What is a Bestiary?

A Bestiary is a collection of short descriptions about all sorts of animals, real and imaginary, birds and even rocks,
accompanied by a moralising explanation. Although it deals with the natural world it was never meant to be a
scientific text and should not be read as such. Some observations may be quite accurate but they are given the
same weight as totally fabulous accounts. The Bestiary appeared in its present form in England in the twelfth
century, as a compilation of many earlier sources, principally the Physiologus. A great deal of its charm comes
from the humour and imagination of the illustrations, painted partly for pleasure but justified as a didactic tool 'to
improve the minds of ordinary people, in such a way that the soul will at least perceive physically things which it
has difficulty grasping mentally: that what they have difficulty comprehending with their ears, they will perceive
with their eyes' (Aberdeen MS 24, f25v).

1a. The Origin of the Text

The Physiologus was written in Greek, probably in Alexandria, in about the fourth century. It consisted of 48 or 49
chapters about beasts, birds and stones used as a vehicle for explaining Christian dogma. Its stories come from
very ancient sources: Indian, Hebrew and Egyptian animal lore and various classical natural philosophers like
Aristotle and Pliny. A moralising Christian gloss was added to these stories by a person presumably known as
Physiologus. All the identifiable animals in this Alexandrian text (except for castor/beaver and antalops/the
blackbuck) would have been known in north Africa. Animals from northern Europe only appear in much later texts.
The accuracy of natural observation remains variable throughout, with many false statements (such as the swan's
beautiful voice) repeated for centuries even where writers must have known the truth (George and Yapp 1991).

No early Greek copies survive and the earliest surviving texts are Latin translations . They are the Y version (Bern,
Lat. 611, 8-9th century), A version (Brussels, Bib. Roy. 10074, 10th century), C version (Bern, Burgerbibliothek,
lat. 318, 9th century) and B version (Bern, Lat. 233, 8-9th century). The text of Y is very close to its Greek source
but fell from use and had little influence on the other versions. The Brussels copy of A is important because it
contains delicate Carolingian drawings to illustrate the text. C is a corrupt Greek translation, the Bern copy having
the earliest painted illustrations. It is from the B version that the text of subsequent English and French
Physiologus manuscripts derive, though none of this group is illustrated (McCulloch 1962, 21-25).

The earliest surviving Greek version of the text (New York, Morgan 397) was copied in the tenth century and has
no illustrations. The earliest known illustrated Greek text, the Smyrna Codex, was made around 1100 but was
burnt in 1922 (Strzygowski, 1899, 1-130; Demus, 1976, 235-257).
sensorgr
1b. The Families of Text
No intermediate stages of development have survived between these Physiologus manuscripts and the Bestiary
proper which emerges in the twelfth century. The Bestiaries use Physiologus as the core text but add increasing
amounts of additional material from other books. The number of animals increases and so does the quantity of
moralising comments. Studying their composition , M.R.James divided the Bestiaries into four families. McCulloch
and George and Yapp have subsequently subdivided the groups (James, 1928, 10-13; McCulloch, 1962, 25-44;
George and Yapp 1991, xi-xiv, 1-5). The following is based on McCulloch and deals with the English manuscripts:

1. The first family consists of the Physiologus plus extracts from the Etymologies of Isidore of Seville. Isidore,
living in Spain in the seventh century, explained the true nature of animals by analysing their names. So, a cat is
called catus because he catches mice. Isidore's encyclopedic work was not moralised. The sequence of chapters in
the first family begins with Leo, Antalops and the animals are not classified. The earliest illustrated example of this
group is Oxford Bod., Laud Misc. 247. An additional text, the Aviarium by Hugh of Fouilloy, begins to be used in
some versions of this family, notably Oxford Bod. 602 and Douce 167. This book on birds was written after 1152
and exerpts were used in some bestiaries including Aberdeen and Ashmole. Hugh's text contains far more
moralising than the original Physiologus.

McCulloch identifies a Transitional group which keeps some of the chapters of the first family but adds large
sections from Isidore and classifies the contents in the same way as Isidore, into Beasts, Birds, Fish and so on.
Important illustrated Transitional manuscripts from the twelfth century are Camb., Trinity Coll. R.14.9(884); New
York, Morgan 81; St Petersburg/Leningrad,State Public Library, MS Saltykov-Shchedrin Latin Qu.V.1; and
B.L.Royal 12 C. xix. The Northumberland (formerly Alnwick) Bestiary is mid-13th century.

2. The second family develops during the twelfth century, including 20 surviving English copies. The number of
chapters have more than doubled to about 108 subjects. The additional material comes from:

Isidore
Solinus, Liber Memorabilium, a third century travel guide, incorporating much of Pliny's Natural History
sensorgr
Ambrose, Hexaemeron, a fourth century commentary on the six days of creation
and sometimes Rabanus Maurus, De Universo, moralisations added to Isidore's Etymologies.

The whole text is classified according to Isidore's groups. Important twelfth century copies of this family are B.L.
Add.11283; Aberdeen University MS 24; Oxford.Bod. Ashmole 1511; B.L.Harl.4751; Camb. Univ. Lib. Ii.4.26.
Oxford Bod. Douce 151 is a poor fourteenth-century copy of Ashmole 1511.

3. The third family appears in the thirteenth century, enlarged with Isidore's account of the Fabulous Nations, the
Megacosmus by Bernard Silvestris. The sequence of beasts begins with the domestic animals. There are only five
known examples in this family, including the magnificent Westminster Abbey Bestiary (MS 22).

4. The fourth family is primarily based on De proprietatibus rerum by Bartholomeus Anglicus. Its only example is
Camb. University Library Gg.6.5, from the 15th century.

1c. The sources of the illustrations:

Physiologus

In the same way that the text of the Bestiary clings to earlier sources, its illustrations have a timeless, traditional
quality . Their style evolves and reflects contemporary fashion but the iconography in many cases may derive from
lost classical originals. The oldest illustrated Physiologus, the Latin ninth-century Bern 318, (Steiger and
Homburger 1964) reveals its classical origins both in its composition and style. Most of the pictures are set in bold
red frames neatly spaced between the text. Figures are set in a suggestive landscape and the paint is applied with
a great feeling for space and light. This illusionistic manner of painting is typical of classical art and might imply
that the artist had a classical model to work from. However in the ninth century, this classicising style had been so
thoroughly absorbed by scriptoria particularly at Reims, that the artist might equally have used a contemporary
model. There is evidence that the iconography of many of the Bern images must come from much earlier Greek
sources. The earliest surviving Greek illuminated Physiologus(Milan, Bib. Ambrosiana MS E.16 sup, 11th century)
shares several images such as serra, the pearl fishers and cervus with Bern 318, indicating that they must both
derive from an earlier Greek source. The longevity of these scenes is demonstrated by 15th- and 16th-century
Cretan copies which also share features like the half human, half snake viper with Bern 318. (These are Vatican
Ottob. gr. 354, f26 and Vatican Barb. gr 438, f43. Muratova, 1984b, 387) Classical originals may have come from
zoological texts , hunting and aquatic scenes, paintings of animals charmed by Orpheus, and still life compositions
. Some of these can be found in manuscripts, wall paintings and mosaics.

The Brussels Physiologus has illustrations which are also classicising but derive mainly from a separate original
cycle. These pictures, which are unframed lightly coloured drawings, have a narrative element and include
symbolic, moral and allegorical themes. The only known Greek Physiologus with moralising illuminations was the
Smyrna Codex (Demus, 1976, 235-257) whose animals correspond to those in the Latin manuscripts but whose
allegories differ from the Brussels text.

The sources of Bestiary Illustrations

There must have been illustrated copies of Physiologus in England from which the Bestiary developed in the
twelfth century. (There were unillustrated copies of Physiologus written in Anglo-Saxon: Cook ,1919). How or
when they got here is not known. However the subject matter may have been of interest for a long time. Among
the many books brought to Wearmouth from Rome or Gaul by Benedict Biscop in the eighth century was a Codex
cosmographorum mirandi operis. This could have been a manuscript like the Etymologies of Isidore. At
Peterborough Abbey in the eleventh century there was a Liber bestiarum given by Aethelwold, Bishop of
Winchester around 984. Aethelwold, while abbot of Abingdon, stayed some time at the abbey of Fleury in France.
He clearly showed some interest in the manuscripts there because traits of the Fleury scriptorium begin to appear
in Winchester books at the end of the tenth century (Muratova, 1984b, 391-2. Goldschmidt 1947) Furthermore,
the Bern Physiologus was at Fleury at that period, brought there by Archbishop Ebbo of Reims. The scriptorium at
Fleury, an influential centre for diffusing classical heritage in the tenth century, could well have provided the link
between the continental and English copies of Physiologus.

sensorgr
There is a gap between the production of Physiologus illustrations and the appearance of the earliest illustrated
Bestiary, Oxford, Bod. 247 in the early twelfth century. The delightful pen drawings of this book are so precisely
laid out and delineated that they must be copied from an earlier model.(Kauffmann, 1975, 75-6) The book shows
the Physiologus and Isidore passages clearly integrated in a visual unity. Some images derive from the Bern and
Brussels Physiologus, while others come from an unknown source.

The lost Isidore cycles

There are no surviving, early illustrated texts of Isidore's Etymologiae but the smooth fusion of Physiologus and
Isidore images in the early Bestiaries indicates that there must have been an early Isidore cycle. In the Aberdeen
and Ashmole Bestiaries there is a seated portrait of Isidore at work. This could be a specific portrait of Isidore or it
could be merely an adaptation of the classical author portrait, modified for these two books. Muratova (1984b,
395) proposes that a set of illustrations for Isidore were compiled by Rabanus Maurus when he wrote his De
Universo in the eighth century and his arrangement is reflected in Montecassino Abbey MS 132, made in 1032 .
His text is partly based on the Etymologiae. The section on great animals is somewhat erratically illustrated by
pictures of many animals together, often arranged in registers, of varying sizes and fantastic colours. The texts
from Isidore are not consistently illustrated. However the section on small animals is treated more evenly and
naturalistically coloured. Muratova suggests that these pictures could have come from an antique zoology book,
perhaps an illustrated Pliny (.Nissen, 1971-2, 41ff. Kadar 1978) while Maurus may have designed the rest himself
using models from ivories or even mosaic pattern books.

Solinus and Ambrose

The Collectanea rerum memorabilium of Solinus, written in the third century A.D., provides the text for creatures
like leocrota, manticore, yale, parander and bonnacon. The earliest surviving illustrated text of Solinus was made
in the fourteenth century but must have been based on much earlier models. Lastly, there may have been early
illustrated copies of the Hexaemeron of St Ambrose. His description of a cock is used in the Bern Physiologus text
and it is illustrated there. The earliest illustrated surviving Hexaemeron is from Salzburg, made in the mid twelfth
century (Munich, Staatsbib. cod. lat. 14399). In this copy there are illustrations for the first days of Creation,
closely linked to the Ashmolean and Aberdeen Creation cycles.

The Creation Cycle

Six Bestiaries include an illustrated cycle of the Creation. They are St Petersburg (formerly Leningrad) State Public
Library, MS Saltykov-Shchedrin Latin Q v V 1; Oxford, Bod. Ashmole 1511; Aberdeen MS 24; Oxford ,St Johns MS
61; Northumberland Bestiary (formerly Alnwick Castle MS 477); Cambridge, Gonville and Caius MS 372. Although
Creation cycles are quite common in bibles and psalters, they are an unusual addition to the Bestiary.

The Aberdeen cycle lacks the third and fourth day but from Ashmole it is clear that the first four days of creation
were based on a frontal model of God with various cosmic circles behind him. For the Next three scenes, he stands
in a three-quarters pose, facing his creation which is usually in zones. These two poses are used in some of the
earliest creation scenes and are found for instance in the Anglo-Saxon B.L.Cotton Claud. B.IV and Oxford, Bod.
Junius 11. However, closer details emerge in bibles produced in the Salzburg area in the early twelfth century. The
frontal God backed by circles emerges in the Michelbeuren Bible (Stiftsbib. cod. perg.1 f6; in Muratova 1984a,
VII). Like Aberdeen f 1v, he does not have a beard. The same design is used in the Admont Bible (Vienna,
Osterreiches Nationalbibliothek, Cod. Ser. Nov. 2701, f3v. c. 1140) and Erlangen Bible (Erlangen, University
Library, MS 1, f5v. c. 1195). The cosmic circles would derive ultimately from Carolingian and earlier Byzantine
depictions of Christ in majesty. In the coloured drawings of the Hexaemeron of St Ambrose made at St Emmeram,
Regensburg c. 1160-70 (Munich Staatsbib. MS Clm. 14399, f14v, 21v, 52r; Muratova 1984a, VIII) the circles are a
similar proportion to those in Ashmole and Aberdeen. The image is now repeated three times where in the
Michelbeuren bible it was only found once. The Hexaemeron God is bearded, like the first folio in Aberdeen. The
bearded Deity is a particularly Byzantine feature, found for instance in the mosaics of Palermo and Monreale.

A beardless God stands in a three quarters pose facing the animals of his creation to the right in the narthex
mosics at St Mark's , Venice. At Monreale he sits, like the Aberdeen Adam, while creating the birds and fish in two
zones.

It is unlikely that any of these provided the direct source for the English Bestiaries, but they indicate the type of
source which would have been available. Although the Munich Hexaemeron is the earliest known illustrated copy,
there must have been others circulating in England because its text was used to develop the second family. There

sensorgr
are likely to have been pattern books derived from the Venetian and Sicilian mosaics which would also have
reached England. Connections between the Normans in England and in Sicily were close in the twelfth century,
particularly after Henry II's daughter Joanna married William II of Sicily in 1177. For instance Robert of Cricklade,
an Augustinian canon travelled several times to Rome and Sicily and made a compilation of Pliny's Natural History
for Henry II.

The Aviarium Cycle

Hugh of Fouilloy wrote the Aviarium or Book of Birds c.1132-1152 while he was prior of the Augustinian house of
St Nicholas-de-Regny, near Amiens (Clark 1992). He derived his text from Isidore's Etymologies, Hrabanus Maurus
and St Gregory's Moralia in Job. He deals with twenty seven birds, like Physiologus, combining a description with
moral teaching. His sermons are much longer and discursive than Physiologus. His book, with its entertaining
pictures, was specifically designed to teach illiterate lay brothers and was an instant success. Many copies of the
book circulated in the twelfth century and the text was lifted almost wholesale, along with its illustrations, into
some of the Bestiaries of the second family. Hugh's original text is lost but the Heiligenkreuz Aviary (Heiligenkreuz
Abbey, MS 226, late twelfth century) represents the most complete version and must be closely derived from the
original. The Aberdeen Group (as defined by Clark 1992, 73-85; Aberdeen MS 24; Oxford, Bod.MS Ashmole 1511;
Oxford, Bod. MS Douce 151; Oxford, University College MS 120; Cambridge, Gonville and Caius College MS
372/621; London, B.L. MS Harley 4751; Oxford, Bod. MS Bodley 764) incorporates part of Hugh's text within the
Bestiary and derives many of its bird illustrations from the Aviarium.

The History of the Manuscript, press marks and binding

The recorded history of the manuscript begins in 1542 when it was listed as No.518 Liber de bestiarum natura in
the inventory of the Old Royal Library, at Westminster Palace. This library was assembled by Henry VIII, with
professional assistance from the antiquary John Leland, to house manuscripts and documents rescued from the
dissolution of the monasteries. A few of the works came from older royal collections (Carley 1989, 18). Several
books 'escaped' from the royal library, frequently to other ardent collectors, and the Aberdeen Bestiary was
probably given away in the early seventeenth century. James I brought with him from Scotland Sir Peter Young to
act as Royal Librarian and his son Patrick (d.1652) took an active role in developing the royal collection. It was
probably Patrick who gave the book to Thomas Reid (Carley 1990, 89-98. Carley suggests in a personal
communication that Patrick Young probably gave the book to Reid). Reid was Regent of Marischal College,
Aberdeen and Latin Secretary to James VI. Reid gave it, along with about 1350 books and manuscripts, to
Marischal College in 1624/5. When the Library was catalogued by Thomas Gray in c.1670, the book had the
shelfmark 2.B.XV Sc and was called Isidori phisiologia. In the 1720s the books of Marischal College Library were
reorganised into presses and a shelf catalogue, MS M 72, was made in 1726. In this catalogue the excisions in the
Bestiary are recorded for the first time, setting a terminal date for the mutilations. When Marischal College
amalgamated with Aberdeen University in 1860, the Bestiary became part of the University collection.

sensorgr
Transcription
In\ pr\in\ci\pio\ cre\av\it\ de\us\ cel\um\ et ter\ram.\
Terra autem erat inanis et vacua, et tenebre erant\
super faciem abyssi, et spiritus domini ferebatur
super aquas.\ Dixitque deus: Fiat lux. Et facta est lux.
Et vidit deus luc\em quod esset bona, et divisit lucem
a tenebris.\ Appellavitque lucem diem, et tenebras
noctem. Fac\tumque [e]st vespere et mane, dies
unus.\
Transcription
Dixit quoque deus: Fiat firmamentum in medio
aqua\rum, et dividat aquas ab aquis. Et fecit deus
firma\mentum, divisitque aquas que erant super
firmamen\tum ab his que erant sub firmamento. Et
fac\tum est ita. Vocavitque deus firmamentum celum,
et\ factum est vespere et mane dies secundus.\
Transcription
D\ixit etiam\ deus: Pro\ducant\ aque rep\tile anime\
viventis\ et volatile\ super terram,\ sub firma\mento
celi.\ Creavitque\ deus cete gran\dia, et om\nem
ani\mam vi\ventem atque\ motabilem quam
produxerant aque in species suas, et omne\ volatile
secundum genus suum. Et vidit deus quod esset\
bonum, benedixitque eis dicens: Crescite et
multiplicami\ni et replete aquas maris, avesque
multiplicentur super\ terram. Et factum est vespere et
mane dies quintus.\
Transcription
D\ixit quoque\ deus:\ Produ\cat ter\ra ani\mam\
vivent\em in\ genere\ suo,\ iu\menta et\ reptilia\ et
bestias terre secundum species suas. Factumque est\
ita. Et fecit deus bestias terre iuxta species suas, et
iu\menta et omne reptile terre in genere suo.\
Transcription
D\ixit quoque deus:\ Faciamus\ hominem \ ad
yma\ginem\ et similitu\dinem\ nostram\ et presit\
piscibus\ maris et\ volatilibus\ celi,\ et be\stiis
uni\verseque creature [terre], omnique reptili quod
movetur in terra.\ Et creavit deus hominem ad
ymaginem et similitudi\nem suam, ad ymaginem dei
sensorgr
Translation
'In the beginning God created the heaven and the
earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and
darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the
Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And
God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And
God saw the light, that it was good; and God divided
the light from the darkness. And God called the light
Day and the darkness he called Night. And the
evening and the morning were the first day' (Genesis,
1: 1-5).
Translation
'And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst
of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the
waters. And God made the firmament and divided the
waters which were over the firmament from those
which were under the firmament. And it was so. And
God called the firmament Heaven. And evening and
morning were the second day' (see Genesis, 1:6-8).
Translation
'And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly
the moving creature that hath life, and fowl that may
fly above the earth under the firmament of heaven.
And God created great whales, and every living
creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth
abundantly, after their kind, and every winged fowl
after his kind: and God saw that it was good. And God
blessed them, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, and fill
the waters in the seas, and let fowl multiply in the
earth. And the evening and the morning were the fifth
day' (Genesis 1:20-23).
Translation
'And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living
creature after his kind, cattle, and creeping thing, and
beast of the earth after his kind; and it was so. And
God made the beast of the earth after his kind, and
cattle after their kind, and every thing that creepeth
upon the earth after his kind' (see Genesis, 24-25).
Translation
'And God said, Let us make man in our image, after
our likeness: and let them have dominion over the
fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over
the beasts, and over all the earth, and over every
creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. So God
created man in his own image, in the image of God
creavit illum, masculum \ et feminam creavit eos.
Benedixitque illis deus, et ait: Cresci\te et
multiplicamini, et replete terram et subicite eam, et
do\minamini piscibus maris et volatilibus celi, et
universis a\nimantibus que moventur super terram.
Viditque deus cuncta que fecit,\ et erant valde bona.
Et factum est vespere et mane dies sextus. Igitur
perfec\ti sunt celi et terra, et omnis ornatus eorum.
Complevitque deus septimo opus\ suum quod fecerat,
et requievit die septimo, ab omni opere quod
patrarat.
Transcription
Omnibus animantibus Adam primus vocabula indidit
appel\lans unicuique nomen ex presenti institutione
iuxta con\ditionem nature cui serviret. Gentes autem
unicuique anima\lium ex propria lingua dederunt
vocabula. Non autem secundum\ latinam linguam
atque grecam, aut quarumlibet gentium\ barbararum
nomina imposuit Adam, sed illa lingua que\ ante
diluvium una fuit omnium, que hebrea nuncupatur.\
Latine autem animalia, sive animantia dicta, qui
animentur vita\ et moventur spiritu. Quadrupedia
vocata, quia quatuor pedes gra\diuntur, que dum
similia sint pecoribus, tamen sub cura hu\mana non
sunt ut cervi, dame, onagri et cetera. Sed neque\
bestie sunt, aut [A: ut] leones, neque iumenta ut usus
hominum\ iuvare possint. Pecus dicimus omne quod
humana lingua et\ effigie caret, proprie autem
pecorum nomen his animalibus acco\modari solet,
que sunt ad vescendum apta, ut oves et sues,\ aut in
usu hominum commoda, ut equi et boves. Differt
autem\ inter pecora et pecudes. Nam veteres
communiter in significatione\ omnium animalium
pecora dixerunt, pecudes autem tamen illa\ animalia
qui eduntur quasi pecuedes. Generaliter autem omne
animal pecus\ a pascendo vocatum. Iumenta nomina
inde traxerunt quod nostrum\ laborem vel onus suo
adiutorio subvectando vel arando iu-\ vent. Nam bos
carpenta trahit, et durissimas terre glebas vomere\
vertit. Equus et asinus portant onera et hominum in
gradiendo\ laborem temperant. Unde et iumenta
appellantur, ab eo quod iu\vent homines. Sunt enim
magnarum virium animalia. Item quoque armen\ta
vel quod sint armis apta, id est bello, vel quod his in
armis utimur. Alii\ armenta boves intelligunt ab
arando quasi aramenta, vel quod sint\ cornibus
armata. Discretio est autem inter armenta et greges.
Nam\ armenta equorum et bovum sunt, greges vero
caprarum et ovium.\
sensorgr
created he him; male and female created he them.
And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be
fruitful and multiply, and replenish the earth, and
subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea,
and over the fowl of the air, and over every living
thing that moveth upon the earth. And God saw every
thing that he had made, and, behold it was very
good. And the evening and the morning were the
sixth day. Thus the heavens and earth were finished,
and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God
ended his work which he had made; and he rested on
the seventh day from all his work which he had made'
(Genesis, 1:26-28, 31; 2:1-2).
Translation
Adam was the first to provide words for all living
things, naming each one in conformity with the
existing order according to its function in nature. The
races of man later named each animal in their own
languages; But Adam named them not in Latin or
Greek, nor in the languages of any barbarian races,
but in the language which before the Flood was
universal, which is called Hebrew.
In Latin they are called animalia, animals, or
animantia, living things, because they are animated
by life and activated by the breath of life.
Quadrupedia, quadrupeds, are so called because they
go on quatuor pedes, four feet. Although they are like
cattle, quadrupeds - deer, fallow deer, wild asses and
others - are not in man's charge. They are not,
however, wild beasts, like lions; nor beasts of burden,
serving the needs of man.
We call pecus, cattle, anything which lacks human
speech or appearance. Strictly speaking, the name is
usually applied to those animals which are suitable for
food, like sheep and pigs, or for use by men, like
horses and oxen. Moreover, there is a difference
between pecora, cattle, and pecudes, cattle raised for
meat. For people long ago used pecora to mean all
animals; but pecudes are animals which are eaten -
pecu-ed-es, 'cattle for eating'. Generally, all animals
are called pecus from pascendum, 'put to pasture'.
Iumenta have taken their name from the fact that
they assist us with our work or burdens by their help
in carrying or ploughing. For the ox draws the waggon
and turns with the ploughshare the heaviest clods of
earth. The horse and ass carry loads and ease man's
toil on foot. So they are called iumenta because they
help people with their burdens, for they are animals
of great strength.
In the same way armenta are so called because they
are suitable for arms - that is, for war - or because
we use them in arms. Others understand by armenta,
oxen, from arandum, 'ploughing' - aramenta, as it

Transcription
Incipit liber de naturis bestiarum. De leonibus et
pardis et tigribus, lupis et\ vulpibus, canibus et
simiis.\ Leo fortissimus bestiarum, ad nullius pavebit
occursum.\ Bestiarum vocabulum proprie convenit
leonibus par\dis, et tigribus, lupis, et vulpibus,
canibus et simiis, ac ce\teris que ore vel unguibus
seviunt, exceptis serpentibus.\ Bestie autem dicite, a
vi qua seviunt. Fere appellate eo quod na\turali
utuntur libertate, et desiderio suo ferantur. Sunt\
enim libere eorum voluntates, et huc atque illuc
vagan\tur, et quo animus duxerit, eo ferantur. Leonis
vocabulum\ ex greca origine inflexum est in latinum.
Grece enim leon vo\catur, et est nomen nothum, quia
ex parte corruptum. Leo\ enim grece, latine rex
interpretatur, eo quod princeps est omnium\
bestiarum.\ De generibus luporum [lionum]\ Cuius
genus tripharium dicitur,\ e quibus breves et iuba
crispa inbelles sunt, longi et co\ma simplici, acres.
Animos eorum frons et cauda indicat,\ virtus eorum in
pectore, firmitas autem in capite. Rotarum\ timent
strepitus, sed ignes magis. Leo nature sue vi
superbus, fe\rocitatem sui aliarum ferarum generibus
miscere nes\cit, sed quasi rex quidam plurimorum
dedignatur consortium.\ De tribus principalibus
naturis leonis.\ Phisici dicunt leonem\ tres
principales naturas habere. Prima natura eius est,
quod per\ cacumina montium amat ire. Et si contigerit
ut queratur\ a venatoribus, venit ad eum odor
venatorum, et cum cau\da sua tetigit posttergum
vestigia sua. Tunc venato\res investigare eum
nequeunt. Sic et salvator noster, scilicet\ spiritualis
leo, de tribu Iuda, radix Iesse, filius David, cooperuit\
vestigia sue caritatis in celis, donec missus a patre
descenderet\ in uterum virginis Marie, et salvaret
genus humanum quod perierat.\
sensorgr
were; or because they are armed with horns. But
there is a distinction between armenta and greges .
Armenta are herds of horses and oxen; greges, flocks
of goats and sheep.
Translation
Here begins the book of the nature of beasts. Of
lions, panthers and tigers, wolves and foxes,
dogs and apes.
The lion is the mightiest of the beasts; he will quail at
the approach of none.
The name 'beast' applies, strictly speaking, to lions,
panthers and tigers, wolves and foxes, dogs and
apes, and to all other animals which vent their rage
with tooth or claw - except snakes. They are called
'beasts' from the force with which they rage. They are
called 'wild' because they enjoy their natural liberty
and are borne along by their desires. They are free of
will, and wander here and there, and where their
instinct takes them, there they are borne.
The name lion, leo, of Greek origin, is altered in Latin.
For in Greek it is leon; it is not a genuine word,
because it is in part corrupted. For the Greek word for
lion is translated 'king' in Latin, because the lion is the
king of all the beasts.
There are said to be three kinds. Of these, the ones
which are short in stature, with curly manes, are
peaceable; the tall ones, with straight hair, are fierce.
Their brow and tail show their mettle; their courage is
in their breast, their resolution in their head. They
fear the rumbling sound of wheels, but are even more
frightened by fire. The lion takes pride in the strength
of its nature; it does not know how to join in the
ferocity of other kinds of wild beasts, but like a king
disdains the company of large numbers.
Of the three main characteristics of the lion.
Those who study nature say that the lion has three
main characteristics. The first is that it loves to roam
amid mountain peaks. If it happens that the lion is
pursued by hunters, it picks up their scent and
obliterates the traces behind it with its tail. As a
result, they cannot track it. Thus our Saviour, a
spiritual lion, of the tribe of Judah, the root of Jesse,
the son of David, concealed the traces of his love in
heaven until, sent by his father, he descended into
the womb of the Virgin Mary and redeemed mankind,
which was lost.
Transcription
Et hoc ignorans diabolus scilicet humani generis
inimicus, quasi pu\rum hominem ausus est temptare.
Etiam hoc ignorantes qui sur\sum erant angeli, eo
ascendente ad patrem, dicebant ad eos qui\ cum eo
ascendebant: Quis est iste rex glorie? Secunda natura
eius est quod\ cum dormit, oculos apertos habere
videtur. Sic et dominus noster cor\poraliter
obdormiens in cruce, sepultus est, et deitas eius
vigilibat, \ sic dicitur in canticis canticorum: Ego
dormio, et cor meum vi\gilat. Et in psalmo: Ecce non
dormitabit neque dormiet, qui\ custodit Israel. Tertia
natura eius est, cum leena parit catulos\ suos
generat, eos mortuos, et custodit eos tribus diebus
donec\ veniens pater eorum tertia die insufflat in
faciem eorum et\ vivificat eos. Sic omnipotens pater
dominum nostrum Iesum Christum, tertia die\
suscitavit a mortuis, dicente Iacob: Dormitabit
tanquam\ leo, et sicut catulus leonis suscitabitur.
Circa hominem leonum\ natura est ut nisi lesi nequant
irasci. Ad cuius exemplum rationabiles\ homines
respicere debent, qui non lesi irascuntur, et
innocentes op\primunt, cum iubeat Christiana lex
noxios dimittere liberos.\ Patet enim leonum
misericordia exemplis assiduis, prostratis\ enim
parcunt, captivos obvios repatriare permittunt. In
vi\ros potius quam in feminas seviunt. Infantes non
nisi in magna\ fame perimunt. Pariter omnes parcunt
a sagina. Primum quod al\ternis diebus potum,
alternis cibum capiunt. Ac frequenter si\ digestio non
est insecuta, solite cibationi superponunt diem.\ Tunc
quod carnes iusto amplius devoratas congravantur,\
insertis in hora unguibus sponte pertrahunt. Sane et\
cum fugiendum est, in sacietate idem faciunt.
Senectam leo\num defectio probat dentium. Adversi
coheunt. Nec hii tan\tum, sed et linces, et cameli, et
elephanti, et rinocerontes,\ et tygrides, et leene. Fetu
primo catulos quinque educant. De\
sensorgr
Translation
Not knowing of his divine nature, the Devil, the
enemy of mankind, dared to tempt him like an
ordinary man. Even the angels on high did not know
of his divinity and said to those who were with him
when he ascended to his father: 'Who is this king of
glory?'
The second characteristic of the lion is that when it
sleeps, it seems to have its eyes open. Thus our Lord,
falling asleep in death, physically, on the cross, was
buried, yet his divine nature remained awake; as it
says in the Song of Songs: 'I sleep but my heart
waketh' (5:2); and in the psalm: 'Behold, he that
keepeth Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep' (121:
4).
The third characteristic of the lion is that when a
lioness gives birth to her cubs, she produces them
dead and watches over them for three days, until
their father comes on the third day and breathes into
their faces and restores them to life. Thus the
Almighty Father awakened our Lord Jesus Christ from
the dead on the third day; as Jacob says: 'He will fall
asleep as a lion, and as a lion's whelp he will be
revived' (see Genesis, 49:9).
Where men are concerned, it is the nature of lions not
to grow angry unless they are harmed. An example
which thoughtful men should heed; for men grow
angry even when they have not been harmed, and
they oppress the innocent, although Christian law bids
them set even the guilty free. The compassion of lions
is apparent from endless examples. They spare those
whom they have brought down. They allow captives
whom they encounter to return home. They vent their
rage on men rather than women. They do not kill
children except in time of great hunger.
Equally, lions refrain from over-feeding. First, because
they drink and feed on alternate days; and often, if
their food remains undigested, they postpone the
Next feed. Then, because they feel uncomfortable
when they have devoured more meat than they
should, they insert their paws in their mouth and pull
the food out, of their own accord. And when they
have to take flight, they do exactly the same thing if
they are full. Missing teeth show that a lion is old.
Lions mate face to face; and not only lions, but
lynxes, and camels, and elephants, and rhinoceroses,
and tigers. [Lionesses, when] they first give birth,
bear five cubs.
Transcription
inde per singulos numerum decoquunt annis in
sequentibus.\ Et postremo cum ad unum pervenerint,
materna fecunditas\ reciditur, sterilescunt in eternum.
Leo cibum fastidit hester\num, et ipsas sue esce
reliquias aversatur. Que autem ei se cire fere\
audeat; cuius voci tantus naturaliter inest terror ut
multa animan\tium que per celeritatem possunt
evadere eius impetum, rugitus eius\ sonitum velud
quadam vi attonita atque victa deficiant?\ Leo eger
simiam querit ut devoret, quo possit sanari. Leo \
gallum et maxime album veretur. Leo quidem rex
ferarum,\ exiguo scorpionis aculeo exagitatur, et
veneno serpentis\ occiditur. Leontophones vocari
accipimus modicas bestias.\ Que capte exuruntur ut
earum cineres [A: cineris] aspergine carnes pol\lute
iacteque carnes pita [A:per compita] concurrentium
semitarum leones ne\cent, si quantulumcumque ex
illis sumpserint. Propterea leones\ naturali eas
primunt odio atque ubi facultas data est morsu\
quidem abstinent, sed dilaniatas exanimant pedum
nisibus.\ Tigris vocata propter volucrem fugam ita
eum nominant\ perse greci et medi sagittam. Est
enim bestia variis\
Transcription
distincta maculis, virtute et velocitate mirabilis, ex
cuius\ nomine flumen Tygris appellatur, quod is
rapidissimus sit\ omnium fluviorum. Has magis
Hircania gignit. Tigris \ vero ubi vacuum rapte sobolis
repperit cubile, ilico rapto\ris vestigiis insistit. At ille
quamvis equo vectus fugaci, vi\dens tamen velocitate
fere se preverti, nec evadendi ullum sub\petere sibi
posse subsidium, tecnam huiusmodi fraude mo\litur.
Ubi contiguum viderit, speram de vitro proicit.
At illa ymagine sui luditur, et sobolem putat. Revocat\
impetum colligere fetum desiderans. Rursus inani
specie\ retenta, totis se ad comprehendum equitem
viribus\ fundit, et iracundie stimulo velociter fugienti
imminet.\ Iterum ille spere obiectu sequentem
retardat, nec tamen seduli\tatem matris memoria
fraudis excludit. Cassam versat\ ymaginem, et quasi
lactatura fetum residet. Sicque pietatis\ sue studio
decepta, et vindictam amittit et prolem. \
sensorgr
Translation
In the years which follow, they reduce the number by
one at a time. Afterwards, when they are down to one
cub, the fertility of the mother is diminished; they
become sterile for ever.
The lion disdains to eat the Previous day's meat and
turns away from the remains of its own meal.
Which beast dares to rouse the lion, whose voice, by
its nature, inspires such terror, that many living
things which could evade its attack by their speed,
grow faint at the sound of its roar as if dazed and
overcome by force.
A sick lion seeks out an ape to devour it, in order to
be cured.
The lion fears the cock, especially the white one. King
of the beasts, it is tormented by the tiny sting of the
scorpion and is killed by the venom of the snake.
We learn of small beasts called leontophones, lion-
killers. When captured, they are burnt; meat
contaminated by a sprinkling of their ashes and
thrown down at crossroads kills lions, even if they eat
only a small an amount. For this reason, lions pursue
leontophones with an instinctive hatred and, when
they have the opportunity, they refrain from biting
them but kill them by rending them to pieces under
their paws.
The tiger is named for its swiftness in flight; the
Persians and Greeks call it 'arrow'. It is a beast
distinguished by its varied
Translation
markings, its courage and its extraordinary speed.
The Tygris takes its name from the tiger, because it is
the fastest-flowing of all rivers. Hircania is their main
home.
The tigress, when she finds her lair empty by the
theft of a cub, follows the tracks of the thief at once.
When the thief sees that, even though he rides a swift
horse, he is outrun by her speed, and that there is no
means of escape at hand, he devises the following
deception. When he sees the tigress drawing close, he
throws down a glass sphere. The tigress is deceived
by her own image in the glass and thinks it is her
stolen cub. She abandons the chase, eager to gather
up her young. Delayed by the illusion, she tries once
again with all her might to overtake the rider and,
urged on by her anger, quickly threatens the fleeing
man. Again he holds up her pursuit by throwing down
a sphere. The memory of the trick does not banish
De pardo
\ Pardus est\ genus vari\um ac velo\cissimum, et
pre\ceps ad sangui\nem, saltu \ enim ad mor\tem
ruit. Leo\pardus ex ad\ulterio leene nascitur et pardi,
et terciam originem efficit.\ Sicut et Plenius [Plinius]
in naturali hystoria dicit: Leonem vim [cum] par\da,
aut pardum cum leena concumbere, et ex utroque
degeneres\
Transcription
partus creari, ut mulus et burdo.\
De pantera
\ Est animal quod dicitur pantera, varium quidem
colorem\ habens, et est speciosissimum nimis et
mansuetum. Phisi/ologus dicit de eo, quam inimicum
habet solum draconem. Cum\ ergo comederit et
satiatum fuerit, recondit se in spelunca sua\ et
dormit. Post triduum exsurgit a sompno. Et emittit
mag\num rugitum, et ab ore eius odor suavissimus
exit, velud om\nium aromatum. Cum autem audierint
eius vocem cetera ani\malia propter suavitatem
odoris sequuntur eam, quocumque ierit.\ Solus autem
draco audiens eius vocem, timore perterritus, fu\git in
cavernis terre. Ibi non ferens odorem torpescit in
semet ipso,\ et tanquam mortuus immobilis manet.
Sic et dominus noster Iesus\ Christus verus pantera
descendens de celis eripuit nos de potes\tate diaboli.
Et per incarnationem suam sociavit nos sibi\ in filios,
cepit omnia, captivamque ducens captivitatem\ dedit
dona hominibus. Quod si [A: sit] varium animal
signi\ficatur, sicut dictum est per Salomonem de
Christo, sapientia dei\ patris, [spiritus] intelligibilis;
[spiritus] unicus, multiplex, verus, suavis,\ aptus,
clemens, firmus, stabilis, securus, omnia potens,
omnia\ prospiciens. Quia speciosum animal sit, David
dicit de Christo:\
sensorgr
the mother's devotion. She turns over the empty
likeness and settles down as if she were about to
suckle her cub. And thus, trapped by the intensity of
her sense of duty, she loses both her revenge and her
child.
Of the pard
The pard is a species which has a mottled skin, is
extremely swift and thirsts for blood; for it kills at a
single bound.
The leopard is the product of the adultery of a lioness
with a pard; their mating produces a third species. As
Pliny says in his Natural History: the lion mates with
the pard, or the pard with the lioness, and from both
degenerate
Translation
offspring are created, such as the mule and the
burdon.
Of the panther
There is an animal called the panther, multi-coloured,
very beautiful and extremely gentle. Physiologus says
of it, that it has only the dragon as an enemy. When
it has fed and is full, it hides in its den and sleeps.
After three days it awakes from its sleep and gives a
great roar, and from its mouth comes a very sweet
odour, as if it were a mixture of every perfume. When
other animals hear its voice, they follow wherever it
goes, because of the sweetness of its scent. Only the
dragon, hearing its voice, is seized by fear and flees
into the caves beneath the earth. There, unable to
bear the scent, it grows numbed within itself and
remains motionless, as if dead.
Thus our Lord Jesus Christ, the true panther,
descending from Heaven, snatched us from the power
of the devil. And, through his incarnation, he united
us to him as sons, taking everything, and 'leading
captivity captive, gave gifts to men' (Ephesians, 4:8).
The fact that the panther is a multi-coloured animal,
signifies Christ, who is as Solomon said the wisdom of
God the Father, an understanding spirit, a unique
spirit, manifold, true, agreeable, fitting,
compassionate, strong, steadfast, serene, all-
powerful, all-seeing.
The fact that the panther is a beautiful animal
[signifies Christ as] David says of him:
Transcription
Speciosus forma pre filiis hominum. Mansuetum
autem animal Ysa\ias quoque dicit: Gaude et letare
filia Syon, predica filia Ierusalem,\ quia rex tuus venit
tibi mansuetus. Cum saturatus fuerit recondit\ se in
Iudaicis illusionibus, flagris, alapis, iniuriis,
contume\liis, spinis, manibus in cruce suspensus,
clavis confixus, fel\le et aceto potatus, et lancea
perforatus, obdormiens requievit\ in sepulchro, et
descendit in infernum, illic magnum draco\nem ligans.
Die autem tercio surgit a sompno et emittit mag\num
clamorem, flagrans suavitatem, sicut et dominus
noster Iesus Christus\ tercia die resurgens a mortuis,
sicut David dicit. Excitatus est tan\quam dormiens
dominus, tanquam potens crapulatus a vino. Et
excla\mavit voce magna ita ut audire [A: audiretur] in
omni terra sonus eius et in\ fines orbis terre verba
eius. Et sicut de ore pantere odor suavitatis\ exit, et
omnes bestie que prope sunt, et que longe
conveniunt\ eam sequuntur; ita Iudei qui aliquando
sensum habuerunt\ bestiarum, sed prope erant per
legem, et que longe, id est gentes que\ sine lege
erant, audientes vocem Christi, sequuntur eum cum\
propheta dicentes: Quam dulcia faucibus meis eloquia
tua; super \ mel et favum ori meo. Item de eodem:
Diffusa est gratia in la\biis tuis propterea benedixit te
[dominus] in eternum. Et Salomon: Odor\
unguentorum tuorum super omnia aromata. Item: In
odore un\guentorum tuorum curremus. Et paulo post:
Introduxit me rex\ in cubiculum suum. Oportet nos
quam citius sicut adolescentu\las, id est renovatas
baptismo animas, post unguentum man-
datorum Christi currere; de terrenis ad celestia
migrare ut nos\ introducat rex in palatium suum, in
Ierusalem civitatem domini vir\tutum, et in monte
omnium sanctorum. Pantera est bestia mi\nutis
orbiculis superpicta, ita ut oculatis ex fulvo circu\lis
nigra vel alba distinguatur varietate. Hec semel
omnino\
sensorgr
Translation
'Thou art fairer than the children of men.' (Psalms,
45:2)
The fact that the panther is a gentle animal [signifies
Christ], as Isaiah also says: 'Rejoice and be glad,
daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem;
because your king comes to you, meek ...' (see
Isaiah, 62:11; Zechariah, 9:9; Matthew, 21:5)
When the panther is full, it hides [in its den and
sleeps. When Christ] was sated with the mocking of
the Jews, the scourgings, blows, insults, abuse, the
crown of thorns, having been hung by his hands on
the cross, transfixed with nails, forced to drink gall
and vinegar, and pierced by a spear, falling asleep in
death, he rested in the tomb and descended into hell,
where he bound fast the great dragon.
On the third day the panther rises from its sleep and
gives a great cry, emitting a sweet odour, just like our
Lord Jesus Christ, rising again from the dead; as
David says: 'He awakened as one out of sleep and like
a mighty man that shouteth by reason of
wine.'(Psalms, 78:65) And Christ cried out in a loud
voice, so that his sound was heard throughout the
land and his words at the ends of the earth (see
Romans, 10:18).
And just as the odour of sweetness comes out of the
panther's mouth, and all the beasts which are near
and those which come from afar follow it, so the Jews,
who had at some time the disposition of beasts, but
were close to Christ through their observance of the
law, and those from afar, that is, the races who were
without the law, hearing the voice of Christ, follow
him, saying with the prophet: 'How sweet are thy
words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my
mouth.' (Psalms, 119:103) And again of Christ:
'Grace is poured into thy lips; therefore God hath
blessed thee for ever.' (Psalms, 45:2) And Solomon
says: 'How much better is ... the smell of thine
ointments than all spices!' (Song of Solomon, 4:10)
And again: 'In the savour of thy good ointments ...
we will run after thee.' (Song of Solomon, 1:3-4). And
a little after that: 'The king hath brought me into his
chambers.' (1:4)
We ought to hurry after the scented ointment of
Christ's commandments as quickly as we can, like
young souls, that is, souls made new by baptism; to
quit earthly for heavenly things, that the king may
lead us into his palace in Jerusalem, the city of the
Lord of righteousness, on the mountain of all the
saints.
The panther is a beast dabbed all over with very small
circular spots, so that it is distinquished by its black
and white colouring with eye-shaped circles of yellow.
 The female [gives birth] once only

sensorgr
 Translation
Transcription
[Of the elephant] ... no larger animal is seen. The
Persians and Indians, carried in wooden towers on
[De Elephante]
their backs, fight with javelins as from a wall.
animal grandius videtur. In eis enim Perse et Indi
Elephants have a lively intelligence and a long
ligne\is turribus collati tanquam de muro iaculis
memory; they move around in herds; they flee from a
dimicant. Intel\lectu et memoria multa vigent,
mouse; they mate back-to-back. The female is
gregatim incedunt, mu\rem fugiunt, aversa coheunt.
pregnant for two years, and gives birth no more than
Biennio autem parturiunt,\ nec amplius quam semel
once, and not to several offspring but to one only.
gignunt, nec plures sed tantum unum.\ Vivunt autem
Elephants live for three hundred years. If an elephant
annos trescentos. Si autem voluerit facere filios,
wants to father sons, it goes to the East, near
va\dit ad orientem prope Paradisum, et est ibi arbor
Paradise; there the tree called mandragora, the
qui vocatur\ mandragora, et vadit cum femina sua,
mandrake, grows. The elephant goes to it with his
que prius accipet\ de arbore et dat in masculo suo. Et
mate, who first takes fruit from the tree and gives it
seducit eum donec man\ducet, statimque in utero
to her male. And she seduces him until he eats it;
concipit. Cum vero tempus pariendi ve\nerit, exit in
then she conceives at once in her womb. When the
stagnum, et aqua venit usque ad ubera ma\tris.
time comes for her to give birth, she goes out into a
Elephans autem custodit eam parturientem, quia
pool, until the water comes up to her udders. The
draco\ inimicus est elephanti. Si autem invenerit
male guards her while she is in labour, because
serpentem, occidit\ eum, quem conculcat donec
elephants have an enemy - the dragon. If the
moriatur. Est enim formida\ bilis tauris elephans,
elephant finds a snake, it kills it, trampling it until it is
tamen murem timet. Hec est natura eius, si\ ceciderit
dead. The elephant strikes fear into bulls, yet fears
non potest surgere. Cadit autem cum se inclinat in\
the mouse. The elephant has this characteristic: if it
arborem ut dormiat. Non enim habet iuncturas
falls down, it cannot rise. But it falls when it leans on
geniculorum.\ Venator autem incidit arborem
a tree in order to sleep, for it has no joints in its
modicum, ut elephans eum se\ inclinaverit, similiter
knees. A hunter cuts part of the way through the tree,
cum arbore cadat. Cadens autem for\titer clamat, et
so that when the elephant leans against it, elephant
statim magnus elephans exit, et non potest eum\
and tree will fall together. As the elephant falls, it
levare. Tunc clamant ambo et veniunt duodecim
trumpets loudly; at once a big elephant goes to it but
ele\phantes, et non possunt levare eum qui cecidit.
cannot lift it. Then they both trumpet and twelve
Deinde cla\mant omnes, et statim venit pusillus
elephants come, but they cannot lift the one who has
elephans, et mittit\ os suum cum permusicla subtus
fallen. Then they all trumpet, and immediately a little
magnum elephantem, et e\levat eum. Habet autem
elephant comes and puts its trunk under the big one
pusillus elefans hanc naturam, ubi in\censum fuerit de
and lifts it up. The little elephant has this
capillis et ossibus eius, necque aliud mali acci\dit
characteristic, that when some of its hair and bones
neque draco. Magnus elefans et mulier eius personam
have been burnt, nothing evil approaches, not even a
habent A\dam et Eve. Cum enim carne essent
dragon. The big elephant and its mate represent
placentes deo, ante\ ipsorum privaricationem non
Adam and Eve. For when they were in the flesh
sciebant coitum, necque intelligen\
pleasing to God, before their sin, they did not know
how to mate and had no understanding

