Handwritten Will of Margaretta Carol
This large-sized legal document on vellum contains the will of a seventeenth-century British woman identified as Margaretta Carol. While she is not known today, she must have been a woman of some consequence. The author of the document, Baron Francis Cottington, was a well-known historic figure who held several important positions at the courts of King James I, and his successor King Charles I. The text of the will is written in Latin and provides a beautiful example of the application of calligraphy for legal purposes. It is divided into two separate paragraphs, preceded by a large historiated initial in the top left corner. The upper margin of the document has been decorated with ornaments typical for the early seventeenth century. A large round tin seal is attached to the bottom of the document.
Artwork Details
- Title: Handwritten Will of Margaretta Carol
- Author: 1st Baron Cottington Francis Cottington (British, 1579–1652)
- Subject: Margaretta Carol
- Date: 1628
- Medium: Ink on vellum with a round pendant seal attached
- Dimensions: Sheet: 40 1/2 in. × 30 in. (102.9 × 76.2 cm)
Frame: 59 1/2 × 42 in. (151.1 × 106.7 cm) - Classifications: Ephemera, Calligraphy
- Credit Line: Gift of W. R. Friedman Jr., 2021
- Object Number: 2021.246
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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