Translated from the Arabic by Hermann of Carinthia in Toulouse in 1143 and dedicated to Thierry of Chartres. Hermann used a version ‘edited’ by Maslama of Madrid (Abū al-Qāsim Maslama ibn Aḥmad al-Faraḍī al-Majrīṭī, d. 1007/1008), who added a number of explanatory notes and chapters to Ptolemy’s text, and to whom Hermann refers as ‘Maslem’, ‘Meslem’ or ‘Abualcacim Maslem filius Ameti’. Hermann believed that Maslama was the translator of the text into Arabic (cf. ‘ipsum Maslem in Arabicam transtulit’ at the end of the preface, ed. Burnett, 111). Kunitzsch and Lorch (Maslama’s Notes, 8-10 and 34-35) have divided the manuscripts into three classes, each by a different author or translator. Class I is Hermann’s translation, which includes Maslama’s ‘Notes’ 1-3, 6-7, 9 and 11 within the text. Class II is a reworking which includes Maslama’s Notes 1-3 and 5-11 within the text, in the margins or at the end, as well as Maslama’s ‘Extra Chapter’. Class III is yet another reworking which includes Maslama’s Notes 1-11 in the margins, Maslama’s Extra Chapter in a different translation and Maslama’s ‘Astrolabe Chapters’. The author of Class III also translated portions of Ptolemy’s text anew. In most manuscripts of Class I and in the two manuscripts of Class III, the text is followed by a summary of Ptolemy’s propositions under the title Propositiones planisperii. Stefan Georges convincingly showed that the person responsible for Class II is in fact Gerard of Cremona. In ed. Venice 1536, the translation is ascribed to Rudolf of Bruges (‘Rodulphi Brughensis ad Theodorichum Platonicum in traductionem Planispherii Claudii Ptolemaei praefatio’, see also Note 3 below). Although Kunitzsch and Lorch did not consider this possibility (they were not aware of the existence of ed. Venice 1536), Rudolf might be a good candidate for the authorship of Class III, for in his treatise on the astrolabe, written in or after 1144, he presents himself as Hermann’s pupil (‘Rodolfus Brugensis Hermanni Secundi discipulus’) and acknowledges his debt to ‘Ptolemy’s Planispherium translated by Hermann’ (‘Planisperium Ptolomei ab Hermanno Secundo translatum’). See R. Lorch, ‘The Treatise on the Astrolabe by Rudolf of Bruges’, in Between Demonstration and Imagination. Essays in the History of Science and Philosophy Presented to John D. North, eds L. Nauta, A. Vanderjagt, Leiden, 1999, 55-100 (60 and 67 for the Latin quotations); and C. Burnett, ‘Béziers as an Astronomical Center for Jews and Christians in the Mid-Twelfth Century’, Aleph 17 (2017), 197-219: 208-212. The Planispherium was commented upon by Federico Commandino (C.4.5).

Note 1 A couple of short Latin fragments, corresponding to the beginning of chs 2 and 3 of the Planispherium (ed. Heiberg, 220, lines 4-6, and 231, lines 15-20) in a translation from the Arabic, appear in a compilation of excerpts from the oldest Latin corpus on the astrolabe put together in Catalonia c. 1000: MS Paris, BnF, lat. 7412, s. XI, f. 11r-11v (‘Dixit Ptolomeus: Exient toti circuli de alafac… Et dicam quia si alium circulum faciemus declinatum…’). These fragments have been edited by P. Kunitzsch, ‘Fragments of Ptolemy’s Planisphaerium in an Early Latin Translation’, Centaurus 36 (1993), 97-101 (reprinted in P. Kunitzsch, Stars and Numbers. Astronomy and Mathematics in the Medieval Arab and Western Worlds, Aldershot, 2004, VIII).

