10 Manuscript Description
Table of contents
10.1 OverviewTEI: Overview¶
This module34 defines a special purpose element which can be used to provide detailed descriptive information about handwritten primary sources. Although originally developed to meet the needs of cataloguers and scholars working with medieval manuscripts in the European tradition, the scheme presented here is general enough that it can also be extended to other traditions and materials, and is potentially useful for any kind of inscribed artefact.
The scheme described here is also intended to accommodate the needs of many different classes of encoders. On the one hand, encoders may be engaged in retrospective conversion of existing detailed descriptions and catalogues into machine tractable form; on the other, they may be engaged in cataloguing ex nihilo, that is, creating new detailed descriptions for materials never before catalogued. Some may be primarily concerned to represent accurately the description itself, as opposed to the ideas and interpretations the description represents; others may have entirely opposite priorities. At one extreme, a project may simply wish to capture an existing catalogue in a form that can be displayed on the Web, and which can be searched for literal strings, or for such features such as titles, authors and dates; at the other, a project may wish to create, in highly structured and encoded form, a detailed database of information about the physical characteristics, history, interpretation, etc. of the material, able to support practitioners of quantitative codicology as well as librarians.
To cater for this diversity, here as elsewhere, these Guidelines propose a flexible approach, in which encoders must choose for themselves the degree of prescription appropriate to their needs, and are provided with a choice of encoding mechanisms to support those differing degrees.
10.2 The Manuscript Description ElementTEI: The Manuscript Description Element¶
- msDesc (manuscript description) contains a description of a single identifiable manuscript or other text-bearing object.
- msIdentifier (manuscript identifier) contains the information required to identify the manuscript being described.
- head (heading) contains any type of heading, for example the title of a section, or the heading of a list, glossary, manuscript description, etc.
- msContents (manuscript contents) describes the intellectual content of a manuscript or manuscript part, either as a series of paragraphs or as a series of structured manuscript items.
- physDesc (physical description) contains a full physical description of a manuscript or manuscript part, optionally subdivided using more specialized elements from the model.physDescPart class.
- history groups elements describing the full history of a manuscript or manuscript part.
- additional groups additional information, combining bibliographic information about a manuscript, or surrogate copies of it with curatorial or administrative information.
- msPart (manuscript part) contains information about an originally distinct manuscript or part of a manuscript, now forming part of a composite manuscript.
The first of these components, msIdentifier, is the only one which is mandatory; it is described in more detail in 10.4 The Manuscript Identifier below. It is followed optionally by one or more head elements, each holding a brief heading (see 10.5 The Manuscript Heading), and then either one or more paragraphs, marked up as a series of p elements, or one or more of the specialized elements msContents (10.6 Intellectual Content), physDesc (10.7 Physical Description), history (10.8 History), and additional (10.9 Additional information). These elements are all optional, but if used they must appear in the order given here. Finally, in the case of a composite manuscript, a full description may also contain one or more msPart elements (10.10 Manuscript Parts).
<msIdentifier>
<settlement>Oxford</settlement>
<repository>Bodleian Library</repository>
<idno>MS. Add. A. 61</idno>
<altIdentifier type="SC">
<idno>28843</idno>
</altIdentifier>
</msIdentifier>
<p>In Latin, on parchment: written in more than one hand of the 13th
cent. in England: 7¼ x 5⅜ in., i + 55 leaves, in double columns: with
a few coloured capitals.</p>
<p>'Hic incipit Bruitus Anglie,' the De origine et gestis Regum
Angliae of Geoffrey of Monmouth (Galfridus Monumetensis: beg. 'Cum
mecum multa & de multis.'</p>
<p>On fol. 54v very faint is 'Iste liber est fratris guillelmi de
buria de ... Roberti ordinis fratrum Pred[icatorum],' 14th cent. (?):
'hanauilla' is written at the foot of the page (15th cent.). Bought
from the rev. W. D. Macray on March 17, 1863, for £1 10s.</p>
</msDesc>
<msIdentifier>
<settlement>Oxford</settlement>
<repository>Bodleian Library</repository>
<idno>MS. Add. A. 61</idno>
<altIdentifier type="SC">
<idno>28843</idno>
</altIdentifier>
</msIdentifier>
<msContents>
<p>
<quote>Hic incipit Bruitus Anglie,</quote> the
<title>De origine et gestis Regum Angliae</title>
of Geoffrey of Monmouth (Galfridus Monumetensis):
beg. <quote>Cum mecum multa & de multis.</quote>
In Latin.</p>
</msContents>
