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Harley MS 3744
- Record Id:
- 040-002049576
- Hierarchy Root Ancestor Record Id:
- 040-002049576
- MDARK:
- ark:/81055/vdc_100000000807.0x0000fd
- LARK:
- SLARK:
- Format:
- ISAD(G)
- Reference (shelfmark):
- Harley MS 3744
- Title:
- Avicenna, Canon medicine
- Scope & Content:
-
The volume contains books I, II, V, and IV of the medical summa by Ibn Sina, Abú 'Ali Al-Husain ibn 'Abd Allah (d. 1037), known in the West as Avicenna, in the Latin translation by Gerardus Cremonensis or Gerard of Cremona (circa 1113/4-1187). The volume is made up of two separate codicological units, independently produced and containing respectively Books I, II, V (ff. 6r-135v) and Book IV (ff. 138r-154r). The two units were apparently bound together in the late 14th or early 15th century, since medical notes were added to both units by late 14th and 15th-century hands (see ff. 5v, 136r-137v, 154v faint), including a glossary of Arabic words and their Latin equivalents and a list of medical drugs (f. 136v). In the first unit Avicenna's books are preceded by a list of synonyms (ff. 1r-5r), and followed (f. 135) by a few recipes from Amet son of Ysaac.
Copies of the complete Canon in Latin translation are Additional MS 14424, Royal MS 12 G. vi, Harley MS 3799-3809, Sloane MS 1933 (ff. 184r-275r, imperfect), Sloane MS 2157, Sloane MS 3095; Book III in 3757; excerpts in Harley MS 3407 (ff. 92r-101v), Harley MS 3594 (ff. 7r-53r), Harley MS 4087 (ff. 39r-108v). Gerard's translation of the Canon was possibly printed for the first time by Philippus de Lavagnia at Milan on 12 Feb. 1473: see H 2200; William Osler, Incunabula medica: A Study of the Earliest Printed Medical Books, 1467-80 (Oxford, 1923), p. 55, no. 35; BMC VI 700; GW 3155; ISTC ia01417500 (The British Library copy is IC.26105 (part three only)). This edition precedes that of Strasbourg by the R-Printer (Adolf Rusch) published after Feb. 1473: see Arnold C. Klebs, Incunabula scientifica et medica (Bruges: 1938; repr. 1963), p. 68, no. 131.1; ISTC ia01417700 (the British Library copy is IC.657).
For Avicenna and the Canon see N. G. Siraisi, Avicenna in Renaissance Italy : the Canon and medical teaching in Italian universities after 1500 (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1987); D. Jacquart, 'Lectures universitaires du Canon d'Avicenne', in Avicenna and his Heritage. Acts of the International Colloquium, Leuven - Louvain-la-Neuve, Sept. 8-11, 1999, ed. by J. Janssens and D. De Smet (Leuven, 2002), pp. 313-24; D. Gutas, 'Medical Theory and Scientific Method in the Age of Avicenna', in Before and after Avicenna. Proceedings of the First Conference of the Avicenna Study Group, ed. by D. C. Reisman (Leiden - Boston, 2003), pp. 145-62, all with further bibliography. For Gerard see 'Gherardo da Cremona' in Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, 53 (1999), pp. 620-33, with extensive bibliography.
Contents as follows:
First unit (ff. 1-137):
1. Synonyma Avicennae (ff. 1r-5r);
2. Avicenna, Canon medicine, Books I, II, V (ff. 6r-135v);
3. Ahmet filius Ysaac, Confectio trociscorum (f. 135v).
4. Medical notes (ff. 136r-137v);
Decoration:
Large historiated initial (23 lines; f. 6r) of Avicenna in a red cloak and yellow hat set against a blue background; 2 historiated initials in colours of scholars with marginal extensions (ff. 7r, 59r). Decorated initials on coloured grounds with occasional marginal extensions. Border and display script of the title in red and blue (f. 1r). Rubrics in red. Paraphs and running titles in red and blue. Small initials occasionally highlighted in red.
Second unit (ff. 138r-154r):
5. Avicenna, Canon medicine, Book IV (ff. 138r-154v).
Decoration:
Puzzle initials (3-12 lines; ff. 138r, 139v, 153r) in red; small initials (2-3 lines; ff. 138r-154)r in red. Rubrics in red throughout; running titles in red or dark brown (ff. 138r-148v).