Note 2 In addition to the manuscripts listed below, there once existed at least two more thirteenth-century copies of the Planispherium. One is referred to as ‘De planisperio sive de alzagara Tholomei’ in the table of contents of MS Paris, BM, 3642 (see). The other is referred to as ‘Planisperium Ptolomei’ in the two medieval tables of contents found on f. 1r of MS Paris, BnF, lat. 16652, where it was the opening text. The other texts contained in this manuscript are Pseudo-Messahallah, De compositione astrolabii, attr. John of Seville (‘Compositiones astrolabii Iohannis Hispalensis/Yspaniensis’) and whose beginning is missing (2r-6v); Azarchel, Saphea, tr. Guillelmus Anglicus (7r-9v); Hermann of Reichenau, De mensura astrolabii (11r-14v); De utilitatibus astrolabii (14v-21v); Berengarius, De horologio viatorum (21v-24r); Rudolf of Bruges, De compositione astrolabii (24r-28r); Arialdus, De compositione astrolabii (28r-37v); ‘Tres circulos in astrolapsu descriptos…’, added by a later hand (38ra-39ra); Boethius, De musica (44r-95r). Paris, BnF, lat. 16652 belonged to Richard of Fournival, Gerard of Abbeville and to the college of Sorbonne. On this manuscript, see L. Miolo, Le fonds scientifique d’un collège de théologie: le cas de la bibliothèque de Sorbonne 1257-1500, PhD dissertation, Université Lumières Lyon 2, 2017, II, 142-151.

Note 3 An edition of 1544, in which the translation is attributed to Rudolf of Bruges, is mentioned by S. F. G. Hoffmann, Lexicon bibliographicum sive index editionum et interpretationum scriptorium Graecorum tum sacrorum tum profanorum, III: L-Z, Leipzig, 1836, 503: ‘1544, f. Ptolemaei Planisphaerium, translatus ex Arabico sermone Maslemi, in Latinum per Rudolphum Brugensem. Tolosae’. This edition has not been found.

Text ‘(ed. Heiberg and Burnett) [translator’s preface] Quemadmodum Ptolomeus et ante eum nonnulli veteris auctoritatis viri antiquas seculi scribunt historias — quam qua id ipsum Maslem in Arabicam transtulit. [text] Cum sit possibile, Iesure, et plerumque necessarium ut in plano represententur circuli in speram corpoream incidentes, tamquam plana esset, consultum visum est in veritate scientie — cum ipsis circulis tropicis et cum circulis meridianis signa distinguentibus.’

Maslama’s Notes ‘(ed. Kunitzsch/Lorch) [1] In hunc librum Maslem commentans ait ut descriptis equidistantibus recto hinc unde circulis deducatur… [2] Addit Maslem argumentum: lineam HE in directum… [3] Hic locus est argumenti Maslem: quia deprehensum est, inquid, quota distantia… [4] Dixit Meslem: et est ad hoc etiam via facilior… [5¹] Dixit Maslem: et si intenderet Ptolemeus… [5²] Dixit Meslem: si animadvertisset Ptholomeus… [6] Hic subiungit Maslem quod cum huiusmodi circulus… [7¹] Noto igitur, ut Maslem addit, circulo equidistante zodiaco… [7²] Alia translatio, dixit Meslem: quando facies circulum equidistantem… [8¹] Dixit Maslem: et non declaravit quod centra non sunt super… [8²] Dixit Meslem: non declaravit quod centra non sint super… [9¹] In alio, dixit Maslem: et ex complemento huius questionis… [9²] Alia translatio, dixit Meslem: de complemento huius propositionis… [9³] Deinde argumentum quod Maslem subiungit addends… [10¹] Et ex sermone eius etiam est: verumtamen complebo quod oportet… [10²] Et ut compleam quod oportet compleri… [11] Addit Maslem quoniam hec linea recta secat — recto medium secet, et hunc per zodiaci polum necessario transire.’

Maslama’s Extra Chapter ‘(ed. Kunitzsch/Lorch) [class ii] Capitulum quod non est de libro quod edidit Abualcacim Maslem filius Ameti. Dixit Maslem filius Hameti: Iam rememoratus est Ptolemeus in hoc libro qualiter describamus circulum orizontis — tibi quod volueris de scientia tabularum. Et laus sit Deo creatori gentium. [class iii] Sectio que non est de libro quam dixit Meslem usque ad primam sectionem quam Ptholomeus. Iam memoravit Ptholomeus in hoc libro quomodo lineentur orizontes — cum eodem numero elevatur cum quo occidit. Et secundum hoc fit artificium laminarum.’

Maslama’s Astrolabe Chapters ‘(ed. Kunitzsch/Lorch) Et hec capitula non pretermittat qui voluerit facere astrolabium que compilavimus de figura sectionis. Ad scientiam extrahendi elevationis signorum in orbe recto — et quod provenerit est nadair gradus occasus. Intelligas. Explicit.’

