Royal MS 12 D XIII

MEDICAL TREATISES, including works of the Montpellier professor Bernardus de Gordonio, and several unidentified commentaries on the medical classics, in Latin, viz.:

1. Prognostica, by Bernardus de Gordonio. Imperf. at beg., containing from cap. 5 of pars iv to the end. Printed with the Lilium (Ferrara, 1486, Frankfort, 1617, &c.). The colophon, 'Expliciunt quatuor libelli de quibus compilator Lilii fecit mensionem (sic) in fine Lilii', indicates that the three works, Dedecem ingeniis, De regimine acutorum, and De graduatione, of the same author originally preceded art. 1 in the MS. f. 5.

2. Lilium Medicinae, by the same author. Imperf. at beg. and end, containing pars ii, cap. 11 to pars vii, cap. 22. Printed, l. c. f. 17.

Artt. 3-7 are anonymous commentaries, probably by one author. Among the authorities quoted is the Compendium Salerni.

3. 'Glose super Iohannicium' : a commentary on the Isagoge of Johannicius to the Liber Tegni of Galen (cf. 12 B. XII, art. 21). Preface beg. 'Circa multiplicem rerum uarietatem'; commentary, 'Medicina diuiditur: Acturus auctor de rebus naturalibus '. f. 106.

4. Commentary on the Liber Tegni itself, described in the colophon as 'Glose super Tegny Galeni correcte amagistro W. Manlore (orate pro eo)'. This corrector's hand seems to run through the book from art. 3. Preface beg. 'Multiplex est rerum uarietas'; commentary, 'Tres sunt omnes docitine: Collectiue lesatur'. f. 123.

5. 'Liber afforismorum Ypocratis': a commentary on the Aphorismi of Hippocrates. Colophon, 'Ora pro magistro Willelmo Manlore, qui correxit hoc totum scriptum'. Preface beg. 'Liber afforismorum Ypocratis diuiditur in vii'; commentary, 'Vita breuis ars longa: Dupliciter legitur hoc'. f. 145 b.

6. 'Glose pronosticorum Ypocratis' (so colophon): a commentary on the Prognostica of Hippocrates. Preface beg. 'Librum hunc pronost. multiplici laude G. extollit'; commentary, 'Omnis qui desiderat: Gloria est frequens fama'. f. 163 b.

7. Commentary on the 'Liber de urinarum differentia a uoce Theophili', i.e. the tracton uroscopy compiled by Stephanus, from the teaching of the Greek physician (7th cent.) Theophilus Protospatharius. This commentator, however, identifies the writer with the friend of S. Luke. Preface beg. 'Tria esse circa que corporis humani'; commentary, 'De differentia, &c.: Differentiam appellat'. f. 170.

8. 'Liber anathomie que dicitur Aristotelis' : the tract of unknown authorship printed among the spurious works of Galen as De anatomia vivorum (Galen, Junta ed. 1609, Spuria, p. 144). Table of tituli prefixed. Beg. 'Medicorum anathomicos necesse est'. The chapters on nerves and veins are here transposed to the end. f. 178.

9. The poem De urinis of Aegidius of Corbeilles, with gloss. In 334 (chiefly hexameter) verses, or with omissions indicated by the corrector 328, against 352 of Choulant's edition (Aegidii Corboliensis Carmina, Leipzig, 1826). Author's prose prologue beg. 'Liber iste est noue institucionis'; verses, 'Dicitur urina quoniam fit renibus una'. The ending is like that of the imperfect copy in 12 D. IX, art. 3, three verses of the epilogue being given; they are, however, erased by the corrector. Commentary beg. 'Renibus una dicitur quia formaliter generatur'. f. 192.

10. 'Incipiunt versus Egidii de pulsibus': the same author's poem printed by Choulant, op. cit. p. 28. No prose prologue. Scanty interlinear gloss. In 378 (margin 380) hexameters, nearly as in Choulant. Beg. 'Ingenii uires modicis conatibus impar'. f. 205.