- Collection Area:
- Western Manuscripts
- Project / Collection:
- Harley Collection
Harley Science Project - Hierarchy Tree:
- [{ "id" : "040-002049576", "parent" : "#", "text" : "Harley MS 3744: Avicenna, Canon medicine" , "li_attr" : {"class": "orderable"} },{ "id" : "041-002086077", "parent" : "040-002049576", "text" : "Harley MS 3744, ff 1r-5r: Synonyma Avicennae" },{ "id" : "041-002086078", "parent" : "040-002049576", "text" : "Harley MS 3744, ff 6r-135v: Avicenna, Canon medicine" },{ "id" : "041-002086079", "parent" : "040-002049576", "text" : "Harley MS 3744, ff 136r-137v: Medical notes" },{ "id" : "041-002086080", "parent" : "040-002049576", "text" : "Harley MS 3744, ff 138r-154v: Avicenna, Canon medicine, Book IV" }]
- Hierarchy Record Ids:
- 032-002045828
040-002049576 - Is part of:
- Harley MS 1-7661 : Harley Manuscripts
Harley MS 3744 : Avicenna, Canon medicine - Contains:
- Harley MS 3744, ff 1r-5r : Synonyma Avicennae
Harley MS 3744, ff 6r-135v : Avicenna, Canon medicine
Harley MS 3744, ff 136r-137v : Medical notes
Harley MS 3744, ff 138r-154v : Avicenna, Canon medicine, Book IV
Click here to View / search full list of parts of Harley MS 3744 - Hierarchy:
- 032-002045828[3745]/040-002049576
- Container:
- View / search within Archive / Collection: Harley MS 1-7661
- Record Type (Level):
- File
- Extent:
-
154 folios.
- Digitised Content:
- http://www.bl.uk/manuscripts/FullDisplay.aspx?ref=Harley_MS_3744 (digital images currently unavailable)
- Thumbnail:
-
- Languages:
- Latin
- Scripts:
- Latin
- Start Date:
- 1300
- End Date:
- 1440
- Date Range:
- Early 14th century-Early 15th century
- Era:
- CE
- Access:
-
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- User Conditions:
- Physical Characteristics:
-
Materials: Parchment codex. Some parchment flaws, occasionally with old repairs (see f. 125).
Dimensions: 450 x 290 mm (text space: ff. 1-137: c. 327-340 x 200-205 mm; ff. 138-154: 330 x 200-205 mm).
Foliation: ff. x + 154 (all unfoliated flyleaves are modern paper leaves. Modern foliation in pencil '1-154' (ff. 5v, 136r-137v, 154v originally blank).
Collation: Composite manuscript comprising two codicological units: first (ff. 1-137) and second (ff. 138-154). First unit (ff. 1-137): gatherings (mostly flesh-side out): i6-1 (i cancelled; hair-side out), ii-vi10, vii4, viii-xiv10, xv8, with alphabetical and/or numerical leaf signatures, and horizontal catchwords in the lower margin of the last versos often inscribed in cartouches (a fish-shape cartouche on f. 55v). Second unit (ff. 138-154): gatherings (mostly flesh-side out) i8, ii4, iii6-1 (i cancelled; hair-side out); with horizontal catchwords in the lower margin of last versos.
Layout: Traces of pricking; ruled in ink and metal point (single vertical bounding lines) for double columns of 73-74 lines. Text written below top line. Second unit (ff. 138-154): Traces of pricking; ruled in metal point (single vertical bounding lines) for double columns of 74 lines. Text written below top line.
Script: first unit (ff. 1-137): Gothic. Written in dark brown ink. Second unit (ff. 138-154): Gothic. Written in black ink by two hands (ff. 138r-149v, and ff. 150r-154r). Scribal marginalia underlined in red throughout. Additions to the two units by a 15th-cent. hand, in particular sparse marginalia throughout, but dense on ff. 138r-154r, and additional texts on ff. 136v-137r, i.e. the originally blank leaves at the end of the first unit.
Binding: British Museum/British Library binding with the Harley arms and motto gilt-tooled at centre of covers. Covers from the old Harleian binding pasted onto modern pastedowns: gilt-lined mottled brown calf decorated with blind-rolls, possibly by C. Chapman: one of the two rolls is identical to Chapman's roll no. 5 in Howard M. Nixon, 'Harleian Bindings', in Studies in the Book Trade in Honour of Graham Pollard, Bibliographical Society Publications, n.s., 18 (Oxford: Oxford Bibliographical Society, 1975), pp. 153-94 (pl. 14). Same set of rolls used for the bindings of Harley MS 3698 and Harley MS 3745. Spine title from the Harley binding pasted onto one of the modern front flyleaves.
- Custodial History:
-
Origin: first unit (ff. 1-137): Italy, N. (Bologna ?); second unit (ff. 138-154): Italy, N. or Germany S.
Provenance:
Bernard Fournier, cleric of Anduze, possibly identifiable with Bernard Fournier (d. 1350), nephew of pope Benedict XII and bishop of Elne: his inscription 'Iste liber est bernardi fornerii clerici / de anduzia et decostitit X liber corporum bonorum Et est ibi liber primus canonis et secundus et quintus avicenne. Deo gratias ago qui mihi concessit' (f. 135v; see Wright 1972).
