Old Russian neumes
Sticherarion, in Church Slavonic, illuminated musical manuscript on paper [Russia, mid-17th century].
An illuminated Russian Sticherarion, in a contemporary binding.

195 x 150mm. 141 leaves, apparently complete, traces of gathering signatures survive, modern pencil foliation followed here, 16-18 lines written in black ink in Cyrillic half uncial, staffless diastematic (heightened) Old Russian neumes, headings, initials, pomety and marginal flourish at opening of text in red, one full-page miniature of the Annunciation pasted onto f.1v (marginal stains throughout, margins of f.2 repaired). Contemporary gilt- and blind-stamped binding of calf over boards, brass clasps (spine a little scuffed).

Provenance:
(1) Ignatiy, son of the priest Nikita, of the village of Veden'ya: ownership inscription on ff.76v-77. The 1990 Sotheby's catalogue states that the watermark is datable to the mid-17th century and is close to Heawood, Watermarks, mainly of the 17th and 18th centuries, 1957, no 2001.

(2) Paul M. Fekula (1905-1982): his MS 626, published in The Paul M. Fekula Collection, 1988 and Slavic Manuscripts from the Fekula Collection, 1983, no XVII. His sale at Sotheby's, Russian Manuscripts from the Fourteenth to the Nineteenth Century From the Paul M. Fekula Collection, 29 November 1990, lot 78.

(3) Schøyen Collection, MS 1797.

Text and music:
The text comprises stichera, or hymns proper to the various feasts inserted at specific points in the regular services. They are for: the Nativity of the Mother of God; the Elevation of the Holy Cross; the Presentation of the Mother of God; the Royal Hours on Christmas Eve and the Office of the Nativity; Epiphany; the Presentation of Christ in the Temple; the Annunciation; Palm Sunday; the Ascension; Pentecost; the Transfiguration; and the Dormition of the Mother of God.

The small semi-uncial hand with neumes and pomety (marks to indicate pitch, said to have been introduced by Ivan Shaidur in c.1600 as a means to simplify the reading of the neumes) is that usually employed in musical manuscripts and is istinorechny, i.e. it corresponds to the normal pronunciation of Church Slavonic, instead of the archaic singing tradition.

The Paul M. Fekula Collection, 1988, no 626.
M. Matejic, Slavic Manuscripts from the Fekula Collection, 1983, no XVII.