Ghent, Universiteitsbibliotheek, 1021A
s. XVI (second half acc. Derolez).
Or.:Low Countries (Ghent?), copied by one Cornelius Bryntius, who left his name on f. 12v of MS 1021B (‘Cornelius Bryntius scribebat’).
Prov.:Antonius de Grave or Gravius (cf. his name on the first page of MS 1021B), probably the Antonius de Grave who published astrological prognostications in Dutch in Deventer in the 1620s (cf. Prognosticon astrologicum et philosophicum, dat is practica ofte astrologisch discours, over dat wonderbaerlijck iaer… MDCXXIII and Prognosticon astrologicum ofte astrologische discours… MDCXXVII). Derolez, ‘Deux manuscrits’, 307, wrongly identified Antonius de Grave as the scribe of the MS. The MS was discovered in 1835 in a chimney of the Hospice des Aliénées in Ghent, together with remains of instruments used by the magician (cf. note on the inner back cover of MS 1021B: ‘en mars 1835, à la démolition d’une ancienne cheminée à l’Hospice des Aliénées à Gand, avec quelques débris d’instruments dont se servait le magicien’). The MS, which was badly damaged, was transferred to the library of the University of Ghent in 1885, where it was restored and divided into two volumes (1021A and 1021B).
Paper, 148 f. (MS 1021A, modern foliation in pencil), a single sloppy hand. At least several folia are missing in the beginning. The upper part of f. 1-44 is illegible due to water damage (up to 60% in the first folia and decreasingly thereafter, something which has affected in particular the first Ptolemaic section on f. 1-4). Some of the damaged texts can be identified by comparison with MS St Petersburg, BAN, Q. 537 (see).
Astral magic, mostly rare or unidentified texts: Ptolemaica (1r-4v); Thebit Bencora, De imaginibus, variant version as in St Petersburg, BAN, Q. 537, f. 25r-38r (5r-14r); Hermes, De imaginibus et horis (14v-19v); Liber Baleni de compositione imaginum septem planetarum, as in St Petersburg, BAN, Q. 537, f. 66r-84r (20r-31v); Ptolemaica (32r-37v); ‘Arnoldi de Villa Nova mathematici et in magicis operationibus expertissimi liber signorum duodecim signorum zodiaci. Antiquorum solertia celum…’ (38r-43r); ‘Balenis philosophi qui et sapiens dicitur liber de sigillis planetarum. Prefatio. Quoniam necessarium est volentibus in compositione imaginum…’ (43v-59r); ‘Behencatri viri sapientis et regis in India qui fuit in magicis expertissimus de sigillis planetarum. Sigillum Saturni. Saturnus habet in metallis plumbum…’ (59v-62r); ‘Bayelis sapientis in magicis expertissimi liber de annulis septem planetarum. Prafatio auctoris. Septem sunt stelle erratices quos planetas vocamus…’ (62v-67r); ‘Geberi magi et philosophi expertissimi de figuris septem planetarum per numeros in quibus occulta sunt semtem (!) nomina Dei. Prefatio. Antiqui sapientes et philosophi in astronomia…’ (67v-78v); ‘Hermetis philosophi de compositionibus imaginum secundum duodecim horas diei et noctis, qui liber alio nomine vocatur Secretum Hermetis. Hermes iste fuit de genere et secta Iudeorum, qui et Samonum vocatur…’ (79r-97v); Pseudo-Pietro d’Abano, Annulorum experimenta (98r-107r); ‘Bonum et notabile documentum super operationibus experimentorum traditum a Ptolomeo cum cautela in huiusmodi operationibus observanda. Si quis aliquod experimentum probare voluerit, oportet ipsum custodire Lunam, tempus et horam et partes hore…’ (107v-121r); ‘De sacrificiis septem planetarum. Quum in mandatis generalibus huius artis…’ (121v-125v); ‘Experimenta varia provocationis amoris et gratie ex diversis collecta. Principio in operationibus istorum experimentorum provocationis amori et gratie…’ (126r-129v); Pseudo-Pietro d’Abano, Elucidarius magice (130r-139v); ‘Diversa experimenta ex diversis collecta. Ut medicus vel phisicus multum lucretur. Facias in argento vel stanno imaginem hominis sedentis in cathedra…’ (140r-148r). Blank: 148v. MS 1021B (72 f.) contains the Clavicula Salomonis (f. 2r-53r) and other magical texts in Latin and Dutch.
Bibl. A. Derolez, Inventaris van de handschriften in de Universiteitsbibliotheek te Gent, Gent, 1977, 83; P. O. Kristeller, Iter Italicum, VI, London-Leiden, 1992, 450; W. L. Braekman, Middeleeuwse witte en zwarte magie in het Nederlands taalgebiet, Gent, 1997, 30 and 503-507; J. Véronèse, ‘Pietro d’Abano magicien à la Renaissance: le cas de l’Elucidarius magice (ou Lucidarium artis nigromantice)’, in Médecine, astrologie et magie entre Moyen Age et Renaissance: autour de Pietro d’Abano, eds J.-P. Boudet, F. Collard, N. Weill-Parot, Firenze, 2013, 295-330: 303-305; A. Derolez, ‘Deux manuscrits de magie astrologique à la Bibliothèque de l’Université de Gand’, Scriptorium 73 (2019), 307-311; C. Burnett, ‘Thābit ibn Qurra’s On Talismans Between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, and Between the Science of the Stars and Magic’, Bruniana & Campanelliana 27 (2021), 23-50: 35-37
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1r–4v
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‘… Si volueris fecundum reddere virum sive mulierem… (1v) Ad fugandum ursos, lupos, porcos, cervos et alia feras sylvestres de aliquo nemore — et habebit horribilia somnia, quod saepius probavi.’ = Pseudo-Ptolemy, De imaginibus super facies signorum (B.14)
, reworking entitled ‘libellus Ptolemaei, inter magos expertissimi, de compositione imaginum ad operationem mirabilium effectum’ in MS St Petersburg, BAN, Q. 537. End only due to missing folia. The first legible sentence corresponds to the first sentence of the chapter ‘Ut vir sive mulier sterilis multos filios deinceps faciat’ in the St Petersburg MS, f. 51r. All four folia are severely damaged. No glosses. |
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32r–37v
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‘… [title illegible]. Praefatio. Incipiamus tractare de compositione imaginum sigillorum et annulorum — ex argento vel ex mastice. Et sunt qui dicant tam auferre aut mitigare crudelitatem, et est operatio eius in naturalibus effectibus valde mirabilis.’ = Pseudo-Ptolemy, Liber de impressionibus imaginum, anulorum et sigillorum secundum facies duodecim signorum zodiaci (B.16)
. The top 4 to 8 lines of each page are damaged and partly or wholly illegible. No glosses. |