<physDesc>
<p>
<material>Parchment</material>: written in
more than one hand: 7¼ x 5⅜ in., i + 55 leaves, in double
columns: with a few coloured capitals.</p>
</physDesc>
<history>
<p>Written in
<origPlace>England</origPlace> in the
<origDate>13th cent.</origDate> On fol. 54v very faint is
<quote>Iste liber est fratris guillelmi de buria de ... Roberti
ordinis fratrum Pred[icatorum],</quote> 14th cent. (?):
<quote>hanauilla</quote> is written at the foot of the page
(15th cent.). Bought from the rev. W. D. Macray on March 17, 1863, for
£1 10s.</p>
</history>
</msDesc>
<msIdentifier>
<settlement>Oxford</settlement>
<repository>Bodleian Library</repository>
<idno>MS. Add. A. 61</idno>
<altIdentifier type="SC">
<idno>28843</idno>
</altIdentifier>
</msIdentifier>
<msContents>
<msItem>
<author xml:lang="en">Geoffrey of Monmouth</author>
<author xml:lang="la">Galfridus Monumetensis</author>
<title type="uniform" xml:lang="la">De origine et
gestis Regum Angliae</title>
<rubric xml:lang="la">Hic incipit Bruitus Anglie</rubric>
<incipit xml:lang="la">Cum mecum multa & de multis</incipit>
<textLang mainLang="la">Latin</textLang>
</msItem>
</msContents>
<physDesc>
<objectDesc form="codex">
<supportDesc material="perg">
<support>
<p>Parchment.</p>
</support>
<extent>i + 55 leaves
<dimensions scope="all" type="leaf" unit="inch">
<height>7¼</height>
<width>5⅜</width>
</dimensions>
</extent>
</supportDesc>
<layoutDesc>
<layout columns="2">
<p>In double columns.</p>
</layout>
</layoutDesc>
</objectDesc>
<handDesc>
<p>Written in more than one hand.</p>
</handDesc>
<decoDesc>
<p>With a few coloured capitals.</p>
</decoDesc>
</physDesc>
<history>
<origin>
<p>Written in <origPlace>England</origPlace> in the <origDate notAfter="1300" notBefore="1200">13th cent.</origDate>
</p>
</origin>
<provenance>
<p>On fol. 54v very faint is
<quote xml:lang="la">Iste liber est fratris guillelmi de buria de <gap/>
Roberti ordinis fratrum
Pred<ex>icatorum</ex>
</quote>, 14th cent. (?):
<quote>hanauilla</quote> is written at the foot of the page
(15th cent.).</p>
</provenance>
<acquisition>
<p>Bought from the rev. <name key="MCRAYWD">W. D. Macray</name> on
<date when="1863-03-17">March 17, 1863</date>, for £1 10s.</p>
</acquisition>
</history>
</msDesc>
10.3 Phrase-level ElementsTEI: Phrase-level Elements¶
- catchwords describes the system used to ensure correct ordering of the quires making up a codex or incunable, typically by means of annotations at the foot of the page.
- dimensions contains a dimensional specification.
- heraldry contains a heraldic formula or phrase, typically found as part of a blazon, coat of arms, etc.
- locus defines a location within a manuscript or manuscript part, usually as a (possibly discontinuous) sequence of folio references.
- locusGrp groups a number of locations which together form a distinct but discontinuous item within a manuscript or manuscript part, according to a specific foliation.
- material contains a word or phrase describing the material of which the object being described is composed.
- watermark contains a word or phrase describing a watermark or similar device.
- objectType contains a word or phrase describing the type of object being refered to.
- origDate (origin date) contains any form of date, used to identify the date of origin for a manuscript or manuscript part.
- origPlace (origin place) contains any form of place name, used to identify the place of origin for a manuscript or manuscript part.
- secFol (second folio) The word or words taken from a fixed point in a codex (typically the beginning of the second leaf) in order to provide a unique identifier for it.
- signatures contains discussion of the leaf or quire signatures found within a codex.
Within a manuscript description, many other standard TEI phrase level elements are available, notably those described in the Core module (3 Elements Available in All TEI Documents). Additional elements of particular relevance to manuscript description, such as those for names and dates, may also be made available by including the relevant module in one's schema.
10.3.1 OriginationTEI: Origination¶
The origDate and origPlace elements are specialized forms of the existing date and name elements respectively, used to indicate specifically the date and place of origin of a manuscript or manuscript part. Such information would normally be encoded within the history element, discussed in section 10.8 History. origDate and origPlace can also be used to identify the place or date of origin of any aspect of the manuscript, such as its decoration or binding, when these are not of the same date as the manuscript itself. Both these elements are members of the att.editLike class, from which they inherit many attributes.
The origDate element is a member of the att.datable class, and may thus also carry additional attributes giving normalized values for the associated dating.
10.3.2 Material and object typeTEI: Material and object type¶
- material contains a word or phrase describing the material of which the object being described is composed.
- objectType contains a word or phrase describing the type of object being refered to.
