Medieval Manuscripts in Cambridge Libraries

A catalogue of Western manuscripts and papyri at Cambridge University Library, the Fitzwilliam Museum and selected Cambridge colleges

Cambridge, Gonville and Caius College, MS 47/24

Diktyon no.: Diktyon 11863

Contents

Introduction: The manuscript contains a collection of Greek medical texts owned by the physician John Caius (1510-1573). The volume is formed of four parts, each with a different origin. It was donated to Gonville and Caius College Library by John Caius, second founder of the College. He travelled in Italy from 1539-1544, where he consulted various manuscripts (see S. Berlier, "John Caius et le De usu partium. Contribution à l'histoire du texte de Galien", in Revue d'Histoire des Textes n.s. 6 (2011), pp. 1-14: pp. 5-6) and probably acquired at least some of the Greek manuscripts he later bequeathed to the College. Part I contains the first 6 books (the last is incomplete) of Galen's work Method of Healing ( De methodo medendi). The text was already incomplete when John Caius acquired it. He wrote a note in the manuscript (p. 1:160) pointing out that the continuation of the text was to be found in another, smaller, book with the same contents. The book in question is another manuscript owned by Caius, now Cambridge, Gonville and Caius College, 360/587 . This is also a manuscript formed of parts of different origins; in the second part there is indeed the continuation of the text, from the exact point where it ends in MS 47/24; also the pagination carries on from that of MS 47/24. Moreover, in MS 360/587 there is a note by John Caius referring to another, bigger book, containing the missing beginning of the text. As set out in notes written by John Caius in the margins of a printed edition of Galen (Eton College, Fc.2.6-8, on this see Nutton 1987, p. 65), he had for some time owned this imperfect copy of Galen's text (MS Gonville and Caius 47/24), hence the need to have a complete copy of the work. The part of the text contained now in MS 360/587 was written by another scribe, and the manuscript has a different size: considering this and the note by John Caius, Nutton (1987, p. 65) assumed that the copy of the second part of the text, now contained in MS Gonville and Caius 360/587, was commissioned by John Caius. This assumption seems to be reinforced by the fact that the text there begins on the top of a leaf exactly from the point where it ends in MS 47/24, that the pagination carries on from that manuscript, and that the hand of the scribe of MS 360/587 (hand C) recurs also in the margins of MS 47/24 (hand a). The only difficulty in this reconstruction is the fact that the watermarks found in MS 360/587, although not identified in the repertoires, are comparable with examples dated between the last decade of the 15th and the first quarter of the 16th c., which would be a little early for a copy commissioned by Caius (1510-1573). The scribe could have used an "old" stock of paper; or maybe the watermarks, which are only "comparable" to the examples of the beginnig of the century, are in reality later; the question needs more research. Part II (ff. 2:0-2:49) contains a portion of Galen's work De usu partium, which John Caius used for his edition of 1544 (he edited a portion of book vii, previously unedited, see Berlier 2011, pp. 10-11). The text was written on so-called eastern paper by two scribes. These leaves have been identified by Stéphane Berlier (2011, pp. 12-14) as membra disiecta of a manuscript of Florence, Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Plut. 74.4 : dimensions, layout and script match, as well as the lacuna in the text. It is not clear how these leaves came in the hands of John Caius. Nigel Wilson (1987, pp. 55-56) dated the script of MS Laur. Plut. 74.4 between the second half of the 12th century and the first half of the 13th, a date which, therefore, must be extended also to the second part of MS Gonville and Caius 47/24 (see also Berlier 2011, p. 13 note 41). Part III is formed of 10 leaves: the first is a blank endleaf (from the 16th c.), the other nine (ff. 3:1-3:9) are earlier. They contain a part of Galen's De placitis Hippocratis et Platonis, a text of which John Caius published in 1544 the first printed edition ( Nutton 1987, p. 55). As in the case of part II, these leaves have been identified, in this case by Vivian Nutton, as originating from a manuscript in Florence, Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Plut. 74.22 (see Nutton 1987, pp. 55-56; see also Berlier 2011, p. 12), of the second half of the 12th c. (for this dating see Wilson 1986, p. 115; Wilson 1987, pp. 55-56). Since the manuscript was intact when John Caius collated it for his edition of the text around 1543, but the leaves were already missing in 1582, it is believed that the English physician removed them when he consulted the manuscript during his time in Italy (Nutton 1987, pp. 55-56). Part IV (ff. 3:10-3:11) contains a portion of the Greek translation of a medical encyclopaedic work by Ibn al-Ǧazzār (895-979), a Muslim Arab physician of the 10th century, the Efodia. The characteristics of the script and of the paper suggest that these two leaves are to be dated to the 14th century (ca. 1325-1375). Morevoer, also these leaves can be identified as deriving from a manuscript in Florence: Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, Plut. 75.4 (for the identification of the provenance of the leaves from the MS Laur. Plut. 75.4, see the blogpost by T. Miguet, De Florence à Cambridge: deux folios du texte grec du Viatique du voyageur d'Ibn al-Ǧazzār retrouvés (Manuscrits en Méditerranée, IRHT section grecque, 2021).) Dr Erika Elia

