Dr Peter Beal, London

Hall MS

A folio volume comprising some twenty-two religious prose works by Joseph Hall, all published between 1605 and 1623, closely written in a single neat secretary hand, with some titles ornamented, 137 leaves, imperfect at the end, in 18th-century quarter-calf marbled boards (rebacked).

Repeated references in titles to Josep: Hall now Bp. of Exon. indicate a date of transcription after 23 December 1627 and before 15 November 1641, when Hall became Bishop of Norwich. It was possibly copied out before 1633, since it contains his paraphrase on The Song of Songs following the text of the Geneva Bible (HlJ 57), a work which he revised following the text of the Authorized Version and incorporated in An Explication …of all the Hard Texts in the Old and New Testament (1633).

The last page of the MS (f. 137v) contains eight untitled religious aphorisms (beginning The law before or sauiour Christs time, was like the rod in Moses hand turned into a serpent…), but it is not clear whether these aphorisms, perhaps an afterthought of the scribe to fill up the volume, derive from Hall's works.

c.1627-41.

Sotheby's, 5 July 1977, lot 109.

Cited below as the Beal MS.

ff. 1r-10r
HlJ 57: Joseph Hall, An Open and Plain Paraphrase upon the Song of Songs ('')

Copy.

First published in Salomon's Divine Arts (London, 1609). Later incorporated in An Explication by way of Paraphrase of all the Hard Texts in the Old and New Testament (London, 1633). Edited in Wynter, III, 290-316, as part of the latter work.

ff. 10v-21v
HlJ 14: Joseph Hall, Characters of Virtues and Vices ('')

Copy.

First published in London, 1608. Wynter, VI, 89-125. Edited by Rudolf Kirk, together with Heaven vpon Earth (New Brunswick, N.J., 1948).

ff. 22r-4v
HlJ 42: Joseph Hall, Epistles. Decade III, Epistle 3. To Mr. Samuel Burton. A discourse of the trial and choice of the true religion ('')

Copy.

First published in Epistles, Vol. II (London, 1608). Wynter, VI, 191-8.

ff. 24v-34v
HlJ 58: Joseph Hall, The Passion Sermon. Preached at Paul's Cross on Good-Friday, April 14, 1609 ('')

Copy.

First published in London, 1609. Wynter, V, 24-54.

ff. 35r-40v
HlJ 51: Joseph Hall, The Great Impostor: Laid open in a Sermon at Gray's Inn, February 2, 1623 ('')

Copy.

First published in London, 1623. Wynter, V, 158-73.

ff. 41r-5r
HlJ 10: Joseph Hall, The Best Bargain: A Sermon Preached to the Court at Theobald's on Sunday, September 21, 1623 ('')

Copy.

First published in London, 1623. Wynter, V, 174-85.

ff. 45v-75v
HlJ 56: Joseph Hall, Meditations and Vows. Divine and Moral. Three Centuries ('')

Copy.

First published in London, 1605. Wynter, VII, 439-521.

ff. 76r-91v
HlJ 52: Joseph Hall, Heaven upon Earth ('')

Copy.

First published in London, 1606. Wynter, VI, 1-45. Edited by Rudolf Kirk, together with Characters of Virtues and Vices (New Brunswick, N.J., 1948).

ff. 92r-9v
HlJ 54: Joseph Hall, Holy Observations ('')

Copy.

First published in London, 1607. Wynter, VII, 522-43.

ff. 100r-7r
HlJ 60: Joseph Hall, A Serious Dissuasive from Popery. To W.D. Revolted, &c ('')

Copy.

First published in The Peace of Rome (London, 1609). Wynter, VIII, 352-73.

ff. 107v-8v
HlJ 31: Joseph Hall, Epistles. Decade I, Epistle 1. To Jacob Wadsworth. lately revolted, in Spain ('')

Copy.

First published in Epistles, Vol. I (London, 1608). Wynter, VI, 128-31.

ff. 108v-9r
HlJ 48: Joseph Hall, Epistles. Decade VI, Epistle 2. To Mr. T.S. Dedicated to Sir Fulke Grevill. Discoursing how we may use the world without danger ('')

Copy.

First published in Epistles, Vol. III, Part 2 (London, 1610). Wynter, VI, 283-5.

ff. 109v-17v
HlJ 59: Joseph Hall, Pharisaism and Christianity: Compared and set forth in a Sermon at Paul's Cross, May 1, 1608 ('')

Copy.

First published in London, 1608. Wynter, V, 1-23.

ff. 117v-33v
HlJ 9: Joseph Hall, The Art of Divine Meditation ('')

Copy, with the appended A Meditation of Death, According to the Former Rules, imperfect, lacking one leaf between ff. 125 and 126 containing the end of Chapter XXIV and the beginning of Chapter XXV.