Transcription Translation

tiam peccati habebant. Quando autem mulier
manducavit\ de ligno, hoc est intelligibilem
mandragoram dedit viro suo,\ deinde pregnans facta
est, propter quod exierunt [transposed] de paradiso.\
Quamdiu enim fuerint in Paradiso, non cognovit eam
Adam.\ Scriptum est enim: Cognovit Adam uxorem
suam, et con\cipiens peperit ea super vituperabiles
aquas. De quibus ait propheta:\ Salvum me fac
dominus, quoniam intraverunt aque usque ad\
animam meam. Et statim draco subvertit eos, et
alienos\ fecit ab arce sua, hoc est non placere deo.
Tunc venit magnus\ elefans, hoc est lex, et non eum
levavit, quomodo nec sacerdos\ eum qui incidit in
latrones. Nec duodecim elephantes\ elevaverunt eum,
of sin. But when the woman ate the fruit of the tree,
that is to say, she gave her man the fruit of the
mandrake, the tree of knowledge, then she became
pregnant, and for that reason they left Paradise. For
as long as they were in Paradise, Adam did not mate
with Eve. For it is written: 'Adam knew his wife and
she conceived', (Genesis, 4:1) and she gave birth on
the waters of guilt. Of this, the prophet says: 'Save
me, O God, for the waters are come in unto my
soul.'(Psalms, 69:1). And at once the dragon seduced
them and caused them to be outcasts from their
citadel, that is, because they displeased God. Then
came the big elephant, meaning the law, and did not
raise up mankind, any more than the priest raised the

sensorgr
id est chorus prophetarum, sicut nec Levita\ illum
vulneratum quem diximus, sed intelligibilis ele\phans,
id est dominus noster Iesus Christus, cum omnibus
maior sit omnium\ pusillus factus est, quia humiliavit
se, factus obediens usque ad mor\tem, ut hominem
elevaret, intelligibilis Samaritanus \ qui imposuit
super iumentum. Ipse enim vulneratus tulit
in\firmitates nostras, et peccata nostra portavit.
Interpretatur autem\ Samaritanus custos. De quo
dicit David: Custodiens par\vulos dominus. Ubi autem
est dominus presens, neque diabolus appro\pinquare
poterit. Elefantes vero promuscida sua quicquid\
involuerint frangunt, pede vero quicquid
compresserint velud\ quodam lapsu ruine ingentis
examinare [exanimare]. Propter feminas\ nunquam
dimicant, nulla enim noverunt adulteria.\ In est illis
clementie bonum. Quippe si per deserta vagabun\dum
hominem forte viderint ductus usque notas vias
prebent.\ Vel si confertis pecoribus occursitent, itinera
sic blanda et\ placida manu faciunt, ne qua tela
obvium animal in\terimant. Conflictis fortuito si
quando pugnantur non mediocrem\
Transcription
habent curam sauciorum. Nam fossos [A: fessos]
vulneratosque in medium receptant.\ De castore.\
Est animal quod dicitur castor\ mansuetum nimis,\
cuius testiculi medicine sunt\ aptissimi, de quo dicit\
Phisiologus, quia cum vena\torem se insequentem
cog\novit, morsu testiculos sibi\ abscidit, et in faciem
vena\toris eos proicit et sic fugiens\ evadit. Si vero
rursus conti\gerit ut alter venator eum prosequatur,
erigit se et os\tendit virilia sua venatori. Quem cum
viderit testi\culis carere, ab eo discedit. Sic omnis qui
iuxta mandatum\ dei versatur et caste vult vivere,
secat a se omnia vicia, et\ omnes impudicitie actus, et
proicit eos a se in faciem diaboli.\ Tunc ille videns
eum nichil suorum habentem, confusus\ ab eo
discedit. Ille vero vivit in deo, et non capitur a
diabolo, qui dicit:\ persequar, et comprehendam eos.
Castor dicitur a castrando.\ De animali quod dicitur
ibex.\ Est animal quod dicitur ibex, duo cornua
habens, quorum tanta vis est, ut si \ ab alto montis
ad yma dimissus [A: demissus] fuerit, corpus eius
totum iis duobus cornibus \ sustentetur. Significat
autem eruditos homines qui duorum testamen\
Transcription
torum consonantia quicquid eis adversi acciderit,
quasi quodam\ salubri temptamento [A:
teperamento] temperare solent, et velud duobus
sensorgr
man who fell among thieves. Nor did the twelve
elephants, that is, the company of prophets, raise
mankind, just as the Levite did not raise the wounded
man we spoke of. But the elephant capable of
understanding, that is our Lord Jesus Christ, who,
although greater than all, became the smallest of all,
because he humbled himself, becoming obedient unto
death that he might raise up mankind. He is the Good
Samaritan who set upon his own beast the man who
had fallen among thieves. For Jesus himself was
wounded yet bore our weakness and carried our sins.
The Samaritan also symbolises a guardian. On this
subject, David says: 'The Lord watching over the
children...' [SOURCE] Where the Lord is present, the
devil cannot draw near. Whatever elephants wrap
their trunks around, they break; whatever they
trample underfoot is crushed to death as if by the fall
of a great ruin. They never fight over female
elephants, for they know nothing of adultery. They
possess the quality of mercy. If by chance they see a
man wandering in the desert, they offer to lead him
to familiar paths. Or if they encounter herds of cattle
huddled together, they make their way carefully and
peacably lest their tusks kill any animal in their way.
If by chance they fight in battle, they have no mean
Translation
of the wounded. For they take the exhausted and the
injured back into their midst. Of the beaver There is
an animal called the beaver, which is extremely
gentle; its testicles are are highly suitable for
medicine. Physiologus says of it that, when it knows
that a hunter is pursuing it, it bites off its testicles
and throws them in the hunter's face and, taking
flight, escapes. But if, once again, another hunter is in
pursuit, the beaver rears up and displays its sexual
organs. When the hunter sees that it lacks testicles,
he leaves it alone. Thus every man who heeds God's
commandment and wishes to live chastely should cut
off all his vices and shameless acts, and cast them
from him into the face of the devil. Then the devil,
seeing that the man has nothing belonging to him,
retires in disorder. That man, however, lives in God
and is not taken by the devil, who says: 'I will pursue,
I will overtake them...'(Exodus, 15:9) The name
castor comes from castrando, 'castrate'. Of the
animal called the ibex There is an animal called the
ibex, which has two horns of such strength that, if it
were to fall from a high mountain to the lowest
depths, its whole body would be supported by those
two horns. The ibex represents those learned men
Translation
who are accustomed to manage whatever problems
they encounter, with the harmony of the two
Testaments as if with a sound constitution; and,
cornibus ful\ti, bona que perpetrant veteris testamenti
ac evangelice lectionis attes\tatione sustentant.\ De
Yena\ Est animal qui\ dicitur yena, in se\pulchris
mortu\orum habitans, eorum\que corpora vescens.\
Cuius natura est ut ali\quando masculus\ sit,
aliquando fem\ina, et ideo est immun\dum animal.
Cui\ cum spina riget, con\tinua unitate\ flecti nequid
nisi toto corporis circumactu. Solinus multa mira\ de
ea refert, primum quod sequitur stabula pastorum, et
circuit domos\ per noctem, et assiduo auditu addiscit
vocamen, quod exprimere\ possit imitationem vocis
humane, ut hominem astu accitum\ nocte seviat.
Vomitus quoque humanos [intitur] falsisque
singultibus\ sic sollicitatos canes devorat. Qui forte si
venantes umbram\ eiusdem dum sequitur contigerint,
latrare nequeunt voce perdita. Ea\dem yena
inquisicione corporum sepultorum busta eruit. Huic
as\similantur filii Israel, qui ab initio deo vivo
servierunt. Postea divitiis\ et luxurie dediti ydola
coluerunt. Ideo propheta comparavit sy\nagogam in
mundo [A: inmundo] animali dicens: Facta est michi
hereditas\ mea quasi spelunca yene. Quicumque
igitur inter nos luxurie et\ avaricie inserviunt, huic
belue comparantur cum nec viri nec\
Transcription
femine sint id est nec fideles, nec perfidi sunt, sed
sunt sine dubio, de\ quibus ait Salomon: Vir duplex
animo, inconstans est in omnibus\ viis suis. De quibus
ait dominus: Non potestis deo servire et mamone.\
Hec belua lapidem in oculis tenet, nomine yeniam,
quem siquis sub lin\gua tenuerit, futura predicere
creditur. Verum yena quodcumque \ animal ter
lustraverit vomere [A: movere] se non potest.
Quapropter magicam in\esse ei pronunciaverunt. In
Ethiope parte coit cum leena unde nascitur\
monstrum cui crocote nomen est. Voces hominum et
ipsi [A: ipsa] pariter effec\tat. Nunquam
commutationem orbium sed in obtutum sine
mu\tatione contendit. In ore gingiva nulla. Dens unus
atque perpe\tuus qui ut nunquam retundatur,
naturaliter capsularum modo clauditur.\ De
bonnacon.\ In Asia ani\mal nas\citur quod
bon\nacon di\cunt. Cui\ taurinum\ capud, ac \
deinceps\ corpus om\ne tantum\ iuba equi\na.
Cornu\a autem ita multiplici fleu [A: flexu] in se
recurrentia, ut si quis in\ eo offendat non vulneretur,
sed quicquid presidii monstro illi frons\ negat, alvus
sufficiat [A: sufficit]. Nam cum in fugam vertit
proluvie
citi ventris fumum egerit per longitudinem trium
iugerum, cuius\ ardor quicquid attigerit adurit. Ita
egerie noxia submovet insequentes\
sensorgr
supported as by two horns, they sustain the good
they do with the testimony of readings from the Old
and New Testament. Of the hyena. There is an
animal called the hyena, which inhabits the tombs of
the dead and feeds on their bodies. Its nature is that
it is sometimes male, sometimes female, and it is
therefore an unclean animal. Since its spine is rigid,
all in one piece, it cannot turn round except by
turning its body right around. Solinus recounts many
marvellous things about the hyena. First, it stalks the
sheepfolds of shepherds and circles their houses by
night, and by listening carefully learns their speech,
so that it can imitate the human voice, in order to fall
on any man whom it has lured out at night. The
hyena also [imitates] human vomit and devours the
dogs it has enticed with faked sounds of retching. If
dogs hunting the hyena accidentally touch its shadow
behind, they lose their voices and cannot bark. In its
search for buried bodies, the hyena digs up graves.
The sons of Israel resemble the hyena. At the
beginning they served the living God. Later, addicted
to wealth and luxury, they worshipped idols. For this
reason the prophet compared the synagogue to an
unclean animal: 'My heritage is to me as the den of a
hyena.' (see Jeremiah, 12:8) Therefore those among
us who are slaves to luxury and greed, are like this
brute, since they are neither men nor
Translation
women, that is, neither faithful nor faithless, but are
without doubt those of whom Solomon says: 'A
double-minded man is unstable in all his ways';
(James, 1:8) of whom the Lord says: 'You cannot
serve God and mammon.' (Matthew, 6:24) This beast
has a stone in its eyes, called hyenia; anyone who
keeps it under his tongue is believed to foretell the
future. It is true that if the hyena walks three times
around any animal, the animal cannot move. For this
reason men declare that the hyena has magical
properties. In a part of Ethiopia the hyena mates with
the lioness; their union produces a monster, named
crocote. Like the hyena, it too produces men's voices.
It never tries to change the direction of its glance but
strives to see without changing it. It has no gums in
its mouth. Its single, continuous tooth is closed
naturally like a casket so that it is never blunted. Of
the bonnacon In Asia an animal is found which men
call bonnacon. It has the head of a bull, and
thereafter its whole body is of the size of a bull's with
the maned neck of a horse. Its horns are convoluted,
curling back on themselves in such a way that if
anyone comes up against it, he is not harmed. But
the protection which its forehead denies this monster
is furnished by its bowels. For when it turns to flee, it
discharges fumes from the excrement of its belly over
a distance of three acres, the heat of which sets fire
to anything it touches. In this way, it drives off its
pursuers with its harmful excrement.

Transcription
Simie vocantur latino sermone, eo quod multam eis\
similitudo rationis humane sentitur. Hi elementorum\
sagaces nova luna exultant, media et cava tristantur.\
Nature symie talis est, ut cum peperit geminos
catulos, unum\ diligat, et alterum contempnat. Quod
si aliquando evenerit\ ut insequatur a venatoribus,
ante se amplectitur quem diligit\ et alterum collo
portat quem odit. Sed dum lassa fuerit bipes\ eunto
proicit voluens quem diligit et portat nolens quem
odit.\ Symia caudam non habet. Cuius figuram
diabolus habet, qui capud\ habet, caudam vero non
habet. Et licet symia tota turpis sit, pos\teriora tamen
eius satis turpia et horribilia sunt. Diabolus in\imicum
[A: initium] habuit cum esset in celis angelus. Sed
ypochrita et do\losus fuit intrinsecus, et perdidit
caudam, quia totus in fine\ peribit, sicut ait apostolus:
Quem dominus Iesus interficiet spiritu oris sui.\ Symia
grecum nomen est, id est, pressis naribus. Unde et
symia\ dicimus, quod suppressis naribus sint, et facie
feda, rugis tur\piter follicantibus, licet et capellarium
[A: capellarum] sit pressum habere\ nasum.
Circopetici caudas habent. Hec sola discretio est in\ter
prius dictas. Cenophali et ipsi sunt e numero
symiarum.\ In Ethiope partibus frequentissimi.
Violenti ad saltum\
Transcription
feri morsu. Nunquam inter [A: ita] mansueti, ut non
sint magis ra\pidi. Inter symias habentur et spinges,
villose in armis\ ac dociles ad feritatis oblivionem.\ De
Satiris\ Sunt et quos vocant\ satiros facie admodum\
grata, gesticulatis motibus\ inquiete. Callitrices toto\
pene aspectu, a ceteris diffe\runt. In facie barba est
lata\ cauda. Hos capere non est ardu\um. Sed
proferre rarum. Neque vivunt in altero quam in Ethio
[excised, A: Ethiopico hoc est suo celo].\ De cervis\
Cervi dicti, apo ton\ ceraton, id est, a corni\bus,
cerata enim grece\ cornua dicuntur. Hii serpen\tium
inimici, cum se\ gravatos infirmita\te persenserint,
spiritu na\rium eos extrahunt\ de cavernis et
superata\ pernicie veneni eorum\ papulo reparantur.\
Ditampnum herbam\ [excised, A: ipsam prodiderunt
eo nam pasci exc]utiunt acceptas sa\gittas. Mirantur
autem sibilum fistularum, rectis auribus\ accute
audiunt, submissis nichil. Cervi eciam hanc\ naturam
habent, quod pro amore alterius patrie mutant
pascua\ sua, et sese vicarie sustentant, si quando
immensa flumina\
sensorgr
Translation
[Of apes] Apes are called simie in Latin because the
similarity between their mentality and that of humans
is felt to be great. Apes are keenly aware of the
elements; they rejoice when the moon is new and are
sad when it wanes. A characteristic of the ape is that
when a mother bears twins, she loves one and
despises the other. If it ever happens that she is
pursued by hunters, she carries the one she loves
before her in her arms and the one she detests on her
shoulders. But when she is tired of going upright, she
deliberately drops the one she loves and reluctantly
carries the one she hates. The ape does not have a
tail. The Devil has the form of an ape, with a head but
no tail. Although every part of the ape is foul, its rear
parts are disgusting and horrid enough. The Devil
began as an angel in heaven. But inside he was a
hypocrite and a deceiver, and he lost his tail, because
he will perish totally at the end, just as the apostle
says: 'The Lord shall consume him with the spirit of
his mouth.' (2 Thessalonians, 2:8) The name symia is
Greek, meaning, 'flattened nostrils'. Hence we call the
ape symia because they have compressed nostrils and
a hideous face, its creases foully expanding and
contracting like a bellows; although she-goats also
have a flattened nose. The apes called circopetici
have tails. This alone distinguishes them from the
apes mentioned earlier. Cenophali are numbered
among the apes. They occur in great numbers in parts
of Ethiopia. They leap wildly and
Translation
bite fiercely. They are never so tame, that their
ferocity does not increase. Sphynxes are also included
among apes. They have shaggy hair on their arms
and are easily taught to forget their wild nature. Of
satyrs There are also apes that men call satyrs. They
have quite attractive faces, and are restless, making
pantomimed gestures. The apes called callitrices differ
from the others in almost every aspect of their
appearance. They have bearded faces and broad tails.
It is not difficult to catch them but they rarely survive
in captivity. They do not live elsewhere than under
the Ethiopian sky, that is their native sky. Of deer
The word cervi (deer) comes from ceraton, 'horns', for
horns are called cerata in Greek. Deer are the
enemies of snakes; when they feel weighed down
with weakness, they draw snakes from their holes
with the breath of their noses and, overcoming the
fatal nature of their venom, eat them and are
restored. They have shown the value of the herb
dittany, for after feeding on it, they shake out the
arrows which have lodged in them. Deer are the
enemies of snakes; when they feel weighed down
with weakness, they draw snakes from their holes
with the breath of their noses and, overcoming the
fatal nature of their venom, eat them and are
restored. They have revealed the secret of the herb
 dittany, for after feeding on it, they shake out the
arrows which have lodged in them. Deer marvel at
the sound of the pipes; their hearing is keen when
their ears are pricked but they hear nothing when
their ears are lowered. Deer have this characteristic
also, that they change their feeding-ground for love of
another country, and in doing so, they support each
other. When they cross great rivers

sensorgr
Transcription
vel maria transilient, capita clunibus precedentium
superponunt,\ sibique invicem succedentes, nullum
laborem ponderis sen\tiunt. Et quando loca inveniunt,
ea ne in eis quo inquirientur [A: coinquirientur]\
citissime transiliunt. Habent et aliam naturam, quod
post commesti\onem serpentis ad fontem currunt, et
ex eo bibentes pilos\ et omnem suam vetustatem
deponunt. Que nature in [membris]\ sancte ecclesie
congrua et competenti ratione videntur convenire,
quia\ dum patriam istam, id est mundum, pro amore
celestis patrie\ mutant, sese vicarie portant, id est
perfectiores minus perfectos exem\plo, et bonis
operibus promovent et sustentant. Et si locum
pec\candi inveniunt, statim transiliunt, et post
incorporationem\ diaboli, id est post peccata [excised,
A: perpetrata, ad Christum qui verus fons]\ est
confessione currunt [excised, A: et precepta eius
haurientes deposita pec-]\ cati vetustate renov
[excised, A: antur; Mares generis huius cum
statutum]\ tempus venerem incitat [excised, A:
seviunt rabie libidinis; femine]\ licet prius
conserantur. [excised, A: Non concipiunt ante arcturi
sydus. Nec]\ qualibet partus suos e [excised, A:
ducant; sed tenero studio oculunt et]\ absconditos
inter profu [excised, A: nda fruticum vel herbarum,
pedum ver-]\ bere castigant ad la [excised, A:
tendum; cum maturint ad fugam]\ robur, per
exercitium [excised, A: docent cursum, assuescunt
salire per]\ abrupta. Acceptis ca [excised, A: num
latratibus secundo vento]\ ut odor cum ipsis [excised,
A: recedat. Stupent omnia propterea facilius]\ obvios
se prebent s [excised, A: agittantibus. Cornibus quod
dextrum fuerit]\ efficacius est admedel [excised, A:
am; Si fugare angues gestias; utrum]\ vel ures.
Dentes mo [excised, A: nstrant senectutem cum aut
pauci]\ inveniuntur, aut nulli. Ad [excised, A:
dinoscendam] vivacitatem, A\lexander magnus
torques plurimis cervis innexuit, qui post
annum centesimum capti, nec dum senis indicium
preferebant. \ Hinnuli filii sunt cervorum ab innuere
dicti, quod nutu matris\
Transcription
absconduntur. Adversus venena mirificum est humuli
[A: hinnuli] coagu\lum occisi matris sue utero. Patuit
eos numquam febrescere. Quam ob cau\sam confecta
ex medullis ipsorum unguina sedant calores\
hominum languentium. Legimus plurimos matutinis
di\ebus cervinam carnem degustare solitos, sine
febribus longe\vos fuisse, quod demum proderit si
uno vulnere fuerint in\terempti.\ De capre\ Est
animal quod latine\ dicitur caper, eo quod captet\
aspera, nonnulli a crepita \ capream vocant. Hee
sunt\ agrestes capree quas greci\ quod acutissime
videant,\ dorcas appellaverunt.\ Morantur in excelsis\
sensorgr
Translation
or large long stretches of water, they place their head
on the hindquarters of the deer in front and, following
one on the other, do not feel impeded by their weight.
When they find such places, they cross them quickly,
to avoid sinking in the mire. They have another
characteristic, that after eating a snake they run to a
spring and, drinking from it, shed their long coats and
all signs of old age. The members of the holy Church
seem to have a mentality corresponding to that of
deer, because while they change their homeland, that
is, the world, for love of the heavenly homeland, they
carry each other, that is, the more perfect bring on
and sustain the less perfect by their example and
their good works. And if they find a place of sin, they
leap over it at once, and after the incarnation of the
Devil, that is, after committing a sin, they run, by
their confession, to Christ, the true spring; drinking in
his commandments, they are renewed, shedding their
sin like old age. Stags, when it is time to rut, rage
with the madness of lust. Does, although they may
been inseminated earlier, do not conceive before the
star Arcturus appears. They do not rear their young
just anywhere but hide them with tender care,
concealed deep in bushes or grass, and they make
them stay out of sight with a tap of the hoof. When
the young grow strong enough to take flight, the deer
train them to run and to leap great distances. When
deer hear the dogs barking, they move upwind taking
their scent with them. They are scared rigid by
everything, which makes them an easier mark for
archers. Of their horns, the right-hand one is better
for medical purposes. If you want to frighten off
snakes, you should burn either. If deer have few or
no teeth, it shows that they are old. In order to tell
their age, Alexander the Great ringed a number of
deer; when they were recaptured a century later they
showed no sign of old age. The offspring of the deer
are called hinnuli, fawns, from innuere, 'to nod',
because at a nod from their mother, they vanish from
sight.
Translation
The rennet of a fawn killed in its mother's womb is a
marvellous remedy against poisons. It is known that
deer never grow feverish. For this reason ointments
made from their marrow bring down sick men's
temperatures. We read that many men who have
regularly eaten a small amount of venison since their
early days have lived for a long time unaffected by
fevers; but ultimately it fails them as a remedy if they
are killed by a single blow. Of the goat There is an
animal called in Latin caper, goat, because it chooses,
capere, to live in rugged places; some call it capra
from crepita, 'a rustling noise'. These are the tame
montibus, et de longinquo\ veniens [A: venientes],
cognoscunt si\ venatores sint, aut via\tores. Sic
dominus Iesus Christus amat excelsos montes, hoc
est prophetas\ et apostolos, sicut in canticis
canticorum dicitur: Ecce fratruelis meus\ sicut caprea
venit, saliens super montes, transiliens colles, et
sicut\ caprea in convalles pascitur. Dominus noster in
ecclesia pascitur, bona opera\ Christianorum esce eius
sunt, qui dicit: esurivi et dedistis mihi manduca\re;
sitivi, et dedistis mihi bibere. Convallia montium
ecclesie\ per diversa loca intelliguntur, sic in canticis
canticorum dicitur: Ecce
fratruelis meus convertere et esto similis capreis,
hinnuloque cer\vorum. Quod acutissimam habet
aciem oculorum, et perspicit\ omnia, et a longe
cognoscit, significat dominum nostrum, qui dominus\
scienciarum deus est. Et alibi: Quam excelsus
dominus et humilia\
Transcription
respicit, et alta a longe cognoscit, et omnia crevavit et
con\didit, et regit et iudicet, et prospicit, et antequam
in cordibus nostris\ aliquid oriatur, previdet et
cognoscit. Denique sicut et capra a lon\ge cognoscit
venantium adventum, ita Christus precivit [prescivit]
insidi\as proditoris sui dicens: Ecce appropinquit qui
me tradet.\ De Capra\ Caprea has habet\ naturas,\
quod pascendo de\ altis ad altiora\ tendit. Bonas\
herbas a noxiis\ oculorum acumi\ne eligit. Her\bas
ruminat,\ vulnerata ad\ ditannum cur\rit, qua tacta\
sanatur. Sic boni\ predicatores, pas\centes in lege
domini, et in bonis operibus quasi in bono pastu\
delectantes, de virtute in virtutem conscendunt.
Bonas sen\tencias a malis oculis cordis eligunt, et
electas ruminant,\ id est bonum perscrutantur, et
ruminatas tradunt\ memorie. A peccato vulnerati, ad
Christum confitentes re\currunt, et cito sanantur.
Ideoque Christus bene ditannus\ dicitur. Sicut enim
ditannus ferrum a vulnere depellit,\ et vulnus sanat,
ita Christus per confessionem diabolum\ eicit, et
peccatum ignoscit.\ De monocero\
Transcription
Est monoceros monstrum\ mugitu horrido, equino\
corpore elephantis pedibus, cau\da simillima cervo.
Cornu\ media fronte eius protenditur\ splendore
mirifico, ad mag\nitudinem pedum quatuor, ita\
sensorgr
goats which the Greeks called dorcas, gazelle,
because they have very sharp sight. They live in high
mountains and can tell if men approaching a long way
off are hunters or travellers. In the same way, our
Lord Jesus Christ loves high mountains, that is, the
prophets and Apostles, as it says in the Song of
Songs: 'Behold, my beloved cometh leaping upon the
mountains, skipping upon the hills (see Song of
Solomon, 2:8). As a goat grazes in the valleys, our
Lord grazes on the church; the good works of
Christian people are the food of him who said: 'For I
was an hungred, and ye gave me meat; I was thirsty,
and ye gave me drink.' (Matthew, 25:35) By the
valleys of the mountains are understood the churches
spread through different regions, as it says in the
Song of Songs: 'My beloved is like a roe or young
hart.' (Song of Solomon, 2:9) The fact that the goat
has very sharp eyesight, sees everything and
recognises things from a long way off, signifies our
Lord, who is the lord of all knowing and God. And
elsewhere it is written: 'Though the Lord be high yet
hath he respect unto the lowly
Translation
but the proud he knoweth afar off.' (Psalms, 138:6)
He created and established all things, and rules and
judges and sees; and before anything arises in our
hearts he foresees and understands it. Lastly, just as
the goat perceives from afar hunters approaching, so
Christ knew in advance the plot of his betrayer,
saying: 'Behold, he is at hand that doth betray me.'
(Matthew, 26:46) Of the wild goat The goat has
these characteristics: when grazing, it moves from
high to even higher pastures. It picks out good grass
from bad by the sharpness of its eyes. It feeds by
chewing the grass. When wounded, it hurries to find
the herb dittany and, by touching it, is healed. In the
same way, good preachers graze on the law of the
Lord and take delight in good works as in good
pastures, rising from one virtue to another. They
choose good writings from bad with the eyes of the
heart and meditate upon those they have chosen,
that is they examine the good in the views expressed
and, having pondered them, commit them to
memory. Wounded by sin, they hurry back to Christ
by confessing and are quickly healed. For this reason,
Christ is rightly said to be like ditanny. For as dittany
drives out iron from a wound and heals it, so Christ
through confession casts out the devil and pardons
sin. Of the monocerus
Translation
The monoceros is a monster with a horrible bellow,
the body of a horse, the feet of an elephant and a tail
very like that of a deer. A magnificent, marvellous
horn projects from the middle of its forehead, four
acutum ut quicquid impe\trat [A: impetat] facile ictu
eius foretur.\ Vivus non venit in homi\num
potestatem, et interimi quidem potest, capi non
potest.\ De urso\ Ursus fertur dictus\ quod ore suo
for\met fetus quasi orsus.\ Nam aiunt eos in \ formes
generare\ partus et carnem\ quandam nasci. Quod\
mater lambendo\ in membra componit. Sed hoc
inmaturitas facit partus.\ Denique tricesimo die
generat, unde evenit ut precipitata\ fecunditas
informis procreatur. Ursorum caput invalidum,\ vis
maxima in brachiis et lumbis, unde interdum erecti\
insistunt. Etiam medendi industriam non
pretermittunt.\ Siquidem gravi affecti corde [A:
caede] et sauciati vulneribus mederi\ sibi sciunt.
Herbe cui nomen est flomus, ut greci appellant,\
ulcera subicientes sua, ut solo curentur a tactu. Ursu\
erger formicas devorat. Numidi ursi ceteris prestant
dum\
Transcription
taxat villis profundioribus. Nam genitura par est,
quoquo loco ge\nuerint. Coeunt non itidem quo
quadrupedes alie, sed apti\ amplexibus mutuis velud
humanis coniugationibus co\ pulantur. Desiderium
veneris hyems suscitat. Secreti\ honore verentur,
mares gravidas, et in isdem licet foveis\ partius
tamen per scrobes se cubationibus dividuntur. Lu\cine
illis properativum tempus est. Quippe uterum
tricesimus dies liberat.\ Unde evenit ut precipitata
fecunditas informes creat p\artus. Carnes paxillulas
edunt, quibus color candidus, o\culi nulli. Has
lambendo sensum [PL: sensim] figurant et interdum\
ad pectoratas fovent, ut assiduo incubitu calefacte,
a\nimalem trahent spiritum. Interea cibus nullus sane
diebus\ primis xiiii, mares in sompnum ita concidunt
ut nec\ vulneribus excitari queant, enixeque ternis
latent mensibus.\ Mox egresse in diem liberum,
tantam paciuntur [patiuntur] inso\lentiam lucis, ut
putes obsitas cecitate. Insidiantur\ alvearibus apum,
maxime favos appetunt. Nec avidius\ aliquid quam
mella captant. Cum gustaverint mandra\gore mala,
moriuntur. Sed eunt obviam ne malum in perni\tiem
convalescat, et formicas devorant, ad recuperandam\
sanitatem. Si quando tauros adoriuntur, sciunt quibus
potissimum\ partibus minorantur, nec aliud quam
cornua, aut nares pecunt.\ Nares ut acrior dolor sit in\
[loco] teneriore.\ De leucrota\ In India nascitur\
bestia nomine\ leucrota. Que velocitate prece\dit
feras universas. Ipsa asini\ sit magnitudine, cervi
clunibus\ pectore ac cruribus leonis, capita [A:
capite]\
sensorgr
feet in length, so sharp that whatever it strikes is
easily pierced with the blow. No living monoceros has
ever come into man's hands, and while it can be
killed, it cannot be captured. Of the bear The bear is
said to get its name because the female shapes her
new-born cub with her mouth, ore, giving it, so to
speak, its beginning, orsus. For it is said that they
produce a shapeless fetus and that a piece of flesh is
born. The mother forms the parts of the body by
licking it. The shapelessness of the cub is the result of
its premature birth. It is born only thirty days after
conception, and as a result of this rapid fertility it is
born unformed. The bear's head is not strong; its
greatest strength lies in its arms and loins; for this
reason bears sometimes stand upright. Bears do not
neglect the business of healing themselves. If they
are afflicted by a moratl blow and injured by wounds,
they know how to heal themselves. They expose their
sores to the herb called mullein - flomus, the Greeks
call it - and are healed by its touch alone. When sick,
the bear eats ants. The bears of Numidia stand out
from other bears
Translation
by virtue of the shagginess of their hair. Bears are
bred in the same way, wherever they come from.
They do not mate like other quadrupeds but embrace
each other when they copulate, just like the couplings
of humans. Winter arouses their desire. The males
respect the pregant females, and honour them by
leaving them alone; although they may share the
same lair at the time of birth, they lie separated by a
trench. Among bears the time of gestation is
accelerated. Indeed, the thirtieth day sees the womb
free of the cub. As a result of this rapid fertility, the
cubs are created without form. The females produce
tiny lumps of flesh, white in colour, with no eyes.
These they shape gradually, holding them meanwhile
to their breasts so that the cubs are warmed by the
constant embrace and draw out the spirit of life.
During this time bears eat no food at all in the first
fortnight; the males fall so deeply asleep that they
cannot be aroused even if they are wounded, and the
females, after they have given birth, hide for three
months. Soon after, when they emerge into the open,
they are so unused to the light that you would think
they had been blinded. They attack beehives and try
hard to get honeycombs. There is nothing they seize
more eagerly than honey. If they eat the fruit of the
mandrake they die. But they prevent the misfortune
from turning into disaster and eat ants to regain their
health. If they attack bulls, they know the parts to
threaten the most, and will not go for any part except
the horns or nose: the nose, because the the pain is
sharper in the more tender place. Of the leucrota
The beast called leucrota comes from India. It is the
swiftest of all wild animals. It is as big as an ass, with
the hindquarters of a deer, the chest and legs of a
lion, the head...
Transcription
[De parandro]\ fundo. Hunc parandrum affirmant
habitum metu vertere\ et cum delitescat fieri ad
similitudinem cuicumque rei proxi\maverit, sive illa
saxo alba sit, seu frutecto virens, sive quem\ alium
modum preferat.\ De vulpe\ Vulpis dicitur quasi
vo\lupis. Est enim\ volubilis pedibus et\ nunquam
recto itinere, \ sed tortuosis anfract\ibus currit. Est
et\ fraudulentum ani\mal et ingeniosum.\ Cum esurit
et [non] inve\nit quod manducet,\ involuit se in
ru\bea terra ut appareat\ quasi cruentata, et proi\cit
se in terram, retinetque flatum suum, ita ut penitus
non spi\ret. Aves vero videntes eam non flantem, et
quasi cruentatam, lin\guamque eius foris erectam,
putant eam esse mortuam, et descen\dunt sessum
super eam. Illa autem sic rapit eas et devorat.\ Istius
eiusdemque figuram diabolus possidet. Omnibus
enim\ viventibus secundum carnem vixeritis [A: fingit
se] esse, mortuum quoadusque inter\ guttur suum
habeat et puniat. Spiritualibus tamen viris in fi\de
vere mortuus est, et ad nichilum redactus. Qui autem
voluit\ exercere opera eius, moriuntur dicente
apostolo: sciatis hoc quia si secundum\ carnem
vixeritis moriemini. Si autem spiritu facta carnis
mor\tificaveritis vivetis. Et David: Intrabunt in
inferiora terre traden\tur in manus gladii partes
vulpium erunt.\ De eale\
Transcription
Est animal quod dicitur eale. Magnus\ ut equus cauda
elephanti,\ nigro colore, maxillis aprinis,\ cornua
preferens ultra modum\ longa, ad obsequium cuius
velit \ motus accomodata. Nec enim\ rigent, sed
moventur ut usus ex\igit preliandi, quorum alterum
cum\ pugnat pretendit, alterum repli\cat, ut si ictu
aliquo alterius acumen offenderet, acies succedat
alterius. \
De lupe\ Lupus greca\ dirivatio\ne in linguam
nostram transfer\tur. Lupos\ enim dicunt\ illi licos,
licos\ autem grece, a \ morsibus apellantur, quod
rabie rapacitatis, queque invene\rint trucidant. Alii
lupos vocatos aiunt quasi leopos, quod quas\i leonibus
ita sint illis virtus in pedibus. Unde et quicquid
preserint\ non vivit. Lupus a rapacitate dicitur, unde
et meretrices lupas vo\camus, quia amantium bona
devastant. Rapax autem bestia et\ cruores
appetentes. In pectore vel ore vires habet, in renibus
vero\ minime. Collum nunquam retro valet flectere.
Aliquando fertur\ vivere preda, aliquando terra,
nonnunquam vento. Lupa de\nique mense alio nisi in
Mayo, quando fit tonitruus catulos\ non gignit. Cuius
astucia est tanta ut in vicinia sua predam\
sensorgr
Translation
[Of the parander] ... thick coat. It is said that the
parander changes its appearance when it is afraid
and, when it hides itself, takes on the likeness of
whatever is near - a white stone or a green bush or
whatever other shape it prefers. Of the fox The word
vulpis, fox, is, so to say, volupis. For it is fleet-footed
and never runs in a straight line but twists and turns.
It is a clever, crafty animal. When it is hungry and can
find nothing to eat, it rolls itself in red earth so that it
seems to be stained with blood, lies on the ground
and holds it breath, so that it seems scarcely alive.
When birds see that it is not breathing, that it is
flecked with blood and that its tongue is sticking out
of its mouth, they think that it is dead and descend to
perch on it. Thus it seizes them and devours them.
The Devil is of a similar nature. For to all who live by
the flesh he represents himself as dead until he has
them in his gullet and punishes them. But to spiritual
men, living in the faith, he is truly dead and reduced
to nothing. Those who wish to do the Devil's work will
die, as the apostle says: 'For if ye live after the flesh,
ye shall die; but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the
deeds of the body, ye shall live.' (Romans, 8:13) And
David says: 'They shall go into the lower parts of the
earth: they shall fall by the sword: they shall be a
portion for foxes.' (Psalms, 63:9-10) Of the yale
Translation
There is an animal called the yale. It is black, as big
as a horse, with the tail of an elephant, the jaws of a
boar and unusually long horns, adjustable to any
movement the animal might make. For they are not
fixed but move as the needs of fighting require; the
yale advances one of them as it fights, folding the
other back, so that if the tip of the first is damaged by
a blow, it is replaced by the point of the second.
Of the wolf The word lupus, wolf, in our Latin tongue
derives from the Greek. For the Greeks call it licos;
this comes from the Greek word for 'bites', because
maddened by greed, wolves kill whatever they find.
Others say the word lupus is, as it were, leo-pos,
because like the lion, leo, their strength is in their
paws, pes. As a result, whatever they seize does not
survive. Wolves get their name from their rapacity:
for this reason we call whores lupae, she-wolves,
because they strip their lovers of their wealth. The
wolf is rapacious beast and craves blood. It strength
lies in its chest or its jaws, least of all in its loins. It
cannot turn its neck around. It is said to live
sometimes on its prey, sometimes on earth and
sometimes, even, on the wind. The she-wolf bears
cubs only in the month of May, when it thunders.
Such is the wolf's cunning that it does not catch food
for its cubs near its lair
Transcription
non capiat catulis suis sed in longinquo. Quod si opus
fuerit ut\ predam noctu querat, tanquam canis
mansuetus passim ad ovi\le pergit, et ne fortuitu sui
flatus odorem senciant canes, et\ evigilent pastores,
contra ventum vadit. Et si ramus aut\ aliquid
tangendo sub eius pede sonaverit, ipsum pedem\
castigat morsu aperto. Oculi eius in nocte lucent velud
lucer\ne. Cuius natura talis est, ut si prior hominem
viderit, vocem eripet\ et despicit eum tanquam vircor
[A: victor] vocis ablate. Idem si se pre\visum
senserit, deponit ferocitatem et non potest currere.\
Solinus refert qui plura de naturis rerum dicit, caude
ani\malis huius vellus amatorium inesse perexiguum,
quod dentibus\ ipse evellit, si forte capi timuerit, non
habet potenciam, nisi\ illo vivente detrahatur. Lupi
figuram diabolus portat,\ qui semper humano generi
invidet, ac iugiter circuit caulas\ ecclesie fidelium, ut
mactet et perdat eorum animas. Quod\ vero generat
tonitruo primo mensis May, significat dia\bolum, in
primo superbie motu cecidisse de celo. Quod autem\
in anterioribus membris vires habet, et non in
posterioribus eundem\ diabolum significat, prius in
celo angelum lucis fuisse nunc\ vero deorsum
apostatum factum esse. Oculi eius in nocte lucent,\
velud lucerne quia quedam diaboli opera cecis et
fatuis viris,\ videntur esse pulchra et salubria. Cum
catulos gignit, \ non nisi in longinquo predam capit,
quia eos diabolus bo\nis temporalibus fovet, de
quibus certus est, in gehennalibus\ claustris secum
penas perpeti. Illos autem omnino insequitur\ qui
bonis operibus ab eo elongantur, sicut de beato Iob
legitur,\ cui nomen substanciam, necnon filios et filias
abstulit, ut a do\mino recederet cor eius. Quod
nunquam collum retro sine to\to corpore valet
flectere, significat diabolum ad peni\
Transcription
tudinis correctionem [A: correptionem] nunquam
flecti. Quid vero agendum est homini\ cui lupus
abstulit vires clamandi , qui vero non habet
potestatem vocife\randi, perdit auxilium longe stantis.
Sed quid agendum sit?\ Deponat vestimentum suum
homo pedibus suis conculcandum\ sumens in manibus
duos lapides quos feriat alterutrum. Quid\ inde? Lupus
audaciam sue virtutis perdens, fugiet. Homo vero\
tutus suo ingenio liber erit sicut in principio.
Spiritualiter autem hoc\ intelligendum est atque ad
superiorem locum allegorice, est di\cendum [PL:
discendum]. Quid enim per lupum nisi diabolum? Quid
per\ hominem nisi peccatum? Quid per lapides nisi
sensorgr
Translation
but far away. If it has to hunt its prey at night, it goes
like a tame dog here and there to a sheepfold, and
lest the sheepdogs catch its scent and wake the
shepherds, it goes upwind. And if a twig or anything,
under the pressure of its paw, makes a noise, it nips
the the paw as a punishment. The wolf's eyes shine in
the night like lamps. It has this characteristic, that if
it sees a man first, it takes away his power of speech
and looks at him with scorn, as victor over the
voiceless. If it senses that the man has seen it first, it
loses its fierceness and its power to run. Solinus, who
has a lot to say about the nature of things, says that
on the tail of this animal there is a tiny patch of hair
which is a love-charm; if the wolf fears that it may be
captured, it tears the hair out with its teeth; the
charm has no power unless the the hair is taken from
the wolf while it is still alive. The Devil has the nature
of a wolf; he always looks with an evil eye upon
mankind and continually circles the sheepfold of the
faithful of the Church, to ruin and destroy their souls.
The fact that the she-wolf gives birth when the
thunder first sounds in the month of May signifies the
Devil, who fell from heaven at the first display of his
pride. The fact that its strength lies in its forequarters
and not in its hindquarters also signfies the Devil, who
was formerly the angel of light in heaven, but has
now been made an apostate below. The wolf's eyes
shine in the night like lamps because the works of the
Devil seem beautiful and wholesome to blind and
foolish men. When the she-wolf bears her young, she
will only catch food for them far away from her lair,
because the Devil cherishes with wordly goods those
he is sure will suffer punishment with him in the
confines of hell. But he constantly pursues those who
distance themselves from him by good works; as we
read of the blessed Job, whose name, substance, sons
and daughters the devil carried off to make him
desert the Lord in his heart. The fact that the wolf
cannot turn his neck without turning the whole of his
body signifies that the Devil
Translation
never turns towards the correction of penitence. Now
what is to be done for a man when the wolf has taken
away his power of shouting, when he has lost even
the power of speech; he loses the help of those who
are at a distance. But what is to be done? The man
should take off his clothes and trample them
underfoot, and taking two stones in his hands, he
should beat one against the other. What happens
then? The wolf, losing the boldness that comes with
its courage will run away. The man, saved by his
cleverness, will be free, as he was in the beginning.
This is to be understood in spiritual terms and can be
taken to a higher level as an allegory. For what do we
apostolos, seu\ ceteros sanctos vel dominum nostrum
significare poterimus? Omnes enim\ per prophetam
adamantini lapides dicti sunt. Ipse enim dominus
noster\ Iesu Christus in lege vocatus lapis offensionis,
et petra scan\dali, de quo dicit propheta: Vidi virum
stantem supra montem\ adamantinum. Antequam
denique redempti essemus, sub potesta\te inimici
eramus, vocemque clamandi perdideramus quoniam
pec\catis nostris exigentibus a deo non audiebamur,
neque aliquem\ sanctorum in auxilium nobis
interpellabamus. Postquam vero clemens\ dominus
gratificavit nos in filio suo, deposuimus in baptismo\
veterem hominem cum actibus suis, ac induimus
novum qui\ secundum dominum creatus est. Deinde
sumpsimus lapides in manibus\ de quibus alterutrum
ferimus, quia sanctos dei qui iam in celis reg\nant
cum ipso, nostri oris ferimus alloquio, ut et ipsi au\res
pulsent iudicis, ac veniam nobis impetrent criminis\
ne nos quem nescimus sorbeat Cerberus, gaudens
nostro interitu.\ Lupi toto anno non amplius quam
dies xii coeunt; famem diu\ portant, et post longa
ieiunia multum devorant. Lupos \ Ethiopia mittit,
cervice iubatos, et tanto varios ut nul\lum eis colorem
dicunt abesse. Ethopicis lupis proprium\
Transcription
est quod insaliendo, ita visus habent alitis, ut magis
profici\ciant cursui quam meatu. Homines tamen
nunquam impetunt. Bru\ma comati sunt. Estate nudi.
Ethiopes eos vocant theas.
De \ natura canum
\ Canis nomen Latinum \Grecam ethimologiam
\habere videtur. Greco \enim cenos dicitur, licet
\quidem a canore latra\tus appellatum existi\ment, eo
quod insonat \unde et canere dicitur. Ni\chil sagatius
canibus plus \enim sensus ceteris a\nimalibus habent,
nam soli sua nomina cognoscunt, do\minos suos
diligunt. Canum sunt plurima genera, alii ad
\capiendum investigant feras silvarum, alii ab
infesta\tionibus luporum, vigilando greges custodiunt
ovium,\alii custodes domorum, substantiam
dominorum suorum custodiunt \ne forte rapiatur, in
nocte a latronibus et pro dominos \suos se morti
obiciunt, voluntarie ad predam cum \domino currunt,
corpus domini sui etiam mortu\um custodiunt, et non
linqunt. Quorum post\tremo nature est, extra
hominem esse non posse. \
sensorgr
mean by the wolf if not the Devil? What by the man, if
not sin? What by the stones, if not the apostles, or
other saints of our Lord? For they are all called by the
prophet 'stones of adamant'. (see Ezekiel, 3:9) For
our Lord himself is called in the law 'a stumbling stone
and rock of offence'; (see Romans, 9:33, 1 Peter,
2:8) and the prophet says of him: 'I saw a man
standing on a mountain of adamant.' [SOURCE]
Before we were finally redeemed, we were under the
power of the enemy and had lost the capacity to call
for help, and much as our sins required it, we were
not heard by God, nor could we call any of the saints
to our aid. But after God in his mercy bestowed his
grace upon us in his son, in the act of baptism we laid
aside, like old clothes, the person we were before,
with all his deeds, and put on, like new clothes, a new
person made in the image of God. Then we took
stones in our hands and beat them one against the
other, because we attract with our prayers the
attention of the saints of God, who now reign with
him in heaven, asking them to gain the ear of God,
our judge, and procure a pardon for our sin, lest
Cerberus, whom we do not know should swallow us
up, rejoicing in our death. Wolves mate on no more
than twelve days in the year. They can go hungry for
a long time, and after long fasts, eat a large amount.
Ethiopia produces wolves with manes, so diversely
coloured, men say, that no hue is lacking. A
characteristic of Ethiopian wolves
Translation
never turns towards the correction of penitence. is
that they leap so high that they seem to have wings,
going further than they would by running. They never
attack men, however. In winter, they grow long hair;
in summer, they are hairless. The Ethiopians call
them theas.
Of the nature of dogs
The Latin name for the dog, canis, seems to have a
Greek origin. For in Greek it is called cenos, although
some think that it is called after the musical sound,
canor, of its barking, because when it howls, it is also
said to sing, canere. No creature is more intelligent
than the dog, for dogs have more understanding than
other animals; they alone recognise their names and
love their masters. There are many kinds of dogs:
some track down the wild beasts of the forests to
catch them; others by their vigilance guard flocks of
sheep from the attacks of wolves; others as watch-
dogs in the home guard the property of their masters
lest it be stolen by thieves at night and sacrifice their
lives for their master; they willingly go after game
with their master; they guard his body even when he
is dead and do not leave it. Finally, their nature is
that they cannot exist without man
Transcription
Item de natura canum.
\ Legitur in \tantum \suos diligere \dominos, ut
\Garamantem \regem ab ini\micis captum \ac in
custodia \mancipatum, ducenti canes \agmine facto
per medias aci\es inimicorum \ab exilio redu\xerunt
prelian\tes adversus \resistentes. Ja\sone licio
inter\fecto canis ipsius aspernatus cibum inedia obiit.
Lisimachi\ regis canis, flamme se iniecit, accenso rogo
domini sui et pa\riter igni absumptus est. Apio Junio
Pictinio consulibus damp\natum dominum canis cum
ambigi [PL, abigi] non posset comitatus in
carcerem,\mox percussum ululatu prosecutus est.
Cumque ex miseratione populi Roma\ni potestas ei
fieret cibi, ad os defuncti escam tulit. \Ultimo\ idem
deiectum in Tyberum cadaver, adnatans sustentare
conatus.
\Cani vero ubi vestigium leporis cervive reppererit,
atque ad diverti\culum semite venerit, et quoddam
viarum compitum, quod partes\ in plurimas scinditur,
obiciens [obiens; PL, ambiens] singularum semitarum
exordia\ tacitus secum ipse pertractat, velud
sillogisticam vocem, saga\citatem colligendi odoris
emittens. Aut in hanc partem, inquid\ deflexit aut in
illam, aut certe in hunc se anfractum contulit.\
Transcription
Iterum de natura canum \
Sepe \etiam \necis il\late evi\dentia canes \ad
red\arguen\dos reos \indicia \prodiderunt, \ut mu\to
eorum \testimo\nio ple\rumque \sit credi\tum.
\Antiochie ferunt in remociore parte urbis quendam
crepus\culo necatum virum, qui canem sibi adiunctum
haberet. Mi\les quidam predandi studio minister
extiterat cedis. Tectus \idem tenebroso diei adhuc
exordio, in alias partes secesse\rat. Iacebat
inhumatum cadaver, frequens erat spectantium
\vulgus, astabat canis, questu lacrimabili domini
deflebat \erumpnam. Forte is qui necem intulerat ut
se habet versucia \humani ingenii quo versandi in
medio auctoritate presumpta \fidem ascisceret
innocentie, ad illam circumspectantis \populi accessit
coronam, et velut miserans appropinquavit \
Transcription
ad funus. Tunc canis sequestrato paulisper questu
doloris, \arma ultionis assumpsit, atque apprehensum
tenuit, et velud \epilogo quodam miserabile carmen
immurmurans, univer\sos convertit in lacrimas,
sensorgr
Translation
Also of the nature of dogs
We read that dogs have such great love for their
masters, as when King Garamentes was caught by his
enemies and taken into captivity, two hundred dogs
went in formation through enemy lines and led him
back from exile, fighting off those who resisted them.
When Jason [Licio] was killed, his dog rejected food
and died of starvation. The dog of King Lysimachus
threw itself in the flame when its master's funeral
pyre was lit and was consumed by fire along with him.
When Apius and Junius Pictinius were consuls, a dog
that could not be driven away from its master, who
had been condemned, accompanied him to prison;
when, soon afterwards, he was executed, it followed
him, howling. When the people of Rome, out of pity,
caused it to be fed, it carried the food to its dead
master's mouth. Finally, when its master's corpse was
thrown into the Tiber, the dog swam to it and tried to
keep it from sinking.
When a dog picks up the track of a hare or a deer and
comes to a place where the trail divides or to a
junction splitting into several directions, it goes to the
beginning of each path and silently reasons with itself,
as if by syllogism, on the basis of its keen sense of
smell. 'Either the animal went off in this direction,' it
says, 'or that, or certainly it took this turning.'
Translation
Again on the nature of dogs
Often, also, when a murder has been committed,
dogs have produced clear evidence of the guilt of the
accused, with the result that their unspoken
testimony is for the most part believed. They say that
at Antioch, in a distant quarter of the city at dusk, a
man was murdered, who had his dog with him on a
lead. A soldier had been the perpetrator of the deed,
with robbery as his motive. Under cover of the
growing darkness, he fled elsewhere. The corpse lay
unburied; the crowd of onlookers was large; the dog
stayed at its master's side, howling over his sad fate.
It happened that the man who had committed the
crime, acting confidently in order to convince people
of his innocence - such is the cunning way in which
men think - joined the circle of onlookers and,
feigning grief, approached
Translation
the corpse. Then the dog, briefly abandoning its
doleful lament, took up the arms of vengeance, seized
the man and held him, and, softly singing a pitiful
song, as in the epilogue of a tragedy, moved
fidemque probationi detulit, quod solum \tenuit ex
plurimis nec dimisit. Denique perturbatus ille quod
\tam manifestum rei indicium, neque odii neque
inimiciciarum \neque invidie aut iniurie alicuius
poterat obiectione vacuare, \crimenque diutius nequit
refellere. Itaque quod erat difficilius [PL, ratione
consonum] ultio\nem perpessus est, quia
defensionem sibi prestare non potuit. Lingua \canis
dum lingit vulnus, sanat illud. Victus eius admodum
\modicus esse fertur. Catuli denique lingua
vulneratorum solet \esse saluti intestinorum. Natura
eius est ut ad vomitum suum rever\tatur iterumque
comedat. Cumque fluvium transnataverit car\nem vel
aliquid tale in ore tenens, cum viderit umbram \os
suum aperit, atque dum properat aliam carnem
sumere, ipsam \quam tenet amittit. Cuius figuram in
quibusdam rebus predica\tores habent, qui semper
admonendo ac exercendo que recta sunt \insidias
diaboli propellunt, ne thesaurum domini, id est
animas Christia\norum rapiendo ipse auferat. Lingua
canis dum lingit vul\nus curat. Quia peccorum vulnera
cum in confessione nudantur, \sacerdotum
corrrectione mundantur. Intestina quoque hominis
curat \lingua canis, quia secreta cordis sepe
mundantur opere et sermone \doctoris. Modicus
admodum victus canis dicitur esse, quia qui preest
\aliis, sapientie studiis invigilat, crapulamque
omnimodis vita\re debet, nam in saturitate panis
Sodoma periit. Nullo demum \aditu tam cito possidet
inimicus hominem quam voraci gula. \Quod canis ad
vomitum redeat, significat quosdam post peractam
\confessionem incaute ad perpetrata facinora redire.
Quod carnem \in flumine propter concupitam umbram
relinquid, significat\
Transcription
stultos homines propter ambicionem ignote rei, id
sepe quod proprii\iuris est relinquere. Unde fit, ut
dum non valent adipisci id \quod cupiunt, perdere
frustra norunt id quod reliquerunt. Licisci \dicuntur
canes, quod ex lupis et canibus nascuntur, cum inter
se \forte miscentur. Solent et inde femine canes
noctum silvis al\ligate admitti ad tigres bestias a
quibus insiliri et nasci ex eo\dem fetu canes acerrimi
adeo fortes ut complexu leones pro\sternant.
Quocienscumque peccator vult factorem suum placere
\necessarium est ei et utile, ut tres spirituales
conductores querat, \qui tres spirituales legatos cum
tribus donis spiritualibus ad recon\ciliationem sui
coram factore conducant. Qui conductores \et legati
cum suis donis spiritualibus ita disponuntur. Primus
\legatus est cordis ploratus, secundus vera confessio,
sensorgr
everyone to tears; and the fact that the dog held that
man alone, of the many that were there, and did not
let him go, lent weight to its case. In the end, the
murderer was at a loss because the evidence in the
case was so plain; he could not clear himself by
objecting that he was the victim of anyone's hate,
enmity, envy or spite, and he could no longer rebut
the charge. Because it was very difficult for him, he
suffered punishment, because he could offer no
defence.
A dog's tongue, licking a wound, heals it. A dog's way
of life is said to be wholly temperate. A puppy's
tongue is generally a cure for internal injuries. It is
characteristic of a dog that it returns to its vomit and
eats it again. If a dog swims across a river carrying a
piece of meat or anything of that sort in its mouth,
and sees its shadow, it opens its mouth and in
hastening to seize the other piece of meat, it loses the
one it was carrying.
In some ways preachers are like dogs: by their
admonitions and righteous ways they are always
driving off the ambushes laid by the Devil, lest he
seize and carry off God's treasure - Christian souls. As
the dog's tongue, licking a wound, heals it, the
wounds of sinners, laid bare in confession, are
cleansed by the correction of the priest. As the dog's
tongue heals man's internal wounds, the secrets of
his heart are often purified by the deeds and
discourse of the Church's teachers. As the dog is said
to be temperate in its ways, the man who is set over
others diligently studies wisdom and must avoid
drunkenness and gluttony in every way, for Sodom
perished in a surfeit of food. Indeed, there is no
quicker way for the Devil, his enemy, to take
possession of man than through his greedy gullet. The
dog returning to its vomit signifies those who, after
making their confession, heedlessly return to
wrongdoing. The dog leaving its meat behind in the
river, out of desire for its shadow, signifies
Translation
foolish men who often forsake what is theirs by right
out of desire for some unknown object; with the
result that, while they are unable to obtain the object
of their desire, they needlessly lose what they have
given up.
Some dogs are called licisici, wolf-hounds, because
they are born of wolves and dogs, when by chance
these mate. In India bitches are tethered at night in
the forests to breed with wild tigers, by whom they
are mounted, producing very fierce dogs, so strong
that with their grip they can pull down lions.
Whenever a sinner wishes to please his maker, it is
necessary and advantageous for him to seek out
three spiritual masters, who will hire three spiritual
tertius vera penitentia. \Conductores eorum sunt,
amor domini, bona voluntas, rectum opus. \Dona
spiritualia sunt mundicia corporis et anime, oratio
pura, \boni operis perseverantia,[qui legati et
conductores cum spiritualibus] \donis sic coram
tri[nitate procedunt. Coram deo patre procedit]
\ploratus cum amore d[ei defferens mundiciam
corporis et anime.] \Coram filio vera co[nfessio cum
voluntate bona puram orati] \onem deferens. Coram
spiritu sancto peni tencia vera cum recto] \opere
perseverantiam bo[ni operis portans. Sint corpori
debili\] \tato necessarie sunt pociones ad sanandas
illius infirmita\] \tes, ita anime peccati[rici, necessaria
est pocio, per quam sanetur] \spiritualis eius
corruptio, fit autem pocio anime ex quatuor
speciebus] \id est cordis ploratus, vera confessione,
penitencia vera, operati] \one recta. Que ita co
[mpetens est ad sanandas illius infirmi\] \tates, quod
dum ab ea anima inungitur, statim a suis
infir\mitatibus sanatur. Sed sanata si sine honesto
indumento \relinqueretur, quomodo in celesti curia
ubi debet presentari\
Transcription
coram factore suo presentaretur. Oportet ergo ut
homo qui ad \regendum et induendum eam suscepit
its honeste etc com\petenter induat ut laudabiliter
coram angelis eam in celo \presentare valeat. Primum
indumentum unde anima vesti\ri debet, est mundicia.
Nulla enim in celesti curia presentatur, \que vel hic
vel in futuro non mundetur. Alia vero indumen\ta
sunt, pietas, misericordia, cetereque virtutes quibus
debet ve\stiri. Vera vero talibus indumentis cum
tribus conductis, id est cogi\tatione pura, verbo bono,
opere perfecto, in celesti gloria honeste potest
\presentari, ubi remunerabitur illa beatudine, quam
optinent \angeli ad quam optinendum hominem deus
creavit, et tres \consiliatores ei attribuit, scilicet
spiritualem intellectum, \potestatem bene agendi, et
sapientiam, quibus si adquiesce\ret, regnum celeste
non amitteret, sed quia illis non adquie\vit
hereditatem suam amisit. \
De ove\ Quis molle pecus lanis corpore in erme,
animo placidum, ab oblatione dictum, eo quod apud
veteres in inicio non tauri, sed oves in sacrificio
mactarentur. Ex his quibusdam videntes vocant,
easque inter octo dentes duos altiores habent, quos
maxime \gentiles in sacrificium offerebant. Ovis sub
adventu hye \mis inexplebilis ad escam, insaciabiliter
herbam rapit, eo \quod presentiat asperitatem hyemis
affuturam, ut se prius herbe \
sensorgr
servants with three spiritual gifts in order to reconcile
the man with his maker. The masters and their
servants with the three gifts are in this order: the first
servant is a tearful heart; the second, true
confession; the third, sincere repentance. Their
masters are the love of God, righteous desire and
good deeds. The spiritual gifts are cleanliness of body
and mind, purity of speech, and perseverance in good
works. The servants and their masters with their
spiritual gifts appear before the Trinity in this way:
before God the Father appears the tearful heart
bearing cleanliness of body and mind; before God the
Son appears true confession with righteous desire and
purity of speech; before the Holy Spirit appears
sincere repentance with good deeds, bearing
perseverance in good works.
As potions are necessary for a sick body to heal its
infirmities, a potion is needed to cure its spiritual
corruption, a potion of four ingredients - a tearful
heart, true confession, sincere repentance and good
conduct. This potion is a fitting remedy for the
spiritual ailments of the body because when the soul
is anointed with it, it is at once cured of its frailties.
But if the soul, once healed, is left without a decent
covering, how, in the heavenly court where it must be
presented,
Translation
will it be presented before its maker? The man who
undertakes to order and array his soul, must clothe it
decently and fittingly, therefore, so that he can
present it in a praiseworthy fashion before the angels
in heaven. The first garment in which the soul should
be clad is purity. For no soul can be presented in the
court of heaven, which now or in the future is not
pure. Other garments are piety, charity and other
virtues in which it should be attired.
Clad in such raiment, with the three guides, purity of
thought, chasteness of speech and perfection in
deeds, the soul can be presented honourably in the
glory of heaven, where it will be rewarded by that
blessed state which the angels enjoy, for which God
created man, assigning him three counsellors,
spiritual understanding, the capacity for doing good,
and wisdom; if man accedes to them, he will not lose
his heavenly kingdom; because man did not accede to
them, he lost his inheritance.
Of the sheep
The sheep, a gentle animal, its body clad in wool,
harmless, placid by nature, gets its name from
oblatio, an offering, because men of old offered as a
sacrifice not bulls but sheep. Some are called
'bidents', having two teeth among their eight which
are more prominent than the others; the pagans