Physical Description

Form: codex
Extent: Codex: i + 148 + i + 11 + i leaves. 300-345 × 222-250 mm.
Foliation:

The leaves forming part I are paginated from 1 to 160; part II has a foliation from 0 to 49, parts III and IV a single foliation from 1 to 11. At the beginning and at the end there are two later endleaves, ff. [i] and [iii]. F. [ii] is an unnumbered blank endleaf pertaining to part III of the manuscript: f. [i] + pp. 1:1-1:60, 1:41[a]-1:60[a], 1:61-1:160 + ff. 2:0-1:2:9, 2:11-2:12, 2:21, 2:14-2:16, 2:10, 2:17-2:25, 2:18[a]-2:25[a], 2:26-2:49 + [ii] + 3:1-3:11 + [iii].

Collation

f. [i] | 1-910 | 102, 118, 126, 132, 14-188 | ff. [ii], 3:1-3:9 | ff. 3:10-3:11 | f. [iii]

Condition

The entire text-block has been affected by water damage to the bottom foredge corner. Heavy guards are causing the textleaves to hinge, causing damage.

Binding

Western modern binding. Full leather cover over millboard. Two pieces from the previous leather cover are pasted on both boards. The original cover had blind tooling, a double frame containing a rhombus, with a blind tooled decoration of vegetal and geometrical motifs; it seems to be datable in the 16th c. On the spine are pasted two paper labels with the shelfmarks, ‘24’ (in red) and ‘47’ (in black).

355 × 260 × ca. 35 mm.

History

Provenance and Acquisition

The manuscript was donated to the Library by John Caius (1510-1573) . On the left pastedown is pasted the Gonville and Caius College bookplate (with handwritten shelfmarks in red, ‘ 24’, and black inl ‘ 47’).

Part 1 [Cambridge, Gonville and Caius College, MS 47/24, pp. 1:1-1:160]

Contents

Language(s): Greek

1. pp. 1:1-1:160
Galen, Method of Healing, books 1-6 De methodo medendi libri I-VI
Rubric: p. 1:1 Γαληνοῦ θεραπευτικῆς μεθόδου βιβλία ιδ΄
Incipit: p. 1:1 Βιβλίον πρῶτον φράσεοτόν δε Γαληνὸν οὗ ἐν χθονὶ δερκομένοιο ἀσπασίως ἕνα που νεκρὸν εἶδεν Ἀίδης. Ἐπειδὴ καὶ σύ με πολλάκις
Explicit: p. 1:160 φαρμάκῳ τινὶ κελεύει||

  • pp. 1:1-1:32 Book 1
  • pp. 1:33-1:46[a] Book 2
  • pp. 1:47[a]-1:77 Book 3
  • pp. 1:77-1:107 Book 4
  • pp. 1:108-1:139 Book 5
  • pp. 1:140-1:139 Book 6

The text ends imperfectly at C.G. Kühn, Claudii Galeni opera omnia, 10, Leipzig 1825 (repr. Hildesheim 1965), p. 435 l. 5

TLG 0057.066

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: Western paper, folded in folio. Watermarks: pp. 1:1-1:160 Anchor in a circle ( 53 × 50 mm. ) in the centre of the leaf, no exact parallels found in the main repertoires, but the type is comparable to Briquet Ancre 464, 467-469, 471-472 , which are dated between 1487-1530 ca.
Extent: Codex: 90 leaves. 345 × ca. 250 mm.
Foliation:

The leaves have been paginated: the numbers 41-60 are used twice: pp. 1:1-1:60, 1:41[a]-1:60[a], 1:61-1:160.

