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Wode's Scottish Metrical Psalter Part Books

by Sharon L. Krossa

The sixteenth century manuscript version of the Scottish Metrical Psalter Part Books compiled by Thomas Wode, Vicar of Saint Andrews, held by the Edinburgh University Library include two watercolor drawings depicting musicians: a man singing on the title page of the treble part and a man playing a recorder on the title page of the tenor part. (Unfortunately, the title page of the bass part is missing.)

Sixteenth century Saint Andrews was in the cultural Lowlands, and the texts of the psalter are in Scots (a language closely related to contemporary English), so the men's clothing illustrates Lowland, not Highland, attire. The treble title page shows a man wearing shirt, doublet, slops, thigh-length hose with garters at the knee, shoes, a hat, and what looks like some kind of belt or the like around the waist. The tenor title page shows a man wearing a neck to ankle robe of some sort with short or no sleeves, with the long sleeves of another garment showing beneath, shoes, and a hat. (This may be clerical clothing or a religious habit.)

Original

Wode, Thomas, comp. Scottish Metrical Psalter Part Books (MS). 3 vols. 16th Cent. Laing Collection, La.III.483. Edinburgh Univerity Library, Edinburgh, Scotland.

Manuscript copies are held by:

• Edinburgh University Library

Edinburgh University Library has a scanned images of the title pages of the treble and tenor parts (as well as a sketch of a castle with "guns blazing" from the bass part) available online as part of their Special Collections Division's Masterpieces from the research collections of Edinburgh University Library, in the 16th Century section, at

Scottish Metrical Psalter Part Books (Wode) (16th Century)

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