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Title

Expositio in Regulam Sancti Benedicti

Generic classification
Manuscripts and illuminations
Object
Manuscript
Date
ca. 880-900
Century
Late 9th c.
Cultural context / style
Visigothic
Dimensions
9,4 x 7,4 in
Material
Parchment, Ink
Technique
Handmade
Iconography / Theme
Regla de San Benito
Provenance
San Pedro de Cardeña Monastery (Castrillo del Val, Burgos, Spain)
Current location
John Rylands Library (Mánchester, United Kingdom)
Inventory Number in Current Collection
Latin MS 104
Object history

The Expositio in Regulam Sancti Benedicti was a work written by Smaragdo, an abbot of Gothic origin. Its purpose was to create a document that explained the Rule of St. Benedict in a simple way (Cuenca, 2016). One of the oldest manuscripts that copies the volume conceived by Smaragdo is this one. Its dating and provenance have been widely debated:

James (1921) dated it to the year 945 and attributed it to the Monastery of Santo Domingo de Silos (Burgos) based on a comment made by Francisco de Berganza (1719) in Antigüedades de España; later, Shailor (1979) linked it to the Monastery of San Pedro de Cardeña (Burgos) and dated it to the late 9th century; Recently, Silva (2020) studied its decoration and placed it in Cardeña at the beginning of the 10th century due to its relationship with the Moralia in Job and the Cardeña Bible, something that is supported by the John Rylands Library in Manchester. However, Cuenca (2016) is inclined to think that the manuscript was produced at the end of the 9th century and the beginning of the 10th century.

Be that as it may, most researchers agree on its origin: San Pedro de Cardeña (Burgos). The confiscation of church property severely affected the monastery, with numerous copies disappearing after 1835. It is not known how the volume left the monastery, but in the mid-19th century it was part of the private collection of Guglielmo Libri, who was known for stealing books from other libraries. When his dealings were discovered, he fled to England laden with rare books and manuscripts (Maccioni, 1991).

In June 1864, part of Libri's collection was sold at Sotheby's. Lot 114 describes the manuscript as follows:

"Smaragdi Abbatis Explicationes in Regulam Sancti Benedicti. Precious Manuscript on Vellum; written by a Spanish scribe in the early part of the IXth Century (probably circa 820), in Visigothic letters of a singular form."

Subsequently, on February 7, 1895, the volume was sold again at Christie's, this time in lot 63. On this occasion, it was purchased by James Ludovic Lindsay, Earl of Crawford, for £211 (James, 1921). The manuscript remained in his possession until 1901, when Henrietta Rylands bought it. Finally, she bequeathed the codex to the John Rylands Library (Manchester) in 1908, where it remains today.

Description

The manuscript consists of 188 folios, each with 27 lines. It is written in round Visigothic script and has limited decoration, with colors such as green, yellow, and red standing out. It is believed that at least two scribes may have been involved due to the different handwriting on some of the folios (Cuenca, 2016).

* The relative location of dealers, antique shops, art galleries, and collectors leads us to the places where they were based or had one of their main headquarters. However, this does not always indicate that every artwork that passed through their hands was physically located there. In the case of antique dealers and art merchants, their business often extended across multiple territories; sometimes they would purchase items at their origin and send them directly to clients. Similarly, some collectors owned multiple residences, sometimes in different countries, where they housed their collections. It is often difficult to determine exactly where a specific piece was kept during its time in their possession. Consequently, the main location of the dealer or collector is indicated. These factors should be considered when interpreting the map. Refer to the object's history in each case.
Bibliography
Citation:

Isabel Escalera Fernández, "Expositio in Regulam Sancti Benedicti" in Nostra et Mundi. Cultural Heritage from Castile and Leon around the world, Fundación Castilla y León, 2025. https://inventario.nostraetmundi.com/en/work/492

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