There are two major sets of of writing on the Northumberland Manuscript flyleaf. On the right-hand side is a sort of table of contents that lists titles, many of which are still included in the manuscript. Interspersed throughout this are many scribbles and pen trials. On the left is a Latin poem, a quote from Rape of Lucrece, and other things scribbled every which way. Turning the document upside down reveals many more pen trials and scribbles.
Examining the Table of Contents - The Four Essays from Bacon
The table of contents is divided into two major parts. The first part, on the top right of the document, is written in a very neat and careful calligraphic italic hand. It lists four essays written by Francis Bacon. Here is the manuscript and Burgoyne's chart:
All of these essays are still included with the manuscript, and the handwritten header of the manuscript itself matches the calligraphy on the flyleaf:
I think it is safe to assume that the manuscript was initially prepared with these four essays, and the calligraphic table of contents was written by the same scribe who wrote a similar heading on the manuscript itself.
The Table of Contents - Additional Material
On the right, written below these four essays, are the titles of other manuscripts. Some of the documents referenced are still included with the Northumberland Manuscript and some are not. The handwriting of these additions is not similar in style to the top four. It seems like it may have been added later by one or more different scribes.
Here are the additional entries:
And here is the chart:
It has been assumed that the four plays listed at the bottom, Richard II, Richard III, Asmund and Cornelia, and Isle of Dogs were at one point included with the manuscript. It's a reasonable assumption, since they are listed below other documents which are still included with the manuscript. However, we cannot be sure.
Identifying a Scribe for the Table of Contents
Beginning with Folio 47 of the manuscript, a scribe appears who seems to have some distinct handwriting characteristics. These idiosyncrasies seem to be reflected in some of the writing and scribbling on the flyleaf. One of the strongest characteristics is this capital "I" which often has a closed loop on top and extends over and down to the left with very flowing lines:
This seems different from the other capital "I" letters on the flyleaf which either do not have a closed loop on top or have a more wedge shaped curved body. The third one on this list might be by the same person, however:
The scribe also sometimes make an "r" that looks like an epsilon or an "e". I have marked that in red; I marked in blue another type of "r" they also made:
Compare to this Graies Inne reuells" Where the "I" in "Inne" and the "r" in "revells" seems to match the scribe's idiosyncrasies:
The word-final "s" in "Graies" also seems like quite a good match for the scribe:
It seems reasonable to think that this scribe wrote this line. They were also likely responsible for some other scribbles on the flyleaf and some of the other entries in the table of contents. More to come on this. It is unclear whether this is a different individual or the same person writing with a slightly different style.
Other Characteristics of the Scribe
The scribe usually, but not always, tends to have full separation between "t" and "h" in "th" word-initial combinations. Most of the writing on the Northumberland Manuscript flyleaf is more cursive in style, with the "t" and "h" forming one connected letter, often with the line from the "h" extending to the next word. It is quite unlike this, where each letter is separate:
Compare a similar situation, "wh", where the scribble on the Northumberland Manuscript has a completely connected pair of letters and this scribe has them distinct:
Untangling Sussex
These examples give some idea of the mess that needs to be untangled in figuring out who exactly wrote on the cover of the Northumberland Manuscript and who wrote the body of the text.
A and F are from the body of the manuscript. B and G are from the cover. C, D, and E are Henry Neville.
I have underlined the word-final "x" in blue in each case. A and F seem like a good match for G, suggesting that the scribe of that portion of the manuscript wrote the table of contents too. This makes sense. However, the "S" in D is quite a close match for the cover though A and F are quite different. As far as the "u", Neville's Example E is probably the best match. For the double-s, A and F are definitely a better match for B and G than C and E are. but the "e" is a good match and the variation matches too.
What is going on here? Just normal secretary hand looking alike? The variation in the body of the manuscript matches Henry Neville's own variation in "e" and capital "S".
More research with higher resolution images of the body of the manuscript will be necessary to figure this all out.
Compare these examples of "shall". The left are the body of the manuscript. The top right is the cover. The bottom three are Henry Neville.
There are two types of lower-case "r" common on the covers of the Northumberland Manuscript. One is the one Neville most commonly used in his handwriting. But there is a second type of "r" that also occurs frequently. I have found a document certainly handwritten by Neville, in French, that has this second type of "r". It was a common way of writing the letter, and it seems that Neville used it on certain occasions. See below:
It's not quite clear how many scribes wrote and scribbled on the Northumberland Manuscript flyleaf. I will continue working on this issue to clarify everything.
