Professor Alison Altstatt (University of Northern Iowa) spoke to a gathering of musicologists, medievalists, and archivists at University of Iowa Special Collections on September 4. This paper concerned a notated leaf of an English medieval manuscript held in the Special Collections here.
Join Prof. Alison Allstatt on Sept 4 to learn more about this medieval MS leaf at @UISpecColl: http://t.co/HJHgcbKOUV pic.twitter.com/WSgz4VYbZt
— Iowa Medievalists (@IowaGradMed) September 1, 2015
Alison Altstatt of Univ. Northern Iowa on Univ. IA Spec Collection's page of Wilton Abbey ms. taken apart by Otto Egge #UIowaMusicology
— Dr. Marian Wilson Kimber (@MWilsonKimber) September 4, 2015
Getting a chance to look at the manuscript up close and personal! @UISpecColl pic.twitter.com/WtaH4XhfRI
— Heather Wacha (@hgwacha) September 4, 2015
Alison Altstatt is giving a very interesting talk on the Wilton Processional @UILibraries pic.twitter.com/FKC4qEBqJF
— Andrew Steck (@HawkeyeSteck) September 4, 2015
Musical, textual and codicological evidence supports the identification of the leaf as a fragment of a processional from Wilton Abbey, an important centre for women’s Latin learning from its tenth-century foundation to its sixteenth-century dissolution. Wilton Abbey, likely founded in the ninth century, was a Benedictine nunnery and one of the most important religious communities for women in medieval England. The community was dissolved during the Reformation in 1539 and its buildings demolished.
St Edith, a key figure in life of Wilton Abbey, Benedictine house in Wiltshire which was home to MS. BL Royal 14 B VI pic.twitter.com/RchD1wUhG4
— Yvonne Seale (@yvonneseale) September 4, 2015
Contents of the leaf indicate the leaf is not a gradual, but rather a processional. #wiltonprocessional
— @uispeccoll (@UISpecColl) September 4, 2015
Prof. Alison Altstatt (@UNI_SOM) reassembles an English nunnery's processional from scattered leaves | @UISpecColl pic.twitter.com/JQECHuOavG
— Yvonne Seale (@yvonneseale) September 4, 2015
The manuscript of the Wilton Processional was removed from its original binding, likely sometime in the 1940s, and sold off as individual leaves which made their way into private, library, and university collections in the US and around the world. The recovery of the University of Iowa leaf, along with more than thirty others, provides a window into the abbey’s musico-poetic tradition, its processional liturgies, and its dramatic rituals.
Aethetic properties of the manuscript & access were Otto Ege's justification for manuscript breaking in early 20th century #wilton #altstatt
— @uispeccoll (@UISpecColl) September 4, 2015
Otto Egge, villain of the piece in Allstatt's talk—dismembered Wilson Processional ca 1948-52: http://t.co/rI7unV6Dpw pic.twitter.com/46fnpPsDVF
— Yvonne Seale (@yvonneseale) September 4, 2015
The regathering of the Wilton Processional began with UIowa leaf. @UISpecColl @UIHistoryCorps
— Heather Wacha (@hgwacha) September 4, 2015
Altstatt has located 34 leaves of the Wilton Processional. #wiltonprocessional
— @uispeccoll (@UISpecColl) September 4, 2015
Recovery of 34 leaves so far allows for comp. with 19th c. copy, understanding of material culture—and all began with 1 leaf at @UISpecColl!
— Yvonne Seale (@yvonneseale) September 4, 2015
A copy made in 1860 makes it possible for Altstatt to match up and identify the leaves as they are found. #wiltonprocessional
— @uispeccoll (@UISpecColl) September 4, 2015
Altstatt describes her work as building on existing DH projects like CANTUS Latin ecclesiastical chants: http://t.co/cvuK34sp3q
— Yvonne Seale (@yvonneseale) September 4, 2015
Divisions between disciplines can slow down identification. Only musicologists knew about the 19th c copy. #wiltonprocessional #altstatt
— @uispeccoll (@UISpecColl) September 4, 2015
Previously unclear from 19thc copy, irregularities were able to be identified as being present in the 13/14th c manuscript. #wilton
— @uispeccoll (@UISpecColl) September 4, 2015
Got a full house at the Prof Altstatt talk this afternoon! #msTalk, #musicColloquium pic.twitter.com/ggqfnvksGS
— Hang Nguyen (@HangMusicology) September 4, 2015