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Manuscripts, [late 12 cent.]-[early 20 cent.], formerly part of the library of the Mostyn family of Mostyn Hall, Flintshire, comprising transcripts and extracts from Giraldus Cambrensis, Geoffrey of Monmouth, Dares Phrygius, Nennius, Gildas, David Jenkins (Judge Jenkins), Sir John Wynn of Gwydir, Lydgate's 'Life of Our Lady', Leland's Itinerary, 'Chroniques de France', historical manuscripts such as Brut y Tywysiogion and Brut y Brenhinoedd, Welsh romances and the Mabinogion; collections of mainly Welsh poetry, among them the seventeenth-century volumes Llyfr Coch Nannau and Llyfr Gwyn Corsygedol, containing poems by Dafydd ap Gwilym, Guto'r Glyn, Tudur Aled, Siôn Cent and others; genealogies, pedigrees and histories; official papers relating to Caernarvonshire; catalogues of the Mostyn and Gloddaeth libraries, 1692-1842; etc.

The Vulgate text of St Luke's Gospel preceded by the usual prologue (F. Stegmuller, Repertorium Biblicum Medii Aevi, Madrid, 1950-61, no. 620) (ff. 1-121 verso). Lucas, syrus natione, et antyochenus, arte medicus ... (f. 2) quam fastidientibus prodesse. Quoniam quidem multi conati sunt ... et benedicentes deum. The prologue has interlinear glosses by the scribe of the text, some of them giving variant readings. The text has marginal and interlinear glosses by the scribes of the text. These are the Glossa Ordinaria with a good number of additional marginal glosses (comparison with the Glossa Ordinaria in PL 114) all, so far as has been ascertained, deriving from Ambrose and Bede. There are further glosses on the text and on the Gloss in several contemporary smaller glossing hands, probably including both the main scribes, interlined and in the outer margin. Text flanked by gloss, varying number of columns. 35-38 lines (hands A and B), 44 lines (hand C, except when he has to match A or B), the text on alternate lines. Written above the top line. Ruling in plummet includes three sets of three lines at top, middle and bottom of the written space drawn across the full width of the page.
Written in good textura by three hands: A, ff. 1-17, 37-41 , 43 recto-verso; B, f. 17 verso; C ff. 18-32 verso, 42 recto , 44-121 verso. C writes a textura prescissa except when matching A or B. The Gloss is written in a smaller textura by each of the scribes, additional glosses in small glossing hands. Omissions by A have been made good by C. Ink is black-dark brown. Syntax letters and marks appear a few times (e.g. ff. 1 recto-verso, 11 verso).

An early-thirteenth century collection of distinctiones from the Mostyn library. The distinctiones are theological and scriptural and, to a small extent, merely grammatical. They are set out in the characteristically medieval schematic pattern. Quotations in the distinctiones are mostly from Scripture; there are also however some from the Fathers, from the Liturgy and, among the pagan writers, Boethius, Virgil, Ovid and Lucan. The compilation appears in part at least to be an original one. It is the work of one hand, an English one, well written and prettily decorated in red and green.

The 'Topographia Hibernica' and 'Expugnatio Hiberniae' of Giraldus Cambrensis, with initial capitals, etc., in red and green.

The Welsh text of Brut y Brenhinedd written by the scribe of the Book of Taliesin (NLW Peniarth MS 2) during the first half of the fourteenth century. The text is followed by the pedigree of Llywelyn ap Gruffudd.

The Welsh texts of Dares Phrygius (ff. 1-23 verso), Brut y Brenhinedd (ff. 24-141 verso), and Brut y Tywysogion (ff. 142-206 verso), written in a hand of the second half of the fourteenth century.