Transcription
pabulo farciat, quam gelu adurente omnis herba
deficiat. \ De vervece \ Vervex vel a viribus dictus
quod ceteris ovibus sit fortior vel quod sit vir, id est
masculus, vel quod vermes in capite habeat, quorum
excreati pruritu, invicem se concuciunt, et pugnantes
cum magno impetu feriunt. Aries vel aito to peoc, id
est a marte vocatus. unde apud nos in gregibus
masculi mares dicuntur, \sive quod hoc [ecus a
gentibus primum aris est immolatum \ut aries quod
imponeretur aris. Unde est illud, aries mactatur ad
\aram. \ De agno \ Agnus dicitur quasi pius, latine
autem ideo hoc nomen habere putant, eo quod pre
ceteris animantibus is matrem agnoscat, adeo ut ei
iam si in magno grege erret, statim balatu
recognoscat vocem parentis, fe\stinatque ad matrem.
Lactis quoque materni notos sibi fontes requi\rit.
Mater vero inter multa agnic\culorum milia solum
filium no\uit. Unus est plurimorum balatus \eadem
species, sed illa tamen fetum \suum discernit a
ceteris et solum \filium tanto pietatis testimonio
\recognoscit. \ De hyrco \
Transcription
Hircus lascivum et petulcum animal et fervens
\semper ad coitum, cuius oculi ob libidinem in
transversum \aspiciunt. Unde et nomen traxit. Nam
hirci sunt oculorum angeli \secundum Suetonium.
Cuius natura adeo calidissima est ut adaman\tem
lapidem quem nec ignis nec ferri valet domare
materia \solus huius cruor dissolvat. Hedi ab edendo
vocati, parvi \enim pinguissimi sunt, et saporis
iocundi. Unde et ede \inde et edulium vocatur. \ De
apro \ Aper a feritate ablata, f littera, et subrogata p
unde apud grecos suagros idest ferus dicitur. Omne
sensorgr
dedicated these, in particular, as a sacrifice.
As winter approaches, the sheep is ravenous for food
and devours grass insatiably, because it senses the
coming severity of the season and seeks to stuff itself
Folio 21r Translation
with fodder before the grass fails in the sharp frost.
Of the wether, or ram
The wether gets its name, vervex, either from its
strength, vires, because it is stronger than other
sheep, or because it is a man, vir, that is, male, or
because it has worms, vermes, in its head; irritated
by the itching which these cause, wethers strike each
other, butting their heads together in combat with
great force. It is also called a ram, aries, from the
Greek, Ares, that is, the god of war; in Latin, Mars;
that is why we call the males in a flock mares. Or
because, once upon a time, this animal was offered as
a sacrifice by pagans on their altars: thus, aries,
because it is laid upon an altar, ara. From which we
get: 'the ram is sacrificed at the altar' (see Exodus,
29:18).
Of the lamb
The lamb is called agnus possibly from the Greek
word agnos, pious. Some think that it gets the Latin
form of its name because, more than any other
animal, it recognises, agnoscere, its mother, so much
so that, even if it strays in the midst of a large flock,
it recognises its mother's voice by her bleat and
hurries to her. It seeks out also the sources of
mother's milk which are familiar to it. The mother
recognises her lamb alone among many thousands of
others. Lambs in large numbers make the same baa-
ing noise and look the same, yet she picks out her
offspring among the others and by her great show of
tenderness identifies it as hers alone.
Of the he-goat
Folio 21v Translation
The he-goat is a wanton and frisky animal, always
longing for sex; as a result of its lustfulness its eyes
look sideways - from which it has has derived its
name. For, according to Suetonius, hirci are the
corners of the eyes. Its nature is so very heated that
its blood alone will dissolve a diamond, against which
the properties of neither fire nor iron can prevail.
Kids, hedi, take their name from the word for eating,
edendum, for the young ones are very fat and taste
delicious. As a result their name means 'eat' and
'eatable'.
enim quod ferum est et immite, abusive agreste
vocamus. \ De iuvenco \ Iuvencus dictus quod iuvare
incipiat hominum usus in terra \colenda, vel quia
apud gentiles iovi semper ubique iu\vencus
immmmolabatur, et nunquam taurus. Nam in victimis
\etiam etas considerabatur. Taurus grecum nomen est
sicut et bos. \Indicis tauris colr fulvus est, volueris
pernicitas. pilus in contrarium versus hiatus omne
quod caput. Hi quoque circumferunt cornua
flexibilitate qua volunt, tergi duricia omne telum
respuunt, tam immiti feritate \
sensorgr
Of the boar
The boar gets its name, aper, from its wildness, a
feritate, the letter f being replaced by a p; for the
same reason, it is called by the Greeks suagros,
meaning wild. For everything which is untamed and
savage we call, loosely, agreste, wild.
Of the bullock
The bullock is called iuvencus because it undertakes
to help man in his work of tilling the ground, or
because among pagans it was always a bullock which
was sacrificed to Jove - never a bull. For in selecting
sacrificial victims, age also was a consideration. The
word for bull, taurus, is Greek, as the word for ox,
bos. The bulls of India are tawny in hue and so swift-
footed that they seem to fly. Their hair grows against
the nap of their coat, their mouth opens to the size of
their head. They also move their horns in whatever
direction they wish, and the toughness of their hides
turns aside all weapons. So fierce and savage are
they ...
Transcription
[De equo part] etudinis si mutentur. Aliqui preter
dominum dorso nullum re\recipiunt, unde exemplum
dabimus. Alexandri magni equus \Bucefala dictus,
sive de aspectus torvitate, seu ab insigni quod
\taurinum caput armo inustum habebat, seu quod e
fronte \eius quedam corniculorum mine
protuberabant, cum ab equa\rio suo alias etiam
molliter sedetur accepto regio stratu neminem
\unquam preter dominum vehere dignatus est.
Documenta eius in preliis plu\ra sunt, quibus
Alexandrum crudelissimis certaminibus sospitem
\opere suo extulit. Equus Gaii Cesaris nullum preter
Cesarem dor\so recepit. Regem Scitarum singulari
certamine interemptum, \cum adversarius victor
spoliare vellet, ab equo eius calcibus mor\suque est
laceratus. Nichomede rege interfecto equus eius
inedia vi\tam expulit. Cum prelio Anthiocus Galathas
subegisset, Cin\tareti nomine ducis qui in acie
cediderat equum insilivit pug\naturus. Isque adeo
sprevit lupatos ut de industria cernuatus, \ruina
pariter et se et equitem affligeret. In huiscemodi
animalis \genere etas longior maribus. Legimus sane
equum ad annos lxx \vixisse. Notatum etiam
advertimus Opuntem nomine equum ad \gregariam
venerem durasse ad annos quadraginta. Equarum
libi\do extinguitur iubis tonsis, in quarum partu
amoris nascitur vene \ficium, quod in frontibus
preferunt editi fulvo colore caricis simile,
\hipponenses nominatur. Quod si preraptum statim
fuerit nequaquam \mater pullo ubera prebet
fellitando. Quo equis amor fuerit speique \maioris, eo
profundius nares mersitat in bibendo. Interfectis vel
\morientibus dominis equi lacrimas fundunt. Solum
enim equum \dicunt propter hominem lacrimare et
doloris affectum sentire. Unde \et in centauris
equorum et hominum natura permixta est. Solent
enim \ex equorum vel mesticia vel alacritate eventum
futurum dimica\turi colligere. Frequens opinio est in
generosis equis ut \
Transcription
aiunt veteres, quatuor expectantur, forma, pulcritudo,
sensorgr
Translation
[Of the horse]
[... Some horses recognise their own masters, and] if
these change, forget their training. Others let no-one
on their back except their master - we will give an
example of this.
The horse of Alexander the Great was called Bucefala,
either from its savage appearance, or from its brand -
it had a bull's-head burnt into its shoulder - or
because the points of little horns grew out of its
forehead. Although it was ridden by its groom at
times without resisting, once it carried the royal
saddle, it would never deign to carry anyone but its
master the king. There are many accounts of this
horse in battles where, by its own efforts, it carried
Alexander unharmed from the fiercest fights. The
horse of Gaius Caesar allowed no-one on its back but
Caesar. When the king of the Scythians was killed in
single combat, his victorious opponent sought to
plunder his corpse but was mauled by the king's
horse, which kicked and bit him. When King
Nicomedes was killed, his horse starved itself to
death. When Antiochus conquered the Galatians, he
leapt on the horse of a general, Cintaretus by name,
who had fallen in battle, in order to go on fighting.
But the horse reacted against the bit to such an
extent that it fell deliberately, injuring both itself and
its rider in the fall.
Among this kind of animal, the males live longer.
Indeed, we read of horses living for seventy years.
We note also that a stallion called Opuntes was at
stud up to the age of forty. In mares, sexual desire is
quenched when their mane is cropped; when they
give birth, a love charm appears, which the foals
display on their foreheads, tawny in colour, like a tuft
of sedge, called hipponenses. If it is taken away
immediately, the mother will on no account give her
udders to the foal to suckle it. The deeper a horse
dips its nostrils when drinking, the better its
prospects.
Horses weep for their slain or dying masters. It is said
that the horse alone weeps for men and feels the
emotion of grief on their account. Following on from
this, the characteristics of horses and men are
intermingled in the centaurs. Men riding into battle
can infer from the low or high spirits of their mounts,
what the outcome will be.
The general view is that in horses of good pedigree ...
Translation
as the ancients said, you look for four things: form,
meri\tum atque color. Forma ut sit validum corpus et
solidum, robori conveniens altitudo, latus longum,
substrictum, \maximi et rotundi clunes, pectus late
patens, corpus omne \maculorum densitate nodosum,
pes siccus, et cornu concavo \solidatus. Pulchritudo ut
sit exiguum caput, et siccum, \pelle prope ossibus
adherente. Aures breves et argute, oculi \magni,
nares patule et erecta cervix. Goma densa et cauda
\ungularum fixa rotunditas. Meritum, ut sit animo
au\dax, pedibus alacer, trementibus membris, quod
est fortitu\dinis indicium, quique ex summa quiete
facile concitatur, \et excitata festinatione non difficile
teneatur. Motus autem \equi in auribus intelligitur,
virtus in membris trementibus. \Color hic precipue
expectandus badius, aureus, roseus, mir\teus,
cervinus, gilvus, glaucus, scutulatus, canus, candidus,
\albus, guttatus niger. Sequenti autem ordine varius
ex nigro \badioque distinctus, reliquus varius color vel
cinereus deter\imus. Badium autem antiqui validum
dicebant, quod inter \cetera animalia forcius vadat.
Ipse est et spadix, quem Fenica\tum vocant, et dictus
a colore palme quam Syrii spadicem \vocant. Glaucus
vero est veluti pictos habens oculus, et quodam
splen\dore perfusos. Gilvus autem melius color est
subalbidus. Guttatus \albus nigris intervenientibus
punctis. Candidus autem et albus, invi\cem sibi
differunt. Nam albus cum quodam pallore est.
Candidus \vero est niveus et pura luce perfusus.
Canus dictus quia ex candido \colore et nigro est.
Scutulatus vocatus propter orbes quos habet candidos
\inter purpuras. Varius quod vias habet imparium
colorum. Qui \autem albos tamen pedes habent, petili
appellantur, qui frontem albam \calidi. Cervinus est
quem vulgo gaurantem dicunt. Onosimus\
Transcription
autem dictus quod sit color eius de asino idem et
cinereus. \Sunt autem hii agresti de genere orti quos
equiferos dicimus \et proinde ad urbanam dignitatem
transire non possunt. \Mauron niger est, nigrum enim
Greci mauron vocant. Man\nus vero equus brevior est
quem vulgo brunium vocant. Veredos \antiqui
dixerunt quod veherent redas, id est ducerent, vel
sensorgr
beauty, temperament and colour.
As to form, the body should be sound and firm; its
height consistent with strength; long and narrow in
the flank; haunches, large and rounded; broad chest;
the entire body knotted with the thickness of its
muscles; dry hooves, supported by a curved frog.
As to beauty: its head should be small and dry; the
skin taut against its bones; the ears, short and neat;
the eyes, large, the nostrils broad and the neck erect;
the mane, and tail, thick; the hooves firmly curved.
As to temperament: it should be bold of spirit, light-
footed, with quivering limbs - a sign of courage; it
should be easy to rouse when it is at rest, and once it
has been put to the gallop, it should not be difficult to
control. You can judge the pace of a horse by the
pricking of its ears, its mettle from the quivering of its
limbs.
The main colours to be found are: bay, golden, rosy,
chestnut, tawny-red, pale yellow, blue-grey, dappled,
light grey, brilliant white, ordinary white, piebald,
black. After these come variegated colours based on
black or bay; other mixtures or those which are the
colour of ashes are the lowest sort
According to the ancients, a bay, badius, was a
powerful horse, because among other animals its
pace was stronger. The same horse was called spadix
or fenicatus, date-brown, from the palm-tree which
the Syrians call spadix. The blue-grey, glaucus, is like
the colour of eyes, painted and suffused with
brightness. The pale yellow, gilvus, is better described
by the colour 'off-white'. A piebald horse, guttatus, is
white, mottled with black. The brilliant and ordinary
white, candidus and albus, differ one from the other.
For the ordinary white has a sort of paleness, but the
brilliant white is like snow, suffused with pure, shining
light. Light grey, canus, is so called because it is
composed of brilliant white and black. A dappled
horse, scutulatus, gets its name from its circular,
shield-like, patches of brilliant white and dark brown.
A variegated horse, varius, is so called because it has
stripes of different colours. Those which have white
feet are called petili; 'slenderfeet'; those with a white
forehead callidi, 'hotheads'. The tawny-red horse,
cervinus, is commonly called gaurans. The horse
called vosinus
Translation
is so called because its colour is that of an ass, whose
coat is also the colour of ashes. These are found in
the country, bred from the species we call equiferi,
wild horses, and cannot therefore make the transition
to domesticated status. The horse called mauron, a
moor or arab, is black, because the Greek word for a
black man is mauron. A cob, mannus, is a smaller
quod vias \publicas currant per quas et redas ire
solitum erat. Equorum \tria genera sunt. Unum
generosum preliis, et oneribus aptum, al\terum
vulgare atque gregarium ad vehendum, non ad
equitan\dum aptum. Tercium ex permixtione diversi
generis ortum, quod \etiam dicitur bigenerum, quia ex
diversis nascitur ut mulus. Mulus a \Greco tractum
vocabulum habet. Greco enim hoc vocatur vel quod
iu\go pistorum subactus, tardas molendo ducat in
girum molas. \Judei asserunt quod Ana abnepos Esau
equarum greges ab asi\nis in deserto ipse primus
fecerit ascendi, ut multorum inde nova \contra
naturam animalia nascerentur. Onagros quoque ad
hoc admis\sos esse ad asinas, et ipsum istiusmodi
reperisse concubitum, ut ex his \velocissimi asini
nascerentur. Industria quippe humana \diversum
animal in coitu coegit. Sicque adulterina commix\tione
genus aliud reperit, sicut et Jacob contra naturam
colorum \similitudines procuravit. Nam tales fetus
oves illius concipi\ebant, quales umbras arietum
desuper ascendentium in \aquarum speculo
contemplabantur. Denique et hoc ipsum in equo\rum
gregibus fieri fertur, ut generosus obiciant visibus
concipi\entium, quo eorum similes concipere et creare
possint. Nam et \columbarum dilectores depictas
ponunt pulcherrimas co\lumbas hisdem locis quibus
ille versantur, quo rapiente visu simi-les generent.
Inde est quod quidam gravidas milieres iubent \nullos
intueri turpissimos animalium vultus, ut scenophalos \
Transcription
et simias, ne visibus occurrentes similes fetus pariant.
Hanc \enim feminarum esse naturam, ut quales
perspexerint, sive mente \in extremo voluptatis estu
dum concipiunt, talem et sobo\lem procreent, et enim
animalia in usu venerio formas extrin\secus
transmittunt intus eorumque saciata typis rapit
species \eorum in propriam qualitatem. In
animantibus bigenera di\cuntur que ex diversis
nascuntur, ut mulus, ex equa et asino, bur\do ex
equo et asina, ybride ex apris et porcis, tyrius ex ove
et yrco, \musino ex capra et ariete, est autem dux
gregis. \
De musione
\ Musio appellatus \quod muribus infestus \sit. Hunc
sensorgr
kind of horse, commonly called brunius 'a brown'. The
ancients called post-horses veredi, because they drew
carriages, vehere redas, that is, because they pulled
them or because they went on public highways, via,
along which carriages, reda, customarily go.
There are three kinds of horse. One is the noble war-
horse, capable of carrying heavy weights; the second
is the everyday kind, used for drawing loads but
unsuitable for riding. The third is born from a
combination of different species, and is also called
bigener, hybrid, because it is born of mixed stock, like
a mule.
The word mulus, mule, comes from the Greek. It is
called this in Greek because under the miller's yoke it
draws the lumbering millstones, mola, in a circle to
grind the corn. The Jews say that Ana, the son of the
great-grandchild of Esau, was the very first to have
herds of mares covered by asses in the desert, so
that as a result new animals were born of many sires
- against nature. It is said that wild asses were also
put to she-asses and the same kind of cross-breeding
was obtained in order to produce from them asses
which were very fleet of foot. Indeed human activity
has brought together a variety of animals to mate.
And from this adulterous interbreeding man has
produced a new species, just as Jacob obtained
animals of the same colour - also against nature. For
his ewes conceived lambs of the same colour as the
rams which mounted them, seeing them reflected in
water. Finally it is said that the same thing happens
with herds of mares, that men put noble stallions in
view of those which are about to conceive, so that
they can conceive and create offspring in the stallions'
image. Pigeon fanciers place images of the most
beautiful pigeons in places where they flock, to catch
the birds' eye, so that they may produce babies which
look like them. It is for this reason that people order
pregnant women not to look at animals with very ugly
countenances, such as dog-headed apes ...
Translation
or apes, lest they should bear children who look like
the things they have seen. For it is said to be the
nature of women that they produce as offspring
whatever they see or imagine at the height of their
ardour as they conceive; animals, indeed, when they
are mating, transmit inwardly the forms they see
outwardly and, imbued with these images, take on
their appearance as their own.
Among living things the name 'hybrid' is given to
those born from the mating of two different species,
such as the mule from a mare and an ass, the hinny
from a stallion and a she-ass, the hybrid from the wild
boar and the sow, the animal called tyrius from the
sheep and the he-goat, and the moufflon rom the
she-goat and the ram; the moufflon is the leader of
vulgus catum \a captura vocant. Alii \dicunt quod
captat, id est videt. \Nam tanto acute cernit, \ut
fulgore luminis noc \tis tenebras superet. Unde \a
Greco venit catus, id est ingeniosus. \
De muribus
\ Mus pusillum animal \Grecum nomen est, quicquid
vero ex eo trahit \Latinum sit. Alii dicunt mures quod
ex \humore terre nascantur. Nam humus terra et
mus, \id est his in plenilunio iecur crescit, sicut
que\dam maritima augentur, que rursus minuente
luna deficiunt. \
De mustela
\ Mustela quasi mus \longum, nam theon Greci
longum \dicunt. Hec ingenio subdola in domo ubi
\habitat cum catulos genuerit, de loco ad \locum
transfert mutataque sede locat serpen\
Transcription
tes et mures persequitur. Duo autem earum genera
sunt. Altera \enim silvestre distans magnitudine. Has
Greci ictidas vo\cant, altera in domibus oberrans.
Quidam dicunt eas aure \concipere et ore generare, et
econtrario quidam dicunt eas ore \concipere et aure
generare, dicuntur etiam perite medicine, ita ut \si
forte occisi fuerint eorum fetus, si invenire potuerint,
redi\vivos faciant. Significant autem aliquantos qui
libenter \quidem audiunt divini verbi semen, sed
amore terrenarum rerum \decenti pretermittunt et
dissimulant quod audierint. \
De talpa
\ Talpa dicta quod sit dampnata ceci\tate perpetua
tenebris. Est enim \absque oculis, semper terram
fodit, et humum \egerit, et radices subter frugibus
comedit quod \Greci aphala vocant. \
De ericiis
\ Ericius animal ex \spinis coopertum. \Quod exinde
dicitur nomi\natum, eo quod subrigit \se quando
spinis suis clau\ditur, quibus undique pro\tectus est
contra insidi\as. Nam statim ut \aliquid presenserit,
pri\mum se subrigit atque \in globum conversus \in
sua se arma recol\ligit. Huius prudentia \quedam est,
sensorgr
the flock.
Of the cat
The cat is called musio, mouse-catcher, because it is
the enemy of mice. It is commonly called catus, cat,
from captura, the act of catching. Others say it gets
the name from capto, because it catches mice with its
sharp eyes. For it has such piercing sight that it
overcomes the dark of night with the gleam of light
from its eyes. As a result, the Greek word catus
means sharp, or cunning.
Of mice
The mouse is a puny animal; its name, mus, comes
from the Greek, the Latin word deriving from it.
Others say mures, mice, because they are produced
ex humore, from the damp soil, of the earth; for
humus means earth and from that comes mus,
mouse. Their liver grows bigger at full moon, like the
tides rise then fall with the waning of the moon.
Of the weasel
The weasel is called mustela, 'a long mouse', so to
speak, for theon [telos] in Greek means 'long'. It is
cunning by nature; when it has produced its offspring
in its nest, it carries them from place to place, settling
them in a series of different locations.
Translation
It hunts snakes and mice. There are two kinds of
weasel. One, of very different size from the other,
lives in the forest. The Greeks call these ictidas; the
other roams around in houses. Some say that weasels
conceive through the ear and give birth through the
mouth; others say, on the contrary, that they
conceive through the mouth and give birth through
the ear; it is said, also, that they are skilled in
healing, so that if by chance their young are killed,
and their parents succeed in finding them, they can
bring their offspring back to life.
Weasels signify the not inconsiderable number of
people who listen willingly enough to the seed of the
divine word but, caught up in their love of wordly
things, ignore it and take no account of what they
have heard.
Of the mole
The mole is called talpa because it is condemned to
darkness by its permanent blindness. For it lacks
eyes, eyeless, is always digging in the ground and
throwing out the soil, and feeds on the the roots of
the plants which the Greeks call aphala, vetch.
Of hedgehogs
nam dum \absciderit uuam derute, sese volutat
supinus super eam, \et sic exhibet natis suis. Dicitur
etiam echinus. Idemque echinus \
sensorgr
The hedgehog is covered in prickles. From this it gets
its name, because it bristles, when it is enclosed in its
prickles and is protected by them on all sides against
attack. For as soon as it senses anything, it first
bristles then, rolling itself into a ball, regains its
courage behind its armour. The hedgehog has a
certain kind of foresight: as it tears off a grape, it rolls
backwards on it and so delivers it to its young. It is
also called echinus, urchin. This 'urchin',
Transcription
futuri providus geminas sibi respirandi vias munit ut
quando \boream flaturum collegerit, septemtrionalem
obstruat, quando \nothum cognoverit detegere aeris
nebulam ad septemtriona\lem se conferat ut flatus
declinet obvios et regione nocituros. \
De formicis
\ Formica tres naturas habet. Prima natura est ut
ordina\te ambulent, et unaqueque earum granum
baiulet in ore suo. \Et he que vacue sunt, non dicunt
date nobis de granis vestris, \sed vadunt per vestigia
priorum usque ad locum ubi frumentum \inveniunt et
afferunt frumentum in cubile suum. Habet ad
pru\dentium significationem dicta sufficiant, quia sicut
formice con\gregant unde remunerentur in futuro.
Secunda natura quando recon\dit grana in cubile
suum dividit ea in duo, ne forte pluvia \infundantur in
hieme, et germinent grana et fame pereat, sic et \tu
homo verba veteris et novi testamenti divide, id est
discerne inter \spiritualia et carnalia, ne littera te
occidat, quam lex spiritualis est sicut \apostolus ait:
Littera enim occidit, spritus autem vivificat. Judei
namque \solam litteram attendentes, et spiritualem
intellectum contempnen\tes, fame necati sunt. Tertia
natura est. Tempore messis ambu \lat inter segetes,
et ore intelligit an ordei sit spica an tritici. Si \fuerit
ordei, transit ad aliud spicum et odorat, et si senserit
quia \tritici est, ascendit in summitatem spici, et
tollens inde gra\num portat in habitaculum suum.
Ordeum enim brutorum \animalium cibus est. Unde
dicit Job: pro tritico prodivit mihi ordeum, \scilicet
doctrine hereticorum. Ordeacee enim sunt et procul
abiciende, \que dirumpunt et interficiunt animas
hominum. Fuge ergo \Christiane omnes hereticos
quorum dogmata falsa et inimica sunt \
Transcription
veritati. Dicit enim scriptura: Conferte ad formicam
opiger, \emulare vias eius, et esto illa sapientior. Illa
enim culturam nullam \possidet neque eam qui se
cogat habet, neque sub domino agit quemad\modum
preparat escam, que de tuis laboribus sibi messem
recon\dit. Et cum tu plerumque egeas, illa non
indiget. Nulla sunt \ei clausa horrea, nulle
sensorgr
Translation
thinking ahead, protects itself with twin ventilation
ducts, son that when it thinks that the north wind is
about to blow, it blocks the northern one, and when it
knows that the south wind is giving warning of mist in
the air, it goes to the northern passage to avoid the
vapours blown from the opposite direction, which will
do it harm.
Of ants
The ant has three characteristics. The first is that they
march in line, each one carrying a grain of corn in its
mouth. Those who have none do not say to the
others: 'Give us some of your grain', but follow the
tracks of those who first went out to the place where
they find the corn and carry it off to their nest. Let
this description serve to signify sensible men, who,
like the ants, act in unity, as a result of which they
will be rewarded in the future.
The ant's second characteristic is that when it stores
grain in its nest, it divides its supply in two, lest by
chance it should be soaked in the winter rains, the
seed germinate and the ant die of hunger. In the
same way, you, O man, should keep separate the
words of the Old and the New Testament, that is,
distinguish between the spiritual and the carnal, lest
the law interpreted literally should kill you, for the law
is a spiritual thing, as the Apostle says: 'For the letter
killeth, but the spirit giveth life' (2 Corinthians, 3:6).
For the Jews, who paid attention only to the letter of
the law and scorned its spiritual interpretation, have
died of hunger.
The ant's third characteristic is that at harvest time it
walks through the crop and finds out by nibbling the
ears whether it is barley or wheat. If the crop is
barley, the ant goes to another ear and sniffs it, and if
it smells wheat, it climbs to the top of the ear and
carries off the grain to its nest. For barley is food for
beasts. As Job says: 'Barley grew for me instead of
wheat' (see Job, 31:40), meaning the doctrine of
heretics. For heresy is like barley, and should be cast
away, because it shatters and destroys men's souls.
Therefore, Christian, flee from all heretics; their
teachings are false and hostile ...
Translation
to the truth. For the Scriptures say: 'Go to the ant,
thou sluggard, consider her ways and be wise'
(Proverbs, 6:6). For the ant has no knowledge of
cultivation; it has no-one to force it do anything; nor
does it act under the direction of a master, telling it
how to lay in a store of food. Yet it gathers in its
harvest from your labours. And although you often go
impenetrabiles custodie, nulli inviolabi\les acervi.
Spectat custos furta que prohibere non audeat,
aspi\cit sua dampna possessor nec vindicat. Nigro
convertatur agmi\ne preda per campos, fervent
semite comitatu viantium, et que \comprehendi
angusto [A, angustio ore/angustiore] non possunt
humeris frumenta traduntur. \Spectat hec dominus
messis et erubescit tam parca pie indu\strie negare
compendia. Novit etiam formica explorare sere\nitatis
tempora. Nam cum adverterit madidatos imbre
fruc\tus suos humescere explorato diligentius aere,
quando iugem pos\sit servare temperiem, acervos
reserat suos, et de cavernis foras \suis humeris
exportat, iugi sole propria frumenta siccentur.
Denique \haut unquam illis diebus omnibus rumpi de
nubibus imbres videbis, \nisi cum fruges suas horreis
propriis formica revocaverit. \ Hic incipit de avibus \
Unum autem nomen avium sed genus \diversum.
Nam sicut species sibi differunt, ita et nature
\diversitate. Nam alie simplices sunt ut columbe, alie
astute \ut perdix, alie ad manum se subiciunt ut
accipitres, alie reformi\dant ut garamantes. Alie
hominum conversatione delectantur \ut hirundo, alie
in desertis secretam viam diligunt ut turtura. \Alie
solo semine reperto pascuntur ut anser, alie carnes
edunt et \rapinis [intendunt] ut milvus. Alie
congregate, id est gregatim vo\lantes ut sturni et
coturnices, alie solivage, id est solitarie propter
\insidias depredandi ut aquila et accipiter, et
quecumque ita sunt. \Alie vocibus strepunt ut
hirundo, alie cantus edunt dulcissimos \
Transcription
ut cignus et merula. Alie verba et voces hominum
imitantur, ut \psitacus et pica. Sed alia sicut genere
ita et moribus innumerabilia. \Nam et volucrum quot
genera sint, invenire quisque non potest. \Neque
enim omnes Scithie et Indie aut Ethiopie deserta quis
pe\netrare potuit, qui earum genus vel differentias
nosset. \
Aves
\dicte eo quod vias rectas non habent sed per avia
queque discurrunt. \Alites quod alis alta intendunt et
ad sublimia remigio alarum \conscendant. Volucres a
volando. Nam unde volare, inde \et ambulare dicimus.
sensorgr
hungry, it lacks for nothing. It has no locked
storehouses, no impenetrable security, no piles of
supplies which cannot be touched. The watchman
looks on at thefts which he dares not prevent, the
owner is aware of his losses but takes no revenge.
They carry their booty in a black column across the
fields, the paths swarming with the convoy as it
passes; the grains that cannot be held in their narrow
mouths in narrow parts are consigned to their
shoulders. The owner of the harvest looks on and
blushes with shame at the thought of denying such
frugal gains won by such conscientious industry.
The ant has also learned to watch out for periods of
fine weather. For if it sees that its supplies of corn are
becoming wet, soaked by the rain, it carefully tests
the air for signs of a mild spell, then it opens up its
stores, and carries its supplies on its shoulders from
its vaults underground out into the open, so that the
corn can dry in the unbroken sunshine. Finally, you
will never on any of those days see rain spouted from
the clouds, unless the ant has first returned its
supplies of corn to its stores.
Here begins the account of the birds
Birds have a single name, avis, but a variety of
species. For just as they differ in appearance, so they
differ in nature. Some are guileless, like doves; others
are cunning, like the partridge; some come obediently
to man's hand, like hawks; others shun it, like the
wild birds called garamantes. Some take pleasure in
man's company, like the swallow; others love the
solitary life of the wilderness, like turtle-doves. Some
feed only on the grain they find, like the goose;
others eat flesh and think only of their prey, like the
kite. Some live communally, that is, they fly together
in flocks, like starlings and quail; others roam the
skies alone, that is, they keep to themselves because
they take their prey by surprise, like the eagle or the
hawk and others of that sort. Some have twittering
voices, like the swallow; others sing the sweetest of
songs,
Translation
like the swan and the blackbird. Some imitate the
words and voices of men, like the parrot and magpie.
There are countless others, however, differing alike in
kind and habits. For it is impossible to find out how
many kinds of birds there are. And anyone who could
penetrate the desert places of Scythia and India or
Ethiopia still could not get to know all the species of
birds there or the differences between them.
Birds are called aves because they do not go in a
straight line but fly at random, off-course, per avia.
They are called alites, winged creatures, because it is
on their wings, ale, that they reach for the skies and
Vola enim dicitur media pars pedis sive \manus, et in
avibus media pars alarum quarum motu penne
\agitantur, inde volucres. Pulli dicuntur avium
omnium nati. \Sed et animalium quadrupedum nati
pulli dicuntur. Et homo \parvus pullus, recentes igitur
nati pulli, eo quod polluti sunt, unde \et vestis nigra
et pulla dicta. Ale sunt in quibus penne \per or\dinem
fixe volandi exhibent usum. Vocate autem ale quod
\his aves complexus alant ac fovent pullos. Penna a
pendendo, \id est a volando dicta, unde et pendere.
Volucres enim pennarum \auxilio moventur quando se
aeri mandant. Pluma quasi piluma. \Nam sicut pili in
quadrupedum corpore, ita pluma in avibus. \Avium
nomina multa a sono vocis constat esse composita ut
\grus, corvus, cignus, bubo, milvus, ulula, cuculus,
garrulus, \graculus et cetera. Varietas enim vocis
earum docuit homi\nes quid vocarentur. \
De pennis deargentatis columbe
\ Columbam cuius penne sunt deargentate et
po\steriora dorsi eius in pallore auri pingere et per
pic\turam simplicium mentes edificare decrevi, \ut
quod simplicium animus intelligibili oculo capere \vix
poterat, saltem carnali discernat, et quod vix poterat
auditus, \percipiat visus. Nec tantum volui columbam
formando pingere, \
Transcription
sed etiam dictando describere, ut per scripturam,
demonstrare picturam, \vel [PL, ut] cui non placuerit
simplicitas picture, placeat saltem mora\litas
scripture. Tibi igitur cui date sunt penne columbe, qui
elongasti \fugiens ut in solitudine maneres et
requiesceres, qui non queris \dilationem in voce
corvine cras cras, sed contricionem in gemitu
sensorgr
it is by beating them that they ascend to the heights.
They are called volucres, flying creatures, from
volandum, flying, For what we call 'walking' and
'flying' stem from the same mechanism. For what we
call vola, the hollow, or middle part of the foot or the
hand, is in birds the middle part of the wings - at the
junction with the shoulders - by whose motion the
flight feathers are activated; hence their name,
volucres.
The young of all birds are called pulli. But the young
of quadrupeds are also called pulli. So, too, is a
human child. The newly-born, then, are called pulli,
because they are polluti, unclean; for the same
reason, dark clothes are also called pulla.
Birds have wings, ale, in which feathers, fixed in a
particular order, demonstrate the act of flight. Wings
are called ale because birds nourish, alere, and
cherish their young, folding their wings around them.
The flight feather, penna, is so called from pendeo, to
hover, that is, fly, from which comes also 'suspend'.
For birds move by means of their flight feathers when
they entrust themselves to the air. The down feather,
pluma, is so to speak, piluma, derived from pilus,
hair. For just as there are hairs on the body of a
quadruped, so there is down on birds.
It is known that many bird-names are formed from
the sound of their call, like grus, the crane; corvus,
the raven; cignus, the swan; bubo, the owl; milvus,
the kite; ulula, the screech-owl; cuculus, the cuckoo;
[garrulus] graculus, the jackdaw, and others. For the
particular call they give has taught man what name
they should be given.
Of the silver-sheathed wings of the dove
It is my intention to paint a picture of the dove,
whose wings are sheathed in silver and whose tail has
the pale colour of gold (see Psalms, 68:13). In
painting this picture I intend to improve the minds of
ordinary people, in such a way that their soul will at
least perceive physically things which it has difficulty
in grasping mentally; that what they have difficulty
comprehending with their ears, they will perceive with
their eyes.
I want not only to depict the dove by creating its
likeness,
Translation
but also to describe it in words, to reveal the picture
through the text, so that the reader who is
unimpressed with the simplicity of the picture may at
least take pleasure in the moral content of the text.
To you, therefore, who have received the wings of a
dove; to you who have fled far away, to stay and be
\columbino, tibi inquam non tamen ad presens
columbam, sed etiam accipi\trem pingam. Ecce in
eadem pertica sedent accipiter et columba. \Ego enim
de clero tu de militia ad conversionem venimus, ut in
re\gulari vita quasi in pertica sedeamus, et qui rapere
consueveras dome\sticas aves, nunc bone operationis
manu silvestres ad conversio\nem trahas, id est
seculares. Gemat igitur columba gemat, et accipiter
vocem \doloris emittat. Vox enim columbe gemitus,
vox accipitris questus. \In principio huius operis
iccirco columbam preposui, quia sancti spiritus gratia
semper \preparatur cuilibet penitenti, nec nisi per
gratiam pervenitur ad veniam. \De accipitre vero post
columbam subiungitur, per quem nobilium perso\ne
designantur. Cum enim aliquis nobilium convertitur,
\per exemplum bone operationis pauperibus
presentatus. \ De columba et accipitre \ Cum
scribere illiterato \debeam non miretur diligens
\lector, si ad edificationem il\literati de subtilibus
simplicia \dicam. Nec imputet levitati \quod
accipitrem vel columbam \pingam, cum beatus Job, et
\propheta David huiusmodi volucres nobis reliquerint
ad \doctrinam. Quod enim doctoribus innuit scriptura,
hoc \simplicibus pictura, sicut enim sapiens delectatur
subtili\tate scripture, sic simplicium animus detinetur
simplicitate \
Transcription
picture. Ego autem plus laboro ut simplicibus
placeam, quam ut \doctoribus loquar, et quasi vasculo
latices infundam. Qui enim \sapientem verbis instruit,
quasi vasculo pleno latices infundit. \
Hic incipit de tribus columbis
\ Si dormiatis inter medios cleros \penne columbe
deargentate, et postiora dorsi eius in pal\lore auri. In
scriptura sacra fratres tres columbas legendo repperi,
ex \quibus si attente considerentur simplicium mentes
ad perfectionem \poterunt edoceri. Columba, scilicet
Noe, columba David, columba Jesus Christi. \Noe
requies, David manu fortis, Jesus salvator
sensorgr
at rest in solitude (see Psalms, 55:6); to you who do
not seek deferment, croaking like the raven 'Cras,
cras, Tomorrow tomorrow!' but express penitence in
the mournful cry of the dove (see Isaiah, 38:14); to
you, I say, I shall at this time depict not just the dove
but also the hawk.
See, on the same perch sit a hawk and a dove. For
both of us - I from the clergy, you from the military -
have been converted, so that we should share the
monastic life together, as if we sat on the same
perch, and that you,who were in the habit of stealing
domestic birds, should now attract wild birds to
conversion, luring them with the hand of virtuous
conduct; by 'wild birds', I mean worldly people.
Therefore let the dove mourn, let it mourn (see
Isaiah, 59:11) and let the hawk utter cries of grief.
For the call of the dove is one of sorrow; the cry of
the hawk, a complaint. For that reason, at the
beginning of this work, I placed the dove first,
because the grace of the holy spirit is always made
ready for anyone who repents, and no-one will attain
forgiveness except through this grace.
The account of the hawk comes after that of the
dove; it signifies members of the nobility. For when
anyone of the nobility is converted, he furnishes an
example of virtuous conduct to the poor.
Of the dove and the hawk
As I have to write for people who have no education,
the attentive reader should not be surprised if, for
their improvement, I speak in a simple way of
complex subjects. He should not ascribe to triviality
the fact that I depict the hawk or the dove, since the
blessed Job and the prophet David left us examples of
birds of that kind to illustrate their teaching. For what
the written word means to teachers, a picture means
to the uneducated; just as the wise take pleasure in
the complexity of a text, so the mind of ordinary
people is captivated by the simplicity
Translation
of a picture. Personally, I try harder to please the
uneducated than to speak to the learned - as if I were
pouring liquid into a vessel. For to furnish the wise
man with words is like pouring liquid into a vessel that
is already full.
Here begins the account of the three doves
'If you sleep among the sheepfolds...a dove, its wings
sheathed in silver and its tail feathers in the pale
colour of gold' (see BSV, Psalmi, 67:14; NEB, Psalms,
68:11-13).
In reading the Holy Scripture, brothers, I have found
interpretatur. Peccatori \autem dicitur: peccasti,
quiesce. Si igitur vis esse Noe, quiesce a peccatis \ut
David esse possis, operare fortia, si salvari desideras,
a salvato\re salutem postula. Diverte a malo, fac
bonum, inquire pacem, \diverte ad archam Noe,
preliare cum David, prelia domini, inquire pa\cem cum
Jesu in Jerusalem, diverte ad quietem mentis, resiste
temp\tationibus, expecta pacienter salutis beneficium.
De columba vero \Noe dicitur: Reversa est columba
ad vesperam, ferens in ore suo ramum \olive. Ad
archam Noe columba revertitur, cum ad quietem
men\tis ab exterioribus animus revocatur. Revertitur
ad vesperam cum defi\ciente luce mundane felicitatis,
vane glorie fugit pompam ti\mens ne incurrat
obscuritatem noctis, id est profunditatem perpetue
\dampnationis. Olivam gerit, quia misericordiam
querit. Olivam \in ore portat, dum indulgeri sibi quod
deliquerat precibus exorat. De \columba vero David
dicitur, et postiora dorsi eius in pallore auri. In
posterioribus dorsi au\rum habetur, quia bene
operanti in futuro venia promittitur. Similiter \et de
salvatore legitur cum descensu columbe super eum
hec vox \auditur: Hic est filius meus dilectus in quo
mihi bene complacui. \Columba est sancti spiritus
gratia, que super Jesum in Jordane descendisse
cernitur, \quia cuilibet humili a peccatis mundato,
gratia preparatur. Penitenti \igitur fit misericordia,
bene operanti promittitur venia, diligenti datur gratia.
\
Transcription
Mistice de columba
\ Si dormiatis inter medios cleros, penne columbe
deargentate et posteriora \dorsi eius in pallore auri.
Columba deargentata, est ecclesia, \doctrina divini
eloquii erudita. Que per similitudinem fertur \habere
predicationis rostrum ratione divisum quo grana
colligat ordei \et frumenti, sententias scilicet veteris
et novi testamenti. Habet dextrum \et sinistrum
oculum, moralem et misticum sensum. Seipsam
res\picit sinistro, deum vero contemplatur dextro.
Duas alas habet, activam \et contemplativam vitam.
His duabus alis sedens tegitur, his dua\bus volans ad
celestia sublevatur. Volamus, cum mente excedimus.
sensorgr
references to three doves which, if they are carefully
studied, can bring the minds of the uneducated to
perfection. They are the doves of Noah, David and
Jesus Christ. Noah represents peace; David, the
mighty hand; Jesus, salvation. Now the sinner is told:
'Hast thou sinned? do so no more' (Ecclesiasticus,
21:1). If, therefore, you wish to be Noah, desist from
sin; in order to be David, you must do brave deeds; if
you long to be saved, ask for salvation from your
Saviour. 'Depart from evil and do good; seek peace'
(Psalms, 34:14). Turn towards the ark of Noah. Fight
with David the battles of the Lord. Seek peace with
Jesus in Jerusalem. Turn towards peace of mind.
Resist temptation. Await patiently the favour of
salvation.
Of Noah's dove, it is said: 'The dove came in to him in
the evening; and in her mouth was an olive branch'
(see Genesis, 8:11). The dove returns to Noah's ark
as the soul is recalled from external things to the
inner peace of the mind. The dove returns at evening
as the light of wordly pleasure starts to fade, and the
soul flees from the pomp of empty glory, fearing to
encounter the darkness of the night - that is, the
depths of eternal damnation. The dove carries an
olive branch signifying the soul seeking mercy. It
carries the olive branch in its mouth, signifying the
soul begging with prayers for its sins to be forgiven.
Of the dove of David it is said: 'and its tail feathers in
the pale colour of gold.' Its tail feathers are of gold
because anyone who conducts himself virtuously in
time to come is promised forgiveness.
Likewise we read of our Saviour, that when the dove
descended upon him, a voice was heard, saying: 'This
is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased'
(Matthew, 3:17). The dove is the grace of the Holy
Spirit, which was seen to decend upon Jesus in
Jordan, because grace is made ready for anyone who
is humble and cleansed of sin. To the penitent, mercy
is granted; to those who are virtuous in conduct, a
pardon is promised; to the loving, grace is given.
Translation
The mystic aspects of the dove
'If you sleep among the sheepfolds...a dove, its wings
sheathed in silver and its tail feathers in the pale
colour of gold' (see BSV, Psalmi, 67:14; NEB, Psalms,
68:11-13).
The silver-covered dove is the Church, instructed by
the teaching of the holy word.
It is said that the Church has a rostrum, pulpit, for
preaching, divided for the purposes of receiving the
ideas of the Old and New Testament, by analogy with
the beak, rostrum, of the dove, which is divided to
\Sedemus, cum inter fratres sobrii sumus. In his
siquidem alis, penne sunt \inserte. Penne vero sunt
doctores, ale recte actionis et divine \contemplationis
firmiter inherentes. Cleros enim Grece sortes
\vocamus Latine. Due sortes, duo sunt testamenta.
Inter quas sortes dor\miunt, qui auctoribus veteris et
novi testamenti concordant et ad\quiescunt. Et
posteriora dorsi eius in pallore auri. Dorsum columbe
illam partem cor\poris esse dicunt, cui radices alarum
sese invicem naturaliter coniun\gunt. Ibidem cor
ponitur, quod dorso proximum auro perpetue
beatudi\nis in futuro operietur. Sicut aurum preciosius
est argento, sic et beatitudo \futuri seculi preciosior
est felicitate presenti. Posteriora igitur dorsi columbe
in \pallore auri erunt, quia iusti in eterna beatudine
nimia claritate fulge\bunt. \
Item de columba
\ Si dormiatis inter medios cleros, penne columbe
deargentate \et posteriora dorsi eius in pallore auri.
Columba est quelibet fidelis anima et simplex
dear\gentata in pennis, declarata in virtutibus per
famam bone opinionis. \Que tot in cibum colligit
seminum grana, quot ad bene operandum \assumit
sibi iustorum exempla. Duos habet oculos dextrum et
sinistrum, me\moriam scilicet et intellectum. In uno
futura previdet, in altero transacta de\flet. Hos oculos
clauserunt patres nostri in Egipto quoniam non
intellexerunt \opera dei, nec fuerunt memores
multitudinis misericordie eius. Duas vero habet \alas,
amorem proximi et amorem dei. Una extenditur per
compassionem \
Transcription
ad proximum, alter erigitur per contemplationem ad
sensorgr
gather grains of barley and corn. The dove has a right
and a left eye, signifying moral and mystic perception.
With the left eye the dove regards itself, but with the
right, it contemplates God.
It has two wings, signifying the active and the
contemplative life. At rest, it is covered by them; in
flight, it is raised by them to heavenly things. We are
in flight, when we are in a state of ecstasy. We are at
rest when we are among our brothers in a sober state
of mind.
Feathers are set in these wings. They are teachers,
fixed in the wings of righteous behaviour and the
contemplation of God. The word cleros in Greek we
translate into Latin as sortes, shares assigned by lot.
There are two such shares, the two Testaments.
Between them rest those who agree with and trust in
the authors of the Old and New Testaments.
'Its tail feathers in the pale colour of gold'. The back
of the dove is said to be the part of the body to which
the base of each wing is joined naturally. The heart,
too, is seated there; lying just beneath the golden
plumage of the dove's back, it will be covered in time
to come with the gold of eternal bliss. As gold is more
precious than silver, the bliss of the world to come is
more precious than the joy of the moment. Therefore
the tail feathers of the dove's back will be in the pale
colour of gold, because the righteous will shine with
surpassing brilliance in eternal bliss.
Also of the dove
'If you sleep among the sheepfolds...a dove, its wings
sheathed in silver and its tail feathers in the pale
colour of gold' (see BSV, Psalmi, 67:14; NEB, Psalms,
68:11-13).
The dove, with its silver-covered feathers, signifies
every faithful and pure soul, renowned for the high
esteem accorded to its virtues. The dove gathers as
many grains of seed for food as the soul does
examples of righteous men as models of virtuous
conduct.
The dove has two eyes, right and left, signifying, that
is, memory and intelligence. With one it foresees
things to come; with the other it weeps over what has
been. Our ancestors in Egypt closed their eyes since
they did not understand the works of God, nor
remembered the multitude of his mercies.
The dove has two wings, signifying love of one's
neighbour and love of God. One is spread out in
compassion
Translation
to its neighbour, the other is raised in contemplation
deum. Ex his alis \procedunt penne, id est virtutes
anime. He penne, argentea claritate \resplendent
quoniam per famam bone opinionis audientibus
argenti \more dulce tinnitum prebent. Cleros vero
Grece, sortes dicimus \Latine. Quatuor autem sunt
sortes, timor et spes, amor et desiderium. \Sortes
sunt, quia paterne hereditatis locum nobis distribuunt.
Timor \et desiderium, sortes sunt extreme, spes et
amor medie. Timor a\nimum conturbat, desiderium
mentem cruciat, et nisi aliquid medi\um intervenerit,
animus a quiete recedit. Oportet igitur ut inter
deside\rium et timorem, spem ponamus et amorem.
Spes enim timorem \recreat, amor desiderium
temperat. Inter spem igitur et amorem quasi inter
\medias sortes quietus dormit, qui inter extremas
scilicet inter timorem et \desiderium vigilat et
obstupescit. Si ergo es columba vel columbe \penna,
dum times et desideras inter extremas sortes vigilas,
dum \speras et diligis, inter medias quietus dormis. Et
posteriora dorsi eius in pallore auri. \In dorso solent
onera portari, et per hec eadem possunt operum
labo\res designari, per posteriora vero dorsi denotatur
expectatio premii. Post \tolerantiam siquidem
presentium laborum, in futuro subsequi cre\dimus
iustis premia meritorum. Reddet enim deus
mercedem laborum \sanctis suorum, et deducet eos
in via mirabili, et hoc in pallore au\ri esse credimus,
quia preciosa est in conspectu domini mors sanctorum
eius. In pen\nis ergo argentum, quia in linguis
eloquium, in posterioribus \vero aurum, id est post
labores premium. \ Item de columba \ Si dormiatis
inter medios cleros, penne columbe deargentate et
posteriora dorsi \eius in pallore auri. Columba
deargentata, \est absque felle malicie quelibet adhuc
\vivens prelatorum persona. Que inter me\dios cleros
dormit. Cleros Grece, Latine \sors, unde et clerimonia
proprie vocatur hereditas que sit testa\
Transcription
mento. Inde contigit [A, ut filii Levi inter] filios Israel
sensorgr
to God. From these wings spring feathers, that is,
spiritual virtues. These feathers gleam with the
brilliance of silver, since word of their renown has the
sweet ring of silver to those who hear it.
The Greek word cleros is what we call in Latin sortes,
shares allocated by lot. In life, there are four such
'shares': fear and hope, love and desire. They are
'shares', because they allot to us a place in our
Father's heritage. Fear and desire are extremes, hope
and love intervene. Fear throws the soul into
confusion, desire tortures the mind, and unless
something intervenes between them, the soul has no
peace. We must, therefore, place hope and love
between desire and fear. For hope transforms fear,
love moderates desire. Anyone who is between hope
and love, therefore, between the two inner shares,
sleeps soundly; anyone who is between the two outer
ones, namely, fear and desire, lies awake and loses
his wits. If, therefore, you are a dove, or the feather
of a dove, when you fear and desire, you lie sleepless
between the outer shares; when you hope and love,
you sleep soundly between the inner.
'And its tail feathers are in the pale colour of gold.'
Burdens are usually carried on the back, which can be
said to signify toil; but by the tail feathers, which lie
behind the back, is meant the expectation of reward.
We believe that after enduring the labours of the
present, the righteous will be rewarded for their merit
in the future.
For God will reward his saints for their labours and
lead them on a wondrous road; this, we believe, is
represented by 'the pale colour of gold', because
'precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his
saints' (Psalms, 116:15). On the flight feathers,
therefore, there is silver, as there is eloquence on
tongues; but on the tail feathers there is gold - the
reward that follows toil.
Also of the dove
'If you sleep among the sheepfolds...a dove, its wings
sheathed in silver and its tail feathers in the pale
colour of gold' (see BSV, Psalmi, 67:14; NEB, Psalms,
68:11-13).
The silver-coloured dove means any prelate, or
dignitary of the Church hierarchy still living, without
the bile of malice.
'If you sleep among the sheepfolds...' What the
Greeks call cleros, we call sortes, shares allocated by
lot; therefore, the proper meaning of clerimonia is an
inheritance
Translation
bequeathed by will. As a result, the sons of Levi,
non haberent \sortem, id est heredit[A,-atis] partem,
sed ex decimis \viverent. Due [A, sunt] autem
hereditates. \Terrena veteris test-[amenti] et eterna
novi. \In medio igitur istarum [A, dormit qui in con-]
\temptu terrenarum et spe celestium vitam \finit,
dum [PL, nec] nimis ardenter presentibus inhiat, \et
futura pacienter expectat. Et posteriora dor-[A, si]
\eius in pallore auri. Oculi enim iustorum videbunt
\regem in decore suo. Tunc enim aurum in
posterioribus habetis, \cum apparuerit in futuro gloria
divine maiestatis. Corone siquidem \regum ex auro
purissimo fabricantur, ex argento vero monete fi\unt
quibus imagines regum imprimunt [PL, imprimuntur].
In moneta, notatur imi\tatio forme, in corona signum
victorie. Moneta siquidem divi\ni eloquii, docet
imitationem vite Christi. Corona vero victorie, \post
labores presentis seculi finem pugne. Ibi igitur quasi
in posterioribus \aurum, hic in pennis predicationis
argentum, quia cum ad illa do\na columba pervenerit,
iam predicationis eloquio non indigebit, sed \in eo
quod in retributione percipiet, in puritate perfectionis
sine fine vivet. \
De columbe pedibus
\ Columba de qua hic agitur, \rubeos pedes habere
perhibetur. Hec columba est ecclesia, que \pedes
habuit, quibus tocius mundi spacium perambulavit.
Pedes \sunt martyres, qui tot passibus terram
perambulant, quot bonorum \operum exemplis viam
iusticie sequentibus se demonstrant. Ter\ram tangunt
cum dignis increpationibus actus et voluntates
ter\renas reprehendunt. Sed, dum terra premitur,
asperitate terre pedes vul\nerantur. Et sic pedes
ecclesie rubei facti sunt, quia sanguinem su\um pro
Christi nomine martyres effuderunt. Rubor igitur
pedum \est cruor martyrum. \
De pennis deargentatis \
Transcription
Columba que [A,rubeos pedes habere dicitur,] pennas
deargenta\tas habuisse [A,verbis propheticis
demonstr-] atur. Penne inquit \David columbe
dearge-[A,ntate. Penne columbe de-]argentate sunt
predicato\res ecclesie. Est autem [A, argentum
sensorgr
among the children of Israel, were to have no allotted
portion, that is, no part of an inheritance, but were to
support themselves from tithes.
There are two inheritances. The earthly inheritance of
the Old Testament and the eternal inheritance of the
New. You 'sleep' between them, therefore, when you
come to the end of your life with contempt for earthly
things and hope for the things of heaven; when you
do not gaze longingly at things of the present but wait
patiently for those that are to come.
'And its tail feathers are in the pale colour of gold.'
For the eyes of the righteous will see the king in his
glory. You will have gold on your tail feathers, when
the glory of the divine majesty appears in time to
come.
Kingly crowns are fashioned from the purest gold; and
coins are minted from true silver, on which the royal
portrait is stamped. On an ordinary coin of silver or
bronze there is stamped a representation of the king's
appearance; on a gold crown, the symbol of his
victory. The coinage of God's word teaches us to
imitate the life of Christ, but the crown of his victory
teaches us that after our struggles in this world, there
is an end of conflict. There is the gold, then, as if on
the tail feathers of a dove. The silver, here on the
flight feathers, is the silver of preaching; because
when the dove comes to receive those gifts, it will no
longer need the eloquence of the pulpit, but in
recompense will live in the purity of perfection without
end.
Of the feet of the dove
The dove, the subject of this account, is said to have
red feet. This dove signifies the Church, which had
feet on which it covered the extent of the whole
world. The feet of the Church are its martyrs, who
traverse the earth with as many steps as there are
examples of righteous conduct whereby they
demonstrate to their followers the way of
righteousness. They touch the ground when they
reprimand with fitting reproaches earthly deeds and
desires. But when they tread on the earth, their feet
are injured by its harshness. Thus the feet of the
Church are turned red, because the martyrs shed
their blood in the name of Christ. The red of the
dove's feet, therefore, is the blood of martyrs.
Of its feathers, sheathed in silver
Translation
The dove, which is said to have red feet, is shown in
the words of the prophet to have had silver-covered
feathers. 'The wings of the dove,' says David,
'sheathed in silver.'
divinum] eloquium. Tinnitus \[A, argenti, dulcedo
verbi. Color, candor. Cand-]orem vero argentum
\[A,retinet dum quili-]bet doctor mundiciam verbis
predicat, et mun\[A,diciam in se habet d-]um quod
docet diligit, et quod intus amat, foris \[A,operibus
ostendit. Haec] sunt eloquia domini casta, argentum
ig\[A, ne examinatum.] Eloquia domini casta quia
nulla sunt simula\tione corrupta. Argentum
examinatum igne solidatum in \qualibet
perturbatione. Candor igitur argenteus in pennis est in
lin\guis docentium, lene blandimentum sermonis. \
De colore alarum
\ Alarum colorem scriptum non repperi, sed ex
simili\tudine materialis columbe potes [PL, potest]
assignari, ut si colum\bam pictam respicias, columbe
materialis colorem eam habere non \contradicas.
Alarum enim superficies saphirino colore
superfundi\tur, quia celi speciem animus
contemplantis imitatur. Sed color saphi\rinus candidis
lineis distinguitur, ut saphirino colori niveus
\misceatur. Color enim niveus saphirino mixtus,
designat mun\diciam carnis, et amorem
contemplationis. \
De posterioribus dorsi columbe
\ Posteriora dorsi columbe deargentate propheta
commemorat, et postea fi\nem vite presentis in
quolibet homine moraliter demonstrat. \In auro
puritatem mentis, in pallore vero auri designat
mortificati\onem carnis. Est enim pallor, animi
pacientis et mortificate \carnis innatus color.
Posteriora igitur columbe deargentate in pallore auri
erunt dum \puritas mentis et mortificatio carnis finem
cuiuslibet morientis op\tinebunt. Sed et ideo color
aureus in posterioribus dorsi columbe sa\phirino
iungitur, quia contemplantis animum future
beatitudinis gloria \subsequetur. Color igitur aureus in
posterioribus designat eterne retributionis munus. \
Transcription
De oculis columbe \ Oculi tui columbarum. Columba
super aquas \sedere sepissime solet, ut cum viderit
umbram supervenien\tis accipitris fugiens declinet.
Ecclesia vero scripturis se munit, ut insidi\antis diaboli
fraudes evitare possit. Hec igitur columba croceos
oculos \habet. Color itaque croceus in oculis
sensorgr
The flight feathers of the dove, covered with silver,
are the preachers of the Church. Silver signifies the
word of God. The ringing sound of silver signifies the
sweetness of the word. Its colour is shining white.
Truly, silver contains the shining whiteness of purity,
as when a teacher preaches purity in his words and is
pure within, loving the doctrine he teaches and
revealing what he loves inwardly through his outward
deeds. The holy words of the Lord are like silver,
tested by fire. The words of the Lord are holy because
they have not been corrupted by falsehood. Silver
tested by fire remains strong against onslaught. The
brilliance of silver on the feathers, therefore, is what
is found on the tongues of those who preach - the soft
allure of the word of God.
Of the colour of the dove's wings
I have found no written reference to the colour of the
dove's wings, but it can be attributed by analogy with
the real dove; so that if you were to see a painting of
a dove, you would not deny that it should have the
colour of the real dove.
The surface of the wings is suffused with the colour of
sapphire, because the soul of a contemplative man
takes on the appearance of heaven. But the sapphire
colour of the wings is marked by traces of shining
white, as the white of snow is tinged with sapphire.
The mixture of snow-white and sapphire in the wings
signifies purity of the flesh and the love of
contemplation.
Of the tail feathers of the dove
The prophet refers to the tail feathers of the silver-
covered dove and thereafter shows, in moral terms,
that they refer to the end of a man's life on earth. He
shows that the colour gold represents purity of mind;
the pale colour of gold signifies mortification of the
flesh. For paleness is the the natural colour of the
suffering soul and of the mortified flesh. Therefore the
tail feathers of the silver-coloured dove will have the
paleness of gold as purity of mind and mortification of
the flesh prevail when a dying man makes his end.
But for this reason also the golden colour of the
dove's tail feathers is mixed with sapphire, because
the glory of the bliss to come will closely follow the
soul of the contemplative man. Therefore the golden
colour of the tail feathers signifies the gift of his
eternal reward.
Translation
Of the eyes of the dove
'Thou hast doves' eyes' (Song of Solomon, 1:15). The
dove spends much of its time sitting on water, so that
if it sees the shadow of a hawk that is flying
overhead, it can avoid it by fleeing. The Church
discretionem designat mature con\siderationis. Dum
enim aliquis quid agat vel quid cogitet mature
\considerat, quasi croco spiritales oculos adornat.
Habet enim crocus \colorem maturi fructus. Croceus
igitur oculus est maturitatis sensus. \
De colore reliqui corporis
\ Color reliqui corporis, imitatur colorem \turbati
maris. Mare motu fluctuum seviens ebullit, \caro motu
sensium ebulliens sevit. Mare perturbationibus suis
\arenas movet et sublevat, caro delectationibus suis
animi levita\tem pulsat. Mare terminos suos
egrediens, aquis dulcibus occurrit, \caro lasciviens,
lacrimarum dulces rivulos obtundit. Mare di\versis
procellarum turbinibus navigantium cursus impedit,
caro \procellosa recte viventium mores in profundum
mergit. Dum tantis mare \tempestatibus agitatur,
undarum collisione terra fluctibus inmiscetur, et sic
\ex collisione maris et terre colorem mixtum recipit
mare. Similiter dum \caro suggerit, et animus non
consentit, quasi ex nigro et niveo qui\dam in corpore
color efficitur, qui ex diversis factus color medius
ap\pellatur. Marinus igitur color in pectore columbe,
tribulationem desig\nat in humana mente. \
De diversis proprietatibus columbe \ In diversis
locis diversas proprietates repperi, quas inserens huic
operi, an\notare curavi. Prima natura columbe est,
quod pro cantu gemitum profert. \Secunda, quod felle
caret. Tercia, quod osculis instat. Quarta, quod
gregatim \volat. Quinta, quod ex rapto non vivit.
Sexta, quod grana meliora col\ligit. Septima, quod
non vescitur cadaveribus. Octava, quod nidificat \in
petre foraminibus. Nona, quod super fluenta residet,
ut visa accipitris \umbra, venientem cicius devitet.
Decima, quod geminos nutrit pullos. \
Transcription
Columba pro cantu, utitur gemitu, quia quod libens
fecit, plangendo ge\mit. Caret felle, id est
sensorgr
protects itself with the scriptures, in order to escape
the deceits of the Devil who plots against it.
The dove, therefore, has saffron-coloured eyes. The
colour of saffron in the eyes, therefore, signifies the
discernment that comes with mature reflection. For
when anyone considers deliberately what he should
do or think, it is as if he adorns the eyes of the spirit
with saffron. Saffron has the colour of ripe fruit.
Therefore a saffron-coloured eye signifies the
perceptivity that comes with maturity.
Of the colour of the rest of the dove's body
The rest of the dove's body matches the colour of a
wild sea. The sea, raging with the motion of the
waves, boils; the flesh, boiling with the motion of the
senses, rages. The sea, in its wildness, shifts and
uplifts the sands; the flesh, with its carnal pleasures,
beats upon the frail soul. The sea, flowing beyond its
bounds, rushes to meet quiet waters; the flesh,
lusting, pounds against quiet streams of tears. The
sea, with stormy winds from different directions,
hampers the passage of vessels; the tempests of the
flesh send to the bottom the principles of righteous
living.
When the sea is whipped up by storms of such force,
earth is mixed with the water under the impact of the
waves; and thus from the violent intermingling of sea
and land, the sea acquires a mixed hue. Likewise,
when the spirit will not condone the impulses of the
flesh, this creates a certain colour in the body, like
black mixed with white; formed from opposites, this
colour is called neutral. The sea-like colour of the
dove's breast, therefore, signifies the distressed state
of the human mind.
Of the different characteristics of the dove
I have found various references to its different
characteristics, which I have included in this work,
and on which I have made it my business to
Commentary.
The first characteristic of the dove is that instead of
song it brings forth a lament. The second, is that it
lacks bile; the third, it likes to kiss; the fourth, it flies
in flocks; the fifth, it does not live by theft; the sixth,
it gathers better-quality grain; the seventh, it does
not feed on corpses; the eighth, it nests in holes in
rocks; the ninth, it rests on flowing water so that if it
catches sight of the shadow of a hawk, it can more
swiftly avoid its approach; the tenth, it rears twin
chicks.
Translation
The dove produces a lament instead of a song,
because anything it does with pleasure, it then
irascibilitatis amaritudine. Instat osculis, quia
de\lectatur in multitudine pacis. Gregatim volat, quia
conventus amat. \Non vivit ex rapto, quia non
detrahit proximo. Colligit grana meliora, \id est
meliora dicta. Non vescitur cadaveribus, id est
carnalibus desideriis. Ni\dificat in foraminibus petre,
quia spem ponit in Christi passione. Super \fluenta
residet, ut visa acciptris umbra venientem cicius
devitet, quia \in scripturis studet ut supervenientis
diaboli fraudem declinet. \Geminos nutrit pullos, id est
amorem dei et amorem proximi. Qui has igitur
\naturas habet, assumat sibi contemplationis alas,
quibus ad celum volet. \
[PL, De aquilone et austro ventis]
\ Aquilo frigidissimus ventus est. Ab aquilone inquit
\pandetur malum. Ibi sedes Sathane, inde ruine
principium. \Ventus aquilo gravis temptatio est, flatus
aquilonis, suggestio \temptationis, frigus negligentie
torpor. Aquilo igitur venit, \quando gravis temptatio
mentem cuiuslibet invadit. Aquilo vero \surgit, quando
ab animo temptatio recedit. Ab aquilone inquit \et
mari, aquilo, temptatio, mare, mundus. Ab aquilone
igitur et \mari Christus suos congregat, cum a
tumultu temptationum non \tantum iustos sed etiam
peccatores sequestrat. \Ponam inquit sedem meam
ad aquilo\nem et ero similis altissimo. Sedem \ad
aquilonem ponere desiderat, quem penna su\perbie
sursum levat, esse similis altissimo con\cupiscit, qui
illi cui subesse debet per arrogan\tie spem se
equalem facit. Et plus dicam non \tantum se magistro
suo equiparat sed etiam se illo meliorem esse putat.
Ce\cidit diabolus cum se exaltare voluit, humiliatur
homo cum se exal\tare concupiscit. \Auster
calidissimus est ventus. \Deus inquit ab austro veniet.
Ibi sedes altissimi. Ibi \
Transcription
dilectionis ardor. Inde sinceritas veritatis. Auster a
serena regione \procedit, quia deus in serenitate
morum requiescit. Ibi pascit. Ibi \cubat. Ibi quies
mentis. Ibi contemplationis refectio. Auster \sancti
spiritus graciam designat. Flatus austri benignitatem
spiritus sancti. Calor \amor. Auster igitur venit,
sensorgr
bewails aloud. It lacks bile, that is, the bitterness born
of anger. It likes to kiss because it delights in
widespread peace. It flies in flocks because it likes
communal life. It does not live by theft, because it
takes nothing from its neighbour. It gathers better-
quality grain, that is, better precepts. It does not feed
on corpses, that is, on carnal desires. It nests in holes
in rocks because it places its hope in Christ's passion.
It rests on flowing waters, so that by sighting the
hawk's shadow it can avoid more swiftly the hawk's
approach, as one studies the scriptures to avoid the
plotting of the Devil, who comes without warning. It
rears twin chicks, that is the love of God and the love
of one's neighbour. Let anyone who has these
qualities assume the wings of contemplation and with
them fly to heaven.
[Of the north wind and the south wind]
The north wind is a very cold wind. 'Out of the north
an evil shall break forth' (Jeremiah, 1:14). There
Satan dwells; and thence is the source of ruin.
The north wind represents the weight of temptation;
the breath of the wind is the first intimation of
temptation; its coldness, the numbing effect of moral
negligence. The north wind comes, therefore, when
serious temptation possesses the mind. It rises when
temptation withdraws from the soul.
'From the north,' says Isaiah, 'and from the sea...'
(see 49:12). The north wind represents temptation;
the sea, the world. Therefore Christ gathers his
followers away from north wind and from the sea,
since he keeps not only the righteous but also sinners
away from the moral torment of temptation.
'I will set my throne in the north,' says Satan, 'and I
will be like the Most High' (see Isaiah, 14: 13, 14).
Uplifted on the wings of pride, he wishes to set his
throne in the north; he longs to be like the Most High,
presumptuously making himself the equal of one to
whom he should be subject. And more than that, I
say, he not only compares himself with his master but
also thinks himself better. The Devil fell because he
sought to exalt himself; man is humbled when he
desires to rise in the world.
The south wind is a very hot wind. God, it is said, will
come from the south (see BSV, NEB, Habakkuk,3:3).
There is the seat of the Most High. There
Translation
is the flame of love. From there comes the purity of
truth.
The south wind blows from a tranquil quarter,
because God reposes in tranquility of character. There
he finds nourishment; there he finds rest. There is to
quociens gracia sancti spiritus mentem cuiuslibet
\ascendit. Surgit, quociens a mente gracia recedit. [A,
D]eus \inquit ab austro veniet. Ab aquilone diabolus,
a austro deus. \Ille tenebras ignorantie inhabitat, iste
serenitatem caritatis \amat. Frigus aquilonis, poros
carnis restringit, calor austri, \clausos aperit. Quod
enim frigus avaricie stringendo retinet, \apertis
elemosine manibus caritas larga prebet. Penna
siquidem \vetus in infernum mergit, nova vero,
animum ad celestia desi\deranda sustollit. Peccata
enim gravant, virtutes vero sublevant. \ Item de
accipitre \ Accipiter avis animo \plus armata quam
ungulis virtu\tem maiorem in minore corpore gestans.
\Hic accipiendo, id est, a capiendo nomen sump\sit.
Est autem rapiendis aliis avibus \avida. Ideo vocatur
accipiter hoc est raptor. \Unde et Paulus dicit:
Sustinetis enim, siquis accipiat vos. \Ut enim diceret:
Siquis rapit, dixit: Siquis accipit. Fertur autem
\accipiter circa pullos suos impius esse, nam dum
viderit eos posse \temptare volatus, nullas eis prebet
escas, sed verberat pennis \et a nido precipitat, atque
a tenero compellit ad predam, ne \adulti pigrescant.
Cavet ne in tenera etate pigrescant, ne sol\vantur
deliciis, ne marcescant ocio, ne discant cibum magis
\expectare quam querere, ne nature sue deponant
vigorem, inter\mittunt studium nutriendi, ut in usum
[i]rapiendi audere \compellant. Beatus Gregorius de
acciptre quomodo plumescat. \
Transcription
Nunquid per sapientiam tuam plumescit accipiter
expan\dens alas tuas [PL, suas] ad austrum? Unde
sensorgr
be found peace of mind; there, too, the refreshment
of contemplation.
The south wind signifies the grace of the Holy Spirit.
The breath of the wind represents the beneficence of
the Holy Spirit; its heat represents love. It comes
therefore, whenever the grace of the Holy Spirit
grows within in a man's mind. It rises whenever that
grace withdraws from the mind.
God, it is said, will come from the south. The Devil
from the north; God from the south. The Devil lives in
the darkness of ignorance; God delights in the
tranquility born of love of one's fellow-man.
The cold of the north wind causes the pores of the
flesh to close tightly; the heat of the south wind
opens them up again. For what cold avarice holds
back in a tight fist, bountiful charity offers as alms in
open hands.
If old wings carry the soul down to hell, new wings
carry it up to the heavenly things it longs for. For the
sins of the soul weigh it down; its virtues raise it up.
Next, of the hawk
The hawk is a bird armed rather with spirit than with
claws, having great courage in its small body.
It gets its name, accipiter, from accipiendo, accepting
- that is, a capiendo, taking to itself. For it greedily
seizes other birds. For that reason it is called accipite,
meaning one who seizes by force. Therefore Paul
says: 'You suffer if a man take of you' (Corinthians 2,
11:20); but while he means to say 'siquis rapit, if any
man seizes something from you by force', he says
'siquis accipit, if any man take'.
It is said that the hawk is lacking in parental care
towards its young, for when it sees that they are able
and trying to fly, it does not feed them but beats
them with its wings, throws them from the nest and
forces them from a tender age to catch prey for
themselves lest, when they are fully grown, they
should become lazy. It takes care lest in their
childhood they grow idle, or are given up to pleasure,
or grow weak from inactivity, or learn to expect food
rather than to seek it for themselves, or abandon
their natural vigour. Hawks stop bothering to feed
their young in order to make them bold enough to
seize food for themselves.
The blessed Gregory on the hawk and how it
moults
Translation
'Doth the hawk fly by thy wisdom and stretch her
wings toward the south?' (Job 39:26).
beatus Gregorius: Agrestibus \accipitribus moris est,
ut flante austro alas expandant quatinus \eorum
membra ad laxandum pennam veterem venti tepore
\concalescant. Cum vero ventus deest alis contra
radium solis \expansis atque percussis, repente sibi
auram faciunt, sicque apertis poris \vel veteris
exiliunt, vel nove succrescunt. Quid est ergo
accipitrem \in austro plumescere, nisi quod
unusquisque sanctorum tactus flatu \sancti spiritus
concalescit, et usum vetuste conversationis abiciens
novi \hominis formam sumit? Quid apostolus
ammonet dicens: Expolian\tes nos [PL, vos] veterem
hominem cum actibus suis, et induentes novum. \Et
rursum: Licet is qui foris est noster homo
corrumpatur, tamen is qui \intus est renovatur de die
in diem. Vetustam autem pennam proice\re est,
inveterata studia dolose actionis amittere. Et novam
pen\nam sumere est, mitem ac simplicem bene
vivendi sensum tenere. \Penna namque veteris
conversationis gravat, et pluma nove immu\tationis
sublevat, ut ad volatum tanto leviorem quanto
novi\orem reddat. Et bene ait: Expandens alas suas
ad austrum, \expandere est per adventum sancti
spiritus nostras confitendo cogitationes \aperire, ut
iam non libeat defendendo nos tegere sed accusando
\publicare. Tunc ergo accipiter plumescit, cum ad
austrum alas ex\pandit, quia tunc se unusquisque
virtutum pennis induit, cum sancto spiritu
\cogitationes suas confitendo substernit. Qui enim
fatendo vetera non \detegit, nove vite opera minime
producit. Qui nescit lugere quod gra\vat, non valet
proferre quod sublevat. Ipsa namque compunctio\nis
vis poros cordis aperit, et plumas virtutum fundit.
Cumque se \studiose mens de pigra vetustate
redarguit, alacri novitate \iuvenescit. Dicatur ergo
beato Job: Nunquid per sapientiam tuam plu\mescis
accipiter, expandens alas tuas [PL, suas] ad austrum,
id est, cuilibet \
Transcription
electo, tu intelligentiam contulisti, ut flante spiritu
sancto cogna\tionum alas expandat, quatenus
pondera vetuste conversationis\ abiciat, et virtutum
sensorgr
On which the blessed Gregory Commentarys: It is the
custom of hawks in the wild to spread their wings
when the south wind blows, so that their limbs are
warmed by the wind to release their old feathers.
When there is no wind, they create a breeze by
spreading their wings to face the rays of the sun and
beating them; and thus, as the pores of their body
open, either their old plumage falls out, or new
feathers grow in.
What does it signify, therefore, that the hawk moults
in the south wind, if not that every saint is warmed by
the touch of the breath of the Holy Spirit and, casting
aside his old way of life, takes on the form of a new
man? As the Apostle admonishes us, saying: 'Ye have
put off the old man with his needs; and have put on
the new man' (Colossians, 3:9). And again: 'But
though our outward man perish, yet the inward man
is renewed day by day' (Corinthians 2, 4:16).
To throw off the old plumage is to abandon a long-
standing attachment to a deceitful way of life. To
assume new plumage is to hold to a way of life that is
gentle and simple. For the plumage of the old way of
life weighs you down, while that of the new growth
raises you up, so that the newer the plumage, the
lighter it is for flight.
The phrase 'stretching its wings to the south' is well
chosen. 'To stretch' here means to reveal our
thoughts by confessing them through the influence of
the Holy Spirit, so that we no longer choose to
conceal our sins by defending them but choose to
reveal them openly by accusing ourselves of them.
So, therefore, the hawk moults when it spreads its
wings to the south wind, as we each clothe ourselves
in the plumage of virtue when we lay our thoughts
open to the Holy Spirit by confessing them.
For if you do not reveal your old sins by confessing
them, you will by no means accomplish the works of
the new life. If you cannot bewail the sins that weigh
you down, you will not have the strength to
accomplish the works that can raise you up. For the
power of remorse alone opens the pores of the heart
and causes the plumage of virtue to grow. When the
mind zealously convinces itself that it has been
neglectful in the past, it becomes renewed, eager and
refreshed.
Therefore let the blessed Job be told: 'Doth the hawk
fly by thy wisdom and stretch her wings toward the
south?' that is,
Translation
you, O God, have conferred on all the elect the insight
so that by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, they may
spread the wings of their thoughts in order to cast off
plumas in usum novi volatus sumat, ut \hinc videlicet
colligat, qui [PL, quod] vigilantiam sensus in
semetipso ex se\non habet, qui hanc ex se conferre
aliis nequaquam valet. \ De domestico et silvestre
accipitribus\ Due sunt species accipitris\ domesticus
scilicet et silvestris. Idem tamen sed diversis
temporibus potest esse sil\vestris et domesticus.
Silvestris, rapere consuevit domesticas volucres \et
domesticus silvestres. Silvestris quas rapit, continuo
devorat,\ domesticus captas domino suo relinquendas
servat. Porro dominus\ eius captarum volucrum
ventres aperit, et earum corda accipitri\ in cibum
tribuenda sumit. Interiora ventris cum fimo eicit, qui
\intus remanens putredinem carnium cum fetore
gignit. \Moraliter silvestris accipiter captas volucres et
rapit et devorat, \quia quilibet perversus actus et
cogitationes simplicium dissipare \non cessat.
Domesticus vero accipiter est quilibet spiritualis pater.
Qui tociens \silvestres volucres rapit, quotiens
seculares ad conversionem predi\cando trahit. Captat
occidit, dum seculares mundo mori per car\nis
mortificatione cogit. Dominus autem eius, id est
omnipotens dominus, ventres \earum aperit, quia
molliciem carnalium per scriptas increpando solvit.
\Corda vero extrahit dum cogitationes secularium per
confessionem \manifestas facit. Interiora ventris cum
fimo eicit, quando memoriam \peccati fetentem
reddit. Ad mensam itaque domini capte vo\lucres
veniunt, dum in corpus ecclesie peccatores [PL,
doctorum] dentibus masti\cati sese convertunt. \
Qualiter accipiter plumescere debeat\ Domesticis
accipitribus quo melius plumescere debeant, \munita
ac tepentiva requiruntur loca. Loca munita \sunt
claustra. In quibus dum silvestris accipiter ponitur, ut
dome\sticus fiat, clausus tenetur. Ibi veteres pennas
emittit, et novas\
Transcription
assumit, quia quilibet claustralis [qui] pristinis viciis
spoliatur, novi \hominis virtutibus adornatur. Nec inde
extrahitur, nisi prius eiectis veteribus \pennis nove
soliduntur. Sed cum firmus in volatu fuerit eiectus
\foras ad manum venit. Similiter si aliquis conversus
de claustro \exeat, necesse est ut ad manum bone
operationis accedat, et inde \emissus volet, ut ad
sensorgr
the weight of their old way of life, and take on the
plumage of virtue to fly anew. From this, evidently,
Job is to infer that the man has no alertness of
perception within himself, who can by no means
transfer it from himself to others.
Of domestic and wild hawks
There are two kinds of hawk, domestic and wild. It is
the same bird, however, but at different times it can
be wild or domestic. The wild hawk is accustomed to
prey on tame birds; the domestic hawk on wild. The
wild hawk eats the prey it catches immediately; the
domestic hawk keeps what it catches to leave for its
master. Furthermore, its master opens the stomachs
of the captured birds and takes their hearts to give
them as food to his hawk. He throws away the
intestines with the ordure, which produces
putrefaction of the flesh with a stench if it remains
inside.
In a moral sense, the wild hawk seizes and devours
the birds it catches as an evil man ceaselessly
frustrates the actions and thoughts of ordinary
people. The domestic hawk, in contrast, is like a
spiritual father. As the hawk seizes wild birds, so the
spiritual father leads worldly men to conversion by his
preaching. As the hawk kills what it captures, so the
spiritual father forces worldly men die to the world,
through mortification of the flesh.
The master of the domestic hawk, that is, the Lord
Almighty, opens the stomachs of its prey when he
cleanses weakness of the flesh by rebuking it through
the Scriptures. He takes out the hearts when he
exposes the thoughts of worldly men through
confession. He throws out the intestines and ordure of
the stomach when he makes the memory of sin
offensive to us. As birds taken by the hawk come in
this way to its master's table, so sinners, ground by
the teeth of teachers, turn into the body of the
Church.
How the hawk should moult
To allow domestic hawks to moult more easily, you
need a mew that is secure and warm. Secure mews
are like cloisters. When a wild hawk is placed there, in
order to be tamed, it must be locked up. There it lets
fall its old feathers and
Translation
acquires new ones, as anyone entering the cloister is
deprived of his former vices and adorned with the
virtues of a new man.
The hawk is not released from the mew until its old
feathers have been cast off and the new ones are
firmly in place. But when it is strong enough to fly and
desideranda celestia toto nisu mentis \seipsum levet.
\ Quod accipiter in sinistra manu gestatur \
Accipiter in sinistra manu gestari solet, ut in dexteram
ad \aliquid capiendum emissus volet. Leva inquit eius
\sub capite meo, et dextera illius amplexabitur me.
Leva sunt \bona temporalia, dextera vero sunt eterna.
In leva ergo sedet, qui \bonis temporalibus presidet.
In dextera vero volat, qui toto affectu \mentis eterna
desiderat. Ibi capiet accipiter columbam, id est,
quilibet \mutatus in melius sancti spiriti recipiet
gratiam. \ Explicit de columba et accipitro. Incipit
de turture et de passere \ Post columbe gemitum
et acci\pitris questum, ne diutius differam [,]
\planctum turturis et clamorem pas\seris velocius
scribam, nec tantum \scribam, sed etiam pingam.
Qualiter \turtur heremi secretum diligat, et \passer
solitarius in tecto clamare non \desinat, ut sub
exemplo turturis, \teneas mundiciam castitatis, et sub
\exemplo passeris, ames custodiam callide
circumspectionis, \et ut vivas caste, et ambules caute.
\ De turture \ Turtur de voce vocate, avis pudica, et
semper in monti\um iugis, et in desertis solitudinibus
commorans. Tecta \enim hominum et conversationem
fugit, et commoratur in silvis. \
Transcription
in silvis, que etiam hyemis \tempore deplumata, in
trun\cis arborum cavis habitare \perhibetur. Turtur
etiam ni\do suo ne pullos suos incur\set lupus, squille
folia super\iacit. Novit enim quod huius\modi folia lupi
fugere con\sueverunt. Fertur enim tur\tur ubi iugalis
proprii fuerit amissione viduata per talem u\sum
thalami et nomen habere coniugii eo quod primus
amor \fefellerit eam dilecti morte deceptam,
[quoniam] et infidelis ad \perpetuitatem fuit et
amarus ad gratiam, qui plus doloris ex \morte, quam
suavitatis ex caritate generaverit. Itaque iterare
sensorgr
is released outside, it comes to settle on the hand.
Likewise, if a convert leaves the cloister, he must
settle on a virtuous way of life, and when he is flown
from that perch he should soar with all his will to
heavenly things, the object of his desires.
Why the hawk is carried on the left hand
The hawk is customarily carried on the left hand, so
that when it has been let off the leash to catch
something, it should fly back onto the right. 'His left
hand', it is written, 'is under my head, and his right
hand doth embrace me' (Song of Solomon, 2:6).
The left hand represents temporal possessions; the
right, eternal life. Those who manage temporal
possessions sit on the left. Those who desire eternal
life with all their heart fly on the right. It is there that
the hawk will catch the dove - that is, anyone who
has changed for the better will receive the grace of
the Holy Spirit.
The end of the account of the dove and the
hawk. The beginning of the account of the turtle
dove and the sparrow.
After the mournful note of the dove and the plaintive
call of the hawk, lest I linger too long, I shall write
more speedily of the lament of the turtle-dove and
the cry of the sparrow - and not only write of them,
but also portray them. My purpose is to show how the
turtle-dove cherishes the solitude of the wilderness,
and the sparrow cries ceaselessly, alone on the roof;
so that, following the example of the turtle dove, you
may cleave to the purity that comes of chastity, and
following that of the sparrow, you may take pleasure
in acting shrewdly and prudently; living chastely and
going your way with caution.
Of the turtle dove
The turtle dove, so called from the sound it makes,
turtur, is a shy bird, and stays all the time on
mountain summits and in deserted, lonely places. It
shuns the houses and society of men and keeps to the
woods.
Translation
[in woods, repeated]. Even in the winter time, when it
has lost its plumage, it is said to to live in the hollow
trunks of trees.
The turtle dove also overlays its nest with squill
leaves, in case a wolf should attack its young. For it
knows that wolves usually run from leaves of this
kind.
It is said that when the she-bird is widowed by the
loss of her mate, she holds the name and rite of
\coniunctionem recusat, nec pudoris iura aut
complaciti \viri resolvit federa, illi soli suam caritatem
reservat, illi \custodit nomen uxoris. Discite mulieres
quanta sit vidui\tatis gratia que etiam in avibus
predicatur. Quis igitur has leges turturi \dedit? Si
hominem quero, non invenio. Homo enim nul\lus est
ausus quando nec Paulus ausus est leges viduitatis
tenen\de prescribere. Denique ipse ait: Volo igitur
iniorues nubere, fili\os procreare, matres familias
esse, nullam occasionem dare \adversario. Et alibi.
Bonum est illis si hic permaneant. Quod \si se non
continent nubant. Melius est enim nubere, quam \uri.
Optat Paulus in mulieribus quod in turturibus
perseverat. \Et alibi iuniores hortatur ut nubant, quia
mulieres nostre turturum \pudiciciam implere vix
possunt. Ergo turturibus dominus hanc infu\dit
gratiam vel affectum, hanc virtutem continentie dedit
qui \solus potest prescribere, quod omnes sequantur.
Turtur non uritur flore iuventutis \
Transcription
non temptatur occasionis illecebra. Turtura nescit
primam fidem\ irritam facere quia novit castimoniam
servare, prima conu\bii sorte premissam.\ De palma
et turture\ Sicut palma multipli\cabo dies. Palma
dies\ multiplicat, quia tarde proficit\ priusquam in
altum crescat. Si\militer iustus tarde proficit,\
priusquam ad hoc perveniat\ ad quod tendit.\ Est
enim iusti\ desiderium, ut\ perveniat ad \ celeste
regnum. Si ad [PL, Sed] hoc\ desiderium mundi
impedit\ ut ad optata nisi tarde perveni\re possit.
Palma multipli\cat dies, nec tamen eam frigus\ hiemis
vel nimius calor\ estatis impediunt quin\ semper
virescat. Similiter\ iustus semper viret nec\ aliquo
impeditur quin in\ proposito bone operationis\
perseveret. Frigus hyemis,\ est torpor vel negligentia\
refrigerate mentis. Nimius\ calor estatis, est ardor
libi\dinis, vel iracunde flamma\ seu incendium\
cupiditatis.\ Nec palma igitur \ marcescit fri\gore, nec
nimio estatis u\ritur calore, sic nec iustus\ premitur
qualicumque temp\tatione. Aliter palma dies\
multiplicat, quia iustus\ dies antiquos ad memori\am
reducit, et annos eter\nos in mente tractat.
Pau\citatem dierum sibi nuntiat,\ et ex alia parte
longitudi\nem dierum in futuro sperat. Qui hec igitur
sensorgr
marriage in such esteem, that because her first
experience of love has deceived her, cheating her
with the death of her beloved, since he has become
permanently unfaithful and a bitter memory, causing
her more grief by his death than he gave her pleasure
from his affection, for this reason she refuses to
marry again, and will not relax the oaths of propriety
or the contract made with the man who pleased her.
She reserves her love for her dead mate alone and
keeps the name of wife for him. Learn, you women,
how great is the grace of widowhood, when it is
proclaimed even among the birds.
Who, therefore, gave these laws to the turtle dove? If
I look for a man as law-giver, I cannot find him. For
there is no man who would dare - not even Paul dared
- to prescribe laws for observing widowhood. He said
only:'I will therefore that the younger women marry,
bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to
the adversary to speak reproachfully'(1 Timothy,
5:14). And elsewhere: 'It is good for them if they
abide even as I. But if they cannot contain, let them
marry; for it is better to marry than to burn' (1
Corinthians, 7:8,9). Paul desires in women what in
turtle doves is an enduring characteristic. And
elsewhere he urges the young to marry, because it is
only with difficulty that our women achieve the virtue
of turtle doves. Therefore it was God who infused the
turtle doves with this grace or capacity for affection,
giving them the virtue of continence; God, who alone
can set forth the law which all should follow.
The turtle dove is not inflamed by the flower of youth
Translation
and is not affected by chance temptation. It cannot go
back on its first pledge of love because it knows how
to preserve the chastity which it plighted as the first
duty of marriage.
Of the palm-tree and the turtle dove
'I shall multiply my days as the palm' (see Job
29:18).
The palm-tree 'multiplies its days', because it grows
slowly before it reaches its full height. In the same
way, a righteous man proceeds slowly before he
attains what he strives for. For he longs to attain the
kingdom of heaven. But worldly desire prevents him
from attaining his chosen goal other than at a slow
pace.
The palm-tree multiplies its days. Neither the cold of
winter nor the extreme heat of summer, however,
prevent it from flourishing at all times. In the same
way, a righteous man grows ever stronger and
nothing hinders him in his pursuit of virtuous conduct.
The cold of winter represents the sluggishness or
intra se colligit, multipli\cando dies sicut palma
vivendo [A, vincendo] in altum crescit.\ Item de
palma\ Statura tua assimilata est palme\
Transcription
Statura ecclesie vel cuiuslibet fidelis anime,
assimilatur palme.\ In statura cuiuslibet hominis
notatur parvitas vel magnitudo in\ membris per
liniamenta corporis. Habet autem statura [PL,
staturam] palme iustus,\ si apud se modicus, apud
deum magnus. In se humilis, coram deo\ sublimis.
Hec palma est Christus, cui assimilatur iustus. Dum
enim tribu\lationes quas passus est Christus patitur,
stature palme iustus assimilatur.\ Unde apostolus:
Qui erunt participes tribulationum, erunt participes\ et
glorie. Qui igitur membrum corporis est, que sunt
capitis sentire debet. Iam\ palma crevit in altum, iam
cacumen illius penetravit celum, iam\ capite sunt
capitis come qui sunt elate palmarum, id est electe
ani\marum, adhuc stipes rugoso cortice, id est
ecclesia circumdata tribulatio\num asperitate in terra
figitur, et rami, id est sancti in eterna felicitate
gloriantur.\ Item de palma\ Iustus ut palma florebit.
Iustus plantatur, floret\ et fert fructum, plantatur in
domo domini in atriis domus dei nostri.\ Domus dei
nostri est domus conversionis. Est autem atrium ante
domum.\ Ante domum conversionis siquidem, est
autem atrium renuntiationis.\ Qui enim mundum
renuntiat, palmam victorie qua mundum\ vicit in atriis
domus domini plantat. Plantatur igitur in domo
con\versionis, floret per famam bone opinionis fert
fructum recte\ operationis. Seorsum significat [PL,
Sed quorsum figit] radicem? Quomodo crescit?
Quomodo roboratur?\ Radicatur per fidem, crescit per
spem, roboratur per caritatem. Mirum\ est tamen
quod de iustis dicitur: Plantati in domo domini in atriis
domus dei nostri florebunt. Mirum\ est quod
plantantur in domo et florent in atrio. Sed fortasse per
fidem\ plantatur iustus [PL, plantantur intus], per
exemplum boni operis florent exterius et sic per\
sensorgr
heedlessness of a mind that lacks religious zeal. The
extreme heat of summer represents the ardour of
lust, or the flame of wrath or the smouldering fire of
covetouness. As the palm-tree, therefore, does not
wither in the cold nor burn in the great heat of
summer, so a righteous man does not feel the
pressure of any sort of temptation.
The palm-tree multiplies its days in another sense, as
when a righteous man recalls to his memory the days
past and contemplates in his mind the years of
eternity. He tells himself how few his past days have
been and, looking at it from the other side, trusts in a
long line of days to come. If you take this teaching to
heart, you will grow to a great height, multiplying
your days and triumphing over adversity, like the
palm-tree.
Again of the palm-tree
'Thy stature is like to a palm-tree' (Song of Solomon,
7:7).
Translation
The stature of the Church or of the soul of one of the
faithful can be compared to that of a palm-tree. In
the stature of a man one notes the smallness or
largeness of the limbs by the outline of the body. But
the righteous man has the stature of a palm-tree; if
he appears of only modest size to himself, to God he
is tall; humble in himself, before God he is exalted.
This palm-tree is Christ, to whom the righteous man
can be compared. For when he suffers the tribulations
which Christ endured, the righteous man takes on the
stature of the palm-tree. Thus the Apostle says:
'Those who will partake of suffering will also partake
in glory' (see 2 Corinthians, 1:7). If you are a limb of
the body, you must experience what goes on in the
head.
The palm-tree has already grown to its full height; its
tip has already pierced the sky; there is already hair
on its head, which is the foliage of the palm bud, that
is, the elect among souls. The trunk, with its rough
bark - the Church wrapped around with the roughness
of sorrow - is set firmly in the ground, and its
branches - the saints - glory in eternal happiness.
Again of the palm-tree
'The righteous shall flourish like the palm-tree.'
(Psalms, 92:12). The righteous man is planted, he
flourishes and bears fruit; he is planted in the house
of the Lord, in the courts of the house of our God.
The house of our God is the house of conversion. In
front of the house is the forecourt. Since it is in front
of the house of conversion, it must be the forecourt of
famam bone opinionis foras exit odor floris. Vel aliter,
plantatur\ in domo, florent in atrio, quia iusti
plantantur in presenti ecclesia et flore immar\cescibili
florebunt in eterna vita. Ibi etiam cum flore recipient
fruc\tum, id est cum mundicia carnis et anime, future
retributionis premium.\
Transcription
Item de palma\ Ascendam in palmam et
apprehendam \ fructus eius. Palma iuxta terram
gracilis et aspera, versus ce\lum grossior et pulchra.
Est igitur ascensus difficilis, sed fructus dulcis.\
Minuitur ascendentis labor, dum sentitur odor.
Difficultatem as\census aufert dulcedo gustus. Palma
est Christus, fructus salus:\ Salus inquit populi ego
sum. Gustate et videte quoniam suavis est\ dominus.
Spes salutis in ligno crucis. Ascende igitur in palmam,
id est at\tende crucis victoriam. Per scalam siquidem
crucis, ascendes ad\ solium victoris. Tolle et tu
crucem tuam et sequere eum. Qui\ affligit carnem,
tollit crucem. Palma manum victoris or\nat, et iustus
palmam victorie, in manu victorie bene operando\
portat. Tria dicuntur esse de quibus iustus victoriam
debet adquire\re. Mundus, caro, diabolus. Iustus
mundum vincit, dum \ eum suis oblectationibus
contempnit. Carnem superat, dum eam\ per
abstinentiam domat. Diabolum domat et eum sibi
subicit,\ dum a suis finibus expellit. Palmam igitur in
manu gestat, qui de\ his tribus bene operando
triumphat.\ De cedro et passeribus qui in ramis
cedri nidificant\ In bona significatione cedrus et
libanus quando \ ponuntur, sic in canticis canticorum
per Salomonem dicitur: Spes [PL, species] eius ut\
Libani, electus ut cedri. Libanus Fenicis est mons
terminus Judee\ contra septemtrionem. Arbores illius
proceritate specie et robore ce\terarum silvarum ligna
precellunt. Per montem Libanum sane intel\ligere
possumus eminentiam virtutum. Terminus est Judee
sensorgr
renunciation. For those who renounce the world plant
in the forecourt of the house of the Lord the palm of
the victory by which they overcame the world.
The rightous man is planted, therefore, in the house
of conversion; he flourishes through his renown; he
bears the fruit of virtuous conduct. But to what end
does he set down roots? How does he grow? How
does he become strong? He takes root through faith,
he grows through hope, he becomes strong through
charity.
What is said in the psalm about the righteous is,
however, strange: 'Those that he planted in the house
of the Lord shall flourish in the courts of our God'
(Psalms, 92:13) It is strange that they are planted in
the house and flower in the forecourt. Perhaps they
are planted inside by reason of their faith; through
the example of their good works they flower
externally, and thus through their renown the scent of
their flower spreads outside. Alternatively, the
righteous are planted in the house but flower in the
forecourt, because they are planted in the Church of
today and will flourish, without their flower fading, in
eternal life. There also they will receive, with the
flower, the fruit; that is, with their pureness of body
and soul, the prize of recompense to come.
Translation
Again of the palm-tree
'I will go up to the palm-tree, I will take hold of the
boughs thereof' (Song of Solomon, 7:8). The palm,
near the ground, is slender and rough; towards the
sky, it is thicker and beautiful. It is, therefore, difficult
to climb, but the fruit is sweet. The effort of climbing
is lessened when you can smell the scent of the fruit.
The difficulty of climbing is removed by sweetness of
its taste.
The palm-tree is Christ; the fruit, his salvation: 'I am
the salvation of the people' (see Psalms, 35:3), and
'O taste and see that the Lord is good' (Psalms, 34:8).
The hope of salvation is in the wood of the cross.
Climb the palm, therefore, that is, strive for the
victory of the cross. By climbing the ladder of the
cross, you will attain the victor's throne. You. too, can
carry your cross and follow Christ. Anyone who
mortifies his flesh, carries the cross.
The palm adorns the victor's hand, and the righteous
man carries the palm of victory in the hand of victory,
won by his virtuous conduct. There are said to be
three things over which the righteous man must win
victory. The world, the flesh and the Devil. He
triumphs over the world when he scorns it with its
delights. He overcomes the flesh when he subdues it
by his abstinence. He conquers the Devil and forces
him to submit when he banishes him from his life. He
con\tra septemtrionem ne diabolus mentes vere
confitentium intret\ per temptationem. Arbores illius
proceritate specie et robore alias ar\bores precellunt,
dum quelibet fideles anime proceritate desiderii,\
specie castitatis, robore perseverantie, alias
antecedunt. Per cedrum\ intelligimus Christum. Hec
est cedrus alta Libani conformata ysopo\
Transcription
qui cum esset sublimis, factus est\ humilis. Passeres
sunt predi\catores. Pulli sunt hi qui ver\bo
predicationis sunt procreati.\ Nidus, quiete mentis
locus.\ In hac igitur cedro nidificant, qui\ tranquille
vivendo de eterna be\atitudine non desperant. Sunt\
cedri Libani quas plantavit dom\minus. Cedri Libani
sunt\ divites huius mundi. Pas\seres sunt cenobiorum
rectores.\ Pulli discipuli. Nidus, offici\narum locus. In
his cedris\ passeres nidificant, quia rectores
animarum in possessionibus divi\tum cenobia locant.
Ibi passeres clamare non cessant, ut sibi a deo\
escam querant. A deo sibi escam querant, qui verbi
divini eloquii\ quasi cibo saciari volunt. Die ac nocte
clamitant, qui [PL, quia] pro suis bene\factoribus toto
annisu mentis deum rogant. In mundo tranquille\
mentis pennas contemplationis nutriunt, quibus ad
predictam\ cedrum quam citius poterunt evolare
contendunt. Circa ligna Li\bani volitant, quia viam seu
mores virorum sublimorum scire desi\derant. Ex his
lignis Libani Salomon ferculum fecisse legitur, quia\
ecclesia de viris sublimibus et infatigabilibus (A,
fatigatur; PL, edificatur).\ Item de cedro\ Sicut [PL,
sunt] cedri quas non plantavit dominus non plan\tavit
in propria voluntate, non dilatavit in cupiditate.
Omnis\ plantatio quam non plantavit pater meus
celestis, eradicabitur. Hii\ cedri Libani sunt divites
superbi. In his nidificant herodii et accipitres\
sensorgr
who triumphs over these three things by virtuous
conduct, therefore, bears the palm of victory in his
hand.
Of the cedar and the sparrows that nest in its
branches
When the words 'cedar' and 'Lebanon' are placed
together, it is in a good sense. As Solomon says in the
Song of Songs: 'his countenance is as Lebanon,
excellent as the cedars' (5:15).
Lebanon is a mountain of Phoenicia at the northern
limit of Judaea. Its trees surpass the timber of other
trees in height, appearance and strength. By Mount
Lebanon we can doubtless understand excellence in
virtues. It stands at the northern limit of Judaea, to
prevent the Devil from entering by means of
temptation the minds of those who are sincerely
praising the Lord. Its trees surpass others in height,
appearance and strength, as every faithful soul
surpasses others in the exalted nature of its desire,
the splendour of its chastity and the strength of its
constancy.
By the cedar we understand Christ. He is the tall
cedar of Lebanon, similar in form to the hyssop
Translation
which, although it grew tall, was made humble.
Sparrows are preachers. Their fledglings are those
born of the word as it is preached. Their nest is a
place where there is peace of mind. Build your nest in
the cedar, therefore, if you are one of those who, by
living at peace, have not given up hope of eternal
bliss.
There are those cedars of Lebanon which the Lord
planted. They represent the rich of the world.
Sparrows represent the heads of monasteries;
fledglings are their disciples. The nest represents
convent buildings.
Sparrows nest in these cedars, because spiritual
rulers place their convents on the estates of the rich.
There the sparrows call ceaselessly, seeking food
from God. Let all those who wish to be filled with the
word of God as with food, seek their nourishment
from him. Day and night the sparrows call out, like
those who pray with all their heart to God on behalf of
their benefactors.
Their minds at peace in the midst of the world, they
care for their wings, the wings of contemplation, on
which they seek to fly to the cedar as swiftly as they
can. They fly around the trees of Lebanon, because
they wish to know of the life and behaviour of
spiritually eminent men. From this timber of Lebanon

