The material has been transcribed separately.
TEI Header for BL Cotton Cleopatra MS. A XIV
: Language and Literature Committee, University of Wales Board of Celtic Studies, School of Welsh, Cardiff University,
Transcribed by D. Mark Smith
Edited by Peter Wynn Thomas
Encoded by Diana Luft
- : London, England
- : British Library
- : Cotton Cleopatra A.xiv
- : British Museum 11
The manuscript contains a copy of Cyfraith Hywel Dda in the version which Aneurin Owen called the 'Gwentian' code and which is known today by the name Llyfr Cyfnerth. The manuscript was consulted by Aneurin Owen for his Ancient Laws and Institutes of Wales, where it is designated as 'Manuscript W’. This is the standard designation used by scholars today.
| Page | Contents | Hand |
| 33r-106r | Cyfraith Hywel Dda: Llyfr Cyfnerth | X86 (the Book of Taliesin scribe) |
The following editions were consulted in the production of this transcription.
- Owen, Moryfydd E. ed. and trans. 1986. The 'Cyfnerth' Text. Lawyers and Laymen. eds. T. M. Charles-Edwards, Moryfdd E. Owen and D. B. Walters. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. 179-200.
- Wade-Evans, A. W. ed. 1909. Welsh Medieval Law. Oxford: The Clarendon Press.
Four further manuscripts in the same hand have survived: NLW MS. 3036 which contains a copy of Brut y Brenhinoedd; NLW MS. Peniarth 6 part iv which contains a fragment of the tale Geraint; NLW MS. Peniarth 2, the Book of Taliesin; and BL Harley MS. 4353 which contains a copy of Cyfraith Hywel Dda: Llyfr Cyfnerth. This scribe is often known as the 'Book of Taliesin Scribe' and has been given the designation X86 by Daniel Huws. This designation has been followed for the purposes of this edition.
Further information on this manuscript can be found in the following sources.
- Evans, J. Gwenogvryn. 1898-1910. British Museum 11. Report on Manuscripts in the Welsh Language 2. London: HMSO. 950.
- Huws, Daniel. 2000. Medieval Welsh Manuscripts. Cardiff and Aberystwyth: University of Wales Press and the National Library of Wales.
- Huws, Daniel. A Repertory of Welsh Manuscripts and Scribes. draft.
- Huws, Daniel 1986. The Manuscripts. Lawyers and Laymen. eds T. M. Charles-Edwards, Moryfdd E. Owen and D. B. Walters. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. 119-136.
This electronic edition was transcribed from a microfilm copy of the manuscript and checked against the original. The orthography and punctuation of the original manuscript have been followed, as has the original word division. A full stop in the transcription indicates a punctus in the manuscript, while a semi-colon in the transcription indicates a punctus elevatus in the manuscript. Words written as single items in the manuscript but considered as separate items today are separated by a vertical line, and scan as separate items in the word list and the word search. Words written as two words in the manuscript but considered as single words today appear separated by a dot in the transcription but scan as single words in the word list and word search.
Page numbers, columns, and lines have been encoded as well as gaps in the text, which may arise if the text is illegible or if there is damage to the manuscript. Gaps may also represent spaces left by the scribe. The presence of gaps in the text is noted in this edition, but the reason for them has not been recorded, nor has text been supplied to indicate their extent. Large initial capital letters have been encoded, but rubrication and other types of decoration have not. Apparent scribal errors which may have an effect on the intelligibility of the text have been provided with a 'sic' tag giving the editors' suggestion for a more intelligible reading. The purpose of these interventions is not to correct the scribe or infer that he is incorrect, but rather to indicate to the reader that unexpected readings are indeed true, and to make suggestions to add to the legibility of the text.
- PWT: edited XML files and suggested corrections
- 5-Jan-2006 DL: converted Word files to XML and corrected them
- 23-Sep-2002 – 27-Sep-2002 DMS: corrected the electronic transcription of pages 33r-106r
- 12-Aug-2002 – 16-Aug-2002 DMS: corrected transcription of pages 33r-106r against the manuscript
- 30-Jan-2002 – 27-Feb-2002 DMS: transcribed pages 33r-106r from the microfilm copy of the manuscript