Comparison with BL ms Ashmole 399

[-JKP-]

The two-compartment "a" was quite common in the 14th century but was dying out by the 15th century. By the end of the 14th century, some scribes were mixing the two in the same document. By the middle of the 15th century, the two-compartment "a" (sometimes called a 2-story "a") had almost disappeared.

The text on the left looks to me like marginalia, and it also looks as though a chunk of it has been erased. The most distinctive thing about it is the way the quill has been used to emphasize the thick and thin strokes. This is not especially common (it takes more effort).