Middle English Manuscripts : Mirror of the Life of Christ

Nicholas Love, active 1410

Middle English Manuscripts

<p style='text-align: justify;'>A very imperfect copy of the Lyif of Christ, or Myrrour of the Blessed Lyf of Jesu Christ, a translation by Nicholas Love of Pseudo-Bonaventura's Meditationes vitae Christi, dating from the beginning of the 15th century. This manuscript begins in chapter 32 of the Life and ends in chapter 55, with ten leaves between these points also missing. Inserted are notes by Joseph J. Green, cuttings and correspondence relating to the manuscript, including letters to Joseph J. Green from Walter Skeat (1835-1912), philologist; Lawrence F. Powell (1881-1975), literary scholar and librarian; and Rendell Harris, 1891-1920.</p><p style='text-align: justify;'>Lyif of Christ, or Myrrour of the Blessed Lyf of Jesu Christ, a translation by Nicholas Love of the Meditationes vitae Christi. Edition of Lawrence F. Powell, (1908): see bibliography below. The first words are in chapter 32, 'as þei diden we mowe' (Powell, p. 155 line 11), and the last are in chapter 55, 'medicine ayens swiche' (Powell, p. 274 line 12; folio 50 is damaged). The ten leaves missing between these points are equivalent to twenty pages of the Roxburghe Club edition :(1) folio 1v ends 'souereynly euer' (p. 157 line 21) and folio 2r begins 'of vertues' (p. 159 line 22); (2-4) folio 6v ends 'þer with þei' (p. 169 line 8) and folio 7r begins 'but wheþer' (p. 175 line 4); (5-6) folio 12v ends 'in þat preciowse' (p. 186 line 28) and folio 13r begins 'he cam nyh' (p. 190 line 22); (7) folio 24v ends 'and his preci', followed by the catchword 'owse blood' (p. 215 line 16) and folio 25r begins 'al his inward' (p. 217 line 23); (8) folio 44v ends 'of þin fowleste' (p. 256 line 18) and folio 45r begins 'but a litel' (p. 258 line 13); (9) folio 45v ends 'And so' (p. 260 line 11) and folio 46r begins 'restre. where þat' (p. 262 line 9); (10) folio 49v ends 'wiþ us in ma' (p. 270 line 12) and folio 50 begins 'and þe disciples' (p. 272 line 12).</p>