f17r

[-JKP-]

...
Just to clarify something, and setting aside the "a" in "mallier"...you are certain that is "lli" and not "lh" as in "malher", correct? I just want to confirm this and make sure of the point for certain.

Yes. I am 95% certain. I am not certain about very many things in the VMS, but I don't think I've ever seen "h" written like that in any script that is somewhat or mostly similar to this style of script. ONE TIME (about two years ago) I thought I had found one (it jumped out at me) and when I looked closely, it turned out to be "li" by context.

They usually wrote h with a scoop or a curve (as on 116v). In modern times this might be an "h". I can't prove it's not an "h", I can only say after sampling more than 2,000 letters "l" and "h" I've never seen "h" written like this.

Also, as further justification for the choice, this scribe writes 'i" with a long serif. It's not easy to see in this small faint note on 17r, but there is a leading serif (approach stroke) on the "i" that would be consistent with the samples of "i" I posted previously (You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login to view.).