<p>Brown <material>calfskin</material>, previously with two clasps.</p>
</binding>
<p>
<material>Parchment</material>
<objectType>codex</objectType> with half <material>goat-leather</material> binding.</p>
</support>
10.3.3 Watermarks and StampsTEI: Watermarks and Stamps¶
<material>Rag
paper</material> with <watermark>anchor</watermark>
watermark
</support>
<lb/>Apologyticu TTVLLIANI AC IGNORATIA IN XPO IHV<lb/>SI NON LICET<lb/>NOBIS RO<lb/>manii imperii <stamp>Bodleian stamp</stamp>
<lb/>
</rubric>
<p>Modern calf recasing with original armorial stamp <stamp>Ex
Bibliotheca J. Richard D.M.</stamp>
</p>
</binding>
10.3.4 DimensionsTEI: Dimensions¶
- dimensions contains a dimensional specification.
type indicates which aspect of the object is being measured.
The dimensions element will normally occur within the element describing the particular feature or aspect of a manuscript whose dimensions are being given; thus the size of the leaves would be specified within the support or extent element (part of the physDesc element discussed in 10.7.1 Object Description), while the dimensions of other specific parts of a manuscript, such as accompanying materials, binding, etc., would be given in other parts of the description, as appropriate.
- height contains a measurement measured along the axis at right angles to the bottom of the written surface, i.e. parallel to the spine for a codex or book.
- width contains a measurement measured along the axis parallel to the bottom of the written surface, i.e. perpendicular to the spine of a book or codex.
- depth contains a measurement measured across the spine of a book or codex, or (for other text-bearing objects) perpendicular to the measurement given by the ‘width’ element.
- dim contains any single measurement forming part of a dimensional specification of some sort.
- att.dimensions provides attributes for describing the size of physical objects.
scope where the measurement summarizes more than one observation, specifies the applicability of this measurement. extent indicates the size of the object concerned using a project-specific vocabulary combining quantity and units in a single string of words. unit names the unit used for the measurement quantity specifies the length in the units specified - att.ranging provides attributes for describing numerical ranges.
atLeast gives a minimum estimated value for the approximate measurement. atMost gives a maximum estimated value for the approximate measurement. min where the measurement summarizes more than one observation or a range, supplies the minimum value observed. max where the measurement summarizes more than one observation or a range, supplies the maximum value observed.
Attributes scope, min and max are used only when the measurement applies to several items, for example the size of all leaves in a manuscript; attributes atLeast and atMost are used when the measurement applies to a single item, for example the size of a specific codex, but has had to be estimated. Attribute quantity is used when the measurement can be given exactly, and applies to a single item; this is the usual situation. In this case, the units in which dimensions are measured may be specified using the unit attribute, which will normally take from a closed set of values appropriate to the project, using standard units of measurement wherever possible, such as following values: cm, mm, in, line, char. If however the only data available for the measurement uses some other unit, or it is preferred to normalize it in some other way, then it may be supplied as a string value by means of the extent attribute.
unit="line"
scope="all"
min="12"
max="30"/>
<height scope="most" quantity="90" unit="mm"/>
<width scope="most" quantity="48" unit="mm"/>
</dimensions>
<dimensions type="leaves">
<height min="157" max="160" unit="mm"/>
<width quantity="105"/>
</dimensions>
<dim type="circumference" quantity="48" unit="mm"/>
<height quantity="90" unit="mm"/>
</dimensions>
The order in which components of the dimensions element may be supplied is not constrained.
10.3.5 References to Locations within a ManuscriptTEI: References to Locations within a Manuscript¶
- locus defines a location within a manuscript or manuscript part, usually as a
(possibly discontinuous) sequence of folio references.
from specifies the starting point of the location in a normalized form. to specifies the end-point of the location in a normalized form. scheme identifies the foliation scheme in terms of which the location is being specified. - locusGrp groups a number of locations which together form a
distinct but discontinuous item within a manuscript or manuscript
part, according to a specific foliation.
scheme identifies the foliation scheme in terms of which all the locations contained by the group are specified.
The locus element is used to reference a single location within a manuscription, typically to specify the location occupied by the element within which it appears. If, for example, it is used as the first component of a msItem or msItemStruct element, or of any of the more specific elements appearing within one (see further section 10.6 Intellectual Content below) then it is understood to specify the location (or locations) of that item within the manuscript being described.
10.3.5.1 Identifying a locationTEI: Identifying a location¶
<locus>ff. 1-24r</locus>
<title>Apocalypsis beati Ioannis Apostoli</title>
</msItem>
<locus from="1r" to="24r">ff. 1-24r</locus>
<title>Apocalypsis beati Ioannis Apostoli</title>
</msItem>
<locus>ff. 1-12v, 18-24r</locus>
<title>Apocalypsis beati Ioannis Apostoli</title>
</msItem>
<locusGrp>
<locus from="1r" to="12v">ff. 1-12v</locus>
<locus from="18" to="24r">ff. 18-24r</locus>
</locusGrp>
<title>Apocalypsis beati Ioannis Apostoli</title>
</msItem>
<locusGrp>
<locus from="1r" to="12v"/>
<locus from="18" to="24r"/>
</locusGrp>
<title>Apocalypsis beati Ioannis Apostoli</title>
</msItem>
10.3.5.2 Linking a location to a transcription or an imageTEI: Linking a location to a transcription or an image¶
The locus attribute can also be used to associate a location within a manuscript with facsimile images of that location, using the facs attribute, or with a transcription of the text occurring at that location. The former association is effected by means of the facs attribute; the latter by means of the target attribute.
