Moralized Bible

Probably commissioned by Blanche of Castile as a wedding gift for Marguerite of Provence in 1234 (see Lowden 2000). In England by last quarter of the 13th century. William Innys, bookseller, Prince's Arms, St Paul's Churchyard, owned until 1711: receipt signed 'Wm Innys' to John Kemp for payment for manuscripts for £40 dated 30 June 1711 (pasted onto f. 1, Harley 1526). John Kemp (b. 1665, d. 1717): above receipt; his sale at the Phoenix Tavern, Pall Mall, 27 March 1721?, acquired by Harley. The Harley Collection, formed by Robert Harley (b. 1661, d. 1724), 1st earl of Oxford and Mortimer, politician, and Edward Harley (b. 1689, d. 1741), 2nd earl of Oxford and Mortimer, book collector and patron of the arts. Edward Harley bequeathed the library to his widow, Henrietta Cavendish, née Holles (b. 1694, d. 1755) during her lifetime and thereafter to their daughter, Margaret Cavendish Bentinck (b. 1715, d.1785), duchess of Portland; the manuscripts were sold by the Countess and the Duchess in 1753 to the nation for £10,000 under the Act of Parliament that also established the British Museum; the Harley manuscripts form one of the foundation collections of the British Library.

New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Armenia!," September 21, 2018–January 13, 2019.