Geometria

Name:

Sylvester II, Pope, approximately 945-1003; Adelboldus, Bishop of Utrecht, approximately 970-1027

Timespan:

Early works to 1800

Date:

1125

Description:

Collection of geometrical texts, including material from four chapters of the Isagoge geometriae; correspondence with Adelbaldus (also known as Adelbold or Albaldus, of Utrecht) about the area of isosceles triangles; and a treatise on the construction of astrolabes, in which the instrument is referred to by the latinized term astrolapsus. Annotated in the 12th century and also by an unknown late 15th- or early 16th-century humanist who collated the text with other manuscripts and noted the classical sources in the text.

Language:

Latin

Provenance:

Formerly owned by M. Haimmiller (inscription, f. 1r).; Formerly owned by Hieronymus Wilhelm Ebner von Eschenbach, sold at auction in Nuremberg as part of his library, 2 Aug. 1813, lot 311.; Formerly owned by John Bohn and then Sir Thomas Phillipps (Ms. 4437, label on spine).; Probably sold by Robinson Brothers (London), 1945.; Formerly owned by Harrison D. Horblit (Ridgefield, Conn.).; Appeared in H. P. Kraus' cat. 155 (1979), no. 18; also handled by book and manuscript dealer Bruce Ferrini (Akron, Ohio); also appeared in Sam Fogg Ltd. cat. 14 (1991), no. 1.; Formerly owned by John D. Stanitz (Cleveland, Ohio), Ms. 25.; Acquired by Lawrence J. Schoenberg with other Stanitz manuscripts, Sept. 1997.; Deposit by Lawrence J. Schoenberg and Barbara Brizdle, 2011.; Haimmiller, M., former owner.; Ebner von Eschenbach, Hieronymus Wilhelm, 1673-1752, former owner.; Bohn, John, 1757-1843, former owner.; Phillipps, Thomas, Sir, 1792-1872, former owner.; Horblit, Harrison D., former owner.; Stanitz, John D., former owner.

Relation:

Video orientation: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017.12/1333437; The Lawrence J. Schoenberg and Barbara Brizdle Manuscript Initiative Fund Home Page: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017.12/366278; Digital facsimile for download (OPenn): https://openn.library.upenn.edu/Data/0001/html/ljs194.html

Subject:

Geometry -- Early works to 1800; Geometry; Astrolabes -- Early works to 1800; Astrolabes

Resource Type:

Text

Form/Genre:

codices (bound manuscripts); annotations; diagrams; treatises; Manuscripts, Medieval; manuscripts (documents)

Physical Description:

56 leaves : parchment, illustrations; 155 x 106 (121 x 78) mm bound to 163 x 113 mm

Rights:

http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/

Notes:

Ms. codex.; Mathematician and educator known as Gerbert of Auvergne (or Alvernia or Aurillac), elected Pope Sylvester II in 999.; Title supplied by cataloger.; Table of contents: 1. f.1r-48v: [Sections from the first four chapters of Isagoge geometriae]; Table of contents: 2. f.49r-51v: [Letter from Gebert to Adelbaldus on the area of triangles, lacking beginning]; Table of contents: 3. f.51v-52v: [Response from Adelbaldus to Gebert]; Table of contents: 4. f.52v-53v: [Geometrical treatise]; Table of contents: 5. f.53v-56r: [Treatise on construction of astrolabe]; Table of contents: 6. f.56r-56v: [Additions in other hands, including a repetition of text on f. 22v-23r and a passage on measurement of distance]; Foliation: Parchment, i (18th-century paper) + 56 leaves + i (18th-century paper); 1-7⁸; one gathering lacking after gathering 6 and perhaps some material at end also lacking; modern foliation in pencil, [1-56], upper right recto.; Layout: Written in 24-25 long lines; ruled in drypoint.; Script: Written in transitional script (or protogothic script) by two hands.; Decoration: Geometric diagrams throughout, including one that is an attempt to represent a cube in three dimensions (f. 4v; Charles Burnett); 4 large (3-line to 10-line) white-vine initials in red ink (f. 1r, 2r, 5r, 8r), 1 zoomorphic 5-line initial formed from a winged dragon (f. 7r), and 1 5-line initial drawn in brown ink (f. 22v); 1-, 3-, and 4-line painted initials in red throughout; some capitals touched in red; rubrics in red; a few manicules early in the manuscript (f. 2r-5v).; Binding: 18th-century blind-stamped calf; rebacked with spine laid on; GEOMETRIA written on head edge. Some loss to marginal notes and diagrams due to trimming.; Origin: Written in Bavaria, probably in modern northern Austria, in the mid-12th century, based on similarity of the script to that used at the Benedictine abbey of Saint Lambrecht (Lisa Fagin Davis)..; Lawrence J. Schoenberg & Barbara Brizdle Manuscript Initiative.; Latin.

Physical Location:

Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, Manuscripts, LJS 194

Collection:

Lawrence J. Schoenberg Collection (University of Pennsylvania)