Nicholas of Cusa [Nicholaus von Kues, or Nicholas Cusanus] (b. 1401, d. 1464), theologian, bishop of Brixen in Tyrol in 1450 and cardinal in 1449, founder of the hospital of St Nicholas at Cues on the Mosel: left his entire library to the hospital in his last will dated 6 August 1464: possibly owned by him; the manuscript could be identified as item 8, 'Item Avicena', in the inventory of the cardinal's possession (see Mantese 1962).
The Hospital of St Nicholas, Cues, on the Mosel: inscribed 'Liber hospitalis sancti Nicolai prope cusam' (f. 1r; see Wright and Wright 1966; Wright 1972; Hallauer 1986; Krämer and Bernhard 1989).
Nathaniel Noel (fl. 1681, d. c. 1753), bookseller, employed by Edward Harley for buying books and manuscripts chiefly on the Continent, where his agent was George Suttie: sold to Edward Harley on 18 Jan. 1723/4, together with other manuscripts formerly in the hospital library (Wright and Wright 1966; Wright 1972).
The Harley Collection, formed by Robert Harley (b. 1661, d. 1724), 1st earl of Oxford and Mortimer, politician, and Edward Harley (b. 1689, d. 1741), 2nd earl of Oxford and Mortimer, book collector and patron of the arts, inscribed as usual by their librarian, Humfrey Wanley, ‘18 die Januarij, A.D. 1723/4’ (f. 1r).
Edward Harley bequeathed the library to his widow, Henrietta, née Cavendish Holles (b. 1694, d. 1755) during her lifetime and thereafter to their daughter, Margaret Cavendish Bentinck (b. 1715, d. 1785), duchess of Portland; the manuscripts were sold by the Countess and the Duchess in 1753 to the nation for £10,000 (a fraction of their contemporary value) under the Act of Parliament that also established the British Museum; the Harley manuscripts form one of the foundation collections of the British Library. Harley shelfmarks (f. i) in brown ink '119.C.2 / 3744', and '2/III F' in pencil.
- Publications:
-
A Catalogue of the Harleian Manuscripts in the British Museum, 4 vols (London: Eyre and Strahan, 1808-12), III (1808), no. 3744.
Remigio Sabbadini, ‘Niccolò da Cusa e i conciliari di Basilea alla scoperta dei codici’, Rendiconti della Reale Accademia dei Lincei, 20 (1911), 3-40 (pp. 39-40, n. 2).
Paul Lehmann, Mitteilungen aus Handschriften, 2, Sitzungsberichte der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Philosophisch-historische Abteilung, 2 (Munich: Verlag der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften,1930), pp. 3-55 (pp. 20, 25-26).
Berthold L. Ullman, 'Manuscripts of Nicholas of Cues', Speculum: A Journal of Medieval Studies, 13 (1938), 194-97 (p. 196); reprinted in Studies in the Italian Renaissance, Storia e letteratura, 51 (Rome: Edizioni di Storia e letteratura, 1955), pp. 357-63 (p. 362).
Giovanni Mantese, 'Ein notarielles Inventar von Büchern und Wertgegenständen aus dem Nachlass des Nikolaus von Kues', Mitteilungen und Forschungsbeiträge der Cusanus-Gesellschaft, 2 (1962), 86-116 (p. 95 n. 39).
Rolf Winau, 'Medizinische Handschriften aus dem Besitz des Nikolaus von Kues im British Museum', Mitteilungen und Forschungsbeiträge der Cusanus-Gesellschaft, 5 (1965), 137-61 (pp. 141-44).
The Diary of Humfrey Wanley 1715-1726, ed. by Cyril Ernest Wright and Ruth C. Wright, 2 vols (London: Bibliographical Society, 1966), II: 1723-1726, p. 253 and n. 9.
Cyril Ernest Wright, Fontes Harleiani: A Study of the Sources of the Harleian Collection of Manuscripts in the British Museum (London: British Museum, 1972), pp. 121, 155, 254, 434.
Hermann J. Hallauer, 'Habent sua fata libelli. Von der Mosel zur Themse: Handschriften des St. Nikolaus-Hospitals in der Bibliotheca Harleiana', Mitteilungen und Forschungsbeiträge der Cusanus-Gesellshaft, 17 (1986), 21-56 (pp. 36 n. 115, 43 no. 29).
Sigrid Krämer and Michael Bernhard, Handscriftenerbe des deutschen Mittelalters, Mittelalterliche Bibliothekskataloge Deutschlands und der Schweiz, ed. by Bernard Bischoff, Supplement 1, 3 vols (Munich: Beck, 1989-1990), I: Aachen-Kochel, p. 159.
- Material Type:
- Archives and Manuscripts
- Legal Status:
- Not Public Record(s)