Transcription
id est raptores. Nidos componunt, quia in
possessionibus divitum raptores\ munitiones
construunt. Pulli sunt complices raptorum seu
mini\stri. He volucres in cedris ut rapiant latent, quia
raptores nocendi\ potentiam, a principibus perversis
habent. Sed: dominus confringet cedros Libani, id est\
divites mundi, quosdam per penitentiam quosdam per
vindictam. Per penitentiam\ confringet, [quando] [PL,
quia] sicut vitulum Libani comminuet. Comminuet
sicut vitulum\ Libani ad imitationem vite Christi, ut
fiat vitulus sacrificiis aptus, ut car\nem mortificet, et
cum Christo crucem portet. Per vindictam confringet
alios\ quia eterno igni reservandos. Predicta cedrus
succisa multis proficit, quia\ Christus morte propria
mundum redemit. Nisi enim granum frumenti cadens
in terram\ mortuum fuerit, ipsum solum manet. Si
autem mortuum fuerit, multum fructum affert. Cedrus
ergo succiditur dum Christus moritur.\ Mors siquidem
Christi multis proficit, descendens ad inferos, surgens
a mortuis\ ascendens in celos spem resurgendi
morientibus dedit. Quid enim prodesset\ vivere
tribulationibus concuti, ad extremum mori, nisi
sequeretur spes resur\gendi? Et quid prodesset
resurrexisse, nisi constans esset hominem
immortalem\ absque supplicio sine fine manere?
Similiter cum cedrus quam plantavit\ dominus
succiditur, multum proficit quia ad eterne beatudinis
edificium transfertur.\ Si autem cedrus quam non
plantavit dominus succisa fuerit, non minime utilitatis
e\rit, quia que nullum fructum ferebat in Libano, id
est in seculo, pondus edificii succisa\ sustinet in
spirituali templo. Ita dico si cedri superbiam succidas
per penitenciam, si\ vero per vindictam succidas
gehenne incendiis illam concremandam in perpetuum
servas.\ De pellicano\ Similis factus sum pellicano
solitudi\nis. Pellicanus Egiptiaca avis est, habitans in
solitu\dine Nili fluminis unde et nomen sumpsit. Nam
Canopos\ Egyptus dicitur. Amatorum est nimis
filiorum. Qui cum genuerit\ natos et ceperint crescere,
percuciunt parentes suos in faciem.\ Sed parentes
repercucientes eos occidunt. Tercia vero die mater\
eorum percuciens costam suam aperit latus suum et
incumbit \
sensorgr
we read that Solomon made himself a chariot (see
Song of Songs, 3:9), as the Church was made from
illustrious and untiring men.
Again of the cedar
There are those cedars which the Lord did not plant.
He did not plant them of his own will, he did not
extend their number out of desire. 'Every plant which
my heavenly Father hath not planted shall be rooted
up' (Matthew, 15:13)
These cedars of Lebanon are the rich and proud.
Gyrfalcons and hawks nest in them
Translation
that is, birds of prey. They make nests there as
robbers build strongholds on the estates of the rich.
Their fledglings are their accomplices or henchmen.
These birds hide in the the cedars in order to catch
their prey, as robbers are empowered to commit
crimes by evil rulers.
But 'the Lord breaketh the cedars of Lebanon'
(Psalms, 29:5), that is, he will destroy the rich of the
world, some by repentance, some by vengeance.
The Lord will break some by repentance as he will
humble the calf of Lebanon. He will humble them like
the calf of Lebanon (see BSV, Psalmi, 28:6; NEB,
Psalms, 29:6), in imitation of the life of Christ,
making of each rich man a calf fit for sacrifice, who
will mortify his flesh and carry his cross with Christ.
He will break others by vengeance because they will
be kept for eternal fire.
Many profit from the felling of the aforesaid cedar, as
when Christ with his death redeemed the world.
'Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die, it
abideth alone; but if it die, it bringeth forth much
fruit' (John, 12:24). Therefore the felling of the cedar
represents the death of Christ. Truly, many benefitted
from the death of Christ; by descending into hell,
rising from the dead and ascending into heaven, he
gave to the dying the hope of resurrection. For what
good is there in living afflicted by distress and in
dying at the end, if hope of resurrection does not
follow? And what good is resurrection unless it is
agreed that immortal man lives on without endless
punishment?
Likewise, when the cedar which the Lord planted is
felled, it is of great profit, because it is transferred to
the dwelling-place of eternal bliss.
But if the cedar which the Lord did not plant is felled,
it, too, will be of no little use, because the tree which
bore no fruit in Lebanon, that is, in this secular world,
may, when it is felled, support the weight of the