Collation

Part I is formed by quinions.

  • Quires 1-910 pp. 1:1-1:160 (αον-θον )

Greek signatures by the scribe in the lower margin, centre, of the first recto and last verso of the quires, from αον ( p. 1:1) to θον ( p. 1:160).

Layout

A single column of 39 lines. 250 × 145 mm.

Hand(s)

pp. 1:1-1:160 Hand A: Georgios Tzangaropoulos (15th c., 2nd half) (Γεώργιος Τζαγγαρόπουλος, RGK I, 72; on him also RGK II 93; RGK III, 121). Titles are written in majuscule letters.

The text is written in a black ink; titles and initials in red.

Hand a: in the margins throughout there are annotations by the same hand which copied the remaining part of Galen's text in another of John Caius' manuscripts, Cambridge, Gonville and Caius College, 360 (part II, hand C), see e.g. p. 1:56[a].

Light brown ink.

Hand b: in the margins throughout there are a few annotations in black ink by John Caius , see e.g. pp. 1:41, 1:125, p. 1:129.

Decoration

On pp. 1:1, 1:47[a], and 108 (smaller) there are rectangular headpieces in red ink, filled with arabesques.

Large decorated initials with rinceaux on pp. 1:1, 1:33, 1:47[a], 1:77 (the last three have a yellow shading). On p. 108 a ractangular space designed to receive the decorated initial was left blank.

On p. 1:33 there is a rope frieze traced in red ink partly coloured in yellow. On p. 1:77 there is a plaited frieze in red ink partly coloured in yellow. On p. 1:140 there is an undulated linear frieze with vine leaves.

Around the ending of the books, there are various decorative elements in red an yellow ink, see pp. 1:32, 1:46[a], 1:77, 1:107, 1:139.

Additions

On p. 1:41, in the right margin, there is a note by John Caius explaining the wrong pagination of the leaves (numbers 41-60 are repeated). At the end of the text, in the lower margin of p. 1:160, he wrote another note, stating that the continuation of the text is to be found in another, smaller, manuscript: ‘ Quae hic desiderantur, reperies in | minore volumine eiusdem argumenti, | cum Galeni libris de Elementis, et | facultatibus naturalibus’. The book is MS Cambridge, Gonville and Caius College, 360/587.

History

Origin:

Part I of the manuscript was copied by Georgios Tzangaropoulos, who was active in Italy in the second half of the 15th c. The watermark is consistent with this date.

Part 2 [Cambridge, Gonville and Caius College, MS 47/24, ff. 2:0-2:49]

Contents

Language(s): Greek

2. ff. 2:0r-2:49v
Galen, De usu partium
Incipit: || f. 2:0r πνεύμονα φλὲψ ἐμφυομένη
Explicit: f. 2:49v καὶ μάλιστα χρὴ τούτοις προσ[έχειν]||

The text starts imperfectly at G. Helmreich, Galeni de usu partium libri xvii, 1, Leipzig 1907 (repr. Amsterdam 1968), p. 362 l. 12 (Kühn vol. 3, p. 497 l. 16), and ends imperfectly at G. Helmreich, Galeni de usu partium libri xvii, 1, Leipzig 1909 (repr. Amsterdam 1968), p. 125 l. 17 (Kühn vol. 3, p. 859 l. 16)

There are lacunae in the text:

  • between ff. 2:0v-2:1r, ὡς ἐν μεγάλῳ θά[sic] … γὰρ ἀλλήλοις συναπτόντων ( Helmreich 1907, pp. 365 l. 21-384 l. 24; Kühn vol. 3, p. 502 l. 6-529 l. 16)
  • between ff. 2:25v-2:18[a]r τῶν μορίων αὐτῆς σκ… τῆς ἀποστάσεως μήκει σκληρὸν ( Helmreich 1907, p. 461 l. 3- Helmreich 1909, p. 37 l. 16; Kühn vol. 3, pp. 636 l. 13-733 l. 21)

In the upper margin of f. 2:0r a title has been written by another hand, ‘ Γαληνοῦ περὶ χρείας μορίων’

TLG 0057.017

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: Eastern paper.
Extent: Codex: 58 leaves. 340 × ca. 235 mm.
Foliation:

Foliation in brown ink, in Arabic numerals, in the upper margin, link, of the recto of the leaves, from 0 to 49; the numbers 18-25 appear twice (the second series is marked by a double dot in the original foliation); ff. 10 and 17, which form a bifolium, have been bound in the wrong place: ff. 2:0-2:9, 2:11-2:16, 2:10, 2:17-2:25, 2:18[a]-2:25[a], 2:26-2:49.

Collation

Part II is formed by quaternions. Quire 10 is now formed by a single bifolium; ff. 0 and 1 were originally the first and last leaf of a quire, since there is a lacuna between ff. 0v and 1r, but not between ff. 1v and 2r. Quires 12-13 formed originally a single quaternion (ff. 10-11-12-13-14 | 15-16-17-18-19): its bifolia have been bound in the wrong position, some time after the foliation was made; the originally external bifolium of the quaternion, ff. 10/17, has been bound after the remaining three (ff. 11-18), causing the wrong succession of the leaves reflected by the foliation (11-12-13-14-15-16-10-17).

  • Quire 102 ff. 2:0-2:1
  • Quire 118 ff. 2:2-2:9( ιε΄)
  • Quire 126 ff. 2:11-2:16
  • Quire 132 ff. 2:10 / 2:17( ιϛ΄)
  • Quires 14-188 ff. 2:18-2:25, 2:18[a]-2:25[a], 2:26-2:49( ιζ΄, κβ΄-κγ΄)

Greek signatures, original to the production of the manuscript, are still visible in the lower margin, left, of the last leaf verso of the quires:
  • ιε΄ (15, f. 2:9v)
  • ιϛ΄ (16, f. 2:17v)
  • ιζ΄ (17, f. 2:25v)
  • κβ΄ (22, f. 2:33v)
  • κγ΄ (23, f. 2:41v).
 Modern signatures, in letters of the Latin alphabet, have been added in the lower margin, right, of the first leaf, recto, of the quires, from A ( f. 2:0r) to H ( f. 2:42r). A signature C has been mistakenly added in modern times (possibly by M. R. James, as it reflects the collation proposed in his catalogue) in the lower margin, right, of f. 2:11r)

Layout

Irregular layout, a single column of 29-34 lines. 255-280 × 145-180 mm.

Hand(s)

ff. 2:0r-2:25[a]v Hand B: a minuscule script which has been dated by Nigel Wilson (1987, p. 56) in the second half of the 12th c. (and not later then the first half of the 13th c.).

The text is written in a brown ink.

ff. 2:26r-2:49v Hand C: minuscule cursive script, contemporary to hand B, compared to which it shows rounder forms.

The text is written in a brown ink.

Hand c: passim in the margins there are annotations in a cursive minuscule script datable probably in the 13th c., characterized by imbalances in the size of letters, see e.g. f. 2:0v.

Light brown ink.

Additions

On f. 2:49v there is a note in Latin, giving a reference in the Aldine edition of the text of 1525 (see also Berlier 2011, p. 9 note 26, attributing the note to John Caius).

History

Origin:

Part II of the manuscript was probably copied, on the basis of the script, in the second half of the 12th c. (and not later than the first half of the 13th c.) (for the date of the script see Wilson 1987, p. 56).

