First Series of Catholic Homilies Facsimile Edition

The first volume of Ælfric's Catholic Homilies is one of the most important works written in the English language. The function of the homilies was to communicate the foundations of the Christian faith and to eliminate the vestiges of pagan beliefs and practices from England. This late tenth-century manuscript is the earliest surviving version of the work and contains more than 1,000 edits. It was written in Cerne Abbey, Dorset, and is a crucial document for understanding the position of Christianity in England at the time of its copying but also the writing process of one of the religion's great scholars.

The core of the manuscript contains Ælfric's first forty homilies in Old English. These are prepended by two folios in Latin of fragmentary canon tables from a seventh- or eighth-century Gospel book and are followed by twelfth-century copies of extracts in Latin from the works of various Christian authors. The manuscript's decoration is restricted to ornamented, once-colorful initials marking the beginnings of sections. A drawing of a bird and a zoomorphic ornament were added in the early twelfth century.

Ælfric of Eynsham

Ælfric is the most prolific writer of Old English, having penned two volumes of homilies arranged in annual sequences and a series of saints' lives. He is credited with the translation of the Hexateuch into Old English. He was educated under Bishop Æthelstan of Winchester and in 987 departed for the new monastery at Cerne in Dorset, where he wrote his famous homilies. In 1005 he was elevated to the abbacy of Eynsham and continued his correspondence and translation work until his death in 1010.

Oldest Copy of Ælfric's Homilies

Ælfric's Catholic Homilies were very popular works, and many copies were made through the eleventh century. The first volume of forty homilies written between 990 and 992 focuses on explaining and contextualizing the key events of the Christian liturgical year. This manuscript is the earliest of numerous copies and was compiled from rough drafts of the texts. The text is written in a single column in black ink. The red initials have faded to gray. The numerous edits, some in Ælfric's hand, indicate that this book functioned as a personal editorial copy. It does not include the prefaces that were added to later versions. It is the foundational version of this masterpiece of Old English.

A Volume in Three Parts

The Catholic Homilies portion of the manuscript certainly remained in Ælfric's possession for some time, although it is unknown whether it stayed at Cerne, was taken to Eynsham, or was given to another foundation or an individual. In the sixteenth century, Thomas Wolsey, archbishop of York, inscribed his name in the manuscript (fol. 2r). It was also inscribed by Robert Beale. It is recorded in the 1698 catalog of the library of Saint James's Palace and was presented to the British Museum by King George II in 1757.