Lydgate's Life of our Lady, 'O thoughtful! herte plunged indistresse ...' (ff. 2-102 verso). The text includes 'The white lillie of the chosen vale' (f. 3 verso), 'That al maydens myzte ensample take' (f. 4), 'The beutee causith to be of more delyte' (f. 25 verso), and 'Amydeys this welle from fylthe of synne cold ...' (f. 26). The text is defective at two points due to the loss of leaves. It breaks off in ch. I (after f. 3) and resumes near the end of ch. 2; it breaks off again in ch. 19 and resumes in ch. 20. The tags follow the text in the hand of the scribe. It has not yet been possible to compare the text with the edition of J. A. Lauritis, R. A. Klinefelter and V. F. Gallagher.
Written in one hand, an Anglicana formata with Secretary influence, professional-looking. On f. 2 is a 10-line historiated initial O (birth of the Virgin, the picture somewhat rubbed) with a full page frame and border of foliage, flowers and sprays (gold, maroon, blue, white, green, orange), reproduced in the Christie's catalogue (see below). Blue initials for chapters, with red penwork, mostly 2-line, a few 3 or 4-line. Alternating red and blue paragraphs marks with contrasting penwork. Chapter numbers in red at the head of each page, with blue paragraph mark and red penwork. Sidenotes in red with blue paragraph marks.

Two tracts - (a) a description of England, in fifteen chapters, compiled in 1445, beginning 'tractatus iste compendiose extractus de diversorum historiographorum diversis ... describit Angliam ... '; (b) a genealogical chronicle in the same hand projected from Adam to Brutus and from Brutus to Henry VI, but in execution brought only to Edward I, with a continuation in a sixteenth century hand to Henry VIII (1518). The pattern of this genealogical chronicle is that of the Promptuarium Bibliae attributed to Petrus Pictaviensis. The text begins 'Adam in agro damasceno ...' (cf. Thomas Jones, Y Bibyl Ynghymraeg (Cardiff, 1940), p. xiii) and has lines added for the Saxons, kings of Britain, princes of Wales, the different divisions of Saxon England, kings of England, princes of Demetia, princes of Venedotia, &c.

A transcript of the romance of the Holy Grail, with annotations in later hands.

A calendar, a treatise on urine, a Life of St Martin, and a brief history from Adam to "Asclopitotus", in the autograph of Gutyn Owain, written in 1488 (p. 62) and 1489 (p. 10).

Apparently the chronicle of the reign of Charles V found in Les Grandes Chroniques de France (Grandes Chroniques de Saint-Denis) but unable to compare with any of the printed texts (ff. 1-59). The prologue on f. 1 ('Au non du pere ... les autres plus indignes') corresponds word for word with that to the chronicle of the reign of Charles VII (see below, f. 177) except for the substitution of V for VII. The text of f. 1 is written by a later hand to make good the loss of probably two leaves of the original manuscript, see below. Possibly the placing of Jean Chartier's prologue at this point is due to a misunderstanding by this later hand. From f. 2 on, chapters are numbered and headed by brief summaries. The text of f. 2 begins in chapter 3.
Also included is apparently Jean Juvenal's chronicle of the reign of Charles VI with the continuation attributed to Gilles le Bouvier (ff. 63-172). Unable to compare with a printed text. Cf. B. L. Royal MS 20. E. v. Chapters numbered and headed by brief summaries, as in the table. Together with another two fragments: the first of whcih we are unable to compare with a printed text of Jean Chartier's chronicle. Cf. BL Royal MS 20. C. ix. Chapters numbered and headed by brief summaries, as in the table (ff. 177-339); the second of which we are unable to compare with the chronicle of the reign of Louis XI which was added to some of the early printed editions of Les Grandes Chroniques de France (ff. 340-444 verso).

A sixteenth-century manuscript containing the associated texts of Dares Phrygius and Geoffrey of Monmouth's Brut Tysilio.

A composite manuscript from the Gloddaeth Library, consisting of cywyddau and Brut y Tywysogion (pp. 35-178).

The text of Statud Gruffudd ap Cynan ('Llyma ystatus Gruff ap Kynan'), as promulgated at the Caerwys Eisteddfod of 1523.

A manuscript in three parts. The first part, possibly in the autograph of Thomas Jones (alias Twm Siôn Cati), comprises heraldry, with coloured illustrations of the coats of arms of the Britons and of the princes of North and South Wales, together with a number of their pedigrees (pp. 1-136). The second part comprises the pedigrees of the mothers of some of the principal families in Wales, together with a description of their coats of arms (pp. 137-178). The third part comprises poetry, a large portion of which is in the autograph of John Jones, Gellilyfdy (pp. 179-202).