Propositiones planisperii ‘(ed. Kunitzsch/Lorch) Incipit prima propositio planisperii. Quoslibet duos circulos equidistantes recto in spera corporea — recto per polum zodiaci transire necesse est vel habet. Expliciunt propositiones. [two additional chapters] Si a termino unius diametri circuli recti ducatur linea per centrum circuli — ad ED semidiametrum circuli recti. Radicem planisperii sic colligere possumus. Constat planisperium nichil aliud esse quam planitiem equinoctialis — in plano datum punctum in spera potentialiter ostendit.’

Bibl. A. d’Avezac, ‘Le planisphère de Claude Ptolémée’, Comptes Rendus des Séances de l’Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres 7 (1863), 333-337; F. Wüstenfeld, Die Übersetzungen Arabischer Werke in das Lateinische seit dem XI. Jahrhundert, Göttingen, 1877, 50-53; M. Steinschneider, Die hebraeischen Uebersetzungen des Mittelalters und die Juden als Dolmetscher. Ein Beitrag zur Literaturgeschichte des Mittelalters, Berlin, 1893, II, 534-536; M. Steinschneider, Die europäischen Übersetzungen aus dem Arabischen bis Mitte des 17. Jahrhunderts, Wien, 1904, 34 (no. 51d) and 74 (no. 104a); C. H. Haskins, Studies in the History of Mediaeval Science, Cambridge, 1927 (2^nd ed.), 47; E. Poulle, ‘L’astrolabe médiéval d’après les manuscrits de la Bibliothèque nationale’, Bibliothèque de l’Ecole des Chartes 112 (1954), 81-103: 100; F. J. Carmody, Arabic Astronomical and Astrological Sciences in Latin Translation. A Critical Bibliography, Berkeley-Los Angeles, 1956, 18 (no. 9); R. B. Thomson, Jordanus de Nemore and the Mathematics of Astrolabes: De plana spera, Toronto, 1978, 47-52; C. Burnett, ‘Arabic into Latin in Twelfth Century Spain: The Works of Hermann of Carinthia’, Mittellateinisches Jahrbuch 13 (1978), 100-134: 108-112; P. Kunitzsch, R. Lorch, Maslama’s Notes on Ptolemy’s Planisphaerium and Related Texts, München, 1994; S. Georges, Glosses as a Source for the History of Science. The Case of Gerard of Cremona’s Translation of Ptolemy’s­ Almagest, Turnhout (forthcoming).

Modern ed. Critical edition by J. L. Heiberg, Claudii Ptolemaei opera quae exstant omnia, II: Opera astronomica minora, Leipzig, 1907, clxxx-clxxxvi (translator’s preface, from three MSS: Dresden, SLUB, Db. 86; Paris, BnF, lat. 7399; and Vatican, BAV, Reg. lat. 1285) and 227-259 (text, without Maslama’s added material, from six MSS: Dresden, SLUB, Db. 86; Oxford, BL, Auct. F.5.28; Paris, BnF, lat. 7214; Paris, BnF, lat. 7399; Vatican, BAV, Reg. lat. 1285; and Vatican, BAV, Vat. lat. 3096), and by Sinisgalli/Vastola (in three columns from the three early printed editions, with Italian translation). Hermann’s preface has been re-edited by Burnett, 109-111 (with translation, 111-112), who improved on Heiberg’s edition by using MS Paris, BnF, lat. 7377B. German translation of Heiberg’s edition by J. Drecker, ‘Das Planisphaerium des Claudius Ptolemaeus’, Isis 9 (1927), 255-278. Maslama’s added material in Latin has been edited by Kunitzsch/Lorch, Maslama’s Notes, 36-54 (Notes), 54-63 (Extra Chapter) and 65-71 (Astrolabe Chapters). Kunitzsch/Lorch have also edited additions found in the two MSS of Class III (Appendix I, 99-104) and the Propositiones planisperii (Appendix II, 106-114). Maslama’s added material in Arabic has been edited by J. Vernet, M. A. Catalá, ‘Las obras matematicas de Maslama de Madrid’, Al-Andalus 30 (1965), 15-45: 22-26 (Extra Chapter) and 26-28 (Astrolabe Chapters), with a Spanish translation, 28-45; and by Kunitzsch/Lorch, Maslama’s Notes, 12-33 (Notes, with an English translation).