Parisinus graecus 1868 – Pa

Previous descriptions: Omont (1888a, 155–6); Sicherl (1957, 137–43).

Reproductions: Bibliothèque Nationale de France

Family: e

Siglum: Pa

Shelfmark: Parisinus graecus 1868

Date: ff. 1–406 and ff. 451–458 date from the second half of the 15th century, ff. 407–450 from the third quarter of the 14th century.

Format: paper, 292×214 mm, II + 458 ff.

Material: good state of conservation.

Binding: –

Watermarks: until f. 406: three hills surmounted by a flower, i.e. Piccard Dreiberg III 1120 (Brescia 1467); an ox’s head surmounted by a flower and a cross, i.e. Piccard Ochsenkopf XIII 589 (Ellwangen, Nördlingen 1462–3); scales, Piccard Waage V 138 (Ravenna 1472); at ff. 407–458: two crescents, i.e. Briquet 5369 (1365–1402): it seems that the last section of the manuscript (ff. 407–458) is older than the rest.

Scribes: A: ff. 1r–11v; B: ff. 12r–18v, 22r–24v, 28r–39v, 42r, 47r–50v, 92r–84v l.17, 84v l. 21–109r, 111r–230r, 235r–314r, 315r, 316r–325v, 327r–341v, notes on ff. 52r–73v, 342r–357v, 452r–458v, titles on ff. 58r, 60v, 62r, 72v, Anonymus 25 HarlfingerAnonymus 25 Harlfinger also known as Isaias (see Speranzi 2018, 198); C: ff. 53r–73, Georgius AlexandrouGeorgius Alexandrou (RGK I 54 = II 72 = III 89); D: f. 84v ll. 17–21 (see Speranzi 2018, 198), Anonymus 26 HarlfingerAnonymus 26 Harlfinger; E: Iohannes RhosusIohannes Rhosus, who wrote the titles on ff. 111r, 143r, 147v, 196r, 199v, 235r, 316r (see Speranzi 2018, 198); F: ff. 342r–357v; G: ff. 368r–398v; H: 407r–420v, 422r–423v, 425v–426r, 427v, 442r l. 15–442v l. 4, 445r, 449v–450v; I: 421r–v, 424r–425r, 426v–427r, 428r–442r l. 14, 442v l. 5–444v, 445v–449r; J: ff. 452r–458v.

Annotations: on f. Ir there is a list of the contents of the manuscript in Greek written by Matthaeus DevarisMatthaeus Devaris (RGK II 364 = III 440), see Muratore (2009 vol. 2, 12).

1 (ff. 1r–11v) Compendium logicae Aristotelis. Incipit: ἀναγκαῖον ἐστὶ τοὺς περὶ τῆς φιλοσοφίας τῆς ἐν λόγοις διδασκομένους. Explicit: ταῦτα λέγειν ἔχομεν περὶ τοῦ βίου τοῦ Ἀριστοτέλους. Cf. John Chortasmenus, Prolegomena in logica Aristotelis (edited in Hunger 1969, 210–4).

2 (ff. 12r–17v) Iohannes Protospatharius, Commentarius in Hesiodi Opera et dies. Title: ἡξήγησις τοῦ Πρωτοσπαθαρίου κυρίου Ἰωάννου τῶν Ἡμερῶν Ἡσιόδου. Incipit: εἰ καὶ μὴ μέχρι τοῦ νῦν ῥητῶν τινων (448.1). Explicit: ταῦτα μέν μοι περὶ τῶν ἡμερῶν ἐξεπονήθη τοῦ Ἡσιόδου (459.8). Edited in Gaisford (1823, 448–59). It follows (ff. 17v–18v) a physical argument on birth (incipit: ζητεῖται δι’ ἣν αἰτίαν μὲν καὶ ἑπτάμηνος ἔσθ’ ὅτε ζωογονεῖται; explicit: ἐπειδὰν οὖν ἔν τινι ἔν τινι τῶν τοιούτων).

ff. 19r–21v: blank.

3 (ff. 22r–v) A gnomic section: AP 9.359 with glosses and a paraphrase; AP 9.166 with glosses; M.Ant. 7.22, 7.18; AP 9.52 with glosses; AP 9.47, AP 10.99 with glosses and an explication on margin; AP 10.35 with glosses.

4 (23r–24v) <Lucianus, Muscae encomium>, with glosses and scholia, different from the text edited in Rabe (1906, 10–1).

ff. 25r–27v: blank.

5 (ff. 28r–39v) Treatise on the faculties of the soul. No title. Incipit: τῶν ψυχικῶν δυνάμεων αἱ μὲν λογικαί. Explicit: λέγεσθαι κατὰ τοῦτον τὸν πρῶτον τῆς τε ψυχῆς καὶ τοῦ σώματος.

ff. 40r–41v: blank.

6 (ff. 42r–50v) Philosophical treatise on the pneumatic body. No title. Incipit: ὅτι φασὶ τοῦ μὲν πνευματικοῦ σώματος ὁ θυμὸς καὶ ἡ ἐπιθυμία. Explicit: ἀλλὰ ταῦτά μοι οἱ Ἑλληνικοὶ καὶ Πλατωνικοὶ μῦθοι.

ff. 51r–v: blank.

7 (ff. 52r–73v) Treatise on dialectics. No title. Incipit: διαλεκτική ἐστι τέχνη τεχνῶν καὶ ἐπιστήμη ἐπιστημῶν. Explicit: καὶ μέσον ἕνα ποιῶ καὶ γίνεται. Not edited.

ff. 74r–81v: blank.

