(Ps.) Bede's works on nature

Parchment — II (modern) + 99 fols. + II (modern) — 276 × 210 mm — Melk (?) — s. XII

Support: I-IX⁸ (ff. 1-8, 9-16, 17-24, 25-32, 33-40, 41-47, 48-55, 56-63, 64-71), X⁶ (ff. 71a-76), XI⁴ (ff. 77-80, f. 81 skipped or missing), XII⁸ (ff. 82-89), XIII⁹ (ff. 90-98, f. 97 a singleton with a stub visible between ff. 90-91), XIV² (ff. 99-100). Quire signatures on the first recto of the quires in roman numerals I-XII with exception of quires XI and XIV.Modern foliation in the upper right corner of every recto: 1-100, ff. 41 and 71 double, 81 skipped.

History: Based on the script as well as on presence of German glosses the manuscript was written in the twelfth century in South Germany or Austria. The textual similarities with Melk, Benediktinerstiftes, Cod. 412 suggest the Benedictine Abbey of Melk as place of production. — From the 18th c. part of the collection (Sternbilder des Mittelalters, 481).

Selected Bibliography: Sternbilder des Mittelalters, pp. 477-481.

1r-9r Bede: De natura rerum

9r-15r Bede: De temporibus

15r-15v Opusculum Itaque stella veneris et mercurii ›De stella veneris et mercurii saturni iouis et martis‹ Itaque stella ueneris et mercurii hoc a superioribus tribus planetarum stellis differunt … — … et idcirco longiores ethercas metas peragit.

15v (Ps.) Bede: De apsidibus planetarum ›De zodiaco circulo‹ Circulus zodiacus qui XII signis constat … — … Quod subiecta melius pictura declarabitur.

15v-70r Bede: De temporum ratione

70v Text on the simultaneous rising and setting of the constellations. Ariete oriente duabus horis occidit libra … — … superioris zodiaci sagittarius inferioris optinet gemini.

70v How to calculate the rising of the zodiacal signs. "Hortum signorum XII qualibet diei uel noctis hora quisque liquido deprehensurus est si a KL octobris horas dierum ac noctium usque ad eam quam si proposuit colligens per XXIIII^or metiatur et quos excreuerit diuidat quem ad modum subiecta instruit formula. Si I aut duo remanserunt oritur libra. Si III aut IIII scorpio. Si V aut VI sagittarius. Si VIII aut VIII capricornus. Si VIIII aut X aquarius. Si XI aut XII pisces. Si XIII aut XIIII aries. Si XV aut XVI taurus. Si XVII aut XVIII gemini, Si XVIIII aut XX cancer. Si XXI aut XXII leo. Si XXIII aut XXIIII uirgo."

70v-71r Short text on the eclypse Deliquium Solis contigisse fertur anno ab incarnatione domini DCCC^oVIII Quicquid ergo inde aut abcessit … — … quod quotiens contigerit totiens eclypsin non defecturam.

71r In quo signo versetur mars In quo signo versetur mars annis ab initio mundi per senarium diuisis … — … memoratum semper inueniri planetam uirgo. Text begins without any visula mark separating it from the previous one. In the margin the planets are written in red next to their respective paragraph entries.

71r-71v ›De incremento saltus lunae‹ Primo sciendum est quod in toto decennouenali circulo unus dies de saltu lunae accrescat … — … et sextans id eset sexta pars momenti.

71v ›De concordia soli et lunae‹ Nouem horis in luna … — … possunt VIIII hore lunares cum quinque diebus solaribus concordare.

71v-71av ›De quibus embolismi menses et bissextiles dies adimplentur‹ Luna igitur cotidie et cetera transit XIII partes et horas VIII … — … Hec ratio subtilissima est et ualde necessatia et maxima labori undecumque ab auctoribus collecta et ad quam vernenda mentis acies purganda.

71av-75r Anonymous commentary on Bede's DTR ›De natura rerum et temporum ratione‹ Non est pretermittendum cum dixit de natura rerum cur non etiam de natura temporum uel de ratione rerum et ratione temporum dixit … — … idest CCma XXXV pars XLVII semis momentorum.

75r Computistical texts on the epacts and regulares solis. ›Quid est epacta solis et regulares solis‹ Dum audis epactas lune aetates lune per singulos annos intellige … — … uel quot dies usque ad Kalendas futuri mensis supersunt.

75r 12-line verse on the course of the planets within the zodiac and their distance from earth. Bissex signiferae numerantur sydera sperae … — … Proxima telluri dum curris candida phebe ed. Walther, 2200, Schaller 1977, 1725; Baehrens, Poetae Latini minores, vol. 5, p. 350, lin. 15-351, lin 9)

75v-80r Medical recipes Dictamnum urinam et menstrua prouocat … — … lactuces non comedat nec in balneum calidum ingrediatur.

80v-82r 122-line verse on the zodiac and the months [N] omina signorum quis clauditur astriger orbis … — … Versus qui restant qui uult in fine requirat. di Pasquale, Maria Grazia. "Nomina signorum quis clauditur astriger orbis: un carme inedito sulle costellazioni e lo Zodiaco nei mesi dell'anno." In: Poesía Latina Medieval (siglos V-XV). Ed. by M. Díaz Díaz et al. Firenze, 2005, pp. 675-684.

82v-100v De signis coelis (redaction incl AL) Quodam tamen multa dicunt et alii alter narasse … — … supercurrens multis aduenientibus nubibus. Illustrations of the constellations, diagram of the zodiac, the moon and the sun in chariots and a map of the celestial zones. The stars are marked in red according to the positions stated in the text. The illustrator distinguished between brighter and fainter stars: the one referred to as "splendior" in the text are circles filled with a red crosses on a black background, while those labelled "obscura" are filled in dull dark-red.

Abreviated Literature:

Catalogued by: Ivana Dobcheva