Royal MS 12 D XII

TREATISES on Pharmacopoeia, with one on Surgery, in Latin, viz.:

1. 'Alphita': dictionary of materia medica (cf. 12 B. III, art. 7). f. 1.

2. Two tables relating to medicines, followed by the colophon 'Explicit hic antidotarius Nicholai'. As these tables frequently, though not always, occur in MSS. together with the Antidotarium Parvum of Nicolaus Praepositus, it is not improbable that that tract has been lost between artt. 1, 2, and it is possible that all three are extracts from his larger work, which is said to have fallen into disuse. Only (b) and the preface of (a) are printed in Mesuae Opera, Venice, 1485, 1602. The two tables are ;-(a) Quantities of simples, &c. Another copy is in 12 B. III, art. 3. Preface beg. 'Quia sufficienter de dispensacione'; list, 'Carpobalsami'. f. 36;-

(b) Synonyms. Preface beg. 'Explicitis autem specierum que ad supradictarum medicinarum confeccionem'; list, 'Arthemisia id est matricaria'. f. 44.

3. 'Addiciones super antidonatum' (so colophon): an appendix to the antidotarium. Among named compounds are 'Pillule gloriose regis Cicilie, quibus utebatur qualibet dic papa Alexander'. f. 52;-'Pillule Mauri'. f. 56.-'Unguentum aureum mag. Iohannis Comite'. f. 58;-'Vomitus mag. Bartholomei'. f. 58 b;-'Benedicta mag. G. de Congeniis'. f. 60 b;-'Trocisci Constantini quos composuerunt quatuor magistri Salernitani'. f. 62;- 'Electuarium leticie tractum ab Almasore'. f. 63 b;-'Emplastrum mag. Gilaberti Angli'. f. 64. A few are contained in the ordinary texts of the Antidotarium. Two recipes are added in the same hand after the colophon. Beg. 'Pillule gloriose regis Cicilie'. f. 52.

4. Three brief tracts on 'aqua vitae' in different senses, viz.:-(a) 'Hec est practica ad faciendum aquam vite':-and (b) 'Ista sunt scripta de simplici aqua vite compositaet perfectissima ad exemplar originale extracti ex diuersis dictis philosophorum artis medicine quod scripsit primo frater Tedericus ordinis fratrum de Carmelo episcopo Creuiensi Romaniole iuxta Bononia' (sic, but cf. 17 A. III, art. 15, where he is called a Dominican; apparently Theodericus Borgognoni, Bishop of Cervia., 1270-1298, but cf. Quetif-Echard, Scriptt. Ord. Praed. i, p. 354). These two refer to the distillation of spirit from wine. f. 71;-(c) 'Aqua vite a Plinio philosopho confecta': an elixir made from blood. f. 72b. At the end (f. 73) is a recipe for 'aqua celidonie'.

5. Treatise on medicinal waters in general. Beg. 'Aque medicinales variantur secundum diuersitatem egritudinum'. f. 73.

6. De purgatione humorum : a tract written in an extremely contracted hand. Beg. 'Humores pur[gare?] gen[er]a[lite]r et v[niuersalite]r o[ste]nsuri a fl[egm]agog[is] '. f. 79 b.

7. De oleis, viz.:-(a) 'Modus faciendi oleum benedictum': two recipes, to which is prefixed one for 'oleum sinapis' as an ingredient. f. 82b;-(b) A more general treatise, beg. 'Oleis utimur quendoque'. f. 84 b.

8. De sirupis. Beg. 'Cum multipharia habeatur siruporum diuisio' (cf. 12 E. VII, f. 145). f. 91.

9. 'Ad mundificandum sanguinem' and other recipes, including clysters, suppositories, and pessaries (cf. 12 E. VII, f. 142). f. 94 b.

10. A tract on surgery. Beg. 'Quamquam de iure ac proprietate'. f. 99.

11. 'Potus Antiochie quem docuit beata Maria quendam clericum in obsidionc Antiochie uulneratum', and other recipes, chiefly connected with surgery. f. 104.

12. 'Ista sunt 12 experimenta de corio serpentis que reperiebatur Iohannes Paulinus in Alexandria ciuitate Egitpti et ea extra[x]it a quodam libro qui uocatur Salus mundi, quem fecit Alchanus philosophus', &c. f. 111 b.

On the fly-leaves (ff. 113, 114) are recipes in a 15th cent. hand in Lat. and Engl. On ff. ib-iii, 115-116 is a large quantity of 15th cent. scribbling. A marginal note (15th cent.) on f. 101 b refers to practice of 'Dr. W. Aston'.

Vellum; ff. iii + 116. 10¹/₂ in. x 7 in. Late XIV cent. Gatherings, i, ii¹², iii¹¹, iv-vi⁸, vii¹¹, viii, ix¹², x⁴, xi¹², xii⁶. Sec. fol. 'extracto musto'. One roughly illuminated initial; others (in art. 1) flourished in red and blue. Belonged (ff. iib, 116) circ. 1401 to Joh. Glover, of Shrewsbury, spicer, afterwards(ff. 1, 58) to John Theyer. Theyer sale-cat. no. l06 (?); CMA. 6440.