Geber, active 13th century; Albertus, Magnus, Saint, 1193?-1280
Date:
1489
Description:
Late 15th-century collection of alchemical treatises, with Geber's Summa perfectionis magisterii (f. 78r-115r) predominating by virtue of being the only illustrated treatise, as well as the longest (116 chapters) and most heavily annotated. Formerly a manuscript codex, all of the leaves are detached and burned on three edges (both sides and top), with loss of text in the upper corners. The leaves are encapsulated and housed in a post binder.
Language:
Latin
Provenance:
Formerly owned by Gustavo Camillo Galletti, Florence (ex libris stamp, f. 1r).; Held in an unidentified German collection (Bloomsbury).; Sold at auction at Bloomsbury Auctions (London), 7 December 2020, lot 44.; Galletti, Gustavo Camillo, 1805-1868, former owner.
147 leaves : paper; 270 x 195 mm (approximate extant dimensions of burned leaves); 220 x 146 mm (approximate dimensions of written area).
Rights:
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/NoC-US/1.0/
Notes:
Ms. leaves.; Latin.; Title of manuscript supplied by cataloger.; Table of contents: 1. f.1r-37r: [De metallis in speciali / Albertus Magnus] -- 2. f.39r-49v: [Semita recta] -- 3. f.57r-65v: [Opusculum in arte alchimie / al-Rāzī] -- 4. f.68r-70r: [Liber correctorum] -- 5. f.70v-74v: [Unidentified treatise] -- 6. f.78r-115r: [Summa perfectionis magisterii] / Jeber -- 7. f.117r-120v: Liber de septuaginta -- 8. f.121r-122v: [Unidentified treatise on metals] -- 9. f.126r-140v: [De lapidis, cum glosa] -- 10. f.141r-142v [Indices].; Collation: Paper, 147; 1⁸ 2-14¹⁰ 15¹⁰⁻¹ (10 probably canceled); [1-78, 78-104, 104-145], modern foliation in pencil on lower right recto or in ink on upper right recto of sleeves. Foliation used in this record as marked, including duplicate foliation. All leaves detached, hypothetical collation based on catchwords (f.8v, 18v, 28v, 48v, 97v (actually 98v), 106v (actually 108v)), with gatherings 4, 7, 8, and 14 probable but not marked with catchwords.; Layout: Written in 2 columns of 38 lines; ruled in ink with vertical bounding lines.; Script: Written in hybrid Gothic script (f. 1r-115r), with additions by contemporary hands (f. 117r-142r).; Decoration: 22 illustrations of alchemical equipment (f. 89-98) in the Summa perfectionis magisterii (f. 78r-115r); rubricated in red; manicules and nota marks by multiple readers (f. 6v, 7v, 13v, 20v, 25r, 27r, 42v, 45r, 47r, 48r, 64r, 68r-70r, 95v-96r, 99v, 104v, 107v-108v, 117v-118v, 119v-120r, 121v, 133v).; Watermark: Similar to Briquet Oiseau 12172 (Kleve, 1489) and 12173 (Metz, 1490) (f. 50, 97).; Origin: Probably written in western central Germany or adjacent parts of the Netherlands, circa 1489 (based on watermark).; Leaves surface cleaned; mended at edges where fractures were vulnerable; encapsulated; and post bound in a binder (Conservation Center for Art & Historic Artifacts, Philadelphia, 2023)
Physical Location:
Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, Manuscripts, Ms. Coll. 1458
The Penn Libraries makes materials accessible to improve information equity and enhance teaching, research,
and learning. See our Sensitive Materials Statement
for more information.