Compilation of the Works of Saint Augustine | Epistola ad Paulinum de haeresi Pelagii

Description: 

Compilation of the Works of Saint Augustine

Italian, 15th century

Language: Latin

vellum
height 29.5 cm
width 21 cm    

University of Portland, Clark Library, Ms V A

 

Rachel Correl - Medieval Portland Capstone Student, 2008

Situated within the special collections at the University of Portland Library is a compilation of works by St. Augustine (354-430), Bishop of Hippo. This possibly Italian manuscript from the fifteenth century is written in Latin on uncut paper leaves and includes three works of Augustine. These are comprised firstly of a letter, Epistola Alipii et Augustini ad Paulinum de haeresi Pelagii (A letter by Alypius and Augustine to Paulinus on the heresy of Pelagius), and two treatises entitled De cura mortuis gerenda (On the Care to be Taken for the Dead) and De coniugis adulterinis liber primus (On the Adultery of Marriage, the First Book).

The manuscript is comprised of 30 leaves, 29.5 by 21 centimeters, and appears to be bound together to paper boards by strips of a textile, rather than cords, which was more common with manuscripts. There are also light stains seen in the space between the leaves, which suggest a type of adhesive might have been used to further bind the leaves together. Some of the vertical rulings for the text are still visible, such as on page five. According to the observations of Sister Wilma Fitzgerald in unpublished notes, there are at least three separate watermarks on the individual leaves. One consists of a half garland with the letters "CR" above it, f. iii has a ring or crown watermark, and pages 21, 23, 31, 33, 35, 47, 51, 55, 57, and 59 have a fleur-de-lis type watermark in the form of a staff. The paper, then, was not uniformly oriented, nor was it all likely from the same paper company.

Paper was not made in Europe until the twelfth century, and it took many years after that for it to be widely used.[1] If the paper was manufactured using the "wet" method, then there often remain on the individual sheets wire lines indicating that the pulp has been laid out to dry on wires.[2] The wire lines are visible on some of the pages in the manuscript, however, they may differ in alignment and number. For example, one of the first leaves before the actual text has about 10 lines that are oriented horizontally while the next leaf has eight to nine strips oriented vertically. These lines can sometimes be very helpful in identifying the original manufacturer of the paper.

The actual cover has pasted colored patterned papers on it, with different designs for the front and back. The front is a type of paisley/floral pattern in what was probably originally blue ink. The back cover also has a floral pattern, but with larger red flowers outlined in blue and little blue flowers. It seems that at least two separate sheets of paper were used to adhere to the back cover. It is uncertain whether this paper is contemporary with the construction of the manuscript, though more research into it may give us clues as to the history and/or origin of the piece.

The pagination or foliation for the manuscript is unusual in that there are three sets of numbers corresponding to either the number of folios or the number of sides of the folios (pages). In the upper right of the recto of each folio is a modern foliation with numbers 1 to 30. Also, to the right or left of the first lines of text on each side of the folios are the numbers 1 to 60, representing the page numbers. It appears that the oldest foliation is on the verso of each folio and uses the Roman numerals from xxxxviii to lxxvii (48 to 77). This may be preliminary evidence that suggests this manuscript is not in its entire original form. In this description, the pagination of 1 to 60 will be used consistently.

There are little details within this manuscript in the margins, the text, and the spine that make it unique. The margin on page five exhibits three symbols with a period in the left margin. Unable to identify these markings, one might speculate that they are an example of a nota bene marking in which they are to draw attention to a certain passage within the lengthy text. Furthermore, on pages four and five, as well as others, there is visible damage to the paper exhibited by holes near the spine likely caused by woodworms. This type of damage is very common in manuscripts as well as early printed books.[3] Page 23 has a nicely drawn example of a manicula, which is a pointing hand, another type of the nota bene mark.[4] There is an example of an erasure on page 30, which apparently was not successful enough because those words are also crossed out with a single, horizontal line. Page 47 has a hole, though it is unclear whether it was original or was damage done to the manuscript after completion because it is outside the margins. There is an ink smudge on the final page, 60, which is in black ink, but the color has not aged like the black ink of the rest of the text. Perhaps this was a later smudge made on top of the text, as the words themselves are not smudged. Page 24 has a partial example of another nota bene marking, the nota monogram, though here it is partially spelled out. The first letters ‘n’ and ‘o’ are visible, but then the word turns into what appears to be a leafy stem growing out of the ground. With all these marks present on the manuscript, it appears that it has passed through many hands since its construction.

The text of this Augustine manuscript is written in a small book cursive, with added flourishes often on the first line of pages where the stems of letters are extended. A prime example is on page three with the stems of the "h" and "b" in habere. Some of these flourishes have additional preliminary Celtic knot patterns around the stems (pages 24 and 36 are examples). Perhaps these are the markings of a bored or creative scribe, as they don't seem to be relevant to the actual content of the manuscript. It is also possible that they are not contemporary with the date of the manuscript, and are later doodles of those who read the works of Augustine.

The first work included in this manuscript is a letter (often referred to as Letter 186) written mid-417 by Augustine and Alypius to their friend Paulinus about someone named Pelagius, who had recently written a book that contained ideas not consistent with those of the church.[5] This is a letter of advice to Paulinus on how to deal with people like Pelagius, such as the Manicheans, and a reiteration of the main views of the church on religion, God, free will, and mercy. It can be assumed that some of the topics discussed in this letter, such as whether a child is born with sin, were originally addressed in the work of Pelagius. The structure of the letter is not unlike the epistles of Paul to the churches, and Augustine actually refers to him not by his name in the letter, but simply with "the Apostle."

