Bibliomania in the Middle Ages Part 10

Plurimos quoque libros 3 scribere fecit, quorum nomina subnotantur.

Vetus et Novum Testamentum in uno volumine.

Vetus et Novum Testamentum in 4 volumina.

Quinque libri Moysi glosati in uno volumine.

s.e.xdecim Prophetae glosati in uno volumine.

Duodecim minores glosati Prophetae in uno volumine.

Liber Regum glosatus, paralipomenon glosatus. Job, Parabolae Solomonis et Ecclesiastes, Cantica Canticorum glosati in uno volumine.

Liber Ecclesiasticus et Liber Sapientiae glosatus in uno volumine.

Tobyas, Judith, Ester et Esdras, glosati in uno volumine.

Liber Judic.u.m glosatus.

Scholastica hystoria.

Psalterium glosatum.

Item non glosatum.

Item Psalterium.

Quatuor Evangelia glosata in uno volumine.

Item Mathaeus et Marcus in uno volumine.

Johannes et Lucas in uno volumine.

Epistolae Pauli glosatae Apocalypsis et Epistolae Canonicae glosata in uno volumine.

Sententiae Petri Lombardi.

Item Sententiae ejusdem.

Sermones Bernardi Abbatis Clarevallensis.

Decreta Gratiani.

Item Decreta Gratiani.

Summa Ruffini de Decretis.

Summa Johannes Fuguntini de Decretis.

Decretales Epistolae.

Item Decretales Epistolae.

Item Decretales Epistolae c.u.m summa sic incipiente; Olim.

Inst.i.tutiones Justiniani c.u.m autenticis et Infortiatio Digestum vetus.

Tres partes c.u.m digesto novo.

Summa Placentini.

Totum Corpus Juris in duobus voluminibus.

Arismetica.

Epistolae Senecae c.u.m aliis Senecis in uno volumine.

Martialis totus et Terentius in uno volumine.

Morale dogma philosophorum.

Gesta Alexandri et Liber Claudii et Claudiani.

Summa Petri Heylae de Grammatica, c.u.m multis allis rebus in uno volumine.

Gesta Regis Henrica secunda et Genealogiae ejus.

Interpretatione Hebraicorum nominum.

Libellus de incarnatione verbi. Liber Bernardi Abbatis ad Eugenium papam.

Missale.

Vitae Sancti Thomae Martyris.[228]

Miracula ejusdem in quinque voluminibus.

Liber Richardi Plutonis, qui dicitur, unde Malum Meditationes Anselmi.

Practica Bartholomaei c.u.m multis allis rebus in uno volumine.

Ars Physicae Pantegni, et practica ipsius in uno volumine.

Almazor et Diascoridis de virtutibus herbarum.

Liber Dinamidiorum et aliorum multorum in uno volumine.

Libellus de Compoto.

Sixty volumes! perhaps containing near 100 separate works, and all added to the library in the time of one abbot; surely this is enough to controvert the opinion that the monks cared nothing for books or learning, and let not the Justin, Seneca, Martial, Terence, and Claudian escape the eye of the reader, those monkish bookworms did care a little, it would appear, for cla.s.sical literature. But what will he say to the fine Bibles that crown and adorn the list? The two complete copies of the _Vetus et Novum Testamentum_, and the many glossed portions of the sacred writ, reflect honor upon the Christian monk, and placed him conspicuously among the bible students of the middle ages; proving too, that while he could esteem the wisdom of Seneca, and the vivacity of Terence, and feel a deep interest in the secular history of his own times, he did not lose sight of the fountain of all knowledge, but gave to the Bible his first care, and the most prominent place on his library shelf. Besides the books which the abbots collected for the monastery, they often possessed a private selection for their own use; there are instances in which these collections were of great extent; some of which we shall notice, but generally speaking they seldom numbered many volumes. Thus Robert of Lyndeshye, who was abbot of Peterborough in 1214, only possessed six volumes, which were such as he constantly required for reference or devotion; they consisted of a Numerale Majestri W. de Montibus c.u.m alliis rebus; Tropi Majestri Petri c.u.m diversis summis; Sententiae Petri Pretanensis; Psalterium Glossatum; Aurora; Psalterium;[229] Historiale.