English MS 3

Wycliffe Gospels, mid 15th century

Size: 173 x 120 mm. xii + 200 + iii folios.

Later version of John Wycliffe's translation of the four Gospels, in the order Luke, John, Matthew and Mark. The usual prologue precedes each Gospel. At the beginning of each book is a 4- or 5-line initial in blue and red ink with red penwork infill and flourishes.

According to the elaborate nineteenth-century title page, the manuscript was presented by Francis Newport to Queen Elizabeth in 1560. In 1861 Alexander William Crawford Lindsay, later 25th Earl of Crawford, purchased the manuscript from James Dix of Bristol for �250.

Related links

• Catalogue entry for English MS 3
• Conservation report

Manuscript Index