Transcription
super pullos suos et effundit sanguinem super corpora
mor\tuorum, et sic suscitat eos a mortuis. Mistice
pellicanus\ significat Christum, Egiptus mundum.
Pellicanus habitat in so\litudine, quia Christus solus de
virgine dignatus est nasci sine viri\li copulatione. Est
autem solitudo pellicani, quod immu\nis est a peccato
sic et vita Christi. Hec avis rostro suos pullos oc\cidit,
quia verbo predicationis incredulos convertit. Super
pullos\ suos flere non desinit, quia Christus cum
resuscitaret Lazarum\ misericorditer flevit. Et sic post
tres dies sanguine suo pullos vi\vificat, quia Christus
proprio sanguine suo redemptos salvat. Mora\liter
autem per pellicanum intelligere possumus non
quemlibet iu\stum, sed a carnali voluptate longe
remotum. Per Egyptum, vi\tam nostram ignorantie
tenebris involutam. Egyptus enim\ tenebre
interpretatur. In Egipto igitur solitudinem facimus,
dum\ a curis et voluptatibus seculi longe sumus. Sic
et iustus in civi\tate solitudinem facit, dum immunem
se in quantum huma\na fragilitas patitur a peccato
custodit. Rostro pellicanus pullos\ suos occidit, quia
iustus cogitationes et opera que male gessit,\
Transcription
ore proprio iudicat et confundit dicens: Confitebor
adversum\ me iniusticiam meam domino, et tu
remisisti impietatem\ peccati mei. Super eos triduo
deflet quicquid cogitatione locuti\one et opere male
sensorgr
building in a temple of the spirit.
What I have said applies only if you cut down the
pride of the cedar with repentance. If, however, you
cut it down with vengeance, you consign it to the fires
of Gehenna to be reduced forever to ashes.
Of the pelican
'I am like pelican of the wilderness' (Psalms, 102:6).
The pelican is a bird of Egypt, living in the wilderness
of the River Nile, from which it gets its name. For
Egypt is known as Canopos.
It is devoted to its young. When it gives birth and the
young begin to grow, they strike their parents in the
face. But their parents, striking back, kill them. On
the third day, however, the mother-bird, with a blow
to her flank, opens up her side and lies
Translation
on her young and lets her blood pour over the bodies
of the dead, and so raises them from the dead.
In a mystic sense, the pelican signifies Christ; Egypt,
the world. The pelican lives in solitude, as Christ alone
condescended to be born of a virgin without
intercourse with a man. It is solitary, because it is
free from sin, as also is the life of Christ. It kills its
young with its beak as preaching the word of God
converts the unbelievers. It weeps ceaselessly for its
young, as Christ wept with pity when he raised
Lazarus. Thus after three days, it revives its young
with its blood, as Christ saves us, whom he has
redeemed with his own blood.
In a moral sense, we can understand by the pelican
not the righteous man, but anyone who distances
himself far from carnal desire. By Egypt is meant our
life, shrouded in the darkness of ignorance. For
Egiptus can be translated as 'darkness'. In Egypt,
therefore, we make a wilderness (see Joel, 3:19),
when we are far from the preoccupations and desires
of this world. Thus the righteous man creates solitude
for himself in the city, when he keeps himself free
from sin, as far as human frailty allows.
The pelican kills its young with its beak because the
righteous man considers and rejects his sinful
thoughts and deeds
Translation
out of his own mouth, saying: 'I said, I will confess
my transgressions unto the Lord, and thou forgavest
the iniquity of my sin' (Psalms, 32:5). It weeps for its
young for three days: this teaches us that whatever
gesserit, lacrimis deleri docet. Et sic pullos\ suos
aspersos sanguine vivificat, dum carnis et sanguinis
opera\ minuit, et actus spiritales bene vivendo servat.
Huius etiam\ volucris natura talis dicitur esse, quod
semper afficitur macie et quicquid glutit\ cito digerit,
quia venter eius nullum habet diverticulum in quo
retine\at cibum. Non igitur cibus ille corpus
impinguat, sed tantum sustinet\ et confortat. Huic
siquidem pellicano heremite vita fit similis\ qui pane
pascitur, nec querit replecionem ventris, qui non\ vivit
ut comedat, sed comedit ut vivat.\ De nicticorace\
Factus sum sicut nicticorax\ in domicilio. Nicticorax\
est avis que amat tenebras noctis.\ In parietinis
habitat quia in ru\inis maceriarum que sunt sine\
tecto domicilium servat. Lucem\ refugit, in nocte
volitans cibum\ querit. Mystice nicticorax Christum\
significat qui noctis tenebras amat, quia non vult
mortem peccatoris\ sed ut convertatur et vivat. Ita
enim deus pater dilexit mundum ut pro\ redemptione
mundi morti traderet filium. Quod autem peccatores\
tenebre vocentur, apostolous testatur dicens: Fuistis
aliquando tenebre,\ nunc autem lux in domino.
Habitat nicticorax in rimis parietum\ quia Christus
nasci voluit de populo Judeorum: Non sum inquit
missus nisi\ ad oves que perierunt domus Israel. Sed
Christus opprimitur a rimis, quia\ occiditur a Judeis.
Lucem refugit, quia vanam gloriam detestatur et
odit.\ Cum enim leprosum curaret ut nobis exemplum
humilitatis da\
Transcription
ret, ait leproso: Vide nemini dixeris. De hac luce
dicitur: Auferetur\ ab impiis lux sua, id est presentis
vite gloria. Ipse autem est lux inacces\sibilis: que
illuminat omnem hominem. Lux igitur refugit lu\cem,
id est veritas humane glorie vanitatem. In nocte
volitans escas\ querit, quia peccatores in corpus
ecclesie predicando convertit. Moraliter\ autem
nicticorax non quemlibet iustum nobis innuit, sed eum
qui\ inter homines degens ab intuitu hominum se in
quantum potuit\ abscondit. Lucem refugit, quia
humane laudis gloriam non attendit.\ De qua luce
dicitur: Nonne lux impii extinguetur nec splendebit
sensorgr
we have done wrong by thought, word or deed, is
expunged by tears. It revives its young by sprinkling
them with its blood, as when we concern ourselves
less with matters of flesh and blood and concentrate
on spiritual acts, by conducting ourselves virtuously.
It is also a characteristic of this bird, they say, that it
always suffers from thinness, and that whatever it
swallows, it digests immediately, because its stomach
has no separate pocket in which to retain food. Food
does not fatten its body, therefore, but only sustains
it and gives it strength. Indeed, the life of a hermit is
modelled on the pelican, in that he lives on bread but
does not seek to fill his stomach; he does not live to
eat but eats to live.
Of the night-owl
'I am like the night-owl in its dwelling-place' (BSV,
Psalmi, 101:7; NEB, Psalms, 102:6). The night-owl is
a bird that loves the darkness of the night. It lives in
decaying walls because it sets up house in the ruins of
roofless dwellings. It shuns the light, flying at night in
search of food.
In a mystic sense, the night-owl signifies Christ.
Christ loves the darkness of night because he does
not want sinners - who are represented by darkness -
to die but to be converted and live (see Ezekiel,
18:32). For God the father so loved the world that he
gave his son to death for the redemption of the world
(see John, 3:16-17). That sinners are called
'darkness', is borne out by the apostle, saying: 'For ye
were sometimes darkness, but now are ye light in the
Lord' (Ephesians, 5:8).
The night-owl lives in the cracks in walls, as Christ
wished to be born one of the Jewish people, saying: 'I
am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of
Israel' (Matthew, 15:24). But Christ is crushed in the
cracks of the walls, because he is killed by the Jews.
Christ shuns the light in the sense that he detests and
hates vainglory. For when he cared for a leper, in
order to give us a lesson in humility,
Translation
he said to the leper: 'See thou tell no man' (Matthew,
8:4). Of this light it is said: 'And from the wicked their
light is witholden' (Job, 38:15), that is, the glory of
present life. He himself is the light inaccessible 'which
lighteth every man' (John, 1:9). The light, therefore,
shuns the light, that is, the truth shuns the vanity of
worldly glory.
The night-owl flies at night in search of food, as Christ
converts sinners into the body of the Church by
preaching.
flam\ma ignis eius. Lucem dicit presentis vite
prosperitatem. Sed lux impii\ extinguitur, quia fugitive
vite prosperitas cum ipsa terminatur. Nec splende\bit
flamma ignis eius? Ignem dicit temporalium
desideriorum fervo\rem. Cuius flamma est decor vel
potestas externe que de interno eius \ ardore
procedit. Sed non splendebit quia in die exitus omnis
exterior\ decor et potestas peribit. In nocte vigilat,
dum peccatorum tenebras \ attendens eorum errores
vitat. Habitat in rimis parietum, dum \ mundi
defectum considerat, et expectat occasum. Escam in
nocte\ querit, quia peccantium vitam recogitans de
exemplis iustorum\ mentem pascit.\ De epopo\ Avis
que dicitur epopus quando viderit parentes eius
[senuis-]\ se et caligasse oculos eorum, evellit plumas
eorum et ocu\los eorum lingit et calefacit eos et
renovantur parentes ipsius, quasi\ dicens parentibus
suis, sicut laborastis nutrientes me similiter ego\ facio
vobis. Si autem hoc faciunt sibi invicem irrationabiles
quan\to magis rationabiles homines parentum suorum
nutrimenta\ mutua reddere debent, quia lex dicit: Qui
maledixerit patri vel\ matri morte morietur, et est
quasi patricida et matricida. Ecce\ quomodo epopi
plumas parentum evellunt, et oculos eorum\ lingunt,
et eos calefaciunt, ut pristinam sanitatem
recuperent.\
Transcription
De pica\ Pice quasi poetice, quod verba in discrimi\ne
vocis exprimant ut homo, per ramos enim\ arborum
pendule importuna garruli\tate sonantes, et si
nequeunt linguas in\ sermone explicare, sonum
tamen humane\ vocis imitantur, de qua congrue
quidam ait: Pica loquax\ certa dominum te voce
salutat. Si me non videas esse ne\gabis avem. Picus a
Pico Saturni filio nomen sumpsit, eo quod\ in auspiciis
utebatur. Nam ferunt hanc avem quiddam habere\
sensorgr
In a moral sense, moreover, the night-owl signifies to
us not just any righteous man, but rather one who
lives among other men yet hides from their view as
much as possible. He flees from the light, in the sense
that he does not look for the glory of human praise.
It is said of this light: 'Will the light of the wicked not
be put out, and the spark of his fire not shine?' (see
Job, 17:5). 'Light' here signifies the prosperity of
present life. The light of the wicked is extinguished, in
the sense that the prosperity of our fleeting life ends
with life itself. Will the flame of his fire not shine?
'Fire' here is the passion of temporal desires. Its
flame is the splendour or outward show of power
which comes from its inner fire. But it will not shine
because on the day of death all outward splendour
and power will perish.
The night-owl keeps watch in the night, as when the
righteous man, alert to the darkness of sinners,
avoids their errors. It lives in the cracks of walls, in
the sense that he considers the weakness of the world
and awaits its downfall. It seeks food by night, as
when he reflects upon the life of sinners and uses
their example to nourish the mind of the righteous.
Of the hoopoe
When the bird called the hoopoe sees that its parents
have grown old and that their eyes are dim, it plucks
out their old plumage and licks their eyes and keeps
them warm, and its parents' life is renewed. It as if
the hoopoe said to them: 'Just as you took pains in
feeding me, I will do likewise for you.'
If birds, who lack reason, do as much for each other,
how much more should men, who have the power of
reason, support their parents in return; because the
law says: 'And he that curses his father, or his
mother, shall surely be put to death' (Exodus, 21:17);
it is as if he were guilty of parricide or matricide.
See how the hoopoes pluck their parents' plumage
and lick their eyes, in order that they should regain
their former health.
Translation
Of the magpie
Magpies are like poets, because they utter words,
with a distinct sound, like men; hanging in the
branches of trees, they chatter rudely, and even if
they cannot get their tongues round words, they
nevertheless imitate human speech. On this subject
someone aptly said: 'The chattering magpie, firm of
voice, greets you as lord. If you do not see me, you
will deny that I am a bird' (Martial, Epigrams, 14: 76).
The woodpecker, picus, gets its name from Picus son
 of Saturn, because he used it for taking auguries. For
they say that this bird has something

