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

Merton College MS. 277

Former shelfmark: H. 2. 9

AQUINAS ON ARISTOTLE; S. XIV in.

Contents

Language(s): Latin

Two tables of contents on f. ivv, s. xiv ex.

Physical Description

Secundo Folio: uitarent
Manuscript in two parts.
Form: codex
Support: Parchment
Extent: 104 leaves (iv + 100)
Dimensions (leaf): 270 × 195 mm.
The edges heavily retrimmed with loss of marginalia, and spattered red.

Collation

Two bifolia, the first leaf little more than a stub, 1–312, a bifolium / 4–812, two singletons; catchwords.

Layout

Ruled

Hand(s)

Each art. is in a separate anglicana hand.

Decoration

Unfilled spaces for initials and rubrics.

Binding

Standard Merton s. xvii, sewn on three bands; formerly chained from the usual position. f. i was a pastedown in an earlier binding; so was f. 100, which has marks of two straps or catches. The stub conjugate with f. 99 was certainly once a pastedown, and f. 99 itself has marks of two straps or catches, and of the large iron chain-staple at the foot.

History

Provenance and Acquisition

At the head of f. 1, mainly cropped, is an inscription beginning ‘Willelmi’.

Below is ‘Liber domus scolarium [de Merton’ om.] in Oxon’ ex legato M. Iohannis Raynham sacre pagine professoris et quondam socii huius domus’. For Reynham, fellow 1335–58, d. 1376, see MS 18.

The book appears in the electio of 1408–9 (UO51. 179), as the eighth item in the lot assigned to Thomas Walbere, and in later ones.

On f. iiiv ‘11us de sorte Martyn’. Roger Martyn (see MS 272) was fellow from c. 1434 until at least 1439.

On f. ivv ‘8us de sorte Iohannis Chilmarke | de sorte Walbere | de sorte Wodeward’. Chilmark was fellow in 1384, no longer in 1393; Thomas Walbere bachelor fellow, adm. 1405; Thomas Woodward fellow c. 1479, no longer in 1487 (BRUO 416, 1956, 2085).

On f. iv ‘dulcis Wondeworthe | dulcis hec ille dulcis Oxonie | bibe dulcis tene ciphum dulcis Oxonie’, s. xv.

At the foot of f. 98v is an erased cautio: ‘C. fratris Thome Snwdone exposita in cista de Vyan et Husy in festiuitatem sancti Luce anno Domini MCCCCXXIII et iacet pro ’.

On f. 99 a pen-trial ‘Willelmus dulcis gallicus natione’.

Inside the front board is a sheet of paper with a table of contents, s. xvii, ‘Q. 1. 9. Art:’, s. xvii, canc. and replaced with ‘H. 2. 9 (CCLXXVII)’ in red, and the College bookplate. At the head of fols. ii and 1 is the James no. ‘96’ (wrongly), s. xvii in.

Merton College MS. 277 – Part I (fols. 1–38v)

Contents

Language(s): Latin

1. (fols. 1–38)
THOMAS AQUINAS, Commentary on ARISTOTLE, Analytica Posteriora
Incipit: ⟨O⟩mnis doctrina ...; (p. 7 line 133) Necessitas cuiuslibet rei ordinate ad finem sentitur ex suo fine
Explicit: s. intellectus ad principium sciencie.
Final rubric: Sententie secundum fratrem Thomam de Aquino expliciunt.

STO 1*/2. 3–247; Glorieux, Théol. 14ba; Lohr, p. 164.

2. (fol. 38rv)
Commendatio philosophiae
Incipit: Bonorum honorabilium. Verba Aristotelis primo de anima alliciendo auditores illius ad amorem illius sciencie
Explicit: et ipsum pocius angelum quam hominem nominant amen.

An inception oration, added early on in a previously blank space.

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: Parchment
Dimensions (written): 230 × 140 mm.

Layout

Frame-ruled with crayon in 2 cols; written in c. 45–50 lines.

Decoration

Red paraphs in art. 1.

History

Origin: s. xiv in. ; script of English appearance.

Merton College MS. 277 – Part II (fols. 39–98v)

Contents

Language(s): Latin

(fols. 39–98v)
THOMAS AQUINAS, Commentary on ARISTOTLE, Metaphysica
Incipit: ⟨S⟩icut dicit Aristotiles in politicis suis quando aliqua plura ordinantur ad unum
Explicit: (ends impf. in v. 15) est unum aliquid esse per se 2º in

Ed. M. Cathala and R. M. Spiazzi (Rome/Turin, 1964); Glorieux, Théol. 14bz; Lohr, pp. 164–5.

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: Parchment
Dimensions (written): 220 × 140 mm.

Layout

Ruled with pencil in 2 cols of 50 lines.

History

Origin: s. xiv in. ; script of English appearance.

Merton College MS. 277 - flyleaves (fols. i-ii, 100)

Contents

Language(s): Latin

(fols. i-ii, 100)
A tract against the Jews

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: Parchment

Layout

Written in 2 cols.

Hand(s)

In an anglicana hand, using very pale ink.

History

Origin: s. xiv in. ; script of English appearance.

Merton College MS. 277 - flyleaves (fols. iii-iv, 99)

Contents

Language(s): Latin

Extracts, drafts, or perhaps lecture-notes, from a commentary on ARISTOTLE, Physics, written informally, unformatted, in an anglicana hand little later than the main text.

History

Origin: s. xiv ; script of English appearance.

Additional Information

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. 109–10; Powicke, no. 357; Dondaine & Shooner, no. 2133.

Funding of Cataloguing

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

Last Substantive Revision

2019-10-14: First online publication

See the Availability section of this record for information on viewing the item in a reading room.