MS 9/2:4 Otto Ege
MS 9/2:4 is a parchment leaf that was removed from a Book of Hours in the 20th century by Otto F. Ege (1888-1951.) Ege was the Dean of the Cleveland Institute of Art and lecturer on the History of the Book at Western Reserve University. He was a self-proclaimed “biblioclast,” or book-breaker, dispersing leaves from hundreds of damaged and incomplete manuscripts to American institutions from 1917 - 1950. Ege argued that book breaking allowed individuals and small institutions access to fragments at a lower cost.