<locus
facs="images/08v.jpg images/09r.jpg images/09v.jpg images/10r.jpg images/10v.jpg">fols. 8v-10v</locus>
<title>Birds Praise of Love</title>
<bibl>
<title>IMEV</title>
<biblScope>1506</biblScope>
</bibl>
</msItem>
<p>Several of the miniatures in this section have been damaged and
overpainted at a later date (e.g. the figure of Christ on <locus
facs="http://www.example.com/images.fr#F33R">fol. 33r</locus>; the
face of the Shepherdess on <locus
facs="http://www.example.com/images.fr#F59V">fol. 59v</locus>,
etc.).</p>
</decoDesc>
<locus target="#f1r #f1v #f2r">ff. 1r-2r</locus>
<author>Ben Jonson</author>
<title>Ode to himself</title>
<rubric rend="italics">
<lb/>
An Ode<lb/> to him selfe.</rubric>
<incipit>Com leaue the loathed stage</incipit>
<explicit>And see his chariot triumph ore his wayne.</explicit>
<bibl>
<name>Beal</name>, <title>Index 1450-1625</title>, JnB 380</bibl>
</msItem>
<!-- within transcription ... -->
<pb xml:id="f1r"/>
<!-- ... -->
<pb xml:id="f1v"/>
<!-- ... -->
<pb xml:id="f2r"/>
<!-- ... -->
When (as in this example) a sequence of elements is to be supplied as target value, it may be given explicitly as above, or using the xPointer range() syntax defined at 16.2.4.4 range(). Note however that support for this pointer mechanism is not widespread in current XML processing systems.
The target attribute should only be used to point to elements that contain or indicate a transcription of the locus being described. To associate a locus element with a page image or other comparable representation, the global facs attribute should be used instead.
10.3.5.3 Using multiple location schemesTEI: Using multiple location schemes¶
<locus scheme="#modern">135</locus>
<locus>XCIII</locus>
<locus>CC-CCII</locus>
</locusGrp>
<locusGrp scheme="#modern">
<locus>135</locus>
<locus>197-204</locus>
</locusGrp>
10.3.6 Names of Persons, Places, and OrganizationsTEI: Names of Persons, Places, and Organizations¶
- name (name, proper noun) contains a proper noun or noun phrase.
- att.canonical provides attributes which can be used to associate a representation such as a name or title
with canonical information about the object being named or referenced.
key provides an externally-defined means of identifying the entity (or entities) being named, using a coded value of some kind. ref (reference) provides an explicit means of locating a full definition for the entity being named by means of one or more URIs.
<name type="place">Villingaholt</name>
<name type="org">Vetus Latina Institut</name>
<name type="person" ref="#HOC001">Occleve</name>
<persName>
<surname>Hoccleve</surname>
<forename>Thomas</forename>
</persName>
<birth notBefore="1368"/>
<occupation>poet</occupation>
<!-- other personal data -->
</person>
Alternatively, the key attribute may be used to supply a unique identifying code for the person referenced by the name independently of both the existence of a person element and the use of the standard URI reference mechanism. If, for example, a project maintains as its authority file some non-digital resource, or uses a database which cannot readily be integrated with other digital resources for this purpose, the unique codes used by such ‘offline’ resources may be used as values for the key attribute. Although such practices clearly reduce the interchangeability of the resulting encoded texts, they may be judged more convenient or practical in certain situations. As explained in 3.5.1 Referring Strings, interchange is improved by use of tag URIs in ref instead of key.
All the person elements referenced by a particular document set should be collected together within a listPerson element, located in the TEI Header. This functions as a kind of prosopography for all the people referenced by the set of manuscripts being described, in much the same way as a listBibl element in the back matter may be used to hold bibliographic information for all the works referenced.
When the namesdates module described in chapter 13 Names, Dates, People, and Places is included in a schema, similar mechanisms are used to maintain and reference canonical lists of places or organizations, as further discussed in sections 13.2.3 Place Names and 13.2.2 Organizational Names respectively.
