BnF, Mélanges de Colbert 60

Mélanges de Colbert 60
1v
Typemultiple-text manuscript
DateLate 15th century
Place of originEngland/Northern France
Language(s)Latin
MaterialParchment and paper
Size400 × 300 mm
Format182 folios

Mélanges de Colbert 60 (Mel. Col. 60) is a medieval astronomical multiple-text manuscript preserved in the funds of Bibliothèque nationale de France.[1] This manuscript was compiled, approximately, at the end of the 15th century, using different codicological units originating from the 14th and 15th century.

The main interest in the Mel. Col. 60 in the history of astronomy, are the different versions of the Oxford tables[2] and John of Lignères' Tabule magne,[3] which underlines the circulation of these famous alfonsine texts[4] between continental Europe and the British Isles starting in the 14th century. Another peculiarity of this manuscript is that the canons and tables of the Tabule magne are conserved within the same codex, which is unusual for the transmission of this work[5]

History

Little is known about the composition and provenance of Mel. Col. 60. It was composed around the end of the 15th century. However, the codex consists of several quires, some of which might be from the 14th century, while the others are from the 15th century. The manuscript is made partly of parchment, and partly of paper, which makes it easier for scholars[6] to distinguish the quires of different provenance.

The identity of the compilator of Mel. Col. 60 remains unknown. There are at least two scribal hands that can be observed throughout the manuscript. For instance, the handwriting that copied John of Lignères' canon (starting on folio 34r) is different from one found on folios 42v or 43r, or from the one that has copied John of Mur's[7] canon on folio 175r.

  • Mel. Col. 60, page 34r
    Mel. Col. 60, page 34r
  • Mélanges de Colbert 60
    Mélanges de Colbert 60

Content

Mel. Col. 60 is a type of astronomical manuscripts oriented towards practical use and containing various tables and canons that can assist in astronomical computations. The practical aim of Mel. Col. 60 is underlined by the high number of arithmetical tables, which show the compilator's interest in decimal numbers in particular.[8]

The historical interest of the manuscript pertaining to alfonsine astronomy are different Oxford tables and John of Lignères' Tabule magne. However, Mel. Col. 60 contains other works,[6] such as tables for mean motions of the luminaries and the planets (fol. 165r) or tables for conjunctions and oppositions from the year 1299 to 1525 (fol. 175r).

There are canons to the Tabulae permanentes[9] by Firmin de Beauval and John of Murs[10] that can be found on folio 175r.

  • folio 165r
    folio 165r
  • folio 20r
    folio 20r
  • folio 40v
    folio 40v

Tabule magne

John of Lignères.[11] was one of the key figures in the history of the Alfonsine astronomy, to be precise of its Parisian period. His work Tabule magne,[12] consisting of tables accompanied by canons, was composed between 1320 and 1325. Later, John of Lignères integrated Tabule magne into a larger collection of his works, alongside with the treatises on Saphea and on Equatorium. In the 14th and 15th centuries the text had been circulating around Europe, but most important is its transmission to England, alongside with the other alfonsine material.[5] The canons to the Tabule magne have been most likely composed by John of Lignères by combining different types of sources; some seem to be using original and alternative approaches to certain computations, while the others seem to follow a more traditional approach[5]

Oxford tables

After flourishing in Paris during the 14th century, the Alfonsine tradition had made its way to the British Isles,[13] which resulted, alongside other works, into the composition of so-called Oxford tables. Mel. Col. 60 begins with the Oxford tables: folios from 1v to 17r contain double argument tables for the Moon and the planets.

Further folios (63v–94r) contain Oxford tables (composed in 1348) attributed to William Batecombe, a 14th-century an English mathematician and astrologer, followed by the respective canons of the same authorship on folios 94v–96r.[14]

  • folio 7r
    folio 7r
  • folio 64r
    folio 64r

References

  1. ^ BnF. "Mélanges de Colbert 60". Archives et manuscrits. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  2. ^ J. Chabás; B R Goldstein (2018). "Adaptations of the Oxford Tables to Paris, Mantua, and Louvain". Journal for the History of Astronomy. 49: 99–115. doi:10.1177/0021828617752698. Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  3. ^ J. Chabás; M.-M. Saby (2022). "Editing the Tables of 1322 by John of Lignères", Alfonsine Astronomy: The Written Record. Belgium: Brepols Publishers. pp. 243–255.
  4. ^ Britannica. "Alfonsine Tables". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  5. ^ a b c Husson, Mathieu (2022). "Work Cohesion to the test of manuscript transmission: the case of John of Lignères' Tabule magne", Alfonsine Astronomy: The Written Record. Belgium: Brepols Publishers. pp. 321–322.
  6. ^ a b The Alfa exhibition. "Paris, BnF Mél. Colbert 60". Medieval skies. the Observatoire de Paris. Retrieved 26 January 2024.
  7. ^ Complete Dictionary of Scientific Biography. "John of Murs". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
  8. ^ observatoire de paris. "alpha survey". Retrieved 5 April 2024.
  9. ^ Kremer (2021). "Cracking the Tabulae permanentes of John of Murs and Firmin of Beauval with Exploratory Data Analysis", Editing and Analysing Numerical Tables. Brepols Publishers. pp. 363–422.
  10. ^ Butzer (2007). "John of Muris [Murs]", The Biographical Encyclopedia of Astronomers (Springer New York ed.). pp. 599–600. doi:10.1007/978-0-387-30400-7_727. ISBN 978-0-387-30400-7.
  11. ^ Husson (2021). "Computing with Manuscripts: Time between Mean and True Syzygies in John of Lignères' Tabule magne", Editing and Analysing Numerical Tables: Towards a Digital Information System for the History of Astral Sciences. Brepols publishers. pp. 425–468.
  12. ^ Poulle (1996). "Astronomie planétaire au Moyen ge latin". Bibliothèque de l'école des chartes. 157 (1): 297–298.
  13. ^ Chabás (2017). "An Early Witness of Alfonsine Astronomy: The London Tables for 1336". Journal for the History of Astronomy. 48 (3): 324–328. doi:10.1177/0021828617716556. Retrieved 12 April 2024.
  14. ^ Chabás; Goldstein (2016). "The Moon in the Oxford Tables of 1348". Journal for the History of Astronomy. 47 (2): 159–167. doi:10.1177/0021828616645769. Retrieved 5 April 2024.