Sapientia Veterum

Sapientia Veterum sive doctrina eorundem de summa et universali medicina qua sanitas humana adhuc integra in eodem statu conservatur, interrupto vero pristino restituatur et penitus amissa recuperetur. Nec non leprositas metallorum totaliter auferatur. Quadraginta Hyeroglyphicis explicata quibus asserunt totidem eorum explanationes sapientiam eorundem veterum Arabum videlicet, Caldeorum et Aegiptiorum. De re medica ad amissum praesertim delineationes. [Followed by] Descriptio furni necessarii ad hoc opus. De prima materia lapidis philosophici [etc.]. The first work is illustrated with 40 full-page symbolic water-colour drawings of flasks: the second section contains 11 wash drawings of furnaces, etc. At the end are 14 symbolic water-colour drawings, with titles in cypher. The first work is entirely in Latin, the second partly in German and partly in French. Contents of the second section: Aenigma: in German verse (p. 1.). Descriptio furni: in German, partly in cypher (pp. 2-28). De prima materia lapidis philosophorum: in German verse (pp. 29-30). De la matière [etc.]: in French (pp. 31-50). Ein philosophisches Liedt oder Gesang [etc.] (pp. 51-64). Alchemical receipts and processes: in German and French (pp. 65-91).

Late 18th century

1 volume 94 pp. + 91 pp. + 10 ll. 4to. 21 × 151/2 cm. Original boards, damaged.

Purchased at Sotheby's 28/1/1935, Lot 26.

A key to the cypher has been inserted by Julius Kohn, the former owner, who has also added transcriptions in numerous places. He states in a pencilled note on the verso of the last leaf: 'Von No. 46 bis 80 [of the first work] fehlt der Text. The missing text has been supplied to me by a transcript from a MSS in the Bodleian Library at Oxford. The Elias Ashmole MSS 1456 'Sapientia Veterum' copied by Ayton in June 1894'. This is a reference to W. H. Black's Catalogue, Oxford, 1845, in which it is stated that Ashmole's MS. 'is of the time of James or Charles I'. On p. 93 is a note by an earlier owner of the present MS. referring to: 'einer andern Abschrift dieses Buchs und Figuren, welches mir von den Hof-Dechant Marcellin zu Klosterneuburg aus der Stifts-bibliothek gazeigt wurde.' There is a crossed-through and illegible inscription on the fly-leaf by this owner, in which the date 1787 can be found. From the Julius Kohn Library.

Database description transcribed from S.A.J. Moorat, Catalogue of Western Manuscripts on Medicine and Science in the Wellcome Historical Medical Library (London: Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine, 1962-1973).