11. 'Incipit quidam paruus tractatus metricus de sinthomatibus humorum singulorum superhabundancium': sixty-five hexameters beg. 'Flegma supergrediens proprias in corpore leges'. Another copy is in Sloane MS., 783 B, f. 179. Most of them will be found in the Schola Salernitana (ed. Renzi, v. 1954 foll.), but a more closely allied version is in 12 E. VII, art. 2. f. 209.

12. 'Tractatus de signis et cognicionibus specierum': a treatise on materia medica in 140 leonine hexameters, with brief prose preface. Other copies are in 12 E. XXIII, f. 2 b, Sloane MS. 213, f. 37, and elsewhere. Preface beg. 'Quoniam firmius memorie commendantur'; verses, 'Est (sic, for Res) aloes lignum preciosa, sit hoc tibi signum'. f. 210.

13. On the virtues of composite medicines: 244 hexameters, without title. Beg. 'Renes, reuma, lapis, latus et caput algida, matrix'. f. 211 b.

14. A series of notes, chiefly on urines, which appear to be derived from the physicians of Salerno. Being written without any rubrics, except the corrector's note on f. 220 b, they are difficult to disentangle, but the following should perhaps be distinguished:-(a) The Compendium de urinis of [Johannes or Matthaeus?] Platearius Junior, as in Sloane MSS. 3541, f. 1, 420, f. 59, lacking only the epilogue, which should contain the words 'ex patris mei Ioh. Platearii et Archimathei bone memorie experientia'. It is, however, not the same as the Regulae urinarum secundum Platearium printed in Renzi, Coll. Sal. iv. 409. Beg. 'De urinarum sciencia tractaturi earundem scienciam'. f. 215;-(b) Further notes on urines, beg. 'Vrina ergo ruffa uel subruffa uel subrubea, modicum ruboris participans'. f. 218;-(c) Notes, apparently desultory, beg. 'Quicunque uult pocionem Solomonis'. They include the eight verses on the temperaments (Schol. Sal., ll. 1696-7, &c.), remarks on various diseases, recipes, &c. There are references to mag. Bartholomaeus (f. 219 b), mag. Willelmus de Cu[n]ch[is] mag. Willelmusde Eu[er]ches [? the same] (ib.), and (as of the writer's own knowledge, 'Vidi quendam Salernitanum, f. 220) to a case of ma[gister] Pla[tearius]. f. 218 b;-(d) A preface, not improbably by one of the Platearii and perhaps belonging to a larger work in which (a) was included, and further discussion on urines. The corrector notes in the margin 'Hoc usque in finem huius debet precedere illud quod ibi precedit, De urinarum sci., &c.' The preface beg. 'Licet te, fili karissime, Grecis literis erudire'; the notes on urines, 'Quinquepertita est urine consideracio'. f. 220 b.

15. Commentary on Hippocrates de regimine acutorum. Preface beg. 'Ars que modum et qualitatem '; commentary, 'Qui de egrotantium, &c.: In hac propositione contradicit'. Incomplete, breakilig off in pt. iv. Among the authors quoted is Constantine. f. 222.

16. Another commentary (cf. art. 5) on the Aphorisms of Hippocrates. Preface beg. 'Legitur in Megatechni'; commentary, 'Vita breuis, &c.: In hoc conueniunt omnes antiqui medici'. Imperfect by loss of leaves at end. Ends in pt. iv. Among the authors quoted is Isaac. f. 244.

The fly-leaves (ff. 1-4, 260-263 are from a breviary with musical notes and initials in colours, written in England in the 12th cent.

Vellum; ff. 263. 10¹/₂ in. x 8 in. (in part, 10¹/₂ in. x 7 in.). XIV cent. Gatherings, i⁴, ii, iii¹², iv-vi⁹, vii-xxii⁸, xxiii⁶, xxiv⁸, xxv¹⁰, xxvi-xxix⁸, xxx¹¹, xxxi⁸, xxxii⁴. Sec. fol. lost. Belonged to John Theyer (monogram, with no. 4, f. 5). Theyer sale-cat. no. 104; CMA. 6565.