sensorgr
Transcription
divinum, illo indicio quod\ in quacumque arbore
nidi\ficaverit, clavum vel quic\quid aliud fixum diu
he\rere non potest, quin sta\tim excidat ubi illa
inse\derit.\ De corvo\ Corvus sive corax,\ nomen a
sono gut\turis habet, quod voce cora\cinet. Fertur hec
avis quod\ editis pullis escam non ple\ne prebeat,
priusquam in eis per\ pennarum nigredinem\
similitudinem proprii coloris\ agnoscat. Postquam vero
eos te\tros plumis aspexerit, in\ toto agnitos
abundantius, hic prior in cadaveribus oculum pe\tit.
Corvus in divina pagina diversis modis accipitur, ut
per cor\vum aliquando predicatorum, aliquando
peccatorum, aliquando diabolus intelligitur.\
Transcription
Ysidorus [in libro, deleted] in libro ethimologiarum
dicit, quod corvus\ prius in cadaveribus petit oculum,
quia in carnalibus intellectum discre\tionis extinguit,
et sic per oculum extrahit cerebrum. Per oculum \
cerebrum extrahit, qui [PL, quia] extincto discretionis
intellectu, sen\sum mentis evertit. Iterum per corvum
quilibet peccator intelli\gitur, qui quasi peccatorum
plumis nigrescentibus vestitur. Sunt autem\ quidam
peccatores qui de misericordia dei desperant. Sunt et
alii qui ad\ hoc religiosorum precibus [ad]iuventur
exorant. De quibus dicitur:\ Corvi paverunt Heliam.
Per corvos igitur peccatores intelligi volunt,\ qui de
sua substantia religiosis pascunt. Illos enim Helias
signi\ficat, quos locus et habitus religionis occultat.
Sunt alii qui des\perant, terrenis inhiant, cum intus
debent esse foras spectant. De\ quibus scriptura dicit:
Corvus ad archam non rediit, quia forsitan\ aquis
diluvii interceptus periit, vel cadaveribus inventis,
forsitan\ supersedit. Similiter peccator qui carnalibus
desideriis foras pascitur,\ quasi corvus qui ad archam
non rediit, curis exterioribus detinetur.\ Sed in bona
significatione corvus accipitur, ut per corvum quilibet\
doctus predicator intelligatur. Unde per beatum Job
dicitur: Quis preparat\ corvo escam suam, quando
pulli eius ad dominum clamant, vagantes eo quod\
non habeat cibos? Corvus sicut ait beatus Gregorius,
est quisque predi\cator doctus, qui magna voce
clamat, dum peccatorum suorum\ memoriam quasi
quandam coloris nigredinem portat. Cui nascun\tur in
fide discipuli, sed fortasse adhuc considerare
sensorgr
Translation
divine about it; the proof of this is, if a woodpecker
nests in any tree, a nail or anything fixed in the trunk
will not stay there for long, but will fall out as soon as
the bird sits in its nest.
Of the raven
The raven gets its name, corvus or corax, from the
sound it makes in its throat, because it utters a croak.
It is said that when its young have been hatched, this
bird does not feed them fully until it sees that they
have black feathers similar to its own. But after it has
seen that they are of dark plumage, and has
recognised them as of its own species, it feeds them
more generously.
When this bird feeds off corpses, it goes for the eyes
first.
In the Scriptures, the raven is perceived in a variety
of ways; it is sometimes taken to mean a preacher,
sometimes a sinner, sometimes the Devil.
Translation
In his book of Etymologies, Isidore says that the
raven picks out the eyes in corpses first, as the Devil
destroys the capacity for judgement in carnal men,
and proceeds to extract the brain through the eye.
The raven extracts the brain through the eye, as the
Devil, when it has destroyed our capacity for
judgement, destroys our mental faculties.
Again, the raven can be taken to mean a sinner, since
it is clad, so to speak, with the dark plumage of sin.
There are some sinners who despair of God's mercy.
Others pray that they may be helped to find it by the
prayers of the pious.
Of the second sort, it is said: 'The ravens fed Elijah'
(see 1 Kings, 17:6). By 'ravens' we are meant to
understand the sinners who support the religious from
their own resources. Elijah signifies those who live
hidden in the habit and house of a religious order.
The former sinners who despair, long for worldly
things and look outwards when they should look
inwards. Of these the scripture says: 'The raven did
not return to the ark' (see Genesis, 8:7); perhaps
because it was caught up and perished in the flood, or
perhaps because it found corpses and settled on
them. In the same way, the sinner who gratifies
himself outwardly with carnal desires, like the raven
that did not return to the ark, is held back by external
preoccupations.
infirmitatem\ propriam nescunt, fortasse a peccatis
preteritis memoriam avertunt.\ Et per hoc eam quam
assumi oportet contra huius mundi gloriam,
hu\militatis nigredinem non ostendunt, hii velut ad
accipiendas\ escas os aperiunt, cum doceri de secretis
sublimibus querunt. Set\ eis doctor suus alimenta
predicamentorum sublimium tanto \
Transcription
minus tribuit, quanto illos peccata preterita minus
digne defle\re cognoscit. Expectat quippe atque
ammonet ut a nitore vi\te presentis prius per
penitentie lamenta nigrescant, et tunc demum\
congrua predicationis subtilissime nutrimenta
percipiant. Corvus\ in pullis ora inhiantia respicit, sed
ante in eis pennarum nigredine\ indui corpus querit,
et discretus doctor interna misteria eorum sensi\bus
non ministrat quos adhuc ab hoc seculo nequaquam
se abiecisse con\siderat. Et quo se a temporali gloria
non evacuant, eo a spirituali re\fectione ieiunant.
Eisque inhiantibus in ore cibum revocat, dum ex\ ea
intelligentia quam ceperit, esurientibus discipulis
alimenta vite\ loquendo sumministrat. Quos tanto
ardentius de superioribus reficit,\ quanto verius a
mundi nitore nigrescere penitentie lamentatione\
cognoscit. Pulli autem dum nigro se pennarum colore
vesti\unt, de se etiam volatum promittunt, quia cum
magis discipuli abiec\ta de se sentiunt, quo magis
sese despicientes affligunt, eo am\plius spem
provectus sui in altiora pollicentur. Unde et curat
doctor\ festinantius alere, quos iam per quedam
iudicia [PL, indicia] providet posse\ et aliis prodesse.
Que doctrine discretio dum caute a predicatore\
custoditur, ei divinitus largior copia predicationis
datur. Dum enim\ per caritatem compati afflictis
discipulis novit, dum per discretionem\ congruum
doctrine tempus intelligit, ipse non solum pro se, sed
etiam\ pro eis quibus laboris sui studia impendit,
maiora intelligentie\ munera percipit. Unde aperte
dicitur: Quis preparat corvo escam suam\ quando pulli
eius ad deum clamant vagantes eo quod non habeat\
cibos? Cum enim pulli ut sacientur clamant, corvo
esca prepara\tur, quia dum verbum dei boni auditores
esuriunt, pro reficiendis\ eis maiora doctoribus
intelligentie dona tribuuntur. Cuius pulli,\ id est
predicatores ex eo editi, non in se presumunt, sed in
viribus redemp\
sensorgr
But the raven can also be interpreted in a good sense,
as a learned preacher. On this subject, it says in the
book of the blessed Job: 'Who provideth for the raven
his food? when his young ones cry unto God, they
wander for lack of meat' (38:41).
The raven, as the blessed Gregory says, is the
learned teacher who cries out in a loud voice, carrying
the memory of his sins like blackness around him. He
produces disciples in the faith, but perhaps they
cannot yet address their own weakness, perhaps they
shun the memory of their former sins. As a result
they do not show the blackness of humility, which
they ought to adopt against worldly glory. They open
their mouth as if for food when they seek instruction
in the mysteries of religion. But their teacher imparts
the nourishment of sublime preaching only to the
extent
Translation
that he sees they have repented fittingly of their past
sins. Indeed he expects and admonishes them first to
change from the gaudiness of their present life into a
sombre hue, through the sorrow of repentance, and
only then to receive the nourishment they need, in
the form of sermons on the the most complex
subjects.
Although the raven sees that the mouths of its young
are open, waiting to be fed, it first checks to see if
their bodies are covered with black feathers. Equally,
the discerning teacher will not dispense the inner
mysteries to the minds of those of his disciples whom
he considers have still not rejected this world. For as
long as they do not rid themselves of temporal glory,
they are starved of spiritual nourishment.
The raven brings back food in its beak to its open-
mouthed offspring, as the teacher, drawing on the
understanding which he has acquired, dispenses in
words the food of life to his hungry pupils. The more
sincerely, in his eyes, they abandon the glitter of the
world to grow dark with the sorrow of repentance, the
keener he is to give them refreshment in the form of
instruction on higher matters.
When the raven's young clothe themselves in black
feathers, they also give promise of flying, as the more
the teacher's pupils despise themselves, the more
their conscience is troubled because of their
worthlessness, the greater is their promise of rising to
a higher realm.
For this reason the teacher is careful to feed more
quickly those who, as he can already tell from certain
signs, have the ability to be of use to others. If he
carefully preserves this judgement in his preaching,
he will receive, by God's will, a greater opportunity for

Transcription
toris sui. Unde bene dicitur: Quando pulli eius ad
deum clamant.\ Nichil enim sua virtute posse se
sciunt, et quamvis anima[rum]\ lucra piis vocibus
esuriant, ab illo tamen qui cuncta intrinsecus\
operatur hec fieri exoptant. Vera enim fide
comprehendunt, quia [PL, quod] nec \ qui plantat est
aliquid neque qui rigat, sed qui incrementum dat [PL,
deus].\ Quod vero dictum est: vagantes eo quod non
habeant cibos. In\ hac vagatione nil aliud quam
estuantium predicatorum vota\ signantur. Qui dum in
ecclesie sinum recipere pullos ambiunt,\ magno
ardore succensi, nunc ad hos nunc ad illos
colligen\dos desiderium mittunt. Quasi quedam
quippe vagatio est\ ipsa cogitationis estuatio. Et velud
ad loca varia mutatis\ moribus transeunt, dum pro
adiuvandis animabus in modos in\numeros in partes
diversas esuriente mente discurrunt.\ Potest hec
auctoritas aliter exponi, ut per corvum intelligantur\
quidam ecclesiarum prelati, peccatorum fuligine nigri.
Qui non\ tantum escam suam sibi parant sed etiam
preparant, ut pre ceteris delica\cius vivant. Quorum
pulli, sunt eorum discipuli. Qui ad deum\ clamant, et
tamen murmurant quod eorum magistri in cibum\
delicatiora sumant. Vagantes a claustris exeunt, et sic
ha\bundantiam victualium sibi querunt. Sunt et alii
maiores cor\vi, potestate maiores dignitate sublimes
qui quandoque populos\ in ecclesiis congregant,
ieiunia predicant, ipsi tamen in diebus ieiuni\orum
carnes edunt et sic simplices scandalizant et
offen\dunt. Inde populi vagantes mente dubitant,
verum prelati\ qui ieiunia docent ea populis prodesse
credant. Et hoc ad presens\ de corvo dixisse sufficiat,
donec aliquis de eo pociora dicat.\ De gallo\ Gallus a
castratione vocatus.\ Inter ceteras enim aves huic soli
testiculi adimuntur,\ veteres enim abscisos gallos
vocabant. Sicut autem a leone\
sensorgr
preaching. For when he knows how to share, out of
love, the troubles of his disciples, when he can
discern that the time is right for teaching, he will
receive greater gifts of understanding not only for
himself but also for those to whom he devotes his
attention and his efforts.
On which subject it is said, plainly: 'Who provideth for
the raven his food? When his young ones cry unto
God, they wander for lack of meat' (Job 38:41). For
when the young cry out to be fed, food is prepared for
them by the raven, in the same way that righteous
listeners, hungering for the word of God, receive as
food from their teachers the greater gifts of
understanding.
The raven's young, that is, the Next generation of
preachers whom the preacher himself has raised up
by his instruction, do not trust in themselves but in
the strength of their Redeemer.
Translation
In this respect, it is well said: 'When his young ones
cry unto God ...' (Job, 38:41). For they know that
they can do nothing through their own virtue alone,
and however much they hunger with pious voices for
the riches of their souls, they hunger with pious
voices, they long for these things to be brought about
by him, however, who brings about all things
inwardly. For they understand with true faith that
'neither is he that planteth any thing, neither he that
watereth but God that giveth it increase' (1
Corinthians, 3:7-8).
It is said: 'They wander for lack of meat' (Job, 38:41).
'Wandering' here signifies nothing else but the vows
of preachers moved by passion. While they travel
about to receive their young into the bosom of the
Church, inflamed with great ardour, they apply their
yearning zeal to gather in now some, now others. In
fact, the very heat of their intention is itself a kind of
wandering. It also represents the way in which they
travel to a variety of places where life is different,
when they hurry here and there, eager of mind, to
help souls in innumerable ways in different places.
This statement in Job can be explained in another
way: that the raven signifies certain prelates, or
dignitaries of the Church, black from the soot of their
sins. They not only get food for themselves but also
get it dressed, with the result that they live more
luxuriously than others.
The raven's young, in this interpretation, represent
the prelates' disciples. 'The young', it is said, 'cry unto
God'. The disciples, however, grumble that their
masters eat too well. They leave the cloister and
wander off in search of an abundance of food.

Transcription
leena, et a dracone dracena, ita \ a gallo gallina, cuius
membra\ ut ferunt quidam et si auro\ liquenti
misceantur consumi ai\unt. Est etiam galli cantus\
suavis in noctibus, et non solum\ suavis sed etiam
utilis, qui quasi\ bonus cohabitator et dormien\tem
excitat, et sollicitum ad\monet, et viatem solatur,
processum noctis canora significatione\ prestans. Hoc
canente, latro suas relinquit insidias. Hoc\ ipse lucifer
excitatus oritur celumque illuminat. Hoc canente
mesticiam\ trepidus nauta deponit, omnisque crebro
vespertinis flatibus ex\citata tempestas et procella
mitescit. Hoc devotus affectus exilit\ ad precandum
legendi quoque munus instaurat. Hoc devocius
postre\mum canente, ipsa ecclesia Petra culpam
suam diluit, quam priusquam\ gallus cantaret,
negando contraxit. Istius cantu spes omnibus \ redit,
egris relevatur incommodum, minuitur dolor
vulnerum,\ febrium flagrantia mitigatur, revertitur
fides lapsis, Jesus titubantes\ respicit, errantes
corrigit, denique respexit Petrum et statim\ error
abscessit, pulsa est negatio, secuta est confessio
quod non fortu\ito accidisse sed ex sententia domini
lectio docet.\ Item Gregorius de gallo \ Quis dedit
gallo intelligentiam? De gallo queritur a quo\ ei
intelligentia tribuatur. Sed hec questio solvitur si
beatus Gre\gorius loquens in moralibus audiatur.
Intelligentiam sicut ait beatus Gregorius\ gallus
accipit, ut prius nocturni temporis horas discutiat, et
tunc\ demum vocem excitationis emitat, quia videlicet
sanctus quisque predi\cator prius in auditoribus suis
qualitatem vite considerat, et tunc\ demum ad
erudiendum congruam vocem predicationis format.\
sensorgr
There are other, bigger ravens; these are the prelates
eminent in power and rank who, gathering their
congregation in Church, urge it in their sermons to
fast, while they themselves eat flesh on fast-days,
thus scandalising and offending ordinary people. This
puts doubts in the people's mind and they wonder if
the prelates who advocated fasting really believe that
it is worthwhile.
This is enough about the raven for the moment, until
someone else says something more significant about
it.
Of the cock
The cock, gallus, gets its name from the act of
castration. For alone among other birds its testicles
are removed, and the ancients called castrated men
galli. As from the lion
Translation
the lioness gets her name leena, and the she-dragon
dracena from the dragon draco, so the hen gets her
name gallina from the cock. People say that the cock's
limbs, if mixed with liquid gold, are consumed by it.
The crowing of the cock at night is a pleasant sound,
and not only pleasant but useful; like a good partner,
the cock wakes you when are asleep, encourages you
if you are worried, comforts you if you are on the
road, marking with its melodious call the progress of
the night.
With the crowing of the cock, the robber calls off his
ambush; the morning star itself is awakened, rises
and lights up the sky; the anxious sailor sets aside his
cares, and very often each tempest and storm
whipped up by evening winds moderates. At cockcrow
the devout of mind rise eagerly to pray, able once
again to read the office. When the cock crowed
assiduously for the last time, Peter himself, the rock
of the Church, washed away his guilt, which he had
incurred by denying Christ before cockcrow.
With the crowing of the cock, as with the words of
Jesus, hope returns to everyone, the troubles of the
sick are eased, the pain of wounds is lessened, the
raging heat of fevers is moderated, faith is restored to
those who have fallen. Jesus watches over those who
falter, he corrects those who stray; in short, he
looked at Peter and immediately his sin went away,
his denial was put out of mind, his confession
followed.
This reading of the text teaches us that things do not
happen by accident but by the will of our Lord.
Again of the cock, this time from Saint Gregory

Transcription
Quasi enim horas noctis di-[A, scernere est
peccatorum merita] \ diiudicare. Quasi horas noctis
[A, discernere actionum tenebras]\ apta increpationis
voce cor-[A,ripere. Gallo itaque intelligentia de-]\
super tribuitur, quia doctor [PL, doctori] veri-[A,tatis
discretionis virtus ut no-]\ verit, quibus, quid, quando
v-[A, el quomodo inferat divinitus ministratur.]\ Non
enim una eademque cunc-[A, tis exhortatio convenit
quia nec]\ cunctos par morum qualitas ast-[A, ringit.
Sepe enim aliis officiunt]\ que aliis prosunt. Nam et
plerum-[A, que herbe que hec animalia reficiunt]\ alia
occidunt, et lenis sibilus [A, equos mitigat catulos
instigat]\ et medicamentum quod hunc morbum
imminuit alteri vires\ iungit, et panis qui vitam
fortium roborat, parvulorum \ necat. Pro qualitate
igitur audientium formari debet sermo doc\torum, ut
et ad sua singulis congruat, et tamen a communis
edi\ficationis arte nunquam recedat. Quid enim
intente mentes au\ditorum sunt, nisi quasi quedam in
cythara tensiones strate corda\rum? Quas tangendi
artifex ut non sibimet ipsi dissimile canticum\ faciant
dissimiliter pulsat. Et iccirco corde consonam
modulati\onem reddunt quia uno quidem plectro, sed
non uno impulsu feri\untur. Unde et doctor quisque ut
in una cunctos virtute caritatis e\dificet, ex una
doctrina, non una eademque exhortatione tangere\
corda audientium debet. Habemus vero aliud quod de
galli huius intel\ligentia considerare debeamus, quia
profundioribus horis noctis valen\tiores ac
profundiores edere cantus solet, cum vero matutinum
iam\ tempus appropinquat leniores ac minuciores
omnimodo voces\ format. In quibus galli huius
intelligentia quid nobis innuat\ considerata
predicatorum discretio demonstrat. Qui cum iniquis\
adhuc mentibus predicant, aliis et magnis vocibus
eterni iudicii\ terrores intimant, quia videlicet quasi in
profunde noctis tenebris\ clamant. Cum vero iam
auditorum suorum cordibus veritatis lucem\
sensorgr
Who gave the cock its understanding? That is the
question: who endowed it with understanding? But
this question is answered if you listen to the words of
the blessed Gregory on the subject of morality.
The cock gets its understanding, says Gregory, so
that it can first dispel the night-time hours, then at
last utter the cry that awakes, in the same way that a
holy preacher first considers the circumstances of his
congregation, and only then develops a preaching
style suitable for instructing them.
Translation
Deciding how sinners should be punished is like
marking the hours of the night. To mark the hours of
the night, is to reprimand in a suitably reproachful
voice the darkness of their deeds.
Thus understanding has been assigned to the cock
from above, as the virtue of judgement has been
given by God's will to the teacher of the truth, so that
he can tell to whom, what, when and how he should
respond.
For the same kind of encouragement does not suit
everyone, because we are not all bound by the same
standard of behaviour. Often what harms some helps
others. Frequently, the grasses which refresh these
animals kill those; a soft whistle calms horses, but
excites young dogs; the remedy which heals one
ailment makes another worse; and the food which
builds up strong men kills babies. The language of
teachers must therefore be adapted to the condition
of their listeners, so that it should meet each one's
needs yet never lack the capacity to instruct them all
at the same time.
For what are the attentive minds of listeners if not the
strings stretched on a lyre? The musician strikes each
one differently so that it is not out of tune with the
rest. And therefore the strings give a harmonious
sound because they are struck with a single plectrum
but not with the same stroke. For this reason a
teacher should touch the strings of his listeners in
order to instruct them all in the single virtue of love,
drawing on one doctrine, but with more than one form
of encouragement.
We should, however, consider something else in the
context of the cock's power of understanding. It has
the habit of crowing very loudly and deeply in the
darkest hours of the night, but produces, as dawn
approaches, a softer and less forceful sound. In this
case, the thoughtful judgement of preachers shows
what the understanding of the cock should signify to
us.
When they preach to minds which have hitherto been
evil, they evoke the terrors of eternal judgement at
 the top of their voice, as if they were cocks crowing in
the darkest hours of the night. But when they realise
that the light of truth is already present in the hearts
of their listeners,

sensorgr
Transcription
adesse cognoscunt, clamoris sui magnitudinem in
levitatem\ dulcedinis vertunt, et non tam illa que sunt
de penis terribilia quam\ ea que sunt blanda de
premiis proferunt. Qui etiam tunc minutis\ vocibus
cantant, quia propinquante mane [PL, divine lucis]
subtilitate quadam queque\ de misteriis predicant, ut
sequaces sui eo minutiora queque de cele\stibus
audiant, quo luci veritatis appropinquant. Et quos
dormien\tes longus galli cantus excitaverat, vigilantes
succisior delec\tat, quatinus correcto cuilibet
cognoscere de regno subtiliter\ dulcia libeat, qui prius
de iudicio adversa formidabat. Quod bene\ per
Moysen exprimitur cum ad producendum exercitum
tube clan\gere concisius iubentur. Scriptum namque
est: Fac tibi duas tubas ar\genteas ductiles. Et paulo
post: Cum concisus clangor increpue\rit, movebuntur
[PL, castra]. Per duas enim tubas exercitus ducitur,
quia per duo\ precepta caritatis ad procinctum fidei
populus vocatur. Que iccirco ar\gentee fieri
precipiuntur, ut predicatorum verba lucis nitore
pareant,\ et auditorum mentem nulla sui obscuritate
confundant. Ic\circo autem ductiles, quia necesse est
ut hii qui venturam vitam predicant,\ tribulationum
presentium tunsionibus [PL, contusionibus] crescant.
Bene autem dicitur:\ Cum concisus clangor increpuerit
movebuntur castra, quia ni\mirum predicationis
sermo cum subtilius ac minutius agitur, auditorum\
corda contra temptationum certamina ardentius
excitantur.\ Est adhuc aliud in gallo sollerter
intuendum, quia cum edere\ cantum parat prius alas
excutit, et semetipsum feriens vigilian\tiorem reddit.
Quod patenter cernimus si sanctorum predicatorum
vitam\ vigilanter videmus. Ipsi quippe cum verba
predicationis monent, prius\ se in sanctis actionibus
exercent, ne in semetipsis torpentes opere, alios\
excitent voce. Sed ante se per sublimia facta
excuciunt, et tunc ad\ bene agendum alios sollicitos
reddunt. Prius cogitationum\ alis semetipsos feriunt,
quia quicquid in se inutiliter torpet, sollicita
sensorgr
Translation
they transform their loud tones into a sweet and
gentle voice, drawing attention not so much to the
terrors of punishment as to the enticements of
reward. They also crow quietly then like cocks
because, with the approach of the dawning of divine
enlightenment, they preach with a degree of
refinement about the mysteries, so that their
followers may hear a more detailed account of
heavenly things and draw near, as a result, to the
light of the truth.
The lengthy crowing of the cock rouses those who are
asleep; when shorter, it pleases them when awake, as
those who have reformed their character take
pleasure in learning in detail about the delights of
divine rule, having earlier feared the calamity of
divine judgement.
This is well put by Moses, when God orders him to
sound the trumpets in short blasts, in order to send
the army forward. For it is written: 'Make thee two
trumpets of silver' (Numbers, 10:2); and a little later:
'When ye blow an alarm, then the camps ... shall go
forward' (Numbers, 10:5). The army is led by two
trumpets, as God's people are summoned by two
rules of love to be ready to fight for the faith. The
trumpets are ordered to be of silver, for this reason,
that the words of preachers should be clearly visible
from the brightness of their light so that they should
not confuse the mind of their listeners with any
obscurity. The trumpets are made of beaten silver,
because those who preach of the life to come must
grow under the blows of the misfortunes of the
present.
The text: 'When ye blow an alarm, then the camps ...
shall go forward' (Numbers, 10:5), is also apt,
because it is a fact that the words of a sermon, when
delivered very precisely and with attention to detail,
stir the hearts of the listeners with greater fire in the
struggle against temptation.
There is something else about the cock to which we
should give skilful consideration: before it prepares to
utter its crow, it first beats its wings, and by striking
itself makes itself more alert.
We can see this clearly if we look closely at the lives
of holy preachers. Before they instruct us with a
sermon, they exercise themselves in holy conduct,
unwilling to urge others on by voice while they
themselves are sluggish in action. First, they give
themselves a shake by performing lofty deeds, then
they impart to others the desire to act well. First they
beat themselves with the wings of thought, in the
sense that they detect whatever is uselessly sluggish
within themselves
Transcription
investigatione deprehendunt, districta animadversione
cor\rigunt. Prius sua punire fletibus curant, et tunc
que aliorum\ sunt punienda denuntiant. Prius ergo alis
insonant quam\ cantus emittant, quia antequam
verba exhortationis proferant\ omne quod locuturi
sunt operibus clamant. Et cum perfecte\ insemet ipsis
vigilant, tunc dormientes alios ad vigilias\ vocant. Sed
unde tanta doctori intelligentia ut et sibi perfecte\
vigilet, et dormientes ad vigilias sub quibusdam
clamoris\ provectibus vocet, ut et peccatorum
tenebras prius caute discuciat,\ et discrete
postmodum lucem predicationis ostendat, vel singu\lis
iuxta modum et tempora congruat, et simul omnibus
qui\ illos sequantur ostendat? Unde ad tanta et tam
subtiliter tenditur,\ nisi intrinsecus ab eo a quo est
conditus doceatur? Quia igitur laus\ intelligentie tante
non predicatoris virtus est sed auctoris,\ recte per
eundem auctorem dicitur: [Vel] quis dedit gallo
intel\ligentiam? Nisi ego qui doctorum mentes quas
mire ex ni\chilo condidi, ad intelligenda que occulta
sunt mirabilius\ instruxi. Potest etiam de gallo dici,
quod sint quidam ecclesie\ prelati quibus a Deo [PL,
intelligentia datur; nec tamen iuxta intelligentiam a
Deo] sibi datam aliquid operantur. Non seipsos alis\
excitant nec alios monent, ut ad bene operandum
surgant. \ Seipsos amant et sic ocio et voluptati
vacant. Horas noctis\ sicut gallus non annuntiant,
quia culpas delinquentium non\ accusant.
Confessionis et penitentie discrecionem non
atten\dunt, sed in adquirendis rebus transitoriis
intelligentiam adeo sibi\ datam ponunt. Animarum
lucra querere noverunt ea\tamen que ad
delectationem carnis pertineant, tota mente que\runt.
Sunt et alii nimis simplices et illiterati, qui quasi
gal\lus sedent in pertica regiminis, id est in pertica
prelationis, locum
Transcription
occupant, et tamen officium divine legis ignorant.
Sedent et ta\ cent, seipsos pascunt, nec gregem
[mark] sibi commissum ad pascua\ eterne viriditatis
sensorgr
Translation
by careful self-examination, and they correct it by
severe self-reproach. First they carefully punish their
own faults, weeping as they do so, then they make
known the faults of others which should be punished.
They flap their wings noisily before they crow, in the
sense that before they offer words of encouragement,
they proclaim by their deeds all the virtues of which
they are going to speak. And when they themselves
are fully awake, then they rouse others from their
sleep.
But from where does the teacher get such
understanding, that he stays fully awake to his own
state and rouses with his cries those who sleep; that
he first carefully scatters the darkness of sin, and
afterwards with judgement reveals the light of
preaching, showing it to them individually as befits
their circumstances, and simultaneously to all who
follow them? From where does he get this
understanding, which extends to so many things so
acutely, unless he be instructed inwardly by the Lord
his maker?
As it is not a characteristic of a preacher but of an
author to praise such great understanding, it is
therefore rightly said by the author I have already
quoted: 'Who gave the cock its understanding? If not
I who created from nothing the minds of teachers, as
by a marvel, and taught them, even more
marvellously, to understand things which are hidden?'
It can also be said on the subject of the cock, that
there are certain prelates of the Church [to whom
God gave understanding but who do not do anything
with it]. They do not flap their wings to bestir
themselves, nor do they encourage others to rise and
lead good lives. They love themselves and so devote
themselves to repose and desire. They do not mark
the hours of the night like the cock, in the sense that
they do not denounce the guilt of the wicked. They do
not apply their judgement to confession or
repentance, but use the understanding given to them
for the acquisition of transitory things. They have
learned how to seek the good of souls, yet they apply
their minds entirely to those things which relate to the
pleasures of the flesh.
There are others who are excessively simple and
unlearned, who are poised like cocks on the the perch
of government, that is, the perch of preferment
Translation
yet they are ignorant of their duties under the law of
God. They sit and say nothing; they attend to their
own spiritual nourishment, but they do not lead the
ducunt. Et hic igitur cui intelligentia datur nec\ populo
verbum dei predicat, et hic qui tacet quia nescit quid
dicat\ uterque caveat, ne quasi gallus de pertica
cadat, filios suos Heli\ sepe corripuit, sed quia manum
correctioni non adhibuit, fractis\ cervicibus de sella
cecidit. Antequam moreretur mortem filiorum vidit,\
et archam domini ab allophilis captam fuisse
cognovit.\ De strucione Est animal quod dicitur\
assida, quod Greci strato\ camelon vocant, Lati\ ni
vero strucion. Habet\ quidem pennas, sed non\ volat,
pedes autem cameli\ similes. Cum vero venerit\
tempus ut ova sua pa\ riat, elevat oculos suos\ ad
celum et intendit\ si illa stella que dicitur Virgilia
appareat, non enim ponit ova\ sua, nisi quando oritur
illa stella. Quando enim viderit circa mensem iu\ nium
ipsam stellam fodit in terram ubi ponat ova sua et
coo\ perit sabulo, cum ascenderit de loco illo statim
obliviscitur eorum\ et nunquam redit ad ova sua.
Tranquillitas quidem aeris et temperies\ hoc prestare
videtur ut estate calefacta arena excoquat ova sua\ et
educat pullos. Si ergo assida cognoscit tempus suum
et obli\ viscitur posteritatis suo[e] ac terrena
postponens sequitur celestia, quanto\ magis o homo
tibi ad bravium superne vocationis tendendum est,\
propter quem deus homo factus est, ut eriperet te de
potestate tenebrarum,\
Transcription
et collocaret cum principibus populi sui in regno glorie
sue.\ Item de strutione Penna strucionis similis est
pennis herodii et\ accipitris. Quis herodium et
accipitrem nesciat, aves\ reliquas quanto volatus sui
velocitate transcendat? Strucio\ vere penne eorum
similitudinem habet, sed volatus eorum celeritatem\
non habet. A terra quippe elevari non valet, et alas
quasi ad volatum\ specie tenus erigit, sed tamen
nunquam se a terra volando suspendit. Ita sunt\
nimirum omnes ypocrite qui dum bonorum vitam
simulant,\ imitationem sancte visionis habent, sed
veritatem sancte actionis non habent.\ Habent quippe
volandi pennas per speciem, sed in terram repunt per
action\ nem, quia alas per figuram sanctitatis
extendunt, sed curarum secularium\ pondere
pregravati, nullatenus a terra sublevantur.\ Speciem
namque Phari\ seorum reprobans dominus quasi
sensorgr
flock committed to them to the green pastures of
eternity.
Let them take care, therefore, those who are
endowed with understanding and do not use it to
preach the word of God, and those who say nothing
because they do not know what to say, lest like the
cock they fall from their perch. Eli often reprimanded
his sons, but because he did not reinforce his rebukes
with his hand, he fell from his seat and broke his
neck. Before he died he witnessed the death of his
sons and learned that the ark of the Lord had been
captured by another tribe (see Samuel 1, 2:22-25;
4:18).
Of the ostrich
There is an animal called assida which the Greeks call
stratocamelon, but Latin-speakers strucio, the ostrich.
It has wings but does not fly, and its feet are like
those of the camel.
When the time comes for it to lay eggs, it raises its
eyes to the sky and looks to see if the star called
Vergiliae, the Pleiades, has appeared, for it will not
lay its eggs until that star has risen. When the ostrich
sees the star, around the month of June, it digs in the
ground, deposits its eggs in the hole it has made and
covers them with sand. When it gets up from the
hole, it immediately forgets the eggs and never
returns to them. The effect of the calm, mild air
seems to be that the sand in the summer heat
hatches the eggs, bringing forth the chicks.
If, therefore, the ostrich knows its time and forgets its
young, and pursues heavenly things to the exclusion
of earthly ones, how much more, O man, should you
strive for the prize of the summons from on high, you
for whom God was made man, to deliver you from the
power of darkness
Translation
and set you together with the princes of his people in
his kingdom of glory.
Again of the ostrich
The wing of the ostrich resembles those of the
gyrfalcon and the hawk. Who does not know how the
speed of the gyrfalcon and hawk in flight exceeds that
of other birds? The ostrich certainly has wings like
theirs but not their speed of flight. Truly, it has not
the capacity to be lifted from the ground and gives
only the impression of spreading its wings as if to fly;
however, it never supports itself above the earth in
flight.
It is exactly the same with all those hypocrites who
pretend to live a life of piety, giving the impression of
strucionis pennam redarguit,\ que in opere aliud
exercuit, et in colore aliud ostendit dicens: Ve\ vobis
scribe et Pharisei ypocrite. Ac si diceret: Sublevare
vos videtur\ species penne; sed in infimis vos
deprimit pondus vite. De hoc pondere\ per prophetam
dicitur: Filii hominum usquequo graves corde. Huius
strucionis con\ versurum se ypocrisim dominus
pollicetur, in prophetam dicens: Glorificabit\ me
bestia agri, dracones et struciones. Quid enim
draconum nomine\ nisi in aperto maliciose mentes
exprimuntur, que per terram semper in infimis\
cogitationibus repunt? Quid vero per strucionis\
vocabulum nisi hii qui\ se bonos simulant
designantur? Qui sanctitatis vitam quasi volatus\
pennam per speciem retinent, sed per opera non
exercent. Glorificari itaque se\ Dominus a dracone vel
strucione asserit, quia et aperte malos et ficte\ bonos
plerumque ad sua obsequia ex intima cogitatione
convertit.\ Habemus quod in considerationem
strucionis huius de accipitre et hero\ dio attentius
perpendamus. Accipitris quippe et herodii parva sunt\
corpora sed pennis densioribus fulta, et iccirco cum
celeritate transvo\ lant, quia eis parum inest quod
aggravat, multum quod levat. At contra\
Transcription
strucio raris pennis [mark] induitur, et immani
corpore gravatur,\ ut et si volare appetat ipsa
pen[n]arum paucitas molem tanti\ corporis in aere
non suspendat. Bene ergo in herodio et acciptre\
electorum persona signatur, qui quamdiu in hac vita
sunt sine quan\ tulocumque culpe contagio esse non
possunt. Sed cum eis parum\ quid inest quod
deprimit, multa virtus bone actionis suppetit, que\
illos in superna sustollit. At contra ypocrita et siqua
facit pauca que\ elevent, perpetrat multa que
gravent. Neque nulla bona agit ypocrita\ sed quibus
ea ipsa deprimat multa perversa committit.\ Pauce
igitur penne\ strucionis corpus non sublevant, quia
parum bonum ypocrite multi\ tudo prave actionis
gravat. Hec quoque ipsa strucionis\ penna ad
pen[nas]\ herodii et acciptris similitudinem coloris
sensorgr
holiness without the reality of holy behaviour. They
certainly have wings, as far as appearance goes, but
in terms of action, they creep along the ground,
because they spread their wings only to give an
illusion of holiness, but they cannot possibly raise
themselves from earth, weighed down as they are by
the weight of worldly preoccupations.
For the Lord rebuked the pretensions of the Pharisees
as if he exposed the wing of the ostrich, which does
one thing in deed and another in show, saying: 'Woe
unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites!'
(Matthew, 23:14). It is as if he were saying: 'Your
wings look as they they had the power to raise you
up, but the weight of your life forces you down into
the depths.' Of this weight, the prophet says: 'Sons of
men, how long will you have a heavy heart?' (see
BSV, NEB, Psalms, 4:2).
The Lord promises that he will convert the hypocritical
ostrich, saying through the prophet: 'The beast of the
field shall honour me, the dragons and the ostriches'
(see BSV, NEB, Isaiah: 43:20). For what is meant by
the word 'dragons', if not, clearly, malicious minds,
which creep across the earth forever, revealing
themselves in the basest thoughts? Who are signified
by the word 'ostrich' if not those who pretend to be
worthy? Those who lead a life of holiness, in
appearance, like the wing that seems to have the
power of flight, but do not put it into practice by their
deeds. Thus the Lord declares that he will be glorified
by the dragon or the ostrich, when he converts to his
side, deep in their hearts, both those who are openly
evil and those who pretend to be worthy.
In considering the ostrich, we should look more
carefully at the hawk and the gyrfalcon. Their bodies
are small but their feathers are more densely packed;
as a result, they fly at great speed, because they
have little to weigh them down, much to uplift them.
In contrast
Translation
the ostrich has few feathers and is weighed down with
a huge body, so that even if it were to try to fly, its
sparse feathers would not support the mass of such a
large a body in the air.
The gyrfalcon and the hawk, therefore, well represent
the elect who, in this life, are not without the
contamination of sin, no matter how trivial. But when
the very small amount of sin that is within them
causes them to sink, the large amount of virtue
amassed from their good works is at hand to lift them
back up to the heights.
In contrast, the hypocrite, even if he does a few good
things to raise him up, does many bad things to
weigh him down. He does not fail entirely to do good
habet, virtutis vero simi\ litudinem non habet. Illorum
namque concluse et firmiores sunt, et vo\ latu aerem
premere virtute soliditatis possunt. At contra
strucionis\ penne dissolute eo volatum sumere
nequeunt, quo ab ipso quem\ premere debuerant
aere transcenduntur. Quid ergo in his aspicimus, nisi
quod\ electorum virtutes solide evolant, ut ventos
humani favoris\ premant? Hypocritarum vero actio
quamlibet recta videatur, volare non\ sufficit, quia
videlicet fluxe virtutis pennam humane laudis au\ ra
pertransit. Sed cum unum eundemque bonorum
malorumque habitum cernimus,\ cum ipsam in electis
ac reprobis professionis speciem videmus, unde intel\
ligentie nostre suppetat, ut electos a reprobis ut a
falsis veros compre\ hendendo discernat perspicimus.
Quod tamen cicius agnoscimus si inteme\ rata
memoria preceptoris nostri verba signamus, qui ait:
Ex fructibus\ eorum cognoscetis eos. Neque enim
pensanda sunt que ostendunt in\ ymagine, sed que
servant in actione. Unde hic postquam speciem stru\
cionis huius intulit, mox subiunxit facta dicens: Que
derelinquit\ in terra ova sua. Quid enim per ova nisi
tenera adhuc proles exprimitur,\ que diu fovenda est
ut ad vivum volatile perducatur? Ova quippe\
Transcription
insensibilia in semetipsis sunt; sed tamen calefacta in
vivis\ volatilibus convertuntur. Ita nimirum parvuli
auditores ac filii\ certum est quod frigidi
insensibilesque remaneant, nisi doctoris sui\ sollicita
exhortatione calefiant. Ne igitur derelicti in sua in
sensibili\ tate torpescant, assidua doctorum voce
fovendi sunt, quousque\ valeant et per intelligentiam
vivere, et per contemplationem vo\ lare. Quia vero
ypocrite quamvis perversa semper operentur, loqui
tamen recta non\ desinunt, bene autem loquendo in
fide vel in conversationem filios\ pariunt, sed eos
sensorgr
but commits many perverse deeds by which he
cancels out what good he has done.
The few feathers of the ostrich, therefore, do not lift
up its body, in the sense that the large number of the
hypocrite's bad deeds, compared to his too few good
deeds, weigh him down.
The wing of the ostrich is similar in colour to those of
the gyrfalcon and the hawk, but does not resemble
them in strength. For theirs are compressed and
stronger and, in flight, can press down on the air
because of their density. In contrast, the wings of the
ostrich are loose, to the extent that they cannot
sustain flight because the air, on which they are
meant to press, passes over them.
What do we see in this, if not that the solid virtues of
the elect fly up, pressing down on the currents of
human favour? But the deeds of the hypocrites,
although they seem correct, cannot support flight,
because clearly the breath of human praise flows
through the wing of slack virtue.
But when we discern the same outward aspect among
the good and the bad, when we see the very same
appearance of religious observance among the elect
and the sinful, we perceive what should inform our
understanding, that it may distinguish the elect from
the sinful, as it separates true men from false. We will
recognise the distinction more quickly, however, if we
fix indelibly in our memory the words of our teacher,
who said: 'Ye shall know them by their fruits'
(Matthew, 7:16). For you should not judge them by
the image they present of themselves but by the
principles they observe in their actions.
As a result, the author of the book of Job, after
introducing the image of the ostrich, thereupon adds
examples of its behaviour, saying: 'It abandons its
eggs in the ground' (BSV; see NEB, Job, 39:14).
What is meant by its eggs if not the child, still of
tender years, who has to be cherished over a long
period in order that it might be turned into a living
bird? Indeed, the eggs
Translation
have in themselves no capacity for feeling; they are
nevertheless transformed, when kept warm, into
living birds. Thus it is undoubtedly a fact that children
and young people will remain cold and indifferent
unless they are warmed by the careful
encouragement of their teacher.
Lest they grow inactive and insensitive through
neglect, therefore, they must be cherished by the
diligent instruction of teachers, until they are able to
live by their own capacity for understanding and take
bene vivendo nutrire non possunt, recte de hac struci\
one dicitur, que derelinquit in terra ova sua. Curam
namque filiorum\ ypocrita negligit qui ex amore
intimo rebus se exterioribus subdit, in\ quibus
quantomagis extollitur, tanto minus de prolis sue
defectu cru\ ciatur. Ova ergo in terra dereliquisse est,
natos per conversionem filios\ nequaquam a terrenis
actibus interposito exhortationis nido suspen\ dere.
Ova in terra dereliquisse est, nullum celestis vite filiis
exem\ plum prebere. Quia enim ypocrite per caritatis
viscera non calent, \de torpore prolis edite, id est de
ovorum suorum frigore nequaquam dolent.\ Et quanto
se libentius terrenis actibus inserunt, tanto
negligentius\ eos quos generaverint agere terrena
permittunt. Sed quia derelictos ypocri-\ tarum filios
superna cura non deserit, nonnullos namque etiam ex
talibus\ intima electione prescitos, largite gratie
respectu calefacit, recte\ subiungitur: Tu forsitan in
pulvere calefacies ea? Ac si dicat: Ut\ ego, qui illa in
pulvere calefacio, quia [scilicet] parvulorum animas
in\ medio peccantium positas, amoris mei igne
succendo. Ova ergo\ dominus in pulvere derelicta
calefacit, quia parvulorum animas\ predicatorum
suorum sollicitudine destitutas, etiam in medio\
peccantium positas, amoris sui igne succendit. Hinc
est enim quod\ plerosque cernimus et in medio
populorum vivere, et tamen vitam tor\ pentis populi
non tenere. Hinc est enim quod plerosque cernimus
et\
Transcription
malorum turbas non fugere, et tamen superno ardore
flagrare. Hinc est quod plerosque\ cernimus ut ita
diximus in frigore et calore [PL, calere] unde enim
nonnulli inter\ terrenorum hominum torpores positi,
superne spei desideriis inardes\ cunt. Unde et inter
frigida corda succensi sunt, nisi quia omnipotens
deus\ derelicta ova scit etiam in pulvere calefacere, et
frigoris pristini in\ sensibilitate discussa, per sensum
spiritus vitalis animare, ut nequaquam\ iacentia in
infimis torpeant, set in vivis volatilibus versa, sese ad\
celestia contemplando, id est volando suspendant.
Notandum\ vero est quod in his verbis non solum
sensorgr
flight on the wings of contemplation.
Even though hypocrites are forever doing wrong, they
never cease to utter pious speeches and by their
eloquence produce offspring in the faith or as they go
about among men; yet they cannot bring them up
properly, by example. It is therefore rightly said of
the ostrich that it 'abandons its eggs in the ground'.
The hypocrite neglects to take care of his offspring,
when he substitutes for intimate love a preoccupation
with external things; the more he is absorbed in
these, the less he suffers from the absence of his
offspring. To abandon eggs in the ground is the same
as failing to keep the young, born through association
with men, away from earthly things in a protective
nest of spiritual encouragement. To abandon eggs in
the ground is the same as failing to furnish the young
with the example of heavenly life.
Because hypocrites are not fired deep down with love,
they are untroubled by the inactivity of their
offspring, in the same way as the ostrich is
untroubled by the coldness of its eggs. The more
willingly hypocrites involve themselves in earthly
affairs, the more negligent they are in allowing their
offspring to lead an earthbound life.
But God's care does not desert the neglected offspring
of the hypocrites; he warms some of them, foreknown
and secretly chosen, with his bountiful grace. It is,
therefore, rightly added in the text: 'Can you perhaps
warm them in the dust?' (BSV and see NEB, Job,
39:14). As if God were to say: 'As I warm them in the
dust, because I kindle with the fire of my love the
souls of the young set amidst sinners.' The Lord
warms the neglected eggs in the dust, therefore, in
the sense that he kindles with the fire of his love the
souls of the very young, who have been deprived of
the care of his preachers and are, in addition,
surrounded by sinners.
From this we see that there are many living among
the masses who do not share their sluggish way of
life. From this we see that there are many
Translation
do not avoid the commotion caused by the wicked,
yet are still fired with zeal for heavenly things. From
this we see that many, as we said, are warm, though
they live in the cold; for some, surrounded by the
sluggish ways of the earthbound, glow with desire of
heavenly hope.
How is it that those surrounded by the cold-hearted
are warmed, if not because Almighty God knows to
warm the neglected eggs even when they are left in
the dust, and having dispelled the numbness
originally caused by the cold, animates them with the
ypocritarum actio perversa reprobatur,\ sed bonorum
etiam magistrorum siqua forte subrepserit elatio pre\
mitur. Nam cum de se dominus dicit quod derelicta
ova ipse in pul\ vere calefacit, profecto aperte indicat,
quia [PL, quod] ipse operatur intrinsecus per verba\
doctoris, qui et sine verbis ullius hominis calefacit
quos voluerit\ in frigore pulveris. Ac si aperte
doctoribus dicat: Ut sciatis quia ego\ sum qui per vos
loquentes operor, ecce cum voluero cordibus
hominum\ etiam sine vobis loquor. Humiliata
cogitatione doctorum, ad expri\ mendum ypocritam
sermo convertitur, et qua fatuitate torpeat ad\ huc
sub strucionis facto plenius indicatur. Nam sequitur:
Obliviscitur\ quod pes conculcet ea aut bestia agri
conterat. Quid in pede nisi transitus\ operationis
accipitur? Quid in agro, nisi mundus iste signatur? De
quo in evangelio\ dominus dicit: Ager autem est
mundus. Quid in bestia nisi antiquis ho\ stis
exprimitur? Qui huius mundi rapinas insi[d]ians,
humana morte\ cotidie saciatur, de qua per
prophetam pollicentem dicitur: Et mala bestia\ non
transibit per eam. Strucio itaque ova deserens
obliviscitur quod pes\ conculcet ea quia videlicet
ypocrite eos quos in conversatione filios ge\ nerant
derelinquunt et omnino non curant, ne aut exhortatio\
nis sollicitudine aut discipline custodia destitutos,
pravorum\ operum exempla pervertant. Si enim ova
que gignunt diligerent [A, diligenter]\ nimirum
metuerent, ne quis ea perversa opera demonstrando\
Transcription
calcaret. Obliviscitur etiam quod bestia agri conterat
quia nimirum\ si diabolus in hoc mundo seviens editos
in bona conversatione\ filios rapiat, ypocrita omnino
non curat. Habent ergo veraces magistri\ super
discipulos suos timoris viscera, ex virtute caritatis,
ypocrite\ tanto minus commissis sibi metuunt, quanto
nec sibimetipsis quod timere\ debeant reprehendunt.
Et quia obduratis cordibus vivunt, ipsos etiam\ quos
generant filios nulla pietate amoris agnoscunt. Unde
adhuc\ sub strucionis specie subditur: Ducatur
[Duratur] ad filios qui quasi non sunt sui.\ Que enim
caritatis gratia non infundit, proximum suum etiam si
sensorgr
spirit of life, so that far from lying motionless here
below, they are turned into living beings capable of
flight, raising themselves up towards heavenly things
by contemplation, that is, by flying?
Note that these words condemn not only the evil of
hypocrites but are also intended to check the pride of
righteous teachers, if it should creep out. For when
the Lord says that it is he who warms the neglected
eggs in the dust, he shows plainly that he acts
inwardly through the words of the teacher, even
though he can, without any man's words, warm those
whom he wishes, as they lie in the cold of the dust. It
is as if he says plainly to the teachers: 'So that you
should be in no doubt that I am he who works
through you when you speak - behold, if I wish, I can
also speak to the hearts of men without you.'
The teachers, humbled in their thoughts, focus their
words on the hypocrite, showing how the folly of his
sluggishness can be very fully shown by the
behaviour of the ostrich. For the text continues: 'The
ostrich forgets that a foot may crush its eggs or a
beast of the field trample on them' (see NEB, Job,
39:15).
What is to be understood by the foot, if not the
passage of everyday life? What is signified by the
field, if not the world? On this subject, the Lord says
in the Gospel: 'The field is the world' (Matthew,
13:38). What is represented in the beasts if not the
ancient enemy, who plots the plunder of the world
and gluts himself daily on human death? On this, the
prophet promises: 'Nor any ravenous beast shall go
up thereon' (Isaiah, 35:9).
Thus, as the ostrich, deserting its eggs, forgets that
they may be trampled underfoot, it is evident that
hypocrites abandon the young they have produced as
they associate with men and care nothing for them,
lest they should fail to undo the examples of evil
either by dutifully encouraging or vigilantly teaching
the young they have abandoned. If they loved the
eggs they bear, there is no doubt that they would fear
lest anyone should by the example of bad works
Translation
trample on them.
The ostrich also forgets that the beast of the field will
destroy its eggs, just as the hypocrite does not care
at all if the Devil, raging in this world, snatches the
young who are the product of edifying association.
True teachers, therefore, by virtue of the love with
which they are endowed, have the deepest fears for
their pupils; hypocrites are as unconcerned for their
charges as they are unable to grasp for themselves
what indeed there is to be feared.
ipse\ hunc deo genuit extraneum respicit, ut profecto
sunt omnes ypocrite.\ Quorum videlicet mentes dum
semper exteriora appetunt, intus\ insensibiles fiunt, et
in cunctis que agunt dum sua semper expe\ tunt,
erga affectum proximi nulla caritatis compassione
molles\ cunt. Et quia caritas viscera nesciunt, eorum
mens quanto per mundi\concupiscentiam in exteriora
resolvitur, tanto per affectionem suam\ interius
obduratur. Et torpore insensibili frigescit intrinsecus
quia\ amore dominabili [PL, damnabili] mollescit foris.
Sed [PL, seque] ipsam considerare non\ valet, quia
cogitare sese minime studet. Cogitare vero se non po\
test quia tota[m expuncted] apud semetipsam non
est, tota vero esse apud semet\ ipsam non sufficit,
quia per quot concupiscentias rapitur, per tot\ a
semetipsa species dissipatur. Et sparsa in infimis
iacet, que\ collecta si vellet ad summa consurgeret.
Unde iustorum mens quando\ per custodiam discipline
a cunctorum visibilium fluxus ap\ petitu constringitur,
collecta apud semetipsam intrinsecus integratur.\
Qualisque deo vel proximo esse debeat plene
conspicit, quia nichil su\ um exterius derelinquit. Et
quanto ab exterioribus abstracta compes\ citur, tanto
aucta in infimis inflammatur. Et quo magis ardet,\ eo
ad deprehendenda vicia amplius lucet. Hinc est enim
quod sancti\ viri dum se intra semetipsos colligunt,
mira ac penetrabili acie\
Transcription
occulta etiam aliena delicta, deprehendunt. Sequitur:
Cum tem\ pus fuerit, in altum alas erigit. Quid enim
alas huius strucionis\ accipimus, nisi pressas hoc
tempore quasi complicitas [PL, complicatas] ypocrite
cogita\ tiones? Quas cum tempus fuerit in altum
elevat, quia oportunita\ te comperta eas superbiendo
manifestat. Alas in altum erigere est,\ per effrenatam
superbiam cogitationes aperire. Nunc autem quia
sanctum\ se simulat quia in semetipso stringit que
cogitat, quasi alas in\ corpore per humilitatem plicat.
Eat igitur ypocrita et nunc suas lau\ des appetat,
postmodum vitam proximorum premat, et quandoque
se in ir\ risione sui conditoris exerceat, ut quo elatiora
semper excogitat,\ eo se suppliciis attrocioribus
immergat. Unde subditur: Obliviscitur\ quod pes
conculcet ea, et bestia agri conterat. Tunc ova\ pes
sensorgr
Because hypocrites are hard of heart, they do not
recognise their children in a dutiful fashion with love.
Again, this is illustrated by the image of the ostrich:
'She is hardened against her young ones, as though
they were not hers' (Job, 39:16). For the man who is
not imbued with the grace of charity, sees his
neighbour, even though he is born of God, as a
stranger, exactly as all hypocrites do.
As hypocrites continually seek external things, their
minds inwardly lose all capacity for feeling, and in
everything they do, as they strive on their own
behalf, their hearts are unmoved by any loving
compassion towards their neighbour. Because they do
not know love at its deepest level, their mind is
hardened by their self-love on the inside to the same
extent that it is opened up, through their worldly
longing, on the outside. Their mind grows cold and
insensitive on the inside, because it grows soft with
the love that brings condemnation on the outside.
The mind of the hypocrite lacks the capacity to
examine itself, because it has not the least desire to
do so. It cannot reflect upon itself because it is not in
full control of itself; nor indeed has it the power so to
be, because it is fragmented by as many imaginings
as the desires which seize it. The hypocrite's mind lies
scattered in the depths; yet it could, if it were it whole
and if it so wished, rise to the heights.
That is why the mind of the righteous, because it is
restrained by the observance of discipline from
desiring transient, visible things, is renewed and kept
inwardly whole. It sees clearly what its attitude should
be towards God or a neighbour, because it leaves
nothing of itself outwith its control. The more it is
restrained from external things, the more its capacity
is increased to burn with a deep fire. The more it
burns, the more it illuminates the vices that are to be
detected. The result is that holy men, when they are
whole within, with marvellously keen sight
Translation
seize on the sins of others even when they are
hidden.
The text continues: 'When the time comes, the ostrich
spreads its wings.' What are we to understand by the
wings of the ostrich, if not the thoughts of the
hypocrite, confined by considerations of the present,
like wings tightly folded together? When the time
comes, the ostrich raises its wings high, because it
has found an opportunity to display them with pride.
To spread the wings on high is to reveal your
thoughts through unbridled pride. Now, because the
hypocrite represents himself as holy, he keeps his
thoughts to himself, as if folding his wings against his
body in humility. Let the hypocrite go, therefore, now
to seek praise, then to criticize the life of his
calcat,\ et bestia agri conterit cum in terra
deseruntur, quia videlicet humana cor\ da dum
semper terrena cogitare, semper que ima sunt agere
appe\ tunt, ad conterendum se agri bestie, id est
diabolo sternunt, ut cum\ diu infima cogitatione
abiecta sunt, quandoque maiorum criminum\
perpetratione frangantur. Sequitur: Ducatur [PL,
Induratur] ad filios qui quasi non sunt\ sui. Quasi non
suos respicit, quos aliter vivere quam docuit, ipsa\
deprehendit. Et durescente sevicia terrores admonet,
seque in eorum\ cruciatibus exercet, atque invidie
facibus inflammata quibus non\ laboravit ut possent
vivere, laborat ut debeant interire.\ Ypocrite ergo qui
per strucionem intelligitur consuetudo talis esse perhi\
betur, ut de nullo alio curam habeat, sed de his que
agit in se glorietur,\ et sibi soli bonum quod agit, pre
ceteris asscribat.\ De vulturibus Vultur a volato
tardo nominatus putatur. Magnitudine\ quippe
corporis precipites volatus non habet. Vultures autem\
sicut et aquile etiam ultra maria cadavera sentiunt.
Alcius quippe\ volantes multaque [multa que]
montium obscuritate celantur, ex alto illi con\
spiciunt. Negantur enim vultures indulgere concubitui,
et coniugali\
Transcription
usu nuptialis\ copule sorte\ misceri, atque\ ita sine
ullo\ masculorum\ concipere semine\ et sine coniunc\
tione generare,\ natosque ex his\ in multam eta\ tis
longevitatem\ procedere, ut usque\ ad centum an\
nos vite eorum\ series producatur, nec facile eos
angusti evi finis excipiat. Quid\ aiunt qui solent natura
ridere misteria cum audiunt quod virgo ge\ neravit et
impossibilem innupte cuius pudorem nulla viri consue\
tudo temerasset existimant partum. Impossibile
sensorgr
neighbours, let him at any time occupy himself in
deriding his creator, and he will be plunged into
torments whose severity will match his own
vainglorious thoughts.
It follows then that 'the ostrich forgets that a foot
may crush its eggs or a beast of the field trample on
them'.
The foot crushes the eggs and the beast of the field
tramples on them when they are left in the earth as,
clearly, the hearts of men, when they devote
themselves constantly to thoughts of earthly things
and the basest deeds, fling themselves down to be
crushed by the hooves of the beast of the field, that
is, the Devil, so that, when they have long been
degraded by base thoughts, they may at some time
be destroyed by committing serious crimes.
The text continues: 'The ostrich treats its young
harshly as if they were not its own'. The hypocrite
regards his young as if they were not his own, when
he finds them living otherwise than he had taught
them. And, with increasing fury, he threatens them
with terror and sets himself to torment them; fired by
the burning brands of hatred, the hypocrite, who
made no effort to ensure that his young should live,
makes every effort to ensure that they die.
The hypocrite, therefore, whom we take to be
represented by the ostrich, is characterised as
follows: he cares for no-one but himself, but glorifies
himself in all he does and attributes to himself alone,
beyond all others, the good that he does.
Of vultures
The vulture, it is thought, gets its name because it
flies slowly. The fact is, it cannot fly swiftly because of
the large size of its body.
Vultures, like eagles, perceive corpses even beyond
the sea. Indeed, flying at a great height, they see
from on high many things which are hidden by the
shadows of the mountains.
It is said that vultures do not indulge in copulation
and
Translation
and are not united with the other sex in the conjugal
act of marriage; that the females conceive without
the male seed and give birth without union with the
male; and that their offspring live to a great age, so
that the course of their life extends to one hundred
years, and that an early death does not readily
overtake them.
What can they say, those people who are by nature
putatur in dei\ matre quod in vulturibus possibile non
negatur. Avis sine masculo\ parit et nullus refellit, et
quia desponsata Maria virgo peperit,\ pudoris eius
faciunt questionem. Nonne advertimus quod dominus\
ex ipsa natura et astrueret veritatem. Vultures
mortem homi\ num signis quibusdam annuntiare
consueverunt, Quo indicio\ docti atque instructi sunt,
ut cum bellum lacrimabile inter se\ adverse acies
instruant, multo predicte volucres sequantur agmi\ ne
et eo significent quod multitudo hominum casura sit
bel\ lo, futura preda vulturibus.\ Item de vulturibus
\ Semitam ignoravit avis, nec intuitus est oculos
[oculus] vulturis.\ Quis hoc loco avis nomine nisi ille
signatur, qui corpus\
accustomed to mock the mysteries of the Christian
faith, when they hear that a virgin gave birth, yet
maintain that childbirth is impossible for an unmarried
woman, whose virginity is undefiled by intercourse
with a man? What they do not deny is possible in
vultures, they think is impossible in the mother of
God. female bird gives birth without a male and no-
one disputes it; but because Mary, betrothed as a
virgin, gave birth, they question her chastity. Do we
not make them aware that our Lord, from his very
nature, affirms the truth?
Vultures regularly foretell from certain signs that men
will die. This is one such sign, from which they learn
and make ready: when opposing armies prepare for
the lamentable event of war, the birds follow in a
large flock, signifying by this that many will fall in
battle - to be the vultures' prey.