10.3.7 Catchwords, Signatures, Secundo FolioTEI: Catchwords, Signatures, Secundo Folio¶
the inner bounding line, reading from top to bottom.</catchwords>
the remains of a series of quire signatures a-o plus roman figures in
a cursive hand of the fourteenth century.</signatures>
those in quires 10 (1) and 17 (s) in red ink and different from others;
every third quire also signed with red crayon in arabic numerals in the
centre lower margin of the first leaf recto: "2" for quire 4 (f. 19),
"3" for quire 7 (f. 43); "4", barely visible, for quire 10 (f. 65), "5",
in a later hand, for quire 13 (f. 89), "6", in a later hand, for quire
16 (f. 113).</signatures>
10.3.8 HeraldryTEI: Heraldry¶
passant within a bordure bezanty, in chief a crescent for difference</heraldry>
[Cole], crest, and the legend <quote>Cole Deum</quote>.</p>
<!-- ... -->
<p>A c. 8r fregio su due lati, <heraldry>stemma e imprese medicee</heraldry>
racchiudono l'inizio dell'epistolario di Paolino.</p>
10.4 The Manuscript IdentifierTEI: The Manuscript Identifier¶
- msIdentifier (manuscript identifier) contains the information required to identify the manuscript being described.
A manuscript's actual physical location may occasionally be different from its place of ownership; at Cambridge University, for example, manuscripts owned by various colleges are kept in the central University Library. Normally, it is the ownership of the manuscript which should be specified in the manuscript identifier, while additional or more precise information on the physical location of the manuscript can be given within the adminInfo element, discussed in section 10.9.1 Administrative information below.
- country (country) contains the name of a geo-political unit, such as a nation, country, colony, or commonwealth, larger than or administratively superior to a region and smaller than a bloc.
- region contains the name of an administrative unit such as a state, province, or county, larger than a settlement, but smaller than a country.
- settlement contains the name of a settlement such as a city, town, or village identified as a single geo-political or administrative unit.
- institution contains the name of an organization such as a university or library, with which a manuscript is identified, generally its holding institution.
- repository contains the name of a repository within which manuscripts are stored, possibly forming part of an institution.
These elements are all structurally equivalent to the standard TEI name element with an appropriate value for its type attribute; however the use of this ‘syntactic sugar’ enables the model for msIdentifier to be constrained rather more tightly than would otherwise be possible. Specifically, only one of each of the elements listed above may appear within the msIdentifier and they must, if present, appear in the order given.
Like name, these elements are all also members of the attribute class att.canonical, and thus can use the attributes key or ref to reference a single standardized source of information about the entity named.
- collection contains the name of a collection of manuscripts, not necessarily located within a single repository.
- idno (identifier) supplies any form of identifier used to identify some object, such as a bibliographic item, a person, a title, an organization, etc. in a standardized way.
- altIdentifier (alternative identifier) contains an alternative or former structured identifier used for a manuscript, such as a former catalogue number.
- msName (alternative name) contains any form of unstructured alternative name used for a manuscript, such as an ‘ocellus nominum’, or nickname.
<country>USA</country>
<region>California</region>
<settlement>San Marino</settlement>
<repository>Huntington Library</repository>
<collection>El</collection>
<idno>26 C 9</idno>
<msName>The Ellesmere Chaucer</msName>
</msIdentifier>
<country>USA</country>
<region>California</region>
<settlement>San Marino</settlement>
<repository>Huntington Library</repository>
<idno>El 26 C 9</idno>
<msName>The Ellesmere Chaucer</msName>
</msIdentifier>
<idno>El 26 C 9</idno>
<idno>El 26 C 9</idno>
<country>Hungary</country>
<settlement>Budapest</settlement>
<repository xml:lang="fr"> Bibliothèque de l'Académie des Sciences de Hongrie
</repository>
<collection>Oriental Collection</collection>
<collection>Sandor Kégl Bequest</collection>
<idno>MS 1265</idno>
</msIdentifier>
<country>USA</country>
<region>New Jersey</region>
<settlement>Princeton</settlement>
<repository>Princeton University Library</repository>
<collection>Scheide Library</collection>
<idno>MS 71</idno>
<msName>Blickling Homiliary</msName>
</msIdentifier>
<country>Danmark</country>
<settlement>København</settlement>
<repository>Det Arnamagnæanske Institut</repository>
<idno>AM 45 fol.</idno>
<msName xml:lang="la">Codex Frisianus</msName>
<msName xml:lang="is">Fríssbók</msName>
</msIdentifier>
<settlement>Rossano</settlement>
<repository xml:lang="it">Biblioteca arcivescovile</repository>
<msName xml:lang="la">Codex Rossanensis</msName>
<msName xml:lang="la">Codex purpureus</msName>
<msName xml:lang="en">The Rossano Gospels</msName>
</msIdentifier>
II-M-5
in the collection of the Duque de Osuna, but which
now has the shelfmark MS 10237
in the National Library in
Madrid:
<settlement>Madrid</settlement>
<repository>Biblioteca Nacional</repository>
<idno>MS 10237</idno>
<altIdentifier>
<region>Andalucia</region>
<settlement>Osuna</settlement>
<repository>Duque de Osuna</repository>
<idno>II-M-5</idno>
</altIdentifier>
</msIdentifier>
<settlement>Berkeley</settlement>
<institution>University of California</institution>
<repository>Bancroft Library</repository>
<idno>UCB 16</idno>
<altIdentifier>
<idno>2MS BS1145 I8</idno>
</altIdentifier>
</msIdentifier>
<settlement>Oxford</settlement>
<repository>Bodleian Library</repository>
<idno>MS. Bodley 406</idno>
<altIdentifier type="SC">
<idno>2297</idno>
</altIdentifier>
</msIdentifier>
<msName xml:lang="la">Codex Suprasliensis</msName>
<altIdentifier type="partial">
<settlement>Ljubljana</settlement>
<repository>Narodna in univerzitetna knjiznica</repository>
<idno>MS Kopitar 2</idno>
<note>Contains ff. 10 to 42 only</note>
</altIdentifier>
<altIdentifier type="partial">
<settlement>Warszawa</settlement>
<repository>Biblioteka Narodowa</repository>
<idno>BO 3.201</idno>
</altIdentifier>
<altIdentifier type="partial">
<settlement>Sankt-Peterburg</settlement>
<repository>Rossiiskaia natsional'naia biblioteka</repository>
<idno>Q.p.I.72</idno>
</altIdentifier>
</msIdentifier>
As mentioned above, the smallest possible description is one that contains only the element msIdentifier; good practice in all but exceptional circumstances requires the presence within it of the three sub-elements settlement, repository, and idno, since they provide what is, by common consent, the minimum amount of information necessary to identify a manuscript.
