Page:Somerset Historical Essays.djvu/54

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44
THE SAXON ABBOTS OF GLASTONBURY

sequence of the names which it records. Names could be gathered from tombs and from martyrological entries: but exact dates for the most part would be impossible of recovery, unless the compiler made a close study of the charters as William of Malmesbury himself did.

The two lists need no further comment: they speak for themselves. We need only note certain possible identifications. Luca may be a mistake for Muca. Wiccea is probably a mistake for Ticcea, which we have found as an alternative spelling of Tica. Hunbeorht may be the same as Tumbert or Tunbeorht. Perhaps less probable is the identification of Cealdhun with Waldunus. On the other hand iEndhun looks like a misspelling of Aldhun. In all these instances except the last it is the initial consonant which seems to have gone wrong. As our list comes to us in a Winchester manuscript of about a century after the compiler's date, it is possible that at some stage in its transmission the initials were left to be inserted by a rubricator, who made the best attempt he could at putting them in. There are actual examples of lists of bishops in which absurd errors have been introduced in this way.[1]


APPENDIX A

The Liber Terrarum of Glastonbury

The manuscript at Trinity College, Cambridge (no. 724), from which Hearne printed the De Antiquitate and the History of Adam of Domerham, contains various pieces which bear on the story and life of the monastery. Some of these Hearne printed in his Adam of Domerham, others in his John of Glastonbury.

On f. 101 of this MS there is a Catalogue of Books which were in the Library in the year 1247. This is given by Hearne (J. of G., p. 423), who notes that a later hand has changed the date to 1248, and has cancelled certain entries and inserted fresh ones: the former class Hearne indicates by a dotted line, the latter by square brackets. Thus on p. 435 we have the following interesting entries in succession.

Liber terrarum Glaston. vetust. set leaibilis.

………

Lib. de consuetudinibus. no. unus editus sub Edgaro, de racionali observancia. legibilis. [alius de Cadomo.]

Taking the second entry first, we note that there were in the Library two Books of Customs. One is described as legible, though put forth in K. Edgar's time. This would be an early copy of the famous Regularis

  1. Thus in the Lambeth MS of Florence of Worcester we find Bodeca and Bisa among the bishops of Wells, for Dodeca (Dudoc) and Gisa.