8 (ff. 82r–108r) <Alexander Aphrodisiensis, De fato>. No title. Incipit: ἀπαράβατόν τινα αἰτία εἶναι καὶ ἀναπόδραστον (166.4). Explicit: ἐπειράθην ὑμῖν παραστῆσαι τοῦ λόγου (212.19). The beginning of the work is missing. Edited in Bruns (1892, 164–212).

9 (ff. 108v–109r) Two fragments of Iamblichus <De mysteriis>. Title: Ἰαμβλίχου περὶ εἱμαρμένης.    Incipit: οὐκέτι δὴ οὖν, ὃ σὺ ἀπορεῖς (8.7). Explicit: συμφωνεῖ καὶ ἡ ἀπὸ γενέσεως λύσις (8.8). 2. εἰ δέ σοι ἄπιστον εἶναι καταφαίνεται (1.15) Explicit: κοινωνεῖ τῶν ἐν ταῖς εὐχαῖς νοήσεων (1.15). Edited in des Places (1966).

ff. 109v–110v: blank.

10 (ff. 110r–142v) [Plutarchus], De Homero 1 et 2. Title: Πλοτάρχου εἰς τὸν βίον τοῦ Ὅμήρου. Edited in Kindstrand (1990).

11 (ff. 143r–227v) Title: Σκιπίωνος ὄνειρος συγγραφεὶς μὲν παρὰ Μάρκου Τουλλίου Κικέρωνος τοῦ ῥήτορος, ἐξηγηθεὶς δὲ παρὰ Μακροβίου Ἀμβροσίου, εἰς τὴν Ἑλλάδα γλώτταν μετενεχθεὶς Μαξίμου τοῦ Πλανούδη. Edited in Pavano (1992). On f. 227v there is a diagram illustrating the seven planets.

12 (f. 228r–v) The names of terrestrial and aquatic animals. Title: πῶς ὀνομάζονται τά τε χερσαῖα καὶ ἔνυδρα ζῷα. Incipit: σελάχιά εἰσιν ὅσα λεπίδας οὐκ ἔχει. Explicit: καὶ γάλα ἐν τοῖς μαστοῖς ἔχει καὶ θηλάζει ἐν θέῳ νόμῳ.

ff. 229r–230r: astronomical tables.

ff. 230r–234v: blank.

13 (235r–314r) Themistius, In Aristotelis libros de anima paraphrasis. Title: Θεμιστίου παράφρασις τῶν περὶ ψυχῆς Ἀριστοτέλους. Edited in Heinze (1899).

f. 314v: blank.

14 (ff. 315r–357v) Pollux, Onomasticon. On f. 315r there is an index of Book 1, f. 315v was left blank. Incipit: ὦ παῖ πατρὸς ἀγαθοῦ (1.1). Explicit: λόγου τε πηγή (2.104). It covers only the first book (ff. 316r–346r) of Pollux and part of the second (ff. 346r–357v), it is mutilated at the end or perhaps unfinished, as could be argued by the fact that the following folios were left blank. In the margins of f. 316 the manuscript preserves the subscriptionSubscription (Pollux) ἰστέον ὅτι τὰ ἐν τοῖς πέντε βιβλίοις (see Bethe 1900–1937 vol. 1, 1). F. 326 was left blank, but there is no gap in the text; the manuscript’s numeration skips f. 348.

ff. 358r–367v: blank.

15 (ff. 368r–398v) Hippocrates. (ff. 368r) De diaeta salubri. Only the end, title is missing. Incipit: ὁκόσους δὲ δίψαι λαμβάνουσι (8). Explicit: ἐν τῇσι νούσῃσιν ὠφελέεσθαι (9); (ff. 368r–375v) De semine, de natura pueri, de morbis iv; (375v–376v) De articulis, ends incomplete at νεύρων τὴν ἀπάρτισιν (8); (f. 377r–v) Lex, 1–2; (377v–379v) De arte, 3–13; (379v–398v) De prisca medicina, 1–21. All texts are edited in Littré (1849).

ff. 399r–406v: blank.

16 (ff. 407–450v). Greek translation by Demetrius Cydones of Thomas Aquinas’ Summa contra gentiles. The beginning is missing. Incipit: αὐτὸς τοῦτον ἀποκρίνεται τὸν τρόπον. Explicit: αὐτῷ τοίνυν τῷ ἰδίως μακαρίῳ τιμὴ καὶ δόξα εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων· ἀμήν. See Fyrigos (2011, 173).

f. 451: blank.

17 (ff. 452r–458v) Thucydides, Historiae. Only part of Book 1, mutilated at the end. Incipit: [Θ]ουκυδίδης Ἀθηναῖος ξυνέγραψε τὸν πόλεμον (1.1.1). Explicit: εἰ γὰρ τοὺς κακόν τι δρῶντας δέχομενοι (1.40.6). F. 451 is blank.

This manuscript was most probably assembled in Italy when, in the second half of the 15th century, a new codicological unit was added to an older one (third quarter of the 14th century). The volume was part of the library of Cardinal Niccolò RidolfiNiccolò Ridolfi (see Muratore 2009 vol. 2, 12; for the history of the library, see also Muratore 2009 vol. 1, 313–36); after his death, the whole library of the cardinal after his death, was acquired by Piero StrozziPiero Strozzi in 1555 and then by Caterina de’ MediciCaterina de’ Medici in 1558 and transferred to France. The Onomasticon of Pollux in Pa is quite interesting, since it is a contamination between a text similar to the one of Laurentianus plut. 58.3Laur. plut. 58.3 (Lu) and Oxford, D’Orville 60Oxon. Bodl. D’Orville 60 (Or, partially written by Iohannes Rhosus), and a manuscript of the x family, which includes Xh, written by Georgius Alexandrou.