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

Merton College MS. 282

Former shelfmark: O. 2. 3

AVERROES, AVICENNA; S. XIV in.

Contents

Language(s): Latin

f. i blank; on f. iv is a table of contents, s. xiv ex.

1. (fols. 1–46)
AVERROES, Commentary on ARISTOTLE, De Anima
Incipit: Quoniam de rebus honorabilibus ...; Intendit per subtilitatem confirmationem demonstrationis
Explicit: uisus et auditus et hoc est manifestum.
Final rubric: Explicit liber de anima.

Ed. F. S. Crawford, Averrois Cordubensis Commentarium Magnum in Aristotelis De Anima Libros (Medieval Academy of America Publs 59: Cambridge, Mass., 1953).

2. (fols. 46v-9)
AVERROES, De Substantia Orbis
Incipit: Intendimus in hoc tractatu perscrutari de rebus ex quibus componitur corpus celeste
Explicit: nisi quia caret agente motum.

Pr. in Opera Aristotelis, Venice 1550–2), IX, fols. 3–6.

eTK 0681G
3. (fols. 49–51)
AVERROES, Commentary on ARISTOTLE, De Sensu et Sensato
Incipit: Virtutes quidem sensibiles quedam sunt de necessitate
Explicit: et de eo in secundo tractatu.
eTK 1702E
4. (fols. 51–2)
AVERROES, Commentary on ARISTOTLE, De Memoria et Reminiscentia
Incipit: Secundus tractatus incipit perscrutari de rememoratione
Explicit: quapropter difficile amittit eas.
eTK 0794E, 1424E
5. (fols. 52–4)
AVERROES, Commentary on ARISTOTLE, De Somno et Vigilia
Incipit: Et cum ita diximus de hac uirtute dicendum est de sompno et uigilia
Explicit: et de causis accidentium suorum dictum est.
eTK 0516C
6. (fols. 54–5)
AVERROES, Commentary on ARISTOTLE, De Morte et Vita
Incipit: Et in hoc tractatu perscrutatur de causis longitudinis et breuitatis uite
Explicit: posse nostrum et intellectum.
eTK 0518A

Arts 3–6 ed. A. L. Shields and H. Blumberg, Averrois Cordubensis Compendium Librorum Aristotelis qui Parva Naturalia Vocantur (Medieval Academy of America Publ. 54, Cambridge, Mass., 1949), pp. 3–149.

7. (fols. 55–9)
AVERROES, Commentary on ARISTOTLE, Meteora IV (transl. MICHAEL SCOT)
Incipit: Postquam uisum est quod principia et elementaria elementorum
Explicit: in eo quod est ei proprium.

The whole work pr. in Aristotelis ... Opera, Venice 1573–6, V, fols. 400–87v.

8. (fols. 59–68v)
AVERROES, Commentary on ARISTOTLE, De Generatione de Corruptione
Incipit: Intencio nostra in hoc libro est quod oportet determinare causas
Explicit: postremo numero a precedentibus.

Ed. F. H. Fobes and S. Kurland, Averrois Cordubensis Commentarium Medium in Aristotelis De Generatione et Corruptione (Medieval Academy of America Publ. 65: Cambridge, Mass., 1956), pp. 3–162.

9. (fols. 69–110)
AVICENNA, Commentary on ARISTOTLE, Metaphysics (transl. DOMINICUS GUNDISSALINUS)
Incipit: Postquam autem auxilio Dei expleuimus tractatum de intencionibus scientiarum
Explicit: et peruicarius Dei in illo.

Pr. in Auicennae Opera, Venice 1508, fols. 70r-109v; Diaz 1026.

eTK 1068A
10. (fols. 110–33)
AVICENNA, Physics
Rubric: Liber iste diuiditur in 4. partes. Prima est de causis et principiis naturalium
Incipit: Postquam expediuimus nos auxilio Dei ab eo quod opus fuit preponere ... Iam nosti ex tractatu in quo est scientia probationis
Explicit: (ends mutil. in III c.‘de comitantia et contactu et permixtione’) si autem totum fuerit occupatum, tunc non poterit illud aliud

Pr. Avicennae ... Opera, Venice 1508, fols. 13–36v; eTK 1072G; Diaz 1025.

