LATIN MEDIEVAL VELLUM CODEX LEAF FRAGMENT with SENECA, Epistles & VERGIL, Georgics.
FROM A MEDIEVAL COPY OF SENECA'S LETTERS TO LUCILIUS--CONTAINING SENECA, Epistles Morales no. 95 WITH AN EXTENSIVE QUOTATION OF VERGIL'S GEORGICS BOOK 3.
SINGLE COLUMN OF A LEAF FROM A MEDIEVAL BOOK, FRONT AND BACK, in two pieces.
This Latin vellum codex leaf fragment is a truly remarkable piece. Dating back to around 1250, it features marginal glosses and decorated initials.
The text is Seneca's Epistles Morales no. 95 sections 57-59 (FRONT-second photo) and 67-70 (BACK-first photo).
Letter 95, from Seneca to his friend Lucilius, discusses the usefulness of basic principles in philosophy and their application to life.
On the BACK (first photo) Seneca copies out as prose an extensive quotation of VERGIL, GEORGICS book 3 verses 75-81 & 83-85--a detailed description of a thoroughbred horse, to which Seneca likens the brave man.
Here Seneca anticipates modern ethical & political readings of Vergil's Georgics: Seneca says that while treating something else (dum aliud agit--viz. farming), Vergil actually describes a brave man (descripsit virem fortem). "Aliud agere" = Greek allegorein.
The fragment is also therefore a manuscript witness to the text of of Vergil as well as that of Seneca, who names the author of the quotation as "our poet Vergil" (Vergilius noster).
A Medieval reader has annotated the text in a different hand and ink, placing a bracket (uncus) at the beginning of the quotation of Vergil (before continuo).
The manuscript is crafted from high-quality vellum, and the language used is Latin. It is a unique and valuable item, perfect for collectors of antiques and manuscripts. The text, which is Seneca's Epistles, and its subject (ancient philosophy) make it a fascinating piece for those with an interest in literary and intellectual history.
Written in France, doubtless Paris, in the 13th century, probably around 1240.
Dimensions: The fragmentary leaf measures 4.5 inches in width by 6.5 inches in height.
Recovered from an old book binding.
Contents: The leaf is from a codex that contained the Letters of the Roman philosopher Seneca, and important source transmitting Greek Hellenistic and Roman philosophy to the early Christian, Mediaeval and Renaissance readers and writers.
Provenance: Epli Auctionhaus, Stuttgart 18.01.2016.
Shipped conserved in a protective Mylar sleeve in a hard cardboard mailer.
This Latin vellum codex leaf fragment is a rare and important piece that dates back to around 1250. It contains an original copy of Seneca's Epistles, written entirely in Latin. The material used to create this piece is vellum, which is known as the medium of choice for Mediaeval books.
The manuscript also contains marginal decorations and glosses that add to its aesthetic appeal. It is a valuable addition to any collection of antiques or manuscripts. The language used in this piece is Latin, which adds to its historical significance. This original codex leaf fragment is a must-have for any collector of rare and valuable artifacts.
Here is the complete Latin text on the front and back of the leaf, followed by an English translation:
Seneca, Epistles Morales 95
Front (second photo--sections 57-59):
57 [Habitus porro animi non erit in optimo, nisi totius] vitae leges perceperit et quid de quoque iudicandum sit, exegerit, nisi res ad verum redegerit. Non contigit tranquillitas nisi inmutabile certumque iudicium adeptis; ceteri decidunt subinde et reponuntur et inter missa adpetitaque alternis fluctuantur. 58 Causa his1 quae iactationis est? Quod nihil liquet incertissimo regimine utentibus, fama. Si vis eadem semper velle, vera oportet velis. Ad verum sine decretis non pervenitur; continent vitam. Bona et mala, honesta et turpia, iusta et iniusta, pia et impia, virtutes ususque virtutum, rerum commodarum possessio, existimatio ac dignitas, valitudo, vires, forma, sagacitas3 sensuum; haec omnia aestimatorem desiderant. Scire liceat, quanti quidque in 59 censum deferendum sit. Falleris enim et pluris quaedam quam sunt putas, adeoque falleris, ut, quae maximi inter nos habentur, divitiae, gratia, potentia, sestertio nummo [aestimanda sint.]
Translation:
[Further, the mental disposition will not be optimal unless the person has grasped] the laws of life as a whole, has settled on the judgments needing to be made about each thing—unless he has brought the truth to bear on his situation. Peace of mind depends on securing an unchanging and definite judgment. Other people constantly lose and regain their footing, as they oscillate between letting things go and pursuing them. 58 What is the reason for this instability? It is that nothing is certain for people who rely on popular opinion, the most unreliable of standards. If you want your choices to be consistent, you need to choose what’s true. There is no route to truth without principles: they give a life its structure. Good and bad, honorable and disgraceful, just and unjust, scrupulous and unscrupulous, the virtues and their functions, material comforts, reputation and status, health, strength, beauty, keenness of perception—all these need to be evaluated. Let us know the value of every item on the list. 59 You see, you make mistakes and think some things are more valuable than they really are, to such an extent that things we prize most—wealth, influence, and power—[should be valued] at only a penny.
Back (first photo--67-70):
67 [quanto hoc utilius est, ex]cellentis animi notas nosse, quas ex alio in se transferre permittitur.
68 (QUOTATION OF VERGIL, GEORGICS 3.75-81 & 83-85, WRITTEN AS PROSE):
"Continuo pecoris generosi pullus in arris
Altius ingreditur et mollia crura reponit;
Primus et ire viam et fluvios temptare minantis
Audet et ignoto sese committere ponti,
Nec vanos horret strepitus. Illi ardua cervix
Argutumque caput, brevis alvus obesaque terga,
Luxuriatque toris animosum pectus. . . .
. . . Tum, si qua sonum procul arma dederunt,
Stare loco nescit, micat auribus et tremit artus
Conlectumque premens volvit sub naribus ignem."
69 Dum aliud agit, Vergilius noster descripsit virum fortem; ego certe non aliam imaginem magno viro dederim. Si mihi M. Cato exprimendus sit, inter fragores bellorum civilium inpavidus et primus incessens admotos iam exercitus Alpibus civilique se bello ferens obvium, non alium illi adsignaverim 70 vultum, non alium habitum. Altius certe nemo [ingredi potuit quam qui simul contra Caesar.]
Translation:
[Do you think it would be useful to be given criteria for recognizing a thoroughbred horse, to avoid being cheated as the purchaser and not waste time on a poor one? How much more useful to know the distinguishing marks] of an outstanding mind! One can transfer them from another to oneself.
68 QUOTATION OF VERGIL, GEORGICS 3.75-81 & 83-85):
"You'll know at once the foal of noble stock.
He prances in the fields; he lightly plants his feet. He is the first who dares advance, dares risk
the threatening floods, entrusts himself to
the unknown bridge, not flinching at mere sounds. Long in the neck and with a shapely head,
short flanks, a sturdy back; his chest is broad
for breathing, and is richly muscled...
... If a distant clash of arms should reach him,
he is on the move, his ears prick up,
his limbs are quivering, and he snorts his nostrils, gathering his inward fire."
69 Our poet Virgil, while treating something else, has delineated the courageous man. I myself would employ no other image for a hero. If I had to describe Cato, fearless amid the clash of civil wars, the first to confront the armies already positioned at the Alps, and braving the perils of civil war himself, this is precisely the expression and demeanor I would give him. 70 No one, in fact, [could have “pranced” higher than he did when, simultaneously facing Caesar.]