Bonus socius.
Late 17th-century French calf with tooled back in green morocco case lettered: Treatise on Chess, Backgammon, etc. French Ms. on vellum - saec. XIV.
Purchased by J. Pierpont Morgan (1837-1913) in 1902.
182 leaves (1 column, varying number of lines up to 25 per page), bound : vellum, ill. ; 240 x 170 mm
Owned in the 17th century by De Vaubouton (signature on fol. 146v); Sir Andrew Fountaine (1676-1753) of Narford Hall, Norfolk; his sale (London, 1902, no. 202) to Quaritch; Richard Bennett, Catalogue of manuscripts and early printed books from the libraries of William Morris, Richard Bennett, Bertram, fourth Earl of Ashburnham, and other sources, no. 110; purchased by J. Pierpont Morgan (1837-1913) with the Bennett Collection in 1902; J.P. Morgan (1867-1943).
Ms. book of chess problems; written and illuminated in Thérouanne or Saint-Omer, France, ca. 1290 -1300.
Decoration: upper half of each page has a representation of a chess board or other game board with pieces in position to illustrate the problem described in the text below; pen-flourished initials, some pages with decorative borders containing grotesques.
Chess problems, fols. 1-145v; tieste, barill and minoret played on backgammon board, fols. 147-168v; and merrils problems, fols. 170-182.
The illustrations are related in style to two other copies of Bonus Socius produced approximately at the same time (Paris, BNF Ms. Latin 10286 and Ms. Français 1173) as well as to a Philosophical and Scientific Miscellany (Paris, Bibl. Sainte-Geneviève, Ms. 2200). M. 108 lacks the introduction existing in the other copies of the text.
Revised: 2017