Hand: Hand 3 (47r), CCCO 279, pt. ii

Name
Hand 3 (47r)
Manuscript
CCCO 279, pt. ii
Script
Unspecified
Scribe
DigiPal Scribe 54. Saec. xi in.
Date
Saec. xi in.
Place
Unknown

Stokes, English Vernacular Script, ca 990–ca 1035, Vol. 2 (PhD Thesis, University of Cambridge, 2006)

This relatively square script has very straight ascenders, prominent wedges, and relatively flat cue-height. Ascenders are often longer than minims and can lean forward slightly, and descenders are often shorter and are very straight. Minims are largely straight and have prominent wedges and very small rising feet. Flat-topped a is normal, the top normally horizontal but sometimes angled; the left side curves right and the right side begins vertically but sweeps back up in a smooth curve. An alternative, cc form also occurs. The flat-topped form of a was also used for æ except that the top is consistently angled at about 45°; the hooks of æ and of e itself form a long reaching stroke in ligature with the following letter whenever possible and otherwise are relatively flat and angled back sharply to the left before meeting the long, horizontal tongue. Round c appears throughout, although it is somewhat angular in the south-west quadrant and can be slightly pointed on the left, becoming close to horned at times; the same is true for the body of e. The back of d is relatively long but very low, angled at about 5–10° and with the hint of an upward tick at the end; the bowl is slightly angled in the south-west quadrant. The tongue of f is long, flat and on the base-line, reaching well beyond the hook to meet the following letter. The tongues of both e and f can be extended in a long horizontal stroke with an upward flourish at ends of lines. The tail of g hangs from about the centre of the relatively long top-stroke, swinging left then back to the right, closing with a hairline in a round or Δ-shaped loop. The shoulders of h, m, n, and r are somewhat rounded; the first three letters can branch at close to cue-height, but all four sometimes branch lower down. The descender of r is often quite short and normally has a horizontal tapering foot, although an alternative R-shaped form is also found. Tall and low s are both found, apparently with little distinction except that the tall form normally precedes t. Tall s sits almost exactly on the base-line and has a mid-sized hook, and low s branches below cue-height. The conventional distinction between þ and ð was followed, the bowl of þ being relatively narrow. The back of ð is long, angled at about 30–45°, and turned up or right at the tip; the through-stroke is relatively straight, at much the same angle as the back, and turned down very slightly at the tip. Straight-limbed dotted and round undotted y are both found, the longer stroke of the former being hooked up at the bottom and left at the top. The top of 7 is concave up, often with a prominent upward hook on the left, and the descender is straight, long, and angled slightly to the left.

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