Again of vultures

'There is a path which no fowl knoweth, and which the

vulture's eye hath not seen' (Job, 28:7). Who is
meant here by the word 'bird' if not he who

Translation

by his ascension made a place in heaven for our fleshly body, which he assumed?

Christ is also fittingly represented by the word 'vulture'. The fact is, if a vulture, in flight, sees a corpse, it sets
itself down to feed on it, and is often overtaken by death when it descends to the dead animal from a great height.

It is right, therefore, that Christ, who was God's mediator and our redeemer, should be signified by the name
'vulture'. While remaining in the heights of his divinity, like the vulture flying on high, he saw the corpse of our
mortality below and descended from heaven to the earth beneath; he deigned, indeed, to become man for our
sake; and when he sought man, the living thing that had no life, he who in himself had eternal life, met his death
at our hands.

But the aim of this vulture, Christ, was our resurrection, because when he had been dead for three days, he
delivered us from eternal death. For the treacherous people of Judea saw Christ as a mortal man, but little thought
sensorgr
that by his death he would destroy ours. They, indeed, saw the vulture, but paid no attention to its eyes. They
would not consider the ways of Christ's humility, by which he raised us to the heights, and so were like the bird
that knows not the path. For they gave no serious thought to the fact that Christ's humility raised us to heaven
and the purpose of his death was to restore us to life.

Thus 'the fowl does not know the way, the eye of the vulture has not seen it', means that even if the Jews saw
Christ, whom they put to death, they were unwilling to see how far the glory of our life would follow from his
death. They were, in consequence, incensed to commit cruel acts of persecution, they refused to hear the words of
life, they rejected the preachers of the kingdom of heaven by arresting them, treating them savagely, putting
them to death. The preachers, rejected, left Judea where they had been sent and were dispersed among the
Gentiles.

Such is the nature of the vulture, that the sinner can also be represented by it. The vulture follows the army to fill
itself with corpses, as the sinner follows the evil men of the Devil's army, modelling himself on their ways. The
vulture feeds on the corpses of the dead as

sensorgr
Transcription
carnalibus desderiis que mortem generant delectatur.
Vultur\ etiam pedibus libenter graditur, unde et a
quibusdam gradipes appel\ pellatur, quia terrena
peccator amat, et terrenis inhiat, quandoque etiam\
vultur in altum volat, quia peccator ad celestia
mentem quoque le\ vat, sed qua intentione hoc faciat,
alter ignorat. Quis \enim intuetur\ oculos [oculus]
vulturis, id est\ intentionem cogitationis? Hoc enim
omnipotens sibi\ reliquid quod cogitationes hominum
solus novit. Nota etiam ut\ ait Ysidorus a volatu tardo
nominetur. Tarde enim cum volare ce\ perit a terra
recedit, quia peccator aut vix aut nunquam terrena
de\ sideria derelinquit. De [gruibus] Grues de
propria voce\ nomen sumpserunt.\ Tali enim sono
susur\ rant. Nec piguerit me\ minisse quatinus
expedi\ tiones suas dirigant.\ Sub quodam milicie
eunt\ signo, et ne pergentibus ad\ destinatam terram
vis\ flatuum renitatur, are\ nas devorant, sublatisque
lapillulis a[d] moderatam gravitatem sabu\ rantur.
Tunc contendunt in altissima, ut de excelsiori specula\
intueantur quas petant terras. Hee autem dum
properant, unam\ sequuntur litterato, fidens meatu
preit cateruas. Volatus desidia\ castigat, voceque
cogit agmen. Et ubi obraucata est, succedit alia.\
Concors cura omnium pro fatigatis adeo ut si qua
defecerit con\ gruant universe lassatasque sustollant,
usque dum vires ocio\ recuperentur. Grues in nocte
sollicitam exercent\ custodiam.\ Dispositos vigiles
cernas, et ceteris consortibus gregis quiescentibus,\
Transcription
alie circueunt et explorant ne qua ex parte insidie
temptentur,\ atque omnem deferunt impigro sui
vigore cutelam. Post ubi vi\ giliarum fuerit tempus
impletum, perfuncta munere in somp\ num se
premisso clamore componit ut excitet dormientem,\
cui vicem munis traditura est. At illa volens suscipere\
sortem nec usu nostro invita et pigrior sompno
sensorgr
Translation
a sinner delights the in carnal desires which bring
about death. The vulture willingly goes on foot, and
for this reason is called by some gradipes,
'footslogger', in the same way that the sinner loves
and longs for earthly things. Sometimes the vulture
flies on high, as the sinner also raises his mind to
heavenly things, but with what purpose no-one else
knows. For who looks at the eyes of the vulture, that
is, at what lies behind men's thoughts? The Almighty
reserves this to himself; he alone knows the thoughts
of men.
Note also that Isidore says that the vulture gets its
name from volatu tardus, slow in flight. For it leaves
the ground slowly when it takes flight, as the sinner
hardly ever or never abandons his earthly desires.
Of cranes
Cranes take their name, grues, from the sound of
their own particular call. or such is the low, muttering
sound they make.
It is interesting to recall how cranes organise their
journeys. They go to some extent in military
formation, and in case the wind should be against
them on their way to their chosen land, they eat sand
and ballast themselves to a reasonable weight by
picking up small stones. Then they fly as high as they
can, so that a from higher vantage point they can
look out for the lands they seek.
As they fly swiftly on their way, they follow one of
their number in a V-shaped formation. Confident in its
navigation, it leads the flocks. It scolds the laggards
and keeps the formation together with its calls. When
it grows hoarse, another takes over.
Cranes are united in their concern for those who tire,
to such an extent that if any drop out, they all
surround the exhausted birds and support them until
their strength is restored by this period of rest.
At night cranes keep careful watch. You can see the
sentinels at their posts; while the other members of
the flock sleep,
Translation
others do the rounds and check lest they should be
ambushed from any quarter; with their tireless
energy, they ensure total vigilance.
When the crane's turn on watch is over and its duty is
done, it settles down to sleep, first giving a cry to
wake one of those already asleep, whose turn it is to
renuntiat sed impigre\ suis excutitur stratis, vicem
exequitur, et quam accepit graciam pari cura\ atque
officio representat. Ideo nulla desertio, quia devocio
naturalis.\ Ideo tuta custodia[,] quia voluntas libera.
Grues autem nocte excubi\ as dividunt, et ordinem
vigiliarum per ordines et vices faciunt,\ tenentes
lapillos suspensis digitis quibus sompnos arguant.
Quod\ cavendum erit clamor indicat. Etatem in illis
color prodit nam se\ nectute nigrescunt. Possumus
autem per vigiles intelligere quoslibet dis\ cretos
fratres communiter fratribus temporalia provident, et
de sin\ gulis specialiter curam habent, ad obsequia
fratrum pro posse suo vigilant,\ ut ab eis incursus
demonum et accessus secularium prudenter re\
pellant. Grues vero que ad hoc eliguntur ut pro aliis
vigilent, in pe\ de a terra suspenso lapillum tenent
timentes ne si aliqua earum\ dormiat, lapsus a pede
lapillus cadat, si autem cadat evigilans\ clamat. Lapis
est Christus, pes, mentis affectus. Si enim aliquis
pedibus\ incedit, sic mens suis affectibus quasi
pedibus ad optata tendit. Si\ quis igitur ad custodiam
sui vel fratrum vigilet, lapillum in pede, id est
Christum\ in mente portet, aut summo opere caveat
ne si in peccato dormierit,\ lapillus a pede, id est
Christus a mente recedat. Si autem cecidit per
confessio\ onem clamet, ut dormientes excitet, id est
fratres tam pro se quam pro eorum ex\ cessibus, ad
vigilantiam circumspectionis invitet. Etatem in illis\
olor prodit, nam in senectute nigrescunt. Hic enim
color in senec\ tute seni competit, cum pro peccatis
plangendo gemit. Cum enim\ que male gessit senex
commemorat, in senectute colorem mutat.\
Transcription
Mutat enim amorem pristine delectationis in dolorem
contricio\ nis. Ecce qualiter per naturam volucrum
doceri potest vita religi\ osorum. \ De milvo \ Milvus
mollis et [PL, est] viribus et vo\ latu, quasi mollis
avis,\ unde et nuncupatur rapacissimum\ tamen et
semper domesticis avibus insidi\ atur. Sicut enim in
libro ethimo\ logiarum Ysidori legitur: milvus\ a molli
sensorgr
be on duty. The new guard take up its allotted task
willingly, not refusing, as we do, gracelessly, because
we want to go on sleeping; instead, rousing itself
readily from its resting-place, it takes its turn and
repays the service it has received with equal attention
to duty.
Cranes do not desert the flock, because they are
devoted by nature. They keep a safe watch, because
they do it of their own free will. They divide the
watches at night and take them in turns, according to
a roster, holding small stones in their claws to ward
off sleep. They give a cry when there is cause for
alarm.
Their colouring shows their age, for as they grow
older, it grows darker.
We can take the sentinel cranes to mean those
discerning brothers who provide temporal goods for
their brethren in common and have a special concern
for each one of the community. They watch over the
obedience of their brothers, as far as they can,
protecting them prudently from the assaults of devils
and the incursions of this world.
The cranes who are chosen to watch over the others
hold a small stone in their claw, which is raised off the
ground, fearing lest any of them fall asleep, in which
case the stone will slip from their claw and fall; if it
falls, the crane wakes up and cries out.
The stone is Christ; the claw, the disposition of the
mind. For as anyone goes on foot, so the mind strives
with its dispositions for its desires, as if on foot. If,
therefore, anyone stands guard over himself or his
brethren, let him carry a stone in his claw, that is,
keep Christ in his mind; or let him be very careful
lest, if he sleeps in sin, the stone should fall from his
claw, that is, Christ depart from his mind. If,
however, the stone has fallen, let him cry out by
means of confession, that he may awake those who
sleep, that is, let him urge his brethren to watch out
attentively as much for him as for their own faults.
The colouring of the cranes reveals their age, for it
grows darker as they grow older. This colour in old
age refers to the elderly when they weep for their
sins. For when the elderly remember their faults, they
change colour in their latter years.
Translation
For the old change their love of former pleasures into
the sadness of repentance.
Behold how, through the nature of birds, we can
teach the nature of the religious life.
Of the kite
volatu nominatur. Est enim\ milvus mollis viribus.
Illos autem mil\ vus significat quos mollices
voluptates [PL, mollities voluptatis] temptant.
Cadaveribus\ milvus vescitur, quia carnalibus
desideriis voluptuosi delectantur. Circa\ coquinas et
macella milvus assidue volitat, ut siquid crude\ carnis
ab eis proiciatur fori[a inserted]s, velocius rapiat. Per
hoc enim milvus eos\ nobis innuit, quos cura ventris
sollicitos reddit. Qui igitur huius mundi\ sunt,
voluptuosa querunt, macella frequentant, et coquinis
in\ hiant. Milvus timidus est in magnis; audax in
minimis. Sil\ vestres volucres rapere non audet,
domesticis autem insidiari so\ let. Insidiatur pullis ut
illos rapiat, et quos incautos repperit, velo\ cius necat.
Sic molles et voluptuosi teneros pullos rapiunt, quia\
simpliciores et indiscretos suis moribus aptant, et ad
perversos usus per\ trahunt. Super eos lente volando
incautos decipiunt, dum eos\ blandis sermonibus
adulando seducunt. Ecce quomodo volucres que\
ratione carent peritos homines et ratione intentos per
exempla per\ verse operationis docent. \ De psitaco
Sola India mittit avem psitacum colore viridi torque
pu\ nicea, grandi lingua, et ceteris avibus laciore,
unde et articu\ lata verba exprimit, ita ut si eam non
videris, homine loqui putes.\
Transcription
Ex natura autem salutat di\ cens ave vel kere. Cetera
nomina\ institutione discit. Hinc est illud.\ Psitacus a
vobis aliorum nomina discam:\ Hoc didici per me
dicere: Cesar ave.\ Cuius rostri tanta duricia est, ut
cum\ e sublimi precipitatur in saxum, ni\ su oris se
excipiat, et quodam quasi fun\ damento utatur extra
ordinarie fir\ mitatis. Caput vero tantum valens, ut
siquando ad discendum\ plagis sit admonendum nam
studet ut quod ad homines lo\ quatur, ferrea sit ferula
verberandus. Nam cum in pullo est atque\ adeo intra
alterum etatis sue annum, que monstrata sunt et\
cicius discit et retinet tenacius, paulo senior obliviosus
est et indocilis.\ De ibice \ Est avis que dicitur\ ibis
sensorgr
It is weak in strength and in flight - a puny bird,
mollis avis, from which it gets its name, milvus. It is,
however, a bird of prey, always preying on domestic
birds.
As we read in the book of Etymologies of Isidore: 'The
kite, milvus, derives its name from mollis volatu,
weak in flight. For the kite is a weakly bird.'
The kite signifies those who are tempted by effete
pleasures. It feeds on corpses, as pleasure-seekers
take delight in carnal desires. It constantly hovers
around kitchens and meat-markets so that if pieces of
raw meat are thrown out from them, it can seize
them quickly. In this the kite represents to us those
who are motivated by concern for their stomach.
Those who are of this world, therefore, seek pleasure,
frequent meat-markets and gaze with longing at
kitchens.
The kite is timid in big matters, bold in small. It dares
not seize wild birds but customarily preys on domestic
ones. It lies in wait to seize their young and when it
encounters unwary youngsters, it kills them quickly.
In the same way, the effete and pleasure-seeking
seize infants of tender years, in the sense that they
teach the more simple and undiscerning their own
habits and lead them into perversion. As kites deceive
the unwary by flying over them slowly, the pleasure-
seekers lead the young astray by flattering them with
sweet words.
See how birds who lack the capacity of rational
thought instruct through examples of evil conduct
men who are experienced and intelligent.
Of the parrot
India alone produces the bird called the parrot, green
in colour, with a deep-red neck and a large tongue,
broader than those of other birds, with which it utters
distinct words; so that if you did not see it, you would
think it was a man talking
Translation
Characteristically, it greets you by saying in Latin or
Greek: 'Ave' or 'Kere!' - 'Hail!' It will learn other
words if you teach it. Which explains the lines: 'Like a
parrot, I will learn other people's names from you, but
this I have learned by myself to say: Hail, Caesar!'
(Martial, Epigrams, 14, 73).
The parrot's beak is of such hardness that if it falls
from a height on to a rock, it takes the impact on its
mouth, using it as base of uncommon toughness.
Its skull is so thick, that if ever you have to admonish
it with blows to learn - for it tries hard to speak like
rostro suo pur\ gans alvum. Hec serpen\ tum ovis
utitur et mortici\ nis, et ex eis gratissimum\ cibum
pullis suis repor\ tat. Nam in aqua ingredi\ timet, quia
natandi natu\ ram nescit, sed iuxta litus\ die noctuque
obambulat, querens aut mortuos pisciculos, aut\
aliqua cadavera que ab aqua eiecta fuerint foras.
Signifi\ cat carnales homines qui mortiferis operibus
quasi escis utuntur\ quibus misere anime nutriuntur
ad penam. Tu vero Christiane qui aqua\ spirituque
sancto renatus es, ingredere ad spirituales aquas
misteriorum dei,\
Transcription
et inde sume tibi mundissimos cibos quos enumerat
apostolus dicens:\ Fructus autem spiritus est caritas,
gaudium, pax, pacientia, longani\ mitas, et cetera.
Nisi sol et luna extenderint radios suos, non lucent.\
Volucres nisi extenderint alas suas, volare non
poterunt. Sic ergo tu homo\ si te signo crucis non
munieris, gemineque dilectionis alas non\ extenderis,
ad quietissimum portum celestis patrie per medias
huius\ mundi procellas transmeare non poteris.
Denique cum Moyses elevaret\ manus suas,
superabat Israel. Cum vero remitteret manus suas,
superabat Ama\ lech. \ De yrundine \ Turtur et
yrundo et ciconia\ cognoverunt adventus sui\ diem.
Israel autem non cognovit\ iudicium domini. De
turture\ superius diximus, restat autem\ ut de
yrundine et ciconia postea\ disseramus. Unde
Ysidorus: yrundo\ dicta quod cibos non sumit
residens, sed in aere escas capiat et comme\ dat.
Garrula avis per tortuosos orbes et flexuosos volans
circuitus\ pervolans, et in nidis construendis,
educandisque fetibus sollertis\ sima habens etiam
quiddam prescium, quod lapsura deferat, nec appe\
tat culmina. A diris quoque avibus non impeditur, nec
unquam preda est,\ maria transvolat ibique hyeme
commoratur. Hirundo miniscula avis\ corpore, sed
egregie pio sublimis affectu, indiga rerum omnium,\
preciosiores auro nidos, quia sapienter nidificat. Nidus
enim\ sapientie preciosior est auro. Quid enim
sapientius quam ut volandi\ vaga libertate pociatur, et
hominum domiciliis parvulos suos et\ tecta
commendet ubi sobolem nullus incurset. Nam illud
est\ pulchrum ut a primo ortu pullos humane usu
conversationis\ assuescat, et prestet ab iminicarum
avium insidiis tuciores. Tum\
sensorgr
men - you should beat it with an iron rod. For when it
is young, up to two years of age, it learns what it is
told very quickly and keeps it firmly in mind; when it
is a little older, it is forgetful and is difficult to teach.
Of the ibis
There is a bird called the ibis; it purges its stomach
with its beak. It feeds on the eggs of snakes and on
carrion, and from them carries back food to its young,
which they eat with great pleasure. Yet it fears to go
into water, because it does not know how to swim,
but walks about near the shore day and night, looking
for dead fish of a small size or corpses which have
been washed up.
The ibis signifies carnal men who feed, as it were, on
deadly deeds, on which they nourish themselves to
the condemnation of their wretched souls.
But you, a Christian, reborn by water and the holy
spirit, enter the spiritual waters of the mysteries of
God
Translation
and thereafter eat the purest of food of which the
apostle spoke, saying: 'But the fruit of the Spirit is
love, joy, peace longsuffering etc' (see Galatians,
5:22).
If the sun and moon did not send forth their rays,
they would give no light. If birds did not spread their
wings, they could not fly. Thus, you, O man, if you do
not protect yourself with the sign of the cross, and
spread the wings of twofold love, you will not be able
to pass through the tempests of this world to that
most peaceful haven of the heavenly land. 'And it
came to pass, when Moses held up his hand, that
Israel prevailed: and when he let down his hand,
Amalek prevailed' (Exodus, 17:11).
Of the swallow
'The turtle-dove and the stork and the swallow
observe the time of their coming. But my people know
not the judgment of the Lord' (see Jeremiah, 8:7).
We have talked of the turtle-dove; that leaves the
swallow and after it the stork to be discussed
Isidore says this about it: 'The swallow is so called
because it does not feed on the ground but catches its
food and eats it in the air. It is a twittering bird that
flies in twisting, turning loops and circuits, is highly
skilled in building its nest and rearing its young, and
has also a kind of foresight because it lets you know
when buildings are about to fall by refusing to nest on
their tops. In addition, it is not harrassed by birds of
prey nor is it ever their victim. It flies across the sea

Transcription
illud preclarum quod quadratam domum sibi sine ullo
adiutore\ tanquam artis perita componit. Legit enim
festucas ore easque luto\ linit ut glutinare possit, sed
quia lutum pedibus deferre non potest\ summitates
pennarum aqua infundit, ut facile his pulvis ad\
hereat, et limus fiat, quo paulatim festucas vel
minutos surcu\ los sibi colligat atque adherere faciat.
Eo genere nidi tocius fabricam\ struit, ut quasi
pavimento solo pulli eius in terra edes suas sine\
offensione versentur, ne pedem aliquis interserat per
rimulas textu\ rarum, aut teneris fetibus frigus
irrepat. Sed hoc industrie offi\ cium prope commune
multis avibus, illud vero singulare in quo est\ preclara
cura pietatis et prudens intellectus et cognitionis
insig\ ne, tum que[d]am medice artis pericia quod si
qua pulli eius fuerint\ cecitate suffusi oculos sive
compuncti, habet quoddam medendi genus\ quo po[s
inserted]sit eorum lumina intercepto visui reformare.
Per hyrundinem\ sicut auctoritas testatur, aliquando
superbia mentis, aliquando contricio\ contribulati
cordis intellegitur. Quod per yrundinem superbia
desig\ netur, per Tobiam dicitur: Cum iactasset se
inquit Tobias iuxta pa\ rietem et obdormisset, contigit
ut ex nido hirundinum dor\ mienti illi calida stercora
insiderent super oculos eius, fieretque cecus.\ Unde
Beda super Tobiam: Hyrundo propter levem volatum,
superbiam\ cordis levitatemque figurat, cuius
immundicia confestim excecat,\ nec eum videre
permittit qualis fuerit. Quod autem per irundinem\
contricio cordis intellegi debeat propheta dicens
demonstrat: Sicut\ pullus yrundinis inquit sic
clamabo. Intelligimus igitur per yrun\ dinem
quemlibet discretum doctorem, per yrundinis pullum\
clamantem discipulum, per clamorem, mentis
contricionem.\ Clamat pullus yrundinis, dum querit a
magistro verbum predi\ cationis. Clamat pullus
yrundinis, dum per confessionem ma\ gistro
manifestat affectum contriti cordis. Si nosci
clamorem\
sensorgr
and winters there.'
The swallow is a tiny bird but of an eminently pious
nature; lacking in everything, it constructs nests
which are more valuable than gold because it builds
them wisely. For the nest of wisdom is more precious
than gold. And what is wiser than to have, as the
swallow does, the capacity to fly where it likes and to
entrust its nest and its young to the houses of men,
where none will attack them. For there is something
attractive in the way that the swallow accustoms its
young from their earliest days to the company of
people and keeps them safe from the attacks of
hostile bird
Then
Translation
remarkably, the swallow creates a regularly-
proportioned home for itself without any assistance,
like a skilled craftsman. For it gathers bits of straw in
its mouth and smears them with mud so that they
stick together; but because it cannot carry the mud in
its claws, it dips the tips of its wings in water, so that
dust sticks to them easily and turns into slime, with
which to gather to itself bits of straw or tiny twigs, a
few at a time, and makes them stick. It makes the
whole fabric of the nest in this fashion, in order that
its young can live safely as if on a solid floor in houses
on the ground, lest any of them insert a foot between
the small gaps in the woven fabric or the cold should
get to the very young.
This conscientiousness is fairly common among most
birds, yet what is distinctive about the swallow is its
special loving care, shrewd intelligence and the
extraordinary quality of its understanding. Then there
is its skill in the arts of healing: if its young are
infected by blindness or pricked in the eye, it has
some kind of healing power with which it can restore
their vision.
The swallow, as this example proves, can be taken to
represent, in some cases, pride of mind; in others,
the repentance of the afflicted heart.
That the swallow signifies pride is illustrated by Tobit:
When he lay down beside a wall, says Tobit, and fell
asleep, it happened that warm excrement fell on his
eyes from a swallows' nest as he slept and he became
blind (see Tobit, 2:10). Bede Commentarys on this:
'The swallow, on account of its lightness in flight,
represents pride and levity of heart; their impurity
causes immediate blindness, and prevents one from
seeing what he is.
That we should interpret the swallow as the contrite
heart is demonstrated by the prophet, who says: 'Like
a crane or a swallow, so will I chatter' (see Isaiah,

Transcription
yrundinis, nisi fallor questum designat anime
penitentis. Hi\ rundo cibos residens non sumit, sed in
aere quas capit escas edit, quia\ qui terrena non
diligit, remotus a terrenis celestia querit. Garrula\ avis
esse dicitur quia querulosis orationibus sepius
delectatur, per fluxuosos cir\ cuitus pervolat, ut
adversa obedientie precepta mentem subiectus\
flectat. In nidis construendis educandisque fetibus
sollertissima.\ Nidum construit, quia in fide passionis
Christi spem fixam ponit. Sol\ lers in educandis
fetibus, id est in docendis subiectis fratribus. Habet
etiam\ quiddam pre[s]cium, quod deserat lapsura,
nec appetat culmina. Quid\ dam enim pre[s]cium
habent qui vere penitent, quod casum presentis
seculi\ fugiant, et per mansura sine fine querunt.
Hyrundo aliis avibus\ non impetitur nec unquam
preda est. Rapaces aves nunquam yrundinem\
rapiunt, quia contriti corde demonibus nunquam
preda sunt. Yrun\ do maria transvolat, quia vere
penitet amaritudines et tumul\ tus huius mundi exire
desiderat. Ibique hieme commoratur. Cum enim\
yemps ingruit et frigus antecedit [PL, accedit] tunc
iustus ad calorem cari\ tatis transit. Ibique pacienter
expectat, donec frigus temptationis a\ mente recedat.
Novit pia avis annuntiare adventus sui testi\ monio,
veris inicium. Revertitur yrundo post frigus yemis, ut
an\ nuntiet inicium veris. Similiter iustus post frigus
nimie temp\ tationis revertitur ad temperantiam
moderate mentis, ut qui frigus\ temptationis evaserat,
ad estatem, id est dilectionis amorem [PL, calorem]
mo\ derate per ascensus boni operis accedat. Hec est
igitur natura yrundinis,\ id est anime penitentis, que
semper querit veris inicium, quia in omnibus\ tenet
discrecionis et temperantie modum. Ecce qualiter
simplex\ eos instruit, quos ab inicio divina providentia
discretos facit.\ De ciconia \ Ciconie vocate a sono
quo crepitant\ quasi cicanie que sonum oris pocius
esse quam vocis quia\ quatiente rostro faciunt. Hee
veris nuntie, societatis comites,\
sensorgr
38:14). We understand by the swallow, therefore, a
discerning teacher; by the swallow's young, the
teacher's disciple, crying out; by the cry, a contrite
heart. The fledgling cries out as the disciple asks his
teacher to preach to him. The fledgling cries out as,
by confession, the disciple shows his teacher the
contrition in his heart. If you know the cry
Translation
of the swallow, it signifies, unless I am mistaken, the
lament of the penitent soul.
The swallow does not feed on the ground but eats
what it catches in the air, as those who have no love
for earthly things, seek, far away from them, the
things of heaven.
It is said to twitter, like those who frequently take
pleasure in plaintive pleas.
It flies in winding circles, as those who bend their
minds in submission to the rules of obedience.
The swallow is expert in building nests and bringing
up its young. In constructing a nest, it resembles
those who fix their hope in the faith of Christ's
passion. It is skilled in bringing up its young, that is,
like those who are skilled in teaching the brethren in
their charge.
The swallow has a kind of foresight, because it tells us
which buildings which are about to fall by refusing to
nest on their tops. Those who are truly penitent have
a kind of foresight, in that they flee from the fall of
this world and seek life without end.
It is not harassed by other birds and is never their
prey. Birds of prey never fall upon it, in the same way
that the contrite of heart are never the prey of devils.
The swallow flies across the sea, as the truly penitent
long to quit the sorrows and commotions of this
world. There it stays during in winter. As, when winter
assails us, and the cold comes, the righteous man
migrates to the warm region of love. There he waits
patiently until the coldness of temptation passes from
his mind.
The pious bird knows how to proclaim, in witness of
its coming, the beginning of spring. The swallow
returns after the cold of winter to announce the
beginning of spring. Likewise, the righteous man
returns after the coldness of great temptation to the
temperate climate of a well-regulated mind, in order
that, having escaped the cold of temptation, he may
ascend by means of good works to summer, that is,
the warmth of the due measure of love.
This, then, is the nature of the swallow, that is to say,

Transcription
serpentis hostes, maria transvolant, in Asiam collecto\
agmine pergunt. Cornices\ duces precedunt, et ipse
quasi\ exercitus prosequuntur. Eximia\ illis circa filios
pietas. Nam\ adeo nidos impensius fo\ vent, ut
assiduo incubitu\ plumas exuant. Quantum\ autem
tempus impende\ rint in fetibus educandis,\ tantum et
ipse invicem a pul\ lis suis aluntur. Ciconie\ sonum
oris pro voce quatiente rostro flaciunt [PL,faciunt].
Illos autem\ pretendunt qui cum fletu et stridore
dentium quod male\ gesserunt ore promunt. Hee sunt
nuntie veris, quia ceteris\ demonstrant temperantiam
converse mentis. Societatis sunt\ comites, quia
libenter habitant inter fratres. Dicitur etiam de
ciconia\ quod serpentium sit inimica. Serpentes sunt
perverse cogitatio\ nes, seu perversi fratres, quos
ciconia rostro percutit, dum iustus\ pravas
cogitationes restringit, vel perversos fratres
perungenti [PL, pungenti]\ invectione reprehendit.
Maria transvolant, in Asiam collec\ to agmine pergunt.
Asia interpretatur elevata. Maria igitur transvo\ lat et
Asiam pergit, qui spretis mundi tumultibus ad altio\ ra
tendit. Eximia illis circa filios pietas ut assiduo incu\
bitu super eos exuant plumas. Assiduo incubitu
sup[er] pul\ los ciconie plumas exuunt, quia dum
prelati subiectos nutri\ unt, superfluitatis et levitatis a
se plumas evellunt. Quantum\ autem tempus
impenderint in fetibus educandis, tantum et ipse\
invicem a pullis suis aluntur. Quantum pulli eorum
indigent\ tamdiu ciconie eos nutrire debent, quia in
quantum indigent
sensorgr
of the penitent soul: it longs all the time for the
beginning of spring, as the soul holds to the way of
good judgement and moderation in all things.
See how something simple, like the swallow, can
teach those to whom divine providence from the
beginning gave the capacity of discernment.
Of the stork
Storks get their name, ciconie, from the creaking
sound they make, like crickets, cicanie. The sound
comes from their mouth rather than their voice,
because they make it by clashing their bills.
Storks are the heralds of spring; they share a sense
of community;
Translation
they are the enemies of snakes; they fly across the
sea, making their way in flocks to Asia. Crows go in
front of them as their guides, the storks following
them as if in an army.
Storks possess a strong sense of duty towards their
young. They are so keen to keep their nests warm
that their feathers fall out as a result of the constant
incubation. But their young spend as much time
caring for them when they grow old, as they spend
caring for their young.
Storks make a sound by clashing their bills. They
represent those who 'with weeping and gnashing of
teeth' (Matthew, 8:12) proclaim from their own
mouths the evil they have done.
Storks herald the spring, like those who demonstrate
to others the moderation of a mind that has
undergone conversion.
They have a sense of community like those who live
willingly in the community of their brothers.
It is said also that the stork is the enemy of snakes.
Snakes are evil thoughts or evil brothers; the stork
strikes snakes with its bill, as the righteous check evil
thoughts or reprimand their wicked brothers with
penetrating rebukes.
Storks fly across the sea and make their way in flocks
to Asia. Asia signifies heavenly things. Those people
also fly across the sea to Asia, therefore, who,
scorning the commotions of the world, aim for higher
things.
Storks are are notably devoted to their young, with
the result that their feathers fall out from constant
incubation. Storks lose their feathers from the
constant incubation of their young in the same way