10.5 The Manuscript HeadingTEI: The Manuscript Heading¶
- head (heading) contains any type of heading, for example the title of a section, or the heading of a list, glossary, manuscript description, etc.
10.6 Intellectual ContentTEI: Intellectual Content¶
- msContents (manuscript contents) describes the intellectual content of a manuscript or manuscript part, either as a series of paragraphs or as a series of structured manuscript items.
- msItem (manuscript item) describes an individual work or item within the intellectual content of a manuscript or manuscript part.
- msItemStruct (structured manuscript item) contains a structured description for an individual work or item within the intellectual content of a manuscript or manuscript part.
- summary contains an overview of the available information concerning some aspect of an item (for example, its intellectual content, history, layout, typography etc.) as a complement or alternative to the more detailed information carried by more specific elements.
<p>A collection of Lollard sermons</p>
</msContents>
<msContents>
<p>Atlas of the world from Western Europe and Africa to Indochina,
containing 27 maps and 26 tables</p>
</msContents>
<msContents>
<p>Biblia sacra: Antiguo y Nuevo Testamento, con prefacios, prólogos
y argumentos de san Jerónimo y de otros. Interpretaciones de los
nombres hebreos.</p>
</msContents>
<msItem n="1">
<locus>fols. 5r -7v</locus>
<title>An ABC</title>
<bibl>
<title>IMEV</title>
<biblScope>239</biblScope>
</bibl>
</msItem>
<msItem n="2">
<locus>fols. 7v -8v</locus>
<title xml:lang="fr">Lenvoy de Chaucer a Scogan</title>
<bibl>
<title>IMEV</title>
<biblScope>3747</biblScope>
</bibl>
</msItem>
<msItem n="3">
<locus>fol. 8v</locus>
<title>Truth</title>
<bibl>
<title>IMEV</title>
<biblScope>809</biblScope>
</bibl>
</msItem>
<msItem n="4">
<locus>fols. 8v-10v</locus>
<title>Birds Praise of Love</title>
<bibl>
<title>IMEV</title>
<biblScope>1506</biblScope>
</bibl>
</msItem>
<msItem n="5">
<locus>fols. 10v -11v</locus>
<title xml:lang="la">De amico ad amicam</title>
<title xml:lang="la">Responcio</title>
<bibl>
<title>IMEV</title>
<biblScope>16 & 19</biblScope>
</bibl>
</msItem>
<msItem n="6">
<locus>fols. 14r-126v</locus>
<title>Troilus and Criseyde</title>
<note>Bk. 1:71-Bk. 5:1701, with additional losses due to
mutilation throughout</note>
</msItem>
</msContents>
The summary element may be used in conjunction with msItem or msItem elements where information is provided both about the content as a whole, and about individual items within it.
<summary>A collection of Lollard sermons</summary>
<msItem n="1">
<locus>fol. 4r-8r</locus>
<title>3rd Sunday Before Lent</title>
</msItem>
<msItem n="2">
<locus>fol. 9r-16v</locus>
<title>Sexagesima</title>
</msItem>
</msContents>
10.6.1 The <msItem> and <msItemStruct> ElementsTEI: The msItem and msItemStruct Elements¶
Each discrete item in a manuscript or manuscript part can be described within a distinct msItem or msItemStruct element, and may be classified using the class attribute.
- author in a bibliographic reference, contains the name(s) of an author, personal or corporate, of a work; for example in the same form as that provided by a recognized bibliographic name authority.