Part 3 [Cambridge, Gonville and Caius College, MS 47/24, ff. [ii], 3:1-3:9]

Contents

Language(s): Greek

3. ff. 3:1r-3:9v
Galen, On the doctrines of Hippocrates and Plato, excerpt (Books 1-2, 4) De placitis Hippocratis et Platonis libri IX, exc.
Incipit: || f. 3:1r πάμπαν· ἀλλὰ κἀκείνου τὸ συνεχές
Explicit: f. 3:9v τὸ γοῦν …ναι τὴν ἡδονὴν ἀγ… ||

The text starts imperfectly at P.H. De Lacy, Galen. On the doctrines of Hippocrates and Plato , Berlin 1978, book 1, ch. 5, sect. 1, l. 3, and ends imperfectly at De Lacy 1978, book 4, ch. 4, sect. 29 l. 1

In the upper margin of f. 3:1r, John Caius wrote a title, Γαληνοῦ περὶ τῶν Ἱπποκράτους καὶ Πλάτωνος δογμάτων βιβλίον πρῶτον ἀκέφαλον

There is a lacuna in the text between ff. 3:8v-3:9r, καθάπερ καὶ νῦν ἀπέδειξα … περίσκεψιν εἰρῆσθαι κρίσιν ( De Lacy 1978, book 2, ch. 5, sect. 24 l. 5-book 4, ch. 3, sect. 7, l. 5)

TLG 0057.032

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: ff. 3:1-3:9 Eastern paper. f. [ii] Western paper. Watermark: Lamb in a double circle ( 40 × 40 mm. ) in the upper part of the leaf, comparable to Briquet Agneau pascal 58 , which is dated to 1531/1535.
Extent: Codex: i + 9 leaves. 315 × ca. 240 mm.
Foliation:

Foliation in ink, in Arabic numerals, in the upper margin, right, of the recto of the leaves, from 1 to 9: ff. 3:1-3:9.

Running titles by John Caius in the upper margin of the leaves: on the verso there is the title of the work in Greek, on the recto the book number.

Collation

It is not possible to determine the structure of this part, due to the very tight sewing and the absence of signatures.

Layout

A single column of 31-33 lines. 250-255 × 185-190 mm.

Hand(s)

ff. 3:1r-3:9v Hand D: a minuscule script, which has been dated in the second half of the 12th century (or slightly later) ( Wilson 1986, p. 115 dated the script in the same period as that of Ioannikios (RGK II 283, III 341), who wrote the first leaves of MS Laur. Plut. 74.22; see also Wilson 1987, pp. 55-56).

The text is written in a brown ink.

Hand b: passim in the margins there are a few annotations in grey ink by John Caius, see e.g. pp. 3:1r, 3:2v.

Additions

In the upper part of the right margin of 3:1r John Caius wrote a reference to his edition of the text, ‘ Manuscriptum hunc Johannes Caius edidit Basileae 1544 et latinum fecit, in 4to ’; passim in the margin he refers to the pages of this edition.

History

Origin:

Part III of the manuscript, as well as the second part of MS Laur. Plut. 74.22, were copied probably, on the basis of the script, in the second half of the 12th c. (or slightly later) (see Wilson 1986, p. 115; Wilson 1987, pp. 55-56).

Part 4 [Cambridge, Gonville and Caius College, MS 47/24, ff. 3:10-3:11]

Contents

Language(s): Greek

4. ff. 3:10r-3:11v
Ibn al-Ǧazzār, 895-979, Efodia, Greek translation, excerpt from book 6, 17-19
Incipit: || f. 3:10r καὶ βλάβης εἶδον
Explicit: f. 3:11v ἰατροὶ τοῦ κόπτειν τὴν ἄκραν||

The text, sometimes known in the past also as De abortivo foetu, or De XII portis, was traditionally attributed to Galen ; it is in reality a fragment from the Greek translation of Ibn al-Ǧazzār, Efodia (see Touwaide 2016, p. 41)

The text of the Greek translation of the Efodia is still unpublished

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: ff. 3:10-3:11 Western paper with thick laid lines (distance 4 mm), folded in folio. Watermark: Weight ( 74 × 25 mm. ) in the centre of the leaf, comparable to Briquet Peson 12404 , which is dated to 1347, 1351 (Italy).
Extent: Codex: 2 leaves. 300 × 220 mm.
Foliation:

Foliation in ink, in Arabic numerals, in the upper margin, right, of the recto of the leaves, from 10-11 (continues the series started in part III): ff. 3:10-3:11.

