Merton College MS. 218

Former shelfmark: N. 3. 1

WORKS OF GALEN; c. 1300

Language(s): Latin

fol. 1 blank; on 1v is a table of contents in a hand contemporary with the main text, and ‘Liber Galieni’, s. xiv.

1. (fols. 2–7v)

(Ps.?)-GALEN, De Elementis secundum Hippocratem

Rubric: Incipit liber Galieni de secundum Ypocratem elementis.

Incipit: Quoniam elementum minima est particula cuius est elementum minimum

Explicit: qui utique posterius existit uera uiolenter proprio attracto.

Final rubric: Explicit liber Galieni de secundum Ypocratem elementis.

Pr. in Galen, Opera, Venice 1490 (GW 10481), II, fols. 217–35v; eTK 1274E (cf. 1269E), ; Hippocrates Latinus 135–8.

2. (fols. 7v-25)

GALEN, De Complexionibus (transl. GERARD OF CREMONA)

Rubric: Incipit liber primus Galieni de complexionibus.

Incipit: Summe que sunt in sermone primi libri Galieni de complexione

Explicit: ante diximus in medicinis ipsis.

Final rubric: Explicit liber de complexionibus

Pr. in his Opera, II, fols. 233v-7.

eTK 1538G

3. (fols. 25–7)

GALEN, De Malitia Complexionis Diversae

Rubric: Incipit liber de malicia complexionis diuerse.

Incipit: Malicia complexionis diuerse quandoque in toto animalis corpore

Explicit: ipsum librum de ingenio sanitatis.

Pr. in his Opera, II, fols. 237–8v.

eTK 0846F

4. (fols. 27v-77)

GALEN, De Simplicibus Medicinis (transl. CONSTANTINE THE AFRICAN)

Incipit: Quoniam mihi necesse est hic ostendere summam utilitatis cognitionis

Explicit: in unaquaque medicinarum per se si Deus uoluerit.

Final rubric: Finitus est tractatus v. libri Galieni in uirtutibus simplicium medicinarum.

Pr. in his Opera, II, fols. 238v-300v.

eTK 1285L

5. (fols. 77v-99)

GALEN, De Morbo et Accidente

Rubric: Incipit prima particula de accidente et morbo.

Incipit: In inicio huius libri diffiniri morbum oportet

Explicit: semper alia sequuntur et que non.

Final rubric: Explicit liber de morbo et accidente.

Pr. in his Opera, II, fols. 355–69.

eTK 0684I

6. (fols. 99–129)

GALEN, Megategni (transl. CONSTANTINE THE AFRICAN)

Rubric: Incipit megategni prologus.

Incipit: Quamuis karissime fili Iohannes

Incipit: Quoniam intencio gloriossimi G. in hoc libro fuit ad redarguandum quandam sectam

Explicit: maxime uisceribus medicamine aromatico.

Pr., with the works of Isaac Iudaeus, Lyon 1515, II, fols. 189v-209v; eTK 1163H, 1282A.

7. (fols. 129–54)

GALEN, De Crisibus (transl. WILLIAM OF MOERBEKE)

Rubric: Incipit liber de crisi.

Incipit: Ego non intendo in hoc meo libro determinare

Explicit: et non est necessarius tractatus quartus.

Final rubric: Explicit liber tercius de crisi.

Pr. in his Opera, I, fols. 78–95v.

eTK 0490G

8. (fols. 154–71v)

GALEN, De Criticis Diebus (transl. GERARD OF CREMONA)

Rubric: Incipit liber G. de creticis diebus.

Incipit: Vt egritudinum que non paulatim minuuntur

Explicit: ad finem libri auxilio Dei.

Final rubric: Ex eius adiutorio completus est tractatus tercius G. de creticis diebus. Explicit tractatus libri tercii G. de creticis diebus.

Pr. in his Opera, I, fols. 96–108v.

eTK 1617J

9. (fols. 171v-205v)

GALEN, De Interioribus (transl. BURGUNDIO OF PISA)

Incipit: Medicorum non solum moderni uerum etiam et antiqui

Explicit: et passionem ostendunt.

Final rubric: Explicit liber Galieni de interioribus membris.

Pr. in his Opera, II, fols. 330–54v; ed. R. J. Durling, Galen Latinus 2 (Stuttgart, 1992).

eTK 0863A

10. (fols. 206–9v)

GALEN, De Virtutibus Cibariorum (transl. ACCURSIUS OF PISTOIA)

Incipit: ⟨D⟩icit G. quod quia corpora hominum sunt in continua dissolucione

Explicit: eum mundum stringunt uentrem.

Final rubric: Explicit liber G. de uirtutibus naturalibus cibariorum translatus per magistrum Acursium Pystoyensem apud Bononias anno Domini mcc.

Pr. in his Opera, II, fols. 162v-5v; eTK 0266C.

Annotated throughout in anglicana hands of s. xiv and xv.

Physical Description

Secundo Folio: ei inest

Form: codex

Support: Parchment

Extent: 215 leaves (iii + 212)

Dimensions (leaf): 340 × 230 mm.

Dimensions (written): 245–60 × 150 mm.

The edges retrimmed, affecting marginalia, and spattered with red.

Collation

A singleton, 1–3⁸, 4–18¹² / 19⁴; catchwords and coloured leaf-numbers. Quire 19 is a slightly later addition to the main book.

Layout

Ruled with pencil in 2 cols of 63 lines.

Hand(s)

Arts 1–9 in a proficient French gothic rotunda bookhand. The hand of art. 10, perhaps a little later, is more formal.

Decoration

Handsome large initials with foliage in colours and gold fols. 1, 7v, 27v, 77v; red and blue flourished initials; a few small blue initials flourished in red; red or blue paraphs. Art. 10 has unfilled spaces for coloured initials and rubrics.

Binding

Standard Merton s. xvii, repaired and rebacked; sewn on seven bands; formerly chained from the usual position. Fols. i-ii and 211–12 are modern paper blanks, iii and 210 are binding leaves, s. xvii.

History

Origin: c. 1300 ; script of French appearance.

Provenance and Acquisition

French.

Near the head of fol. 1v is a thoroughly erased inscription. Below is a lengthy table of contents in the usual secretary hand, c. 1500, ending ‘Ex dono domini Ricardi Fitz James nuper Cicestrensis episcopi et custodis istius Collegii cuius anime propicietur Deus amen.’ For Fitzjames, warden 1483–1507, see MS 9.

At the head of fol. 2 is the James no. ‘69’, and at the foot ‘Lib: Bib: Merton: Oxon:’, both s. xvii. Inside the front board is a sheet of paper with a table of contents, s. xvii, and ‘P. 2. 1. Art:’, canc. and replaced with ‘N. 3. 1’ and ‘No. CCXVIII’ in red; the College bookplate.

Record Sources

R. M. Thomson, A descriptive catalogue of the medieval manuscripts of Merton College, Oxford (Cambridge: D. S. Brewer), 2009.

Availability

For enquiries relating to this manuscript please contact Merton College Library.

Bibliography

Coxe, p. 84; Powicke, no. 1191; Alexander & Temple, no. 653.

Funding of Cataloguing

Conversion of the printed catalogue to TEI funded by the Warden and Fellows of Merton College .

Abbreviations

View list of abbreviations and editorial conventions.

Last Substantive Revision

2019-08-01: First online publication

A catalogue of Western manuscripts at the Bodleian Libraries and selected Oxford colleges