- respStmt (statement of responsibility) supplies a statement of responsibility for the intellectual content of a text, edition, recording, or series, where the specialized elements for authors, editors, etc. do not suffice or do not apply. May also be used to encode information about individuals or organizations which have played a role in the production or distribution of a bibliographic work.
- title contains a title for any kind of work.
type classifies the title according to some convenient typology. - rubric contains the text of any rubric or heading attached to a particular manuscript item, that is, a string of words through which a manuscript signals the beginning of a text division, often with an assertion as to its author and title, which is in some way set off from the text itself, usually in red ink, or by use of different size or type of script, or some other such visual device.
- incipit contains the incipit of a manuscript item, that is the opening words of the text proper, exclusive of any rubric which might precede it, of sufficient length to identify the work uniquely; such incipts were, in fomer times, frequently used a means of reference to a work, in place of a title.
- quote (quotation) contains a phrase or passage attributed by the narrator or author to some agency external to the text.
- explicit contains the explicit of a manuscript item, that is, the closing words of the text proper, exclusive of any rubric or colophon which might follow it.
- finalRubric contains the string of words that denotes the end of a text division, often with an assertion as to its author and title, usually set off from the text itself by red ink, by a different size or type of script, or by some other such visual device.
- colophon contains the colophon of a manuscript item: that is, a statement providing information regarding the date, place, agency, or reason for production of the manuscript.
- decoNote (note on decoration) contains a note describing either a decorative component of a manuscript, or a fairly homogenous class of such components.
- listBibl (citation list) contains a list of bibliographic citations of any kind.
- bibl (bibliographic citation) contains a loosely-structured bibliographic citation of which the sub-components may or may not be explicitly tagged.
- filiation contains information concerning the manuscript's filiation, i.e. its relationship to other surviving manuscripts of the same text, its protographs, antigraphs and apographs.
- note contains a note or annotation.
- textLang (text language) describes the languages and writing systems identified within the bibliographic work being described, rather than its description.
In addition, a msItemStruct may contain nested msItemStruct elements, just as an msItem may contain nested msItem elements.
The main difference between msItem and msItemStruct is that in the former, the order and number of child elements is not constrained; any element, in other words, may be given in any order, and repeated as often as is judged necessary. In the latter, however, the sub-elements, if used, must be given in the order specified above and only some of them may be repeated; specifically, rubric, finalRubric. incipit, textLang and explicit can appear only once.
While neither msItem nor msItemStruct may contain untagged running text, both permit an unstructured description to be provided in the form of one or more paragraphs of text. They differ in this respect also: if paragraphs are supplied as the content of an msItem, then none of the other component elements listed above is permitted; in the msItemStruct case, however, paragraphs may appear anywhere as an alternative to any of the component elements listed above.
As noted above, both msItem and msItemStruct elements may also nest, where a number of separate items in a manuscript are grouped under a single title or rubric, as is the case, for example, with a work like The Canterbury Tales.
- att.msExcerpt (manuscript excerpt) provides attributes used to describe excerpts from a manuscript placed in a description thereof.
defective indicates whether the passage being quoted is defective, i.e. incomplete through loss or damage.
<msItem defective="true">
<locus from="1r" to="9v">1r-9v</locus>
<title>Knýtlinga saga</title>
<msItem n="1.1">
<locus from="1r:1" to="2v:30">1r:1-2v:30</locus>
<incipit defective="true">dan<ex>n</ex>a a
engl<ex>an</ex>di</incipit>
<explicit defective="true">en meðan <expan>haraldr</expan>
hein hafði k<ex>onung</ex>r v<am>
<g
ref="http://www.examples.com/abbrevs.xml#er"/>
</am>it
yf<ex>ir</ex> danmork</explicit>
</msItem>
<!-- msItems 1.2 to 1.4 -->
</msItem>
</msContents>
The elements ex, am, and expan used in the above example are further discussed in section 11.3.1.2 Abbreviation and Expansion; they are available only when the transcr module defined by that chapter is selected. Similarly, the g element used in this example to represent the abbreviation mark is defined by the gaiji module documented in chapter 5 Representation of Non-standard Characters and Glyphs.
10.6.2 Authors and TitlesTEI: Authors and Titles¶
When used within a manuscript description, the title element should be used to supply a regularized
form of the item's title, as distinct from any rubric quoted from the
manuscript. If the item concerned has a standardized distinctive
title, e.g. Roman de la Rose, then this should
be the form given as content of the title element, with the
value of the type attribute given as
uniform
. If no uniform title exists for an item, or none
has been yet identified, or if one wishes to provide a general
designation of the contents, then a ‘supplied’
title can be given, e.g. missal, in which case
the type attribute on the title should be given
the value supplied
.
Similarly, if used within a manuscript description, the author element should always contain the normalized form of an author's name, irrespective of how (or whether) this form of the name is cited in the manuscript. If it is desired to retain the form of the author's name as given in the manuscript, this may be tagged as a distinct name element, within the text at the point where it occurs.
