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Merton College MS. 227

Former shelfmark: A. 1. 1

RASIS, AVICENNA; S. XIV1

Contents

Language(s): Latin

Fols. iii, iv blank. On f. iiiv is a short note from Avicenna. On f. ivv is a table of contents s. xv ex., with three erased items now missing before f. 154: ‘d[...] Rasis / [...] Rasis / [...]y[...]mia Rasis’.

1. (fols. 1-103v)
RASIS, Liber Almansoris (transl. GERARD OF CREMONA)
Rubric: Incipit liber qui dicitur Almassorius a magistro G. Cremonensi apud Toletum translatus Abubecri Arazi filii Zacarie. Incipit liber qui ab eo uocatus est Almassorius eo quod regis Almassoris Ysaac filii precepto editus est.
Incipit: In hoc meo libro aggregabo
Incipit: (capitula)
Incipit: Creator omnium Deus ossa condidit
Explicit: quapropter Deo ... gracie sint infinite.
Final rubric: Et sunt capitula tocius libri CCCXLVIII. Explicit Almassorius. Deo gracias

Pr. Milan 1481, fols. 7r-114r &c.; Carmody, 134-5; TKI 272, 677, 679.

2. (fols. 104-39v)
RASIS, Diuisiones (transl. GERARD OF CREMONA)
Rubric: Incipit liber diuisionum Rasys.
Incipit: Verba Abubecri filii Zacarie a Rasy. Ventilata fuit in presencia cuiusdam probi uiri rememoratio diuisionis egritudinum
Explicit: delent uestigia earum.
Final rubric: Expliciunt diuisiones Rasis.

Pr. Milan 1481, fols. 115-61 &c.; TKI 1684.

3. (fols. 139v-51v)
RASIS, Antidotarium (transl. GERARD OF CREMONA)
Rubric: Incipit antidotarius Rasys.
Incipit: Dixi in hoc meo libro medicinas quarum necessitas est inseparabilis
Incipit: Iam quidem peruenimus ad expositionem relacionis egritudinum que sunt
Incipit: (capitula)
Incipit: Confeccio tincture denigrantis capillos sumatur libra
Explicit: donec inspissetur deinde repone.
Final rubric: Explicit antidotarius Rasys Deo gracias.

Unpr.; TKI 445, 549.

4. (fols. 151v-3v)
RASIS, De Doloribus Iuncturarum or Experimenta
Rubric: Incipit liber de iuncturis.
Incipit: Dicit Rasys Volo in hoc capitulo dicere medicinas que sunt necessarie in doloribus iuncturarum
Explicit: (ends impf.) quod illud apostema est compositum de sanguine et co. et debemus

Pr. in his Opera, Milan 1481, fols. 163-92v, &c.; TKI 421, 1710.

5. (fols. 154-95)
AVICENNA, De Animalibus (transl. MICHAEL SCOT)
Incipit: (Beg. impf. in viii. 1) uenatur, et cum illis additamentis bellant
Explicit: iam scis ex alio loco.
Final rubric: Explicit XIXus Auicenne de naturis animalium.

Pr. Venice c. 1500 (GW 311), fols. 29-64, &c.; TKI 515, 570.

6. (fols. 195-205v; 206rv blank)
AVICENNA, De Viribus Cordis (transl. ARNALD OF VILLANOVA)
Rubric: Incipit liber Auicene de uiribus cordis et medicinis cordialibus translatus a magistro Arnaldo Barchinone
Incipit: Creauit Deus ex concauitatibus cordis sinistram
Explicit: cum laude Dei qui uirtutem largiri dignatus est opusculum terminandi amen.
Final rubric: Explicit tractatus de medicinis cordialibus.

Pr. Padua 1476 (GW 3116); TKI 273; Diaz 1608.

Physical Description

Secundo Folio: magnam faciet
Form: codex
Support: Parchment
Extent: 215 leaves of parchment prepared in the Italian manner (iv + 208, incl. 5A, 92A-B)
Dimensions (leaf): 300 × 205 mm.
Dimensions (written): 220 × 145 mm.
The edges retrimmed, affecting marginalia and running heads, and spattered with red.

Collation

A bifolium, 1-910, 10-118, 12-1610 / 17-1912, 206, 2110, a singleton; catchwords, mostly trimmed off. Quires are lacking after 16.

Layout

Ruled with crayon in 2 cols of 48 lines.

Hand(s)

Two proficient southern French or Italian gothic rotunda bookhands, the first to f. 153v.

Decoration

On f. 1 16-line coloured initial I with 3-sided border, in Italian style, showing a standing physician teaching; red and blue initials flourished in the colours and violet; blue initials flourished in red, red initials flourished in violet; running heads in red and blue capitals; plain red or blue initials and paraphs; yellow highlighting.

Binding

Standard Merton s. xvii, repaired, rebacked and resewn (by Maltby, 1993) on four bands; formerly chained from the usual position. Fols. i-ii, 207-8 are paper binding leaves, the outermost from the same printed book as in MS 11. f. iii was once a pastedown. On f. 206 are two marks from a large iron chain-staple. The stub of this leaf is all that remains of the former rear pastedown. Near the foot of f. iv are four holes, suggestive of the large iron chain-staple; there are no marks in the corresponding positions on f. iii because the lower half of the leaf was lost and has been replaced in modern times.

History

Origin: S. XIV1 ; France, South or Italy.

Provenance and Acquisition

Made in south France or Italy.

Near the head of f. iiivis an erased inscription in a small early hand: [‘Iste liber est magistri R. de ?N ... de]’.

Given to the College by William Reed in 1374: UO49. 29. On f. ivv: ‘Liber magistri Willelmi Red ex dono magistri Nicholai de Sandwyco. Oretis igitur pro utroque’; ‘Liber domus scolarium de Merton’ in Oxon’ in communi libraria eiusdem et ad usum communem sociorum ibidem studencium cathenandus Ex dono uenerabilis patris domini Willelmi tercii episcopi Cicestrie. Orate igitur pro eodem ...’; in a very small informal hand, ‘Proprietas domus Mertone’. On f. 205v are ‘C. 31’ and ‘Prec. XXX s.’, s. xiv. For William Reed, fellow from 1344 until at least 1357, d. 1385, see MS 8.

Inside the front board is a sheet of paper with table of contents, s. xvii, and ‘P. 2. 10. Art:’, canc. and replaced with ‘N. 1. 1 (CCXXVII)’ in red; the College bookplate. ‘10’ is inked on the foredge.

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, pp. 88-9; Powicke, no. 540; AL Codices, no. 364; M.-Th. d’Alverny, ‘Avicenna latinus V’, AHDLMA 32 (1965), 257-302, at pp. 284-6; Alexander & Temple, no. 733 and pl. XLIII.