11. (fols. 133v-62)
AVICENNA, De anima
Incipit: Reuerentissimo Tolotane sedis archiepiscopo ... Iohanni Auendenechi Israelita philosophus ...; Iam expleuimus in primo libro uerbum de hiis que sunt communia naturalibus
Incipit: Liber iste diuiditur in quinque tractatus et unusquisque tractatus diuiditur in sua capitula
Incipit: Dicemus ergo quod quia primum debemus considerare de hiis
Explicit: cum loquemur de animalibus.
Final rubric: Explicit liber Auicenne de naturalibus.

Ed. S. van Riet (2 vols, Louvain/Leiden, 1968, 1972); eTK 0325B, 0648H, 1358A; Diaz 1034.

12. (fols. 162v-8v)
Ps.-AVICENNA, Commentary on ARISTOTLE, De Caelo et Mundo
Incipit: Collectiones expositionum ab antiquis grecis in libro Aristotelis de mundo
Incipit: Differentia inter corpus et qualibet animarum magnitudinem
Explicit: ut non moueatur.
Final rubric: Completum est capitulum in cuius completione completus est liber. Laus sit creatori ... omni anime modeste et benigne. Explicit liber celi et mundi.

Pr. Avicennae ... Opera, Venice 1508, fols. 37–42v; eTK 0233J, 0429D; Diaz 1020.

13. (fols. 169–76v)
AVICENNA, Logica
Incipit: Dico quod intencio philosophie est comprehendere ueritatem omnium rerum
Explicit: est accidens differentie et proprietatis.
Final rubric: Explicit logica Auicenne.

Lacks i. 11 De uniuersalibus.

Pr. Avicennae ... Opera, Venice 1508, fols. 2–12; Diaz 931.

Considerable marginalia occurs throughout, but especially near the beginning; the scribe corrects the text, and other early hands annotate, with pointing hands and profile faces.

Physical Description

Secundo Folio: meliorem sermonem
Form: codex
Support: Parchment
Extent: 179 leaves (i + 178)
Dimensions (leaf): 350 × 250 mm.
Dimensions (written): 250 × 165 mm.
Retrimmed with loss of marginalia, the edges spattered with red.

Collation

A bifolium, the first leaf only a stub, 18, 2–1512, a bifolium; catchwords, and ‘cor(rigitur)’ pencilled at the end of quires.

Layout

Ruled with pencil or crayon in 2 cols of 51–4 lines.

Hand(s)

A single English gothic rotunda bookhand of university type.

Decoration

Blue initials flourished in red; red or blue initials and paraphs. On f. 175v is the miniator’s computation, in red: ‘de magnis litteris viij c; item de paruis litteris v c.’

Binding

Standard Merton s. xvii; sewn on five bands; chained from the usual position. The stubs conjugate with f. i and f. 178 were formerly pastedowns in an earlier binding. On f. i are marks from two foredge straps and one each at head and tail; also possible marks of the large iron chain-staple.

History

Origin: S. XIV in. ; England, Oxford

Provenance and Acquisition

Probably made and used at Oxford.

Given to the College by William Reed in 1374: UO49. 21. On f. iv (1) autograph, ‘Liber M. Willelmi Red ex dono magistri Nicholai de Sandwyco. Oretis igitur pro utroque.’ (2) ‘proprietas domus Mertone’. (3) In the usual hand, ‘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. Oretis igitur pro eodem et benefactoribus eiusdem ac fidelium animabus a purgatorio liberandis.’ For William Reed, fellow from 1344 until at least 1357, d. 1385, see MS 8. (4) ‘2usde sorte Mothyrby’. William Motherby (BRUO 1324) was fellow in 1390, no longer in 1401. (2), (4) and the table of contents are in a single hand.

Inside the front board is a sheet of paper with a short note of contents, s. xvii, ‘Q. 1. 14. Art:’, s. xvii, canc. and replaced with ‘O. 2. 3’ in red ink, and ‘(CCLXXXII)’ in pencil; the College bookplate.

Merton College MS. 282 - endleaves (fols. 177–8)

Contents

Language(s): Latin

(fols. 177–8)
A book of civil law

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: Parchment
Dimensions (written): 230 × 125 mm.

Layout

Ruled with pencil in 2 cols of 41 lines.

Hand(s)

Written in a large, rather rough English gothic littera textualis.

Decoration

Unfilled spaces for rubrics and initials.

History

Origin: 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, p. 112; Powicke, no. 542;AL Codices, no. 371; M.-Th. d’Alverny, ‘Avicenna latinus V’,AHDLMA32 (1965), 257–302, at pp. 286–8.

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.