The next work, the treatise entitled, "The Care to be taken for the Dead," begins on page 21. This text was probably written in 421 CE and is addressed to Paulinus, the bishop of Nola (the same Paulinus from the previous letter).[6]  A woman in Paulinus’ diocese asked his advice on the issue of there being an advantage to burying her dead son in the cemetery near the body of St. Felix, a local patron saint.[7] The bishop requested Augustine to supply a response and this treatise is Augustine's answer. Augustine addresses the issue by making the distinction that the place of burial is more to the advantage of the living than the dead. Augustine also spends a lot of time considering the validity of stories in which people profess visions of others, whether living or dead (in which case they might be visions of their souls). One of his main answers is that, according to the Bible, it is clear that one day again the dead bodies shall rise, wherever they might be buried and whatever state they might be in, though this does not diminish the good cause of caring for the dead.

The final work about adulterous marriages begins on page 41 with Prima quaestio. This treatise is the first of two parts originally written in late 419 or early 420 CE in response to Pollentius who was confused about certain procedures involved in divorce and remarriage.[8] Exegetical in nature, this treatise deals with the issues of marriage by utilizing relevant biblical passages, much like Augustine shapes his arguments in other treatises.[9] One main purpose of this treatise is to confirm the importance and stability of the sacred union of marriage and that "Christian marriage is a sacrament in a distinct and peculiar fashion."[10]

These works of Augustine deal with issues such as the views of the Manicheans, the care of the dead, and the indissolubility of marriage and form MS VA. Though it was common in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries to have compilations made of works on a similar subject for a private individual, this specific combination seems rare if not unique. This is a characteristic example of the priority of the patron’s choice in determining the contents of a manuscript during this period. It is also evidence that people were still reading Augustine in the fifteenth century, even some of his less well known works, and continued to do so as the manuscript passed hands throughout the centuries.

Notes
[1]Greetham, D.C., Textual Scholarship: An Introduction (New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1992), 63.
[2] Greetham, 64.
[3] Clemens, Raymond and Timothy Graham, Introduction to Manuscript Studies (Ithaca, NY: Cornell University Press, 2007), 97.
[4] Clemens, 44.
[5] Augustine, Aurelius, Saint Augustine: Letters, Vol. IV (165-203), Vol. 14 of The Fathers of the Church (Washington D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 1964), 191.
[6] Augustine, Aurelius, Saint Augustine: Treatises on Marriage and Other Subjects, Vol. 15 of The Fathers of the Church (Washington D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 1955), 349.
[7] Augustine, Treatises, 349.
[8] Augustine, Treatises, 55, 56.
[9] Augustine, Treatises, 55, 56.
[10] Augustine, Treatises, 59.

Bibliography

Augustine, Aurelius. Saint Augustine: Letters, Vol. IV 165-203). Vol. 14 of The Fathers of the Church. Washington D.C. The Catholic University of America Press, 1964.

Saint Augustine: Treatises on Marriage and Other Subjects. Vol. 15 of The Fathers of the Church. Washington D.C The Catholic University of America Press, 1955.

Clemens, Raymond and Timothy Graham. Introduction to Manuscript Studies. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 2007.

Greetham, D.C. Textual Scholarship: An Introduction. New York: Garland Publishing, Inc., 1992.

 

Wilma Fitzgerald, PhD, SP - Quoted with permission from an unpublished study

Aurelius Augustinus. 1) Epistola Alipii et Augustini ad Paulinum de haeresi Pelagii , 2) De cura mortuis gerenda, 3) De coniugis adulterinis liber primus. Saec. XV. Italy [?] Paper manuscript of iii + 30+ i., untrimmed leaves 295 x 222 (180 x 125) mm. bound in paper boards. Modern foliation upper right 1-30. Older pagination 1-60 to left and right of first line of text on page. Oldest foliation on verso of text xxxxviij-lxxvij [48-77]. Written in book cursive hand in one column with 35-38-39 lines. Marbled paper on covers. Watermark of half garland with letters CR above it and ring/ crown above on f. iii. Watermark of staff (= fleur de lis type) on ff. 11 (21, lviii) 12, 16, 17, 18, 24, 26, 28, 29, 30. Catchwords: Prima quaestio and 10v Quis sanctitatis. Old catalogue # 12.

1) f. 1-10v. Epistola ad Paulinum Nolanum episcopum.

Domino beatissimo et in Christi uisceribus germanicus amplectendo...coepiscopo Paulino Alipius et Augustinus. Tandem aliquando prouidit nobis deus litterarum fidissimum perlatorem omnium nostrum  .../... Audiet [a communi] amico sanctitas tua quo in dei misericordia cum salute remeante speramus nos de omnibus fieri posse certissimos. Explicit epistola sanctissimi Augustine ad Paulinum Nolanum episcoporum. Edited in  CSEL 57, Epistola 186; PL 33. 315-332

2) f. 11-20.  Liber ad Paulinum de cura gerenda pro mortuis.

Scripsit cum interrogatis litteris uissem de prosit quique post mortem quod corpus eius apud sancti alicuius memoriam sepelitur .../... Nam cor meum tanta distendunt Et nisi ipse assidue commonente non sinerer obliuisci profecto interrogationi tue mea responsio defuisset. De Paulinum de cura agenda pro mortuis. Edited in CSEL 41. 619-660; PL 40. 591-610

3) f. 21-30. Ad Polencium [Pollentium] de adulterinis coniugiis.

// [In loco Pauli dissensus Pollentii et Augustini ...] Prima quaestio est frater, dilectissimi Pollenti harum quas ad me scribens tamquam consulendo tractasti quod ait apostolus [I Cor. 7, 10-11]: Hiis autem .../... Si forte penitentiam finiende uite periculum preoccupauerit nec ipsos enim ex hac uita sine arca [arrha] sue pacis exire uelle debet mater ecclesia. Explicit. Edited in PL 40, 451-470