Some Offices are found in the volumes of Analecta hymnicaPresentation of Mary, in Analecta hymnica vol. 24, pp. 76-80; Holy Lance, partly in Analecta hymnica vol. 5, pp. 35-36, cf. Vorau; Visitation of Mary, in Analecta hymnica vol. 24, pp. 89-94; Anna, partly in Analecta hymnica vol. 5, pp. 115-117; Gudula - The Office from the Brussels Gudula Church, partly in Analecta hymnica vol. 26, pp. 78-79; Elizabeth of Hungary, in Analecta hymnica vol. 25, pp. 253-258, cf Cambrai; Francis of Assisi, in Analecta hymnica vol. 5, pp. 175-178, cf. Budapest; Justus, in Analecta hymnica vol. 55, pp. 404-408.
Many of the Offices in the 16th-century portion of the manuscript received their place in the Zutphen liturgy in the later Middle Ages. The manuscript contains an Office of Gudula, partly known from sources of Brussels. A church was dedicated to this saint in the village of Lochem, a church under the control of the Zutphen chapter. The Justus Office reflects veneration for Justus during the 15th century, a veneration which also led to the founding of a Confraternity for Ewald and Justus in 1454. Relics of Justus of Beauvais had been preserved in Zutphen since at least the 14th century; and an additional relic for the saint was brought by the Franciscans when they established themselves in Zutphen, around 1450. The settling of the Franciscans at this time also explains the occurence of a Francis Office in the later additions to the MS. Other relics were kept in Zutphen as well, including the bones of Bartholomew and some skulls of the 11, 000 virgins. These relics were taken out of Zutphen during the religious troubles at the end of the 16th century and brought to Antwerp.
Among the 15th century portions of the MS we find:
An Office for Walburga, patron saint of the church. This Office is a compilation of chants, written originally for Walburga or for other female saints (some chants are found in the Office of Gertrudis of Nivelles, Analecta hymnica vol. 26, pp. 60-63).
The relatively extended Office for Margaret in the 15th century part of the MS (in prose; with psalm quotations in some of the chants; not in Analecta hynnica or LMLO) can perhaps be explained by the fact that in St. Walburga's was a Margaret chapel; this was the chapel of the counts of Zutphen.
The Bartholomew Office is not in Analecta hymnica; some chants can be found in LMLO (BA84 and BA85).
In the Zutphen tradition, some saints are celebrated on idiosyncratic dates. According to all Zutphen sources, the translation of Walburga's relics to Eichstätt is celebrated on 24 September, while in Eichstätt (where she is buried together with her brother) it is celebrated on 12 October. The translation of Gudula is in Zutphen on 8 October, but in Brussels (where her relics were brought in the 11th century and where her Office originated) on 6 July. Justus of Beauvais is celebrated in Zutphen on 11 October, though his feast is traditionally 18 October. Apparently Justus of Beauvais was confused with Justus of Arras.
Although Zutphen is now a relatively small city in the east of the Netherlands, it was a flourishing town during the Middle Ages, the residence of the counts of both Zutphen and the county (from 1339 onwards duchy) Gelre.
The chapter of Zutphen was founded in the 11th century, and consisted of a provost and 12 canons; there were 11-16 vicars and in 15th-century documents 3 "chorisocii" are mentioned. In addition, there were also schoolboys. The church is connected with the famous "Librije", a unique late medieval library built adjacent to the church.
The presence of an organ is known from the first half of the 15th century onwards. No traces of polyphonic vocal music are known.
Most of the books and documents of the chapter are kept in the Municipal Archive (the Stadsarchief or Gemeentelijk Archief Zutphen). Some are in the Librije or elsewhere.
Other sources for the Zutphen Office are:
Breviarium festivum (Brussels, Bibl. Bollandistes, ms 680), prepared ca. 1470 (without notation).
Two choir books (Zutphen, GAZ, ms 2 and Zutphen, Librije, ms 6), dating from the 2nd half of the 15th century, partly early 16th century, each containing a limited number of Offices, and some sequences. The books are identical and apparently meant for both sides of the choir.
A small 15th century book with the responsoria brevia (Zutphen, Librije, ms 5)
For the Mass, unnoted missals have generally survived; only some sequences (e.g. for Walburga) are preserved with music.
In the 2nd half of the 16th century, during the religious troubles, Zutphen came under Protestant control. From that time onwards the Catholic religion was forbidden in the northern part of the Netherlands. Although some chapters (e.g. the Utrecht chapters) managed to continue until the end of the 18th century, the Zutphen chapter was disbanded round 1600.
All chants not found in CAO are assigned arbitrary numbers prefixed by "zut".
The literature is mainly in Dutch.
- De Sint-Walburgiskerk in Zutphen. Momenten uit de geschiedenis van een middeleeuwse kerk. Eds.: M. Groothedde et al. (Zutphen 1999), containing among others: I. de Loos: De liturgie in de Zutphense Sint-Walburgiskerk, pp. 159-185)
- De geschiedenis van Zutphen, ed.: W. Frijhoff (Zutphen 1989).
- Dreves, G.M. ed. Analecta Hymnica Medii Aevi. 55 Volumes. Leipzig: 1886. Reprint. Frankfurt am Main: Minerva, 1961.
- Hughes, Andrew. Late Medieval Liturgical Offices: Resources for Electronic Research. Subsidia Mediaevalia, 23. Toronto: Pontifical Institute of Medieval Studies, 1994.