The Statutes of the Realm/Volume 1/Introduction/Appendix/D

by the Record Commission

Layout 3

APPENDIX. D.

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Explanation of the Contractions,

Used in printing the Records and Manuscripts copied in this Collection.

THE general Character and Appearance of the Charters and Records copied in this Collection, are exhibited in engraved Specimens.^[1] With respect to the Printed Contractions, it is to be observed, that wherever the Manuscript is abbreviated, the Print has a Mark of Contraction, as similar to that of the Manuscript as the Types will admit. The different Manuscripts vary a little from each other in the Mode of making the several Contractions. The following Explanation of the Marks of Contraction used in the Print (applying both to the Latin and French Text, though the latter is generally less abbreviated than the former), may serve as well to render the printed Copy intelligible, as also to explain the Contractions in the Manuscripts, and to make the reading and consulting of them, when necessary, more easy to Persons not used to antient Records.

A strait Line over a Vowel denotes the Omission of the Letter m or n following:

quā	quam	nō	non	statī	statim
antiqa͏̄	antiquam	cōmun	commun	volūtatē	voluntatem
hōīū	hominum	avaūdiz̵	avauntditz

The strait Line over m in the Middle of a Word denotes the Omission of the Letter n following:

om̄es

omnes

om̄ia

omnia

A Crooked Line over some Letter, or a Line through some Letter, of the Word contracted, denotes the Omission of one or more Letters of the Word:

Gr̃a	Gratia	Ep̃is	Episcopis	c͠o, tõ		cio or tio
Bal̴l̴is	Ballivis	om̃s	omnes			cion or tion
nob̴	nobis	lib̴tates	libertates	coronac͠ois		coronacionis
h̴eat	habeat	Dñs	Dominus	expeditac͠o		expeditacio
Sal̵t̃	Salutem	dict̃	dictum, &c.	malic͠ose		maliciose

A small superior Letter denotes an Omission, of which such Letter forms a Part:

qam		quam	occaone	occasione	pimis	primis	si	sibi
qa͏̄			impisonetr	imprisonetur	piꝰ	prius	ni	nisi

The following Characters or Abbreviations have certain explicit Significations, viz.

Character.

Signification.

ꝫ

us

At the End of Words in the Dative or Ablative Plural:

Abbatibꝫ

Abbatibus

quibꝫ

quibus

sometimes
et

sꝫ

set (sed)

possꝫ

posset

Or as a comprehensive Mark of Abbreviation:

quil̵ꝫ	quilibet	videlꝫ	videlicet
qnꝫ	quandoque

ꝰ
above the Line.

us

Not being the Dative or Ablative Plural:

hujꝰmodi		hujusmodi	dedimꝰ	dedimus
hꝰi
hujꝰ		hujus	excꝰare	excusare

sometimes
os, or ost.

pꝰ		post	pꝰtea	postea
pꝰt

ꝯ
even with the Line.

com, or con

ꝯtenta

contenta

ꝯmuni

communi

ꝯseil

conseil

q̃ or qꝫ

que

absqꝫ

absque

usq̃

usque

Frequently used also for quod and quia.

◌͛

er

ex͛citum	exercitum	infreg͛int	infregerint	man͛e	manere
itin͛e	itinere	den͛s	deners

sometimes
re

eg͛ssum

egressum

transg͛ssum

transgressum

ꝝ

rum

antecessoꝝ

antecessorum

nr̃oꝝ

nostrorum

Sometimes to mark an Abbreviation beginning with r:

coꝝ	coronacionem

&

et

The & appears in the Print wherever an Abbreviation for et appears in the Manuscript.

⹒

and

In the Copies of some Scotch Records in Appendix H. to the Introduction.

&̄

eciam

∻

est

c͛

cer

fec͛it	fecerit	c͛tum	certum
am͛cietur	amercietur	m͛cator	mercator
s͛vicium	servicium	s͛vir	servir
cet͛a	cetera	t͛ram	terram
t͛spasours	trespasours
fu͛it	fuerit	h̴u͛it	habuerit
estov͛iū	estoverium	ov͛tes	overtes

m͛

mer

s͛

ser

t͛

ter

sometimes
tre

u͛

uer

v͛

ver

ꝑ

per

As the Prepositions per and pro, and in forming Words:

ꝓ

pro

ceꝑit	ceperit	ꝓpia	propria
ꝓbū	probum	ꝑsone	persone
aꝑtement	apertement	ꝓfit	profit
ꝑmisit	permisit	ꝓmisit	promisit
ꝓchein	prochein	ꝑa	persona

ꝑ

also for
par and por

ꝑatus	paratus	ꝑceles	parceles
temꝑe	tempore	corꝑum	corporum

p͛

pre

p͛sentem	presentem	p͛laz̵	prelatz
p͛d̵c̃m	predictum	p͛ndront	prendront

z̵

tz

fiz̵	fitz	fez̵	fetz
establisemenz̵	establisementz	tenaunz̵	tenauntz

In the Copies of some Records the following Characters occur.

ꝭ

is or s

Scottꝭ	Scottis	As also the Saxon Characters,
Lordꝭ	Lords	þ	th	ȝ	y

In citing the several Statute Rolls, Parliament Rolls, and Close, Patent, Fine, and Charter Rolls, the Year of the King, the Part, if there are more Rolls than one of the same Year, the Membrane or Skin, and the Number of the Article, where is it so distinguished on the Roll, are particularised; and if it is on the Dorse or Back of the Roll that also is noticed.—The several Membranes or Skins of which of the Rolls are composed, are frequently numbered from the bottom to the top of the Roll, the Membrane at the End being numbered 1, and so progressively up to the beginning of the Roll;—Thus:

Mag. Rot. Stat. m. 46 d. signifies,—The Great Roll of the Statutes, on the back of Membrane 46.
Rot. Parl. 6 Edw. II. P. 2. nu. 3. - Parliament Roll 6 Edward II. Part II. Number 3.
Rot. Claus.	Close Roll.	Rot. Fin.	Fine Roll.
Rot. Pat.	Patent Roll.	Rot. Cart.	Charter Roll.
In Cedula - In a Schedule or separate Skin or Membrane attached to the Roll. For Explanations as to the other Records and Manuscripts cited, See Appendix C.

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1. For Specimens of Original Charters, and of the Charter Roll, See the Plates at pages 3, 6, 9, 20, 22, 28, and 33, of the Charters prefixed to the Statutes in this Volume: of the Patent Roll facing page 4, of the Statute Roll page 114, and of the Close Roll page 118 of the Statutes in this Volume.