Collation

Although the tight sewing does not allow a thorough analysis, it is possible to say that the two leaves do not form a bifolium, since the watermark is visible in the centre of both of them; in the lower margin, centre, of f. 3:10v there is a signature, meaning that this was the last leaf of a quire.

A single Greek signature by the scribe, in black ink, in the lower margin, centre, of f. 3:10v, κβον (22).

Layout

A single column of 35 lines. 240 × 150 mm.

Hand(s)

ff. 3:10r-3:11v Hand E: Minuscule script, regular, of small size, with a few exceptions in the case of slightly bigger letters such as kappa, hypsilon, majuscule epsilon, omicron.

The text is written in a black ink; titles and initials in red.

Hand b: In the upper margin of 3:10r there is an annotation in grey ink by John Caius.

Additions

In the upper margin of 3:10r there is a note by John Caius about the contents of the text.

History

Origin:

Part IV of the manuscript was written around the middle of the 14th c., as suggested by the script, and in particular by the watermark and the type of paper: this mark was produced in Italy and was used only for ca. a quarter of century (see C.M. Briquet, Les Filigranes, 4, Genève 1907, p. 621).

Additional Information

Record Sources

Description (2021) draws partly on M. R. James, A descriptive catalogue of the Manuscripts in the Library of Gonville and Caius College, vol. 1, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1907, pp. 39-40.

Availability

Visitors to Gonville and Caius College who wish to consult Lower Library material are required to apply to the Library in advance of their visit. For information on eligibility and admission procedures see: Gonville and Caius College: Library Information.

Bibliography

    Die Handschriften der antiken Ärzte. I. Teil: Hippokrates und Galenos, Diels, Hermann (Berlin, Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1905) A descriptive catalogue of the manuscripts in the library of Gonville and Caius College, James, M. R. (Cambridge, University Press, 1907, 1) John Caius' Library Biographical history of Gonville and Caius College, 1349-1897: containing a list of all known members of the college from the foundation to the present time, with biographical notes, Grierson,, P. (Cambridge, 7, University Press, 1978) Repertorium der griechischen Kopisten, 800-1600 Veröffentlichungen der Kommission für Byzantinistik, Gamillscheg, ErnstHarlfinger, Dieter (Wien, I. Grossbritannien, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1981) New Light on Burgundio of Pisa Studi Italiani di Filologia Classica, Wilson, N. (113-118, 1986) John Caius and the manuscripts of Galen / Vivian Nutton. Proceedings of the Cambridge Philological Society. Supplementary volumes, Nutton, Vivian (Cambridge, Philological Society, 1987) Aspects of the Transmission of Galen Le strade del testo, ed. G. Cavallo, Wilson, Nigel (Bari, 47-64, Adriatica, 1987) Galien. Tome I, Introduction générale; Sur l'ordre de ses propres livres; Sur ses propres livres; Que l'excellent médecin est aussi philosophie Collection des Universités de France. série grecque, Boudon-Millot, Véronique (Paris, Belles Lettres, 2007) Byzantine medical manuscripts: towards a new catalogue, with a specimen for an annotated checklist of manuscripts based on an index of Diels' catalogue Byzantion: Revue internationale des Études Byzantines, Touwaide, Alain (79, 453-595, 2009) John Caius et le 'De usu partium'. Contribution à l'histoire du texte de Galien Revue d'histoire des textes, Berlier, S. (6, 1-14, 2011) Manuscrits de Paul d'Egine à la Bibliothèque nationale de France Bulletin du Bibliophile, Lherminier, G. (2, 229-273, 2016) A census of Greek medical manuscripts: from Byzantium to the Renaissance Medicine in the medieval Mediterranean, Touwaide, A. (London, Routledge, Taylor and Francis Group, ©2016, 2016) De Florence à Cambridge: deux folios du texte grec du Viatique du voyageur d'Ibn al-Ǧazzār retrouvés, Miguet, Thibault (2021, 2022-12-03, https://manuscrits.hypotheses.org/3907)

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The Polonsky Foundation

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