Note that the key attribute can also be used, as on names in general, to specify the identifier of a person element carrying full details of the person concerned (see further 10.3.6 Names of Persons, Places, and Organizations).
<respStmt>
<resp>in the translation of</resp>
<name>Ambrogio Traversari</name>
</respStmt>
<respStmt>
<resp>here erroneously attributed to</resp>
<name>St. Bonaventura</name>
</respStmt>
10.6.3 Rubrics, Incipits, Explicits, and Other Quotations from the TextTEI: Rubrics, Incipits, Explicits, and Other Quotations from the Text¶
<msItem>
<locus>f. 1-223</locus>
<author>Radulphus Flaviacensis</author>
<title>Expositio super Leviticum </title>
<incipit>
<locus>f. 1r</locus>
Forte Hervei monachi</incipit>
<explicit>
<locus>f. 223v</locus>
Benedictio salis et aquae</explicit>
</msItem>
</msContents>
<locus>ff. 1r-24v</locus>
<title type="uniform">Ágrip af Noregs konunga sǫgum</title>
<incipit defective="true">
<lb/>regi oc h<ex>ann</ex> seti
ho<gap reason="illegible" quantity="7" unit="mm"/>
<lb/>sc heim se<ex>m</ex> þio</incipit>
<explicit defective="true">h<ex>on</ex> hev<ex>er</ex>
<ex>oc</ex> þa buit hesta .ij. <lb/>annan viþ fé en
h<ex>on</ex>o<ex>m</ex> annan til reiþ<ex>ar</ex>
</explicit>
</msItem>
The xml:lang attribute for colophon, explicit, incipit, quote, and rubric may always be used to identify the language of the text quoted, if this is different from the default language specified by the mainLang attribute on textLang.
10.6.4 FiliationTEI: Filiation¶
<locus>118rb</locus>
<incipit>Ecce morior cum nichil horum ... <ref>[Dn 13, 43]</ref>. Verba ista dixit Susanna de illis</incipit>
<explicit>ut bonum comune conservatur.</explicit>
<bibl>Schneyer 3, 436 (Johannes Contractus OFM)</bibl>
<filiation>weitere Überl. Uppsala C 181, 35r.</filiation>
</msItem>
10.6.5 Text ClassificationTEI: Text Classification¶
<msItem n="1" defective="false" class="#law">
<locus from="1v" to="71v">1v-71v</locus>
<title type="uniform">Jónsbók</title>
<incipit>Magnus m<ex>ed</ex> guds miskun Noregs
k<ex>onungu</ex>r</incipit>
<explicit>en<ex>n</ex> u<ex>ir</ex>da
þo t<ex>il</ex> fullra aura</explicit>
</msItem>
</msContents>
law
, which
defines the classification concerned. Such category elements
will typically appear within
a taxonomy element, within the classDecl
element of the TEI Header (2.3.6 The Classification Declaration) as
in the following example:
<taxonomy>
<!-- -->
<category xml:id="law">
<catDesc>Legislation</catDesc>
</category>
<category xml:id="war">
<catDesc>Military topics</catDesc>
</category>
<!-- -->
</taxonomy>
</classDecl>
<p>A treatise on Clausewitz</p>
<!-- details of the item here -->
</msItem>
10.6.6 Languages and Writing SystemsTEI: Languages and Writing Systems¶
Slavonic, with some Russian and Greek material</textLang>
The form and scope of language identifiers recommended by these Guidelines is based on the IANA standard described at vi.1. Language identification and should be followed throughout. Where additional detail is needed correctly to describe a language, or to discuss its deployment in a given text, this should be done using the langUsage element in the TEI Header, within which individual language elements document the languages used: see 2.4.2 Language Usage.
10.7 Physical DescriptionTEI: Physical Description¶
- aspects of the form, support, extent, and quire structure of the manuscript object and of the way in which the text is laid out on the page (10.7.1 Object Description);
- the styles of writing, such as the way it is laid out on the page, the styles of writing, decorative features, any musical notation employed and any annotations or marginalia (10.7.2 Writing, Decoration, and Other Notations);
- and discussion of its binding, seals, and any accompanying material (10.7.3 Bindings, Seals, and Additional Material).
Most manuscript descriptions touch on several of these categories of information though few include them all, and not all distinguish them as clearly as we propose here. In particular, it is often the case that an existing description will include information for which we propose distinct elements within a single paragraph, or even sentence. The encoder must then decide whether to rewrite the description using the structure proposed here, or to retain the existing prose, marked up simply as a series of p elements, directly within the physDesc element.
The physDesc element may thus be used in either of two distinct ways. It may contain a series of paragraphs addressing topics listed above and similar ones. Alternatively, it may act as a container for any choice of the more specialized elements described in the remainder of this section, each of which itself contains a series of paragraphs, and may also have more specific attributes.
- the description already exists in a prose form where some of the specialized