenth century — presumably around 1600–1630 — as date of writing.