Laurentianus plut. 56.12 – Xd

Previous descriptions: Bandini (1764–1770 vol. 2, 307).

Reproductions: Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana

Family: x

Siglum: Xd

Shelfmark: Laurentianus plut. 56.12

Date: Third decade of the 15th century

Format: paper, 275×190 mm, ff. V + 186.

Material: good state of conservation.

Binding: –

Watermarks: a horn, similar to Piccard Horn VII 258 (Udine 1428); a bow with an arrow, similar to Piccard Waffen X 1082 (Waldau 1444); a Gothic-style letter R surmounted by a cross, i.e. Briquet 8396 (Venice 1443–1449); a bird, slightly similar to Briquet 12100 (Bruxelles 1402).

Scribes: only one scribe wrote the entire manuscript. He was the same one who copied the famous Hesychius manuscript Marc. gr. Z 622Marc. gr. Z 622 (see Speranzi 2015, 286–9). On the activity of this copyist, see Speranzi (2014).

Annotations: –

1 (1r–186r). Pollux, Onomasticon. Title: Πολυδεύκους Ὀνομαστικὸν πρῶτον. Incipit: ὦ παῖ πατρὸς ἀγαθοῦ (1.1). Explicit: κόρημα, κυβωτόν, λύχνον (10.192). Contains all the books: 1 (ff. 1r ‒27v), 2 (ff. 27v–49r), 3 (ff. 49r–64r), 4 (ff. 64r–86r), 5 (ff. 86r–104r), 6 (ff. 104r–124v), 7 (ff. 124v–145v), 8 (ff. 145v–159r), 9 (ff. 159r–172r), and 10 (ff. 173v–186r).

f. 186v: blank.

The manuscript was most probably written in Constantinople in the second or third decade of the 15th century, in the scholarly milieu characterised by the so-called Chrysokokkes-Schrift, from the name of the well-known scribe Georgius ChrysococcasGeorgius Chrysococcas (RGK III 126; see Speranzi 2014, 102–3). It is possible to identify the hand of the copyist of Xd in several manuscripts: the famous Marc. gr. Z 622 containing Hesychius’ Lexicon, Ambr. G 86 sup., Ambr. L 74 sup., Ambr. L 76 sup., Athens Μουσεῖο Μπενάκη 20, Bodleian Library Holkham Hall 88, Laur. plut. 57.12, Laur. plut. 70.10, Par. gr. 2623 and Vat. gr. 122 (see Speranzi 2014 for further bibliography; Speranzi 2015, 287). It is not known how this Xd reached Florence, but it may be useful to note that Ambr. L 76 sup. was acquired by Giovanni Aurispa before 1424 and brought to Italy. On the other hand, the Holkham Hall 88 belonged to Guarino Veronese, Laur. plut. 57.12 and Par. gr. 2623 to Francesco Filelfo (see again Speranzi 2014, 126–30). Xd may have belonged to the private library of the Medici; it seems certain that in 1480 the manuscript was in Florence, since it was used as antigraphon for Laur. Aedil. 224Laur. Aedil. 224 (Xf), in which Giorgio Antonio Vespucci, its owner, wrote liber Georgii Antonii Vespucii κοινὰ τὰ φίλων 1480. At the end of the 15th century the Anonymus VindobonensisAnonymus Vindobonensis used Xd to make some additions to the text of the Onomasticon in Par. gr. 2649Par. gr. 2649 (Pr), the most significant being the subscription ἰστέον ὅτι τὰ ἐν τοῖς πέντε βιβλίοιςSubscription (Pollux) (see Bethe 1900–1937 vol. 1, 1).