The Booke of Burschen
Overview
Book: comic pseudo-mediaeval account of founding of sham society. Dialogues between St. Patrick, Ritter von Otto, Buische Kavin, King O'Toole, and Barney, interspersed with comic verse: “Ye Burschen ye liked goode thinges galore... Der Pabst lebt herrlich in d' Welt...Songe of ye Blessed St Kavin. Farewell to those dayes full of glee...
Dates
- Creation: 19th century [approximately 1810?]
Creator
- Lever, Charles, 1806-1872 (Person)
Language of Materials
English (in Irish dialect)
Conditions Governing Access
None
Conditions Governing Use
Spencer Library staff may determine use restrictions dependent on the physical condition of manuscript materials.
Extent
1 volume (1 item) : Bound in gold-stamped vellum; in red box, which is in green case lettered: "The book of Burchen. Lever. Manuscripts." Several pages torn and charred, apparently for the effect. Contains sketches, colored decoration, historiation, rubrication.
Physical Location
MS B77
Immediate Source of Acquisition
O'Hegarty uncatalogued manuscripts.
General
Constructed for the rituals of the Burchenschaft Club, according to accompanying note:
Original Manuscript of Charles Lever, The Burchenschaft Club. The following extract from Fitzpatrick Life of Lever, volume 1 page 106 refers to this Manuscript: "Then there was a mighty Book with Antique Binding and brazen Clasps containing the supposed origin of the Society in the Reign of King O'Toole, and illuminated very handsomely after the manner of a missal. The Legend I need scarcely say was the production of the "most noble grand" himself whilst its illuminations were executed by the minstrel. In order to impart the requisite air of antiquity to this quasi-venerable book, it had first to be thrown into the fire for a moment, then plunged into a pail of water, and finally buried in a coal-cellar."
Lever's name does not appear in the manuscript.
Presumably written in the 1836's or 1840's, before Lever's exile; but not necessarily.
Geographic
- Title
- Guide to the Charles James Lever Manuscript
- Subtitle
- The Booke of Burschen
- Author
- Finding aid prepared by alh, October 26, 1970; Finding aid encoded by mg, 2005
- Date
- 2005
- Description rules
- Describing Archives: A Content Standard
- Language of description
- Finding aid written in<language encodinganalog="language">English.</language>
- Finding aid permalink
- http://hdl.handle.net/10407/8395904484
- Preferred citation
-
Charles James Lever Collection, Department of Special Collections, MS B77, Kenneth Spencer Research Library, University of Kansas Libraries
Repository Details
Part of the University of Kansas. Kenneth Spencer Research Library Repository