First published in London, 1606. Wynter, VI, 46-88.

ff. 133v-4v
HlJ 32: Joseph Hall, Epistles. Decade I, Epistle 2. To My Lord and Patron, The Lord Denny. Of the contempt of the World ('')

Copy.

First published in Epistles, Vol. I (London, 1608). Wynter, VI, 131-3.

ff. 134v-5r
HlJ 33: Joseph Hall, Epistles. Decade I, Epistle 10. Written to Mr. J.B. and Dedicated to My Father, Mr. J. Hall. Against the fear of death ('')

Copy.

First published in Epistles, Vol. I (London, 1608). Wynter, VI, 156-8.

ff. 135r-v
HlJ 35: Joseph Hall, Epistles. Decade II, Epistle 1. To Sir Robert Darcy. The estate of a true but weak Christian ('')

Copy.

First published in Epistles, Vol. I (London, 1608). Wynter, VI, 158-9.

ff. 135v-6v
HlJ 43: Joseph Hall, Epistles. Decade III, Epistle 8. To Mr. Rob. Hay. A discourse of the continual exercise of a Christian. how he may keep his heart from hardness and his ways from error ('')

Copy.

First published in Epistles, Vol. II (London, 1608). Wynter, VI, 208-10.

ff. 136v-7r
HlJ 46: Joseph Hall, Epistles. Decade IV, Epistle 7. to Mr. Ed. Alleyne. A direction how to conceive of God in our devotions and meditations ('')

Copy.

First published in Epistles, Vol. II (London, 1608). Wynter, VI, 234-6.

Florio MS

Copy of 59 proverbs taken from Chapter VI, in a secretary hand, headed Wise Politique Italian Admonicons & Counsells, on a single folded vellum leaf. c.1595.

Sotheby's, 29 October 1975, lot 148. Quaritch's sale catalogue No. 938 (1974), item 35.

FloJ 3: John Florio, Florios Second frutes

First published in London, 1591.

Common Place Book

An octavo notebook of largely ecclesiastical prose and some verse, chiefly in Latin, English and French, in a cursive italic hand, possibly a second hand on ff. 59r-66r, written from both ends, 96 leaves (including some blanks), in contemporary calf, with metal clasps.

Compiled probably by an English cleric in France, who writes (f. 1v) I came to Maule. Aug. 16th at night, 1656 and (f. 16r) records visiting Lord Hatton at his house in St Germains, Paris, where he is shown books and manuscripts, on 1 August NS 1656.

c.1656-8.

Christie's, 27 March 1985, lot 154.

f. 14r
TaJ 116: Jeremy Taylor, Extracts ('')

Extracts, headed Dr Tayler of originall Sin. in his first part of his answer to ye Bishop: of Rochesters letter. pag: 10.

f. 15r
TaJ 115.5: Jeremy Taylor, XXVIII Sermons (London, 1651) ('')

Extracts, headed In Doctor Taylers second part of his answer to the Bisp: of Rochesters letter theire in three thing's wch: hee holds, & I thinke canot well be answer'd.

f. 19r-v
TaJ 31: Jeremy Taylor, Unum Necessarium ('')

Extracts, headed Dr: Tayler. of Repent:: Ch: 5. Sect. 5. numb: 56. and from Nos 65, 66 and 30.

First published in London, 1655.

ff. 23r-4v, 72r-3v
AndL 55.5: Lancelot Andrewes, Tortura torti ('')

Extracts, in Latin, the first headed Bishop: Andrews. ad Card: Bell:: Apolog: Responsio. p. 11.; the second De Reliquiis: Epis; Andr: Resp: Bett: p. 47:.

First published in London, 1609.

f. 93v-r rev.
BrT 0.3: Sir Thomas Browne, Colloquy with God ('The night is come like to the day')

Copy, headed Dr: Browne, Verses, and dated Decemb: 420th: Paris. 1655.

First published in Religio Medici, where Browne describes it as the dormitive I take to bedward…to make me sleepe. Published later, in an anonymous musical setting, in Harmonia Sacra, II (1693). Keynes, I, 89-90.

Cooper's Hill

An exemplum of the printed edition of Denham's Poems and Translations, with The Sophy (London, 1668), in contemporary calf, in which the text of Coopers Hill on pp. 1-22 is interlineated in manuscript with the Latin version by Moses Pengry. Late 17th century.

Henry Sotheran's sale catalogue Picadilly Notes 29 (Winter 1992), item 178.

DeJ 19.2: Sir John Denham, Cooper's Hill (Latin translation)

A Latin translation of Cooper's Hill by Moses Pengry, Chaplain to the Earl of Devonshire (beginning Si fuerint Vates, Parnassi nulla bicollis), prepared for Lord William Cavendish and printed at Oxford in 1676. The text is reprinted in O Hehir, Hieroglyphicks, pp. 257-75.