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    Warntjes2005 a Newly Discovered Irish Computus Computus Einsidlensis

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    45 views4 pages

    Warntjes2005 A Newly Discovered Irish Computus Computus Einsidlensis

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    Apocryphorum Lector

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    © All Rights Reserved
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    A Newly Discovered Irish Computus: Computus Einsidlensis Immo Warntjes Abra. This ek nese announces the dicovery of 2 previously unknown leh computinicl tex, ‘azble pohly to-AD 663 The ex has clove fines wih the wellknown Munich Compra nd reptseats a sigifiant ation tothe corpus of Ih compa mazeale om the petod kefore Bede, The tert also preserves unigue cerminalogy in Old Irish, possibly om che Eatly Old Ish peiod. Key word: Bode, Berthard Bischof, Arno Borst, De ratoneconputond, Dionyius Exiga, Faster reckoning Ish compas, CW. Jones, tera, Munich Computs, Vicoris of Aquitaine, 4-year Easter eye Ime Wares oundaton Iris Cale Pres, Cone for Haman Seteomens Hise Change [Navional Universi of Ireland. Gay ‘emo orien ie Paria 9 (2008) 61-64 ISBN 998-2.503-51596-2 [As parc ofa recent research tip through Switzerland, I had the pleasure of exa- ing the computistical manuscripts in the Benedictine monastery of Ein- siedeln for two diys.' One manuscript in particular caught my eye, namely the zninth-century codex Einsiedeln, Stfisbibliothek, MS 321 (649)? 7! script is well known among scholars of computistics, since Charles W. Jones studied it for his catalogue of manuscripts containing the scientific works attributed to Bede, and most recently Amo Borst has made extensive use of it for his forthcoming editions of Frankish computistcal texts from the period AD 921-818. In these studies, however, the middle part of the manuscript has not 1. [should lke to take this opportuni to dank the librarian, P. Odo Lang, OSB, for making accesible every manstripe thar interested me and for dealing so prompaly with my micflm {quis and the HEATPRITL-funded Foundation of rich Culture Project atthe National Univer sy of Ireland fr making thie xp possible. 2. For a palacographical and codicological discusion ofthis Ms, see especially Hartmut Hoffmana, Scheibculen des 10, snd dey 11. Jabrbnderts im Sides des Dewtchen Rees 1 (Hannover 2004) 129-22, 13. Chases W. Jones, Bedaependepigrapha: emis writing ely arise to Bede ithaca NY 1939), xp. 119 “4 Arno Borst, Schon zr Komputiieim Prankenech vn 721 bis B18 (Hannover, forthcom- 62 Warsjes received any attention, for the simple reason that ie deals neither with Angl. Saxon texts (Bedan and pscudo-Bedan) nor with Frankish computistics, which Jones and Borst respectively were interested. It is concemed rather with specifically Irish conceprs. The only reference to this middle part ofthe codex that I am aware of can be found in Gabriel Meier’s 1899 catalogue of Eunsiedeln manuscripts. ‘There, Pages 82-125 of Ms 321 (649) are considered as a single work to which the tide De numero’ attibuced, with reference obviously to the Finie-sentence at tke end. of the text on p 125 (Hacc de numero suffcienter exposuimus. Fini). As for the contents ofthis section, Meier supplies only a single sentence: ‘Saepius excerpta longiora ex operibus Bedac apponuntur’. In fact, however, not a single Bedan citation can be found in these pages. The atribution to Bede seems to have been just a convenien: way of classifying otherwise unknown computistical material, a practice followed not only by medieval scribes,* but also by modern cataloguers. As far as I have been able to establish, the laest securely datable authority iced is Isidore of Seville (#636). This already supplies us with a rough dating for this text, jen after the reception of Isdore’s writings in Ireland, and before the recep- tion of Bede's computistical works; hence, it can be roughly dated to the period between AD 650 and 950. Unfortunately, no annus pracsens is mentioned expli- citly in the texe that would provide us with a more precise date. At the same ‘ime, an example chosen in one of the calculations would appear to suggest AD (663 as the date of composition:® but since not every chronological detail men- toned for that year agrees with AD 663, this dating cannot be regarded as more than a possibilty (On the other hand, the Trish provenance of this text can be established with absolute certainty. The most conclusive proof ofthis isthe use of a considerable number of Old-Irish words (not just as glosses)? which might place this text ‘among the earliest witnesses to Early Old Irish, if a seventh-century date for its composition is accepted. Moreover, as Bernhard Bischoff has alzeady pointed ‘out this section of the manuscript (and only this section) contains specifically Ikish abbreviations. From a technical perspective, che most obvious Trish feature Jing. I would lik t thank Profesor Borst for very generously making the proofs of his mon ‘mental work availble o me before publication, 5. ch Jones, Bede preudepigrapha, 1-4 6.Eisiedln,Sefsbiliothck, 321 (649), p 120, 9. ibid. p 90, 93, 59,123 8. Bemhard Bischof, Kalo der flinichen Handihrfon des nunten Jabraorders Wes aden 1998) 242. Computns Finsidlenss 63 is the frequent references to the latereus? the Easter reckoning based on an 84— year cycle followed in Ireland and Britain from the introduction of chiistsnity down to the seventh or eighth century (AD 916 in the case of lona). Apparexcy, there are only two other computistical extbooks that mention this reckoaing ‘under this technical term, and these are the only other two Trish computisical text books known ar present, ic. he Munich Computus and De nttione con- _putandi, both composed in roughly the same period. In fac, this new ext is strikingly similar to these other Irish computistical tex- books, not only in this one usage, but in its entire content. Ici especially lose to the Munich Computus, which may place this newly-discovered text chrono- logically close tothe date of compilation of that work, ic. AD 919." This simi latty also applies to the general structure of the Einsiedeln text, which is divided. into two main sections: After a brief introduction to the concept of numbers, the different divisions of time ae discussed, including a thorough explanation of the details of the Julian calendar." The end of this section is clearly marked by the statement ‘hucusque de sole conputauimus’; the following pare is then appropriately introduced with the phrase ‘nunc de lunae cursu dicamus’" since it contains a discussion of the 19-year lunisolar cycle as well as of the calculation ‘of Easter* This second part comprises, co a large extent, a comparison between the Victorian ard Dionysiac reckonings (in which the author undoubtedly favoured the Dicnysiac reckoning), and ie is in this section that the Einsiedeln text most resemb es the Munich Compute In sharp contrast to the Munich Computus, however, which is garbled in parts (primarily due to bad errors in the copying), the scrbal transcription here seems to be remarkably well exccuted. In that respect the close affinity between these 9. Binsidel, Seifabibloshek, 321 (649), p 119. 10, For the Munich Computas sce Munich, Bay. Saatbibl, cm 14456, f 8-46" De none

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