Transcription
discipuli, tamdiu verbo doctrine debent eos alere pre\
lati. Similiter subiecti prelatos suis laboribus fovere
de\ bent, ut eis ministrent necessaria quibus egent.
Turtur\ igitur et yrundo et ciconia illos reprehendunt,
qui Christum in\ carne advenisse non credunt, et
iudicium domini futurum\ non pertimescunt.\ De
[merula] \ Ysidorus de merula: Merula\ antiquitus
medula [PL, modula] vocabatur,\eo quod moduletur.
Alii merulam\ aiunt vocitatam quia sola volat\ quasi
mera volans. Hec cum in om\nibus locis nigra sit, in
Achaia tamen\ candida est. Merula est avis parva\ sed
nigra. Illos autem innuit, quos peca\ ti nigredo tingit.
Merula dulcedine proprie vocis, mentem\ movet in
affectum delectationis. Illos autem demonstrat\
figurate, quos voluptas carnis per suggestionem
temptat. De ea\ siquidem beatus Gregorius in libro
Dialogorum scribit qualiter\ beato Benedicto volitans
occurrit, qualiter tantus post disces\ sum volucris,
temptatus fuerit ardore libidinis. Ait enim:\ Quadam
vero die dum solus esset beatus Benedictus,
temptator affu\ it. Nam nigra parvaque avis que vulgo
merula vocatur\ circa eius faciem volitare cepit,
eiusque vultui importu\ ne insistere, ita ut capi manu
posset, si hanc vir sanctus\ tenere voluisset. Sed
signo crucis edito, recessit avis.\ Tanta autem carnis
temptatio avi eadem recedente se\ cuta est, quantam
vir sanctus nunquam fuerat expertus. Quan\ dam
namque aliquando feminam viderat, quam ma\ lignus
spiritus ante eius mentis oculos reduxit. Tan\ taque
igne servi dei animum in specie illius accendit, ut\
Transcription
sensorgr
that prelates, when they nourish those in their
charge, pluck out from their own bodies the feathers
of excess and weakness.
Young storks spend as much time caring for their
parents as their parents spent on rearing them.
Storks must nourish their young in proportion to their
need, in the same way that
Translation
prelates should feed their disciples with instruction
according to their need. Likewise the prelates' flock
should support them with their efforts and provide
them with the necessities they lack.
Thus the turtle-dove, the swallow and the stork are a
living reproach to those who do not believe that Christ
came in the flesh and do not go in fear of the
judgement of the Lord to come.
Of the blackbird
Isidore says of the blackbird: 'The blackbird in ancient
times was called medula, because it sang
rhythmically.' Others say that it was called merula,
because it flew on its own, mera volans, so to speak.
Although it is black wherever it is found, there is a
white species in Achaia. The blackbird is small but
black. It represents those tainted by the blackness of
sin.
The blackbird both moves and charms itself by the
sweetness of its own voice. It represents those who
are tempted by the suggestion of carnal pleasures. In
fact, the blessed Gregory refers to this in his book of
Dialogues, when he recounts how the blackbird came
on the wing to the blessed Benedict and how after the
departure of the bird, he was tempted with the fire of
lust.
Gregory says: One day when the blessed Benedict
was alone, the tempter appeared. For a small, black
bird, commonly called a blackbird, began to fly
around his head and to come up close to his face in a
cheeky fashion, so that Benedict could have taken it
in his hand if the saint had wanted to hold it. But he
made the sign of the cross and the bird flew away.
Such a temptation of the flesh as followed the
departure of the bird, the saint had never
experienced. For the evil spirit now brought before his
inner eye the image of a woman whom Benedict had
once seen. And the mind of the servant of God burned
with such fire at the sight of her, that
Translation
se in eius pectore amoris flamma vix caperet, et iam
[PL ut etiam] pene de\ serere heremum voluptate
victus deliberaret. Cum subito su\ perna gratia
respectus, ad semetipsum reversus est, atque
urticarum et\ veprium iuxta densa succrescere
frutecta conspiciens, exutus\ indumento quo indutus
erat, nudum se in illis spinarum\ aculeis et urticarum
incendiis proiecit. Ibique volutatus toto ex\ eis
corpore vulneratus exiit, et per cutis vulnera eduxit a
corpore vul\ nus mentis, quia voluptatem traxit in
dolorem. Merula igitur vo\ litans, est suggestio
voluptatem temptans. Qui igitur abicere cu\ piunt
voluptatem merule, oportet ut exemplo beati Benedic\
ti transeant ad correctionem discipline, et sic
delectationem\ mentis extrahant per afflictionem
carnis. In regionibus Achaie\ sunt sicut Ysidorus
testatur candide merule. Candida merula,\ est
voluntas munda. Achaia vero, soror laborans
interpretatur.\ Due sorores sunt Rachel et Lia, activa
scilicet et contemplati\ va vita. Lia, laboriosa
interpretatur. Activa vita docet elemo\ sinas
impendere, indiscretos docere mundiciam castitatis\
habere, propriis manibus laborare. Hic est labor active
vite,\ hec est soror laborans. Hec est Achaia, videlicet
activa vita.\ In Achaia igitur quasi merule candide
sunt, qui in activa vi\ ta pure vivunt. \ De bubone \
Ysidorus de bubone.\ Bubo a sono vocis compositum\
nomen habet, avis feralis, onu\ sta quidem plumis,
sed gravi semper\ detenta pigricia, in sepulchris\ die
noctuque versatur et semper com\ morans in
cavernis. Unde Rabanus:\ Bubo inquit, in tenebris
pecca\ torum deditos, et lucem iusticie fugientes
significat. Unde\
Transcription
inter immunda animalia in Levitico deputatur. Unde
per bubonem\ intelligere possumus quemlibet
peccatorem. Bubo a sono vocis dicitur\ quia os ex
abundantia cordis loquitur, nam quod cogitat mente,\
profert voce. Avis feda esse dicitur, quia fimo eius
locus in quo habitat\ commaculatur, quia peccator
illos cum quibus habitat, exemplo\ perversi operis
dehonestat. Avis onusta plumis, id est, superfluitate\
carnis et levitate mentis, sed gravi quidem detenta
pigricia.\ Detinetur inertia et pigritia g[ra]ravi, quia
sensorgr
the flame of his love could scarcely contain itself in his
breast and, overcome by desire, he now almost
resolved to quit the wilderness. When suddenly,
touched by the grace of heaven, he recovered
himself, and seeing thick bushes of nettles and thorns
growing nearby, he stripped off the garment he was
wearing and threw himself naked amid the pricking
thorns and stinging nettles. And having rolled in
them, he emerged with his body covered in wounds,
and through these wounds to his skin he discharged
from his body the wound to his soul, because he
transformed his desire into pain.
The blackbird in flight, therefore, represents
enticement, tempting you to desire. If you want,
therefore, to reject the desire symbolised by the
blackbird, you must follow the example of the blessed
Benedict and turn instead to the correction of
discipline and thus rid yourself of pleasures of the
mind by inflicting pain on your flesh.
In the regions of Achaia, according to Isidore, there
are white blackbirds. A white blackbird represents
purity of will. But by Achaia we understand the
industrious sister. There are two sisters, Rachel and
Leah, namely the active and the contemplative life.
Leah we take to be the industrious one. The active life
teaches us to devote ourselves to works of charity, to
teach men who lack discernment, to have the purity
of chastity, to work with our own hands. This is
Achaia, the active life. In Achaia, therefore, like the
white blackbirds, live those who live chastely the
active life.
Of the owl
Isidore says of the owl: 'The name owl, bubo, is
formed from the sound it makes. It is a bird
associated with the dead, weighed down, indeed, with
its plumage, but forever hindered, too, by the weight
of its slothfulness. It lives day and night around burial
places and is always found in caves.'
On this subject Rabanus says: 'The owl signifies those
who have given themselves up to the darkness of sin
and those who flee from the light of righteousness.'
As a result
Translation
it is classed among the unclean creatures in Leviticus
(see 11:16). Consequently, we can take the owl to
mean any kind of sinner.
The owl gets its name from the sound it makes,
because its mouth speaks when its heart is overfull,
for what it thinks about in its mind, it utters with its
voice.
It is said to be a filthy bird, because it fouls its nest
peccatores ad bene operandum\ sunt inertes et pigri.
Die noctuque moratur in sepulcris, nam de\ lectatur
peccato, quod est fetor humane carnis. Habitat enim
in ca\ vernis nec per confessionem exit foras, sed
lucem veritatis odit.\ Ab aliis avibus visus, magnis
earum clamoribus proditur, magnis\ etiam
incursionibus vexatur. Si enim peccator ad lucem
cogniti\ onis veniat, magnum bene agentibus
derisionis questum\ prestat. Et cum in peccato
deprehensus aperte fuerit, ab aliis repre\ hensionis
verba audit. Plumas evellunt et rostro lacerant,\ quia
et carnales actus peccatoris bene agentes
reprehendunt, et\ superfluitatem dampnant. Infelix
ergo dicitur, quia infelix est\ qui ea que prediximus
operatur. \ [De hupupa] \ Hupupam Greci appellant,
eo\ quod stercora humana consi\ deret [considat], et
fetenti pascatur fimo, avis\ spurcissima et cristis
exstantibus ga\ leata, semper in sepulcris et humano\
stercore commorans, cuius sanguine\ quisquis se
inunxerit, dormitum\ pergens demones suffocantes se
vide\ bit. Unde Rabanus: Hec avis sceleratos\
peccatores significat homines qui sordibus peccatorum
assidue de\ lectantur. Hupupa etiam luctum amare
dicitur, quia [seculi] tristicia\
Transcription
mortem spiritus operatur, propter quod oportet eum
qui diligit deum semper\ gaudere sine intermissione
orare, in omnibus gratias agere quia gaudi\ um
spiritus est fructus. De hupupa etiam Phisiologus dicit,
quia [PL, quod]\ cum senuerit et volare non possit,
filii eius ad eum veniunt\ et pennas vetustissimas a
corpore ipsius evellunt, eamque fovere\ non cessant,
donec sicut ante assumptis viribus volare pos\ sit.
Exemplum igitur perversis hominibus tribuunt, qui
sensorgr
with its droppings, as the sinner dishonours those
with whom he lives, by the example of his evil ways.
It is weighed down with its plumage, as the sinner is
with an excess of carnal pleasure and with fickleness
of mind; but it is truly hampered by the weight of its
sloth. It is hindered by the weight of its idleness and
sloth, as sinners are lazy and slothful in acting
virtuously.
It spends its days and nights around burial places, as
the sinner delights in sin, which is like the stench of
decaying human flesh. For it lives in caves like the
sinner who will not emerge from darkness by means
of confession but detests the light of truth.
When other birds see the owl, they signal its presence
with loud cries and harrass it with fierce assaults. In
the same way, if a sinner comes into the light of
understanding, he becomes an object of derision to
the virtuous. And when he is caught openly in the act
of sinning, his ears are filled with their reproaches. As
the birds pull out the owl's feathers and tear at it with
their beaks, the virtuous censure the carnal acts of
the sinner and condemn his excesses.
The owl is known, therefore, as a miserable bird, just
as the sinner, who behaves in the way we have
described above, is a miserable man.
[Of the hoopoe]
The Greeks call the bird by this name because it
roosts in human ordure and feeds on stinking
excrement. The filthiest of birds, it is capped with a
prominent crest. It lives in burial places amid human
ordure.
If you rub yourself with its blood on your way to bed,
you will have nightmares about demons suffocating
you.
On this subject, Rabanus says: 'This bird signifies
wicked sinners, men who continually delight in the
squalor of sin.'
The hoopoe is said to take pleasure in grief, as the
sorrow of this world
Translation
brings about the death of the spirit; for this reason
those who love God should 'rejoice evermore, pray
without ceasing and in every thing give thanks' (see 1
Thessalonians, 5:16-18) 'for the fruit of the Spirit is
joy' (see Galatians, 5:22).
In addition, Physiologus says of the hoopoe that when
it grows old and cannot fly, its offspring come and pull
out the oldest feathers from its body and constantly
patres\ suos cum senuerint a domibus propriis
expellunt, qui eos cum\ deficiant sustentare renuunt,
qui ipsos cum adhuc parvu\ li essent educaverunt.
Videat ergo homo rationabilis quid patri\ vel matri
debeat, cum irrationabilis creatura quod predixi\ [A,
imus in necessitate cum senuerint parentibus reddat.
\ De noctua \ Noctua dicitur, eo quod nocte
circumvolat, et per diem non possit videre. Nam
exorto splendore solis, visus illius hebetatur. Noctua
autem non est bubo. Nam bubo maior est. Nicticorax
ipsa est noctua, quia noctem amat. Est enim avis
lucifuga, et solem videre non patitur.] Hec avis
figuram gerit Judeorum,\ qui veniente domino
salvatore ad salvandos eos reppule-\ runt eum,
dicentes: Non habemus regem nisi Caesarem, et plus\
dilexerunt tenebras quam lucem. Tunc dominus
convertit se ad nos\ gentes et illuminavit nos
sedentes in tenebris et umbra mortis,\ de quibus
dicitur: Populus quem non cognovi servivit mihi, et in
alio\ propheta: Vocabo non plebem meam plebem, et
non dilectam dilectam.\ De populo Judeorum, filii
alieni et cetera. \ [De vespertilione] \ Vespertilio
animal ignobile, a vespere nomen accepit. Est\ autem
volatile idemque quadrupes, et dentibus utitur
Transcription
quos in avibus repperire non soleas. Parit ut
quadrupedia, non\ ova sed pullos viventes. Voli\ tat
autem non aliquo volatu\ pennarum sed menbrane
sue fulta remigio quo suspensa ve\ lut pennarum
volatu cir\cumfertur atque vegetatur. Habet\ et illud
hoc vile animal quod\ sibi invicem adherent et quasi
specie botrionis ex aliquo loco pendent, ac si se ultima
queque laxa\ verit, omnes resolvuntur, quod fit
quodam munere caritatis que dif\ [A, ficile in
hominibus huiusmodi reperitur. \ De gragulo \
Rabanus de gragulo: Gragulus a garrulitate
nuncupatur, ut non quidam volunt, pro eo quod
sensorgr
care for it, until it has recovered its strength as before
and can fly. The young hoopoes provide, therefore, an
example to those evil men who, when their parents
grow old, throw them out of their home; who refuse
to support, when they are weak, the parents who
raised them when they were still in their infancy.
Let man, who is endowed with reason, learn his duty
to his mother and father, from the way in which this
creature, which lacks reason, provides (as we have
already shown) for its parents' needs when they are
old.
Of the night-owl
The night-owl, noctua, is so called because it flies at
night and cannot see in the daytime. For its sight is
dimmed by brightness of the sun when it has risen.
The night-owl, noctua, is not the same as the owl,
bubo, which is bigger. But the night-crow, nicticorax,
is the same as the night-owl, because it loves the
night. For it is a bird which shuns the light and cannot
bear to see the sun.
This bird symbolises the Jews who, when the Lord our
Saviour came to save them, rejected him, saying: 'We
have no king but Caesar' (John, 19:15); and 'loved
darkness rather than light' (John, 3:19). Then our
Lord turned to us, the Gentiles, and gave us light as
we sat in darkness and the shadow of death; of the
Gentiles it is said: 'A people which I knew not shall
serve me' (Samuel 2, 22:44; Psalms, 18:44); and in
another prophet: 'I will call them my people, which
were not my people; and her beloved, which was not
beloved' (Romans, 9:25; see Hosea, 2:23). Of the
people of the Jews, the sons of strangers etc.
[Of the bat]
The bat, a lowly animal, gets its name from vesper,
the evening, when it emerges.
It is a winged creature but also a four-footed one, and
it has teeth,
Translation
which you would not usually find in birds. It gives
birth like a quadruped, not to eggs but to live young.
It flies, but not on wings; it supports itself by making
a rowing motion with its skin, and, suspended just as
on wings, it darts around.
There is one thing which these mean creatures do,
however: they cling to each other and hang together
from one place looking like a cluster of grapes, and if
the last lets go, the whole group disintegrate; it a
kind of act of love of a sort which is difficult to find
gregatim volent, cum sit manifestum, ex voce eos
nuncupari. Est enim loquacissimum genus et vocibus
inportunum, quod vel philoso-]phorum vanam
loquacitatem, vel hereticorum verbositatem noxiam\
significare potest. Potest adhuc et aliud dici de natura
graguli. Gra\ guli enim garrulos designant et gulosos.
Qui enim gulo\ sitati student, post cibum libenter
rumores referunt, et aures\ detractioni prebent.
Gragulus in silvis degit, de una arbore\ in aliam
garriendo transit, quia garrulus homo de his cum\
quibus habitat, etiam turpia que de eis noverit aliis
narra\ re non cessat. Gragulus cum aliquem transire
conspicit\ garrit, et cum aliquos occultos repperit
similiter agit, quia\ garrulos homo non tamen detrahit
secularibus, sed et eis quos religio\
sensorgr
among men.
[Of the jay]
Rabanus says of the jay: 'The jay gets is name from
its talkativeness, garrulitas; not, as some would have
it, because jays fly in flocks, gregatim; clearly, they
are named for the cry they give.
It is a most talkative species of bird and makes an
irritating noise, and can signify either the empty
prattle of philosophers or the harmful wordiness of
heretics.'
More can be said of the nature of the jay. For jays
signify both gossips and gluttons. For those who
devote themselves to gluttony take pleasure, after
eating, in repeating gossip and in lending an ear to
slander.
The jay lives in the woods and flies chattering from
one tree to another, as a talkative man ceaselessly
tells others about his neighbours, even the shameful
things he knows about them.
When the jay sees someone pass, it chatters, and if it
finds anyone hiding from the world, it does the same,
just as a talkative man slanders not only worldly men
but also those
Transcription
nis occultat locus. Gragulus captus aliquando
repositus clauditur\ ut articulata verba doceatur.
Similiter cum aliquis secularis ad conversi\ onem
venerit, verba reli[li]gionis addiscit, ut lingua volucris
verba\ loquatur hominis, ut qui inordinate loqui
consueverat, ordinate\ loqui hactenus assuescat.
Quandoque cum evenit quod gragulus qui\ clausus
tenebatur evadit, et qui prius garrulus fuerat, per
egressionem\ magis clamat. Eodem modo garrulus
homo cum vitam religionis ar\ ripit, vix linguam suam
deserit, sed si forte relicto habitu foras exie\ rit,
bonum religionis in malam partem detrahendo quasi
garriendo\ vertit. Moneat igitur natura volucris quis
recipi debeat ad con\ sortium religionis. Discretus
igitur doctor cum aliquem recipere\ debet, saltem
prius cohabitatione probet. A quodam viro dis\ creto
et religioso didici, quod sint quedam diversitates ho\
minum que vix ordinate in religione possint detineri.\
Si autem queras qui sint ut evitari possint, hii sunt
pic\ tores, medici, ioculatores, et quidam alii qui
diversas [PL, regiones] discur\ rere sunt assueti.
Huiusmodi homines vix possunt esse\ stabiles. Ars
pictoris valde est delectabilis. Cum enim pic\ tor
ecclesiam, capitulum, refectorium, vel aliquas
officinas\ pinxerit, ad aliud monasterium si ei
concessum fuerit roga\ tus ab aliquo causa pingendi
transit. Opera Christi pingit in\ pariete, sed utinam ea
teneret in mente. Vestiret coloribus,\ exemplo et
moribus. Ars vero medicine multis indiget, et vix\
proprietate caret. Qui hanc exercet, necesse est ei ut
aroma\ tibus et speciebus habundet. Cum aliquis
ecclesie vicinus in\ firmitate premitur, medicus ut ad
infirmum veniat\ rogatur. Si autem abbas eum ire non
permiserit, iram in\ currit. Medicus quandoque videt,
quod ordinate eum videre\ non licet. Tangit quod
religioso tangere non convenit.\ De incertis per
experimenta loquitur, sed quia experimentum est\
sensorgr
Translation
hidden whom a religious house conceals.
A jay, captured and finally secured, is shut away on
its own to learn to speak words clearly. Likewise,
when a man of this world comes to conversion, he
learns to speak the words of religion as the bird
speaks the words of men; so that he who used to
speak in a confused fashion, may thereafter grow
accustomed to speak articulately.
Sometimes it happens that a jay, held in confinement,
escapes; then the bird, which was formerly talkative,
makes even more noise after its escape. In the same
way, a talkative man who takes up the religious life
abandons with difficulty his power of speech; but
should he quit his order and go back out into the
world, he turns the good that comes of a religious life
into something bad, by uttering slander, as if he were
a jay chattering.
Let the nature of this bird, therefore, serve as a
warning to those who wish to be received into a
religious community. Let the discerning teacher,
therefore, when he has to receive a candidate into his
community, at least examine him before he takes up
communal residence.
I have learned from a man both discerning and
devout that there are certain kinds of men who
cannot easily be maintained in a religious order. If
you want to know who they are, to avoid them, they
are painters, doctors, entertainers and certain others
who are in the habit of wandering to different parts.
Men of this sort find it hard to lead stable lives.
The art of the painter is highly agreeable. For when
he has decorated a church, a chapter-house, a
refectory or some domestic buildings of a convent, he
goes on to another religious house, to paint that, if
after being asked, he has been given leave to do so.
He decorates a wall with the acts of Christ - but if
only he would keep them in mind! He would deck
them in colour, by his example and his conduct!
The art of medicine needs many things and is scarcely
without the things it needs. Those who practise it
need aromatic plants and drugs in quantity. When
someone living in the neighbourhood of a church is
suffering from an illness, the physician is asked to
attend the sick man. If, however, the abbot will not
allow him to go, he incurs the wrath of the patient
and the doctor. The physician sometimes sees things
which it is ordained that he should not see. He
touches things which the religious are not allowed to
touch. He speaks of uncertain things, drawing on his
experience, but because experience is
Transcription
fallax ideo sepe fallitur, sed hoc religioso non expedit\
quod nisi vera loquatur. Promittit ecclesie sue lucrum
si\ eat ad egrotum, sed tacet scandalum et anime sue
damp\ num. Nostis forsitan de monacho medico Justo
nomine,\ sed utinam iusto operatione qui in
medicamine tres au\ reos absconderat quid de eo
beatus Gregorius dicat, qui\ licet ei in infirmitate
servierit, in correctione tamen\ ei non pepercit.
Fratres ante mortem ei loqui prohibuit, post\ mortem
vero in sterquilinio sepeliri[i] iussit. Sic autem est\
absolutus post mortem, pecunia tua tecum sit in
perdicio\ nem. Sed et ioculatores ante conversionem
leves cum ad\ conversionem veniunt, sepius usi
levitate leviter recedunt.\ Illi vero qui per diversas
regiones discurrere sunt consueti, si te\ dio claustri
fuerint aggravati, citius a claustris exeunt\ quia
terrarum diversitates noverunt. \ De lucinia \Lucinia
avis inde nomen sumpsit quia cantu suo\ significare
solet surgentis ex\ ortum diei quasi lucenia.\ Est enim
pervigil custos cum\ ova quodam sinu corporis et\
gremio fovet, insompnem\ longe[i] noctis laborem
cantile\ ne suavitate solatur. Ut mihi vi\ detur, hec
summa eius est inten\ tio quo possit non minus dul\
cioribus modulis quam fotu corporis animare fetus
ovaque fo\ vere. Hanc imitata tenuis illa mulier sed
pudica, incussum\ mole lapidem brachio trahens ut
possit alimentum panis\ suis parvulis non deesse
nocturno cantu mestum pauperta\ tis mulcet
affectum, et quamvis suavitatem lucinie non possit\
Transcription
imitari, imitatur tamen eum sedulitate pietatis.\ [De
ansere] \ Anser vigilias noctis as\ siduitate clangoris
te\ statur. Nullum autem animal\ ita odorem hominis
sentit ut\ anser. Unde et clangore eius\ Gallorum
ascensus in Capito\ lio deprehensus est. Unde Ra\
banus: Hec providos homines et erga custodiam suam
bene\ vigilantes, significare potest. Anserum due sunt
species\ domestice videlicet et campestres.
Campestres in altum\ et ordinate volant, illosque
sensorgr
Translation
deceptive, he is as a result often mistaken. But it is of
no advantage to this religious man to speak nothing
but the truth. He promises that his church will benefit
if he goes to the sick man, but he says nothing of the
temptation to sin and the harm to his soul.
You know, perhaps, of the monk and physician, called
Justus - if only he had acted justly! - who hid three
gold pieces in a remedy. Perhaps you know, too, what
the blessed Gregory says of him. Although Gregory
cared for Justus in his sickness, he did not, however,
forbear to punish him. He forbade his brothers to
speak to Justus before his death and after it, ordered
him to be buried in a cess-pit. Moreover, after his
death, Justus was absolved with the words: 'Thy
money perish with thee' (see Acts, 8:20).
Entertainers also, fickle of mind before conversion,
when they come to conversion more often resort to
fickleness and with fickleness leave the order.
As for those who are used to wandering off to
different places, if they feel oppressed by the irksome
routine of the cloister, they quit it more quickly,
because they have experienced the variety of life in
other lands.
Of the nightingale
The nightingale is so called because it signals with its
song the dawn of the new day; a light-bringer,
lucenia, so to speak.
It is an ever-watchful sentinel, warming its eggs in a
hollow of its body, relieving the sleepless effort of the
long night with the sweetness of its song. It seems to
me that the main aim of the bird is to hatch its eggs
and give life to its young with sweet music no less
than with the warmth of its body. The poor but
modest mother, her arm dragging the millstone
around, that her children may not lack bread, imitates
the nightingale, easing the misery of her poverty with
a night-time song, and although she cannot imitate
the sweetness of the bird,
Translation
she matches it in her devotion to duty.
[Of the goose]
The goose marks the watches of the night by its
constant cry. No other creature picks up the scent of
man as it does. It was because of its noise, that the
Gauls were detected when they ascended the Capitol.
Rabanus says in this context: 'The goose can signify
designant qui remoti a terre\ nis ordinem bene
vivendi servant. Domestici vero in vicis\ simul
habitant, multociens conclamant, seipsos rostris\
lacerant, illos significant qui et si conventus amant,
lo\ quacitate tamen et detractioni vacant. Campestres
anse\ res omnes sunt coloris cinericii, nec aliquam
earum\ variam sive niveam vidi. In domesticis vero
non solum ha\ betur color cinericius, sed etiam varius
vel albus. In cam\ pestribus habetur color cinericius,
id est in his qui a seculo sunt remoti\ penitentie vilis
habitus. Hii vero qui in urbibus vel in vicis\ habitant,
pulchrioris coloris vestem portant. Anser pre\ ceteris
animalibus supervenientis hominis odorem sen\ tit,
quia discretus homo per bonam vel malam famam\
alios licet longe remotos, cognoscit. Cum igitur anser
odo\ rem supervenientis hominis sentit, nocte
clamare non de\ sinit, quia cum negligentias
ignorantie discretus frater\ in aliis videt, clamare
debet. In Capitolio quondam Ro\ manis profuit clamor
anseris, et in Capitolio [PL, capitulo] cotidie cum\
Transcription
negligentias viderit clamor discreti fratris hostem
repel\ lit antiquum. Clamor anseris urbem Romanam
ab im\ petu hostium servavit immunem, clamor
discreti fratris\ ne turbetur a perversis custodit vitam
communem. Forsi\ tan divina providentia naturas
volucrum nobis non propo\ neret, nisi eas nobis in
aliquo forte prodesse vellet.\ [De ardea] \ Ardea
vocata, quasi ar\ dua, propter altos vola\ tus,
formidat imbres, et super\ nubes evolat, ut procellas
nu\ bium sentire non possit. Cum\ autem volaverit,
significat\ tempestatem. Hanc multi\ Tantalum
vocant. Unde Ra\ banus: Hec avis potest signi\ ficare
animas electorum, que formidantes perturbationem\
huius seculi, ne forte procellis persecutionum
instigante diabo\ lo involvantur, intentionem suam
super omnia tempora\ lia ad serenitatem patrie
celesti[s]s ubi assidue vultus dei\ conspicitur, mentes
suas elevant. Licet ardea cibos in aquis\ querat, in
silvis tamen et in altis arboribus nidum locat,\ quia
iustus qui rebus labentibus et transitoriis seipsum
pascit,\ in raris sublimibusque spem ponit. Et cuius
sustentatur\ transitoriis, eius anima delectatur
eternis. Ardea pullos in\ nido rostro defendere nititur,
ne ab aliis avibus rapiantur.\ Eodem modo iustus forti
invectione percutit, quos perversos ad\ decipiendum
subiectos novit. Quedam vero earum habent\ colorem
sensorgr
men who are prudent and look out for their own
safety.'
There are two kinds of geese, domestic and wild. Wild
geese fly high, in a an orderly fashion, signifying
those who, far away from earthly things, preserve a
rule of virtuous conduct. Domestic geese live together
in villages, they cackle together all the time and rend
each other with their beaks; they signify those who,
although they like conventual life, nevertheless find
time to gossip and slander.
All wild geese are grey in colour; I have not seen any
that were of mixed colour or white. But among
domestic geese, there are not only grey but
variegated and white ones. Wild geese are the colour
of ashes, that is to say, those who keep apart from
this world wear the modest garb of penitence. But
those who live in towns or villages wear clothes that
are more beautiful in colour.
The goose, more than any other animal, picks up the
scent of a someone happening by, as the discerning
man knows of other men by their good or bad
reputation, even though they live far away. When,
therefore, a goose picks up the scent of a man
approaching, it cackles endlessly at night, as when a
discerning brother sees in others the negligence that
comes with ignorance, it is his duty to call attention to
it. The cackling of geese on the Capitol once helped
the Romans, and in our chapter-house daily, when
Translation
the discerning brother sees evidence of negligence,
his warning voice serves to repel the old enemy, the
Devil. The cackling of the goose saved the city of
Rome from enemy attack; the warning voice of the
discerning brother guards the life of his community
from disruption by the wicked.
Divine providence would not, perhaps, have revealed
to us the characteristics of birds, if it had not wanted
the knowledge to be of some benefit to us.
[Of the heron]
It is called heron, ardea, as if from ardua, meaning
'high', because of its capacity to fly high in the sky; it
fears rain and flies above the clouds to avoid
experiencing the storms they bring. A heron taking
wing shows a storm is coming.
Many people call the heron Tantalus, after the king
who betrayed the secrets of the gods. Rabanus says
on this subject: 'This bird can signify the souls of the
elect, who fear the disorder of this world, lest they be
caught up by chance in the storms of persecution
stirred up by the Devil, and raise their minds,
reaching above all worldly things to the tranquility of
album, quedam cinericium, uterque tamen color\ in
bonam partem ponitur, si per album mundicia, per
cineri\ cium penitentia designetur. Eiusdem enim
generis sunt\
Transcription
[De perdice] \ Perdix de voce nomen\ habet, avis
dolosa et\ immunda. Nam masculus\ in masculum
insurgit, et\ obliviscitur sexum libido\ preceps. Adeo
autem frau\ dulenta, ut alter alterius\ ova diripiat.
Verumptamen\ fraus fructum non habet. Nam dum
pulli audiunt vocem\ proprie genitricis naturali
quodam instinctu hanc que\ eos fovit relinqunt, et ad
eam que eos genuit rever\ tuntur. Huius exemplum
imitatus est diabolus qui ge\ nerationem eterni
conditoris rapere contendit, et si quos\ insipientes et
sensu proprii vigoris carentes aliquo modo\ poterit
congregare, fovet illos illecebris corporalibus.\ Set ubi
vox Christi audita fuerit ab eis, sumentes sibi alas\
spirituales provide evolant, et se Christo
commendant.\ Concinnantur\ a perdicibus munitione
sollerti.\ Spineis enim fruticibus receptus\ suos
vestiunt, ut animalia que\ infestant arceantur asperis
surcu\ lorum. Ovis stragulum pulvis\ est atque
clanculo revertuntur in indicium loci, conver\ satio
frequens fatigat, plerumque femine transvehunt par\
tus ut mares fallant, qui eos sepissime affligunt,
impaci\ entius adulantes. Dimicant circa conubium,
victosque cre\ dunt feminarum vice venerem
sustinere. Ipsas libido sic\ agitat, ut si ventus a
masculis flaverit, fiant pregnantes\
sensorgr
their home in heaven, where the countenance of God
is forever to be seen.
Although the heron seeks its food in water,
nevertheless it builds its nest in woodland, in tall
trees, as the righteous man, whose sustenance is
uncertain and transitory, places his hope in splendid
and exalted things.
The soul of man sustained by transitory things,
rejoices in the eternal.
The heron tries with its beak to prevent its nestlings
from being seized by other birds. So the righteous
man lashes with his tongue those who, to his
knowledge, are evilly inclined to deceive the gullible.
Some herons are white, some grey, but both colours
can be taken in a good sense, if white signifies purity,
grey, penitence. To the same kind
Translation
Of the partridge
The partridge gets its name from the sound it makes.
It is a cunning and unclean bird. For one male mounts
another and in their reckless lust they forget their
sex.
The partridge is so deceitful that one will steal
another's eggs. But the trick does not work. For when
the young hear the cry of their real mother, their
natural instinct is to leave the bird that is brooding
them and return to the mother who produced them.
The Devil imitates their example, trying to rob the
eternal Creator of those he has created; if he
succeeds somehow in bringing together men who are
foolish and lack any sense of their own inner strength,
he cossets them with seductive pleasures of the flesh.
But when they have heard the voice of Christ,
growing spiritual wings, they wisely fly away and
entrust themselves to Christ.
The nests built by partridges are skilfully fortified. For
they cover their hiding-place with thorny bushes so
that animals attacking them are kept at bay by the
prickly branches. The partridge uses dust to cover its
eggs and returns secretly to the place, which it has
marked.
Frequent intercourse tires it.
The females often carry their young in order to
deceive the males, who frequently attack the chicks,
all the more impatiently when the chicks fawn on
them.
The males fight over their choice of mate, and believe

Transcription
odore. Tunc siquis hom-[A, inum ubi incubat
appropin]\ quaverit, egresse mat-[A, res sese
venientibus sponte offe]\ runt, et simulata debili-[A,
tate vel pedum vel alarum, quasi]\ statim capi
possint, gre-[A, ssus fingunt tardiores, hoc men]\
datio illicitant obvios [A, et illudunt quo adprovecti
long]\ gius a nidis avocentur. N-[A, ec in pullis
studium segnius]\ ad cavendum. Cum vis-[A, os se
persentiscunt resupinati]\ glebulas pedibus attoll-[A,
unt, quorum obtentu tam cal-]\ lide proteguntur, ut
la-[A, teant deprehensi.]\ [De altione] \ Altion
mariti\ ma avis est\ que in littoribus fetus\ suos edere
solet, ita\ ut arenis ova sua\ deponat medio fere\
hieme. Nam id tem\ poris fovendi habet\ deputatum
partubus\ quando maxime\ insurgit mare litori\
busque vehementior\ fluctus illiditur, quo magis
repentine placiditatis solemp\ nitate avis huius eluceat
gratia. Namque ubi undosum fue\ rit mare positis ovis
subito mitescunt, et omnes cadunt\ ventorum procelle
flatusque aurarum mitescunt, ac placidum\ ventis stat
mare, donec ova foveat altion sua. Septem\ autem
dies fotus sunt, quibus decursis educit pullos,
fetusque\ absolvit. Ilico alios quoque septem adiungit
dies quibus\ enutriat partus suos, donec incipiant
adolescere. Nec\ mireris tam exiguum nutrimenti
tempus cum absolutio\
Transcription
fetuum tam paucorum dierum sit. Tantam autem
gratiam\ minuscula avis divinitus indultam habet, ut
hos xiiii\ dies nautaci presumpte serenitatis
observent, quos et alti\ onidas vocant, quibus nullus
motus procellose tempesta\ tis horrescat.\ [De]
fulica \ Est volatile, sat intel\ ligibile et prudentis\
simum animal, cadavere\ non vescitur, nec aliun\ de
pervolat sive oberrat,\ sed in uno loco commoratur\
et permanet usque in finem\ et ibi escam suam
sensorgr
they can use the losers for sex in place of the
females. The latter are so affected by lust, that if the
wind blows towards them from the males, they
become pregnant
Translation
by the males' scent.
Then, if any man approaches the place where the
patridge is brooding, the mothers come out and
deliberately show themselves to them; pretending
that their feet or wings are injured, they put on a
show of moving slowly, as if they could be caught in
no time; by this trick they act as decoys to the
approaching men and fool them into moving far away
from the nest.
The young are not slow, either, to watch out for
themselves. When they sense that they have been
seen, they lie on their backs holding up small clods of
earth in their claws, camouflaging themselves so
skilfully, that they lie hidden from detection.
[Of the halcyon]
The halcyon is a seabird which produces its young on
the shore, depositing its eggs in the sand, around
midwinter. It chooses as the time to hatch its young,
the period when the sea is at its highest and the
waves break more fiercely than usual on the shore;
with the result that the grace with which this bird is
endowed shines forth the more, with the dignity of an
unexpected calm. For it is a fact that when the sea
has been raging, once the halcyon's eggs have been
laid, it suddenly becomes gentle, all the stormy winds
subside, the strong breezes lighten, and as the wind
drops, the sea lies calm, until the halcyon hatches its
eggs.
The eggs take seven days to hatch, at the end of
which the halcyon brings forth its young and the
hatching is at an end. The halcyon takes a further
seven days to feed its chicks until they begin to grow
into young birds. Such a short feeding-time is nothing
to marvel at, since the completion
Translation
when the hatching process takes so few days.
This little bird is endowed by God with such grace that
sailors know with confidence that these fourteen days
will be days of fine weather and call them 'the halcyon
days', in which there will be no period of stormy
weather.
[Of the] coot
habet\ et requiescit. Sic ergo\ omnis fidelis se conser\
vet et vivat, non huc\ atque illuc per diversa oberrans
circumvolet sicut faciunt [PL, heretici]\ non desideriis
secularibus et voluptatibus delectetur,\ sed semper in
uno loco se contineat, et quiescat in ecclesia\
catholica ubi dominus habitare facit unanimes\ in
domo ibique habeat cotidianum victum suum id est\
panem immortalitatis potum vero preciosum sangui\
nem Christi reficiens se super mel et favum suavissi\
mis eloquiis domini. [De fenice] \ Fenix Arabie avis
dicta quod colorem feniceum\ habeat, vel quod sit in
toto orbe singularis et\ unica. Hec quingentos ultra
annos vivens, dum\ se viderit senuisse, collectis
aromatum virgultis, ro\ gum sibi instruit, et conversa
ad radium solis alarum\ plausu voluntarium sibi
incendium nutrit, seque urit.\
Transcription
postea vero die nona avis de cineribus suis sur\ git.
Huius figu\ ram gerit dominus\ noster Jesus Christus
qui dicit: Po\ testatem habeo\ ponendi ani\ mam
meam et iterum su\ mendi eam.\ Si ergo fenix mor\
tificandi atque\ vivificandi se\ habet potesta\ tem, cur
stulti\ homines irascuntur in verbo dei qui verus dei fi\
lius est qui dicit: Potestam habeo ponendi animam\
meam et iterum sumendi eam. Descendit namque sal\
vator noster de celo ala[s] suas suavitatis odoribus
novi et\ veteris testamenti replevit, et in ara crucis
seip\ sum deo patri pro nobis optulit, et tercia die
resur\ rexit.\ Fenix etiam significare potest
resurrectionem\ iustorum, qui aromatibus virtutum
collectis\ restaurationem prioris vigoris, post mortem
sibi\ preparant. Fenix est Arabie avis. Arabia vero
inter\ pretatur campestris. Campus, est hic mundus,
Ara\ bia, est secularis vita, Arabes, seculares. Arabes
feni\ cem appellant singularem. Singularis est
quilibet\ iustus, a curis secularibus omnino remotus.
Fenix quoque\
sensorgr
It is a winged creature, fairly clever and very wise; it
does not feed on corpses and it does not fly or
wander aimlessly but stays in one place until it dies,
finding both food and rest there.
Let every one of the faithful, therefore, maintain
himself and live like that; let them not scurry around,
straying this way and that, down different paths, as
heretics do; let them not be enticed by the desires
and pleasures of this world; but let them stay in one
place, finding peace in in the catholic Church, where
the Lord provides a dwelling-place for those who are
spiritually in harmony, and there let them subsist
daily on the bread of immortality, drinking the
precious blood of Christ, refreshing themselves on the
most sweet words of the Lord, 'sweeter than honey
and the honeycomb' (Psalms, 19:10)
[Of the phoenix]
The phoenix is a bird of Arabia, so called either
because its colouring is Phoenician purple, , or
because there is only one of its kind in the whole
world.
It lives for upwards of five hundred years, and when it
observes that it has grown old, it erects a funeral pyre
for itself from small branches of aromatic plants, and
having turned to face the rays of the sun, beating its
wings, it deliberately fans the flames for itself and is
consumed in the fire.
Translation
But on the ninth day after that, the bird rises from its
own ashes.
Our Lord Jesus Christ displays the features of this
bird, saying: 'I have the power to lay down my life
and to take it again' (see John, 10:18). If, therefore,
the phoenix has the power to destroy and revive
itself, why do fools grow angry at the word of God,
who is the true son of God, who says: 'I have the
power to lay down my life and to take it again'?
For it is a fact that our Saviour descended from
heaven; he filled his wings with the fragrance of the
Old and New Testaments; he offered himself to God
his father for our sake on the altar of the cross; and
on the third he day he rose again.
The phoenix can also signify the resurrection of the
righteous who, gathering the aromatic plants of
virtue, prepare for the renewal of their former energy
after death.
The phoenix is a bird of Arabia. Arabia can be
understood as a plain, flat land. The plain is this
world; Arabia is worldly life; Arabs, those who are of

Transcription
avis in locis Arabie perhibetur degere, atque eam\
usque ad annos quingentos longeva etate procede\
re. Que cum sibi finem vite esse adverterit, facit\ sibi
[de] thecam de thure et mirra et ceteris odo\ ribus in
quam impleto vite sue tempore intrat\ et moritur. De
cuius humore carnis exurgit ver\ mis paulatimque
adolescit, ac processu statuti tem\ poris, induit
alarum remigia, atque in superioris a\ vis speciem
formamque reparatur. Doceat nos igitur\ hec avis vel
exemplo sui resurrectionem credere\ que et sine
exemplo et sine rationis perceptione ip\ sa sibi
insignia resurrectionis instaurat, et utique\ aves
propter hominem sunt non homo propter avem.\ Sit
igitur exemplum nobis quia auctor et creator\ avium\
sanctos suos\ imperpe\ tuum peri\ re non pas\ sus,
resur\ gentem\ eam sui\ semine\ voluit\ reparari.\
Quis igitur huic\ annunti\ at diem\ mortis ut faciat sibi
thecam et impleat eam bo\ nis odoribus atqe
ingrediatur in eam et moriatur
Transcription
illic, ubi odoribus gratis fetor funeris possit aboleri?\
Fac et tu homo tibi thecam et expolians te veterem
hominem\ cum actibus suis novum indue. Theca tua
et vagina tua\ Christus est qui te protegat et
abscondat in die malo. Vis\ scire quia theca protectio
est? Pharetra inquit mea protexi\ eum. Theca ergo
tua est fides, imple eam bonis virtutum tu\ arum
odoribus, hoc est castitatis misericordie atque iusticie,
et \ in ipsa penetralia fidei suavis factorum
prestantium odore\ redolentia tutus ingredere. Ea te
amictum fide exitus\ vite huius inveniat, ut possint
ossa tua pinguescere, et sint sicut ortus ebrius, cuius
cito semina suscitantur.\ Cognosce ergo diem mortis
tue, sicut cognovit et Paulus\ qui ait: Bonum
certamen certavi cursum consumma\ vi fidem servavi,
ideoque reposita est mihi corona iusticie.\ Intravit
igitur in thecam suam quasi bonus fenix quam bono\
replevit odore martyrii. Sic igitur fenix incenditur, sed
ex eius\ cinere fenix iterum nascitur vel procreatur.
Cum ergo fenix mori\ tur, et ex eius cinere fenix
iterum nascitur. Hoc exemplo agitur\ ut future
resurrectionis veritas a singulis fieri credatur. Non
est\ maius miraculum fides future resurrectionis,
sensorgr
this world. The Arabs call a solitary man phoenix. Any
righteous man is solitary, wholly removed from the
cares of this world.
The phoenix also
Translation
is said to live in places in Arabia and to reach the
great age of five hundred years. When it observes
that the end of its life is at hand, it makes a container
for itself out of frankincense and myrrh and other
aromatic substances; when its time is come, it enters
the covering and dies. From the fluid of its flesh a
worm arises and gradually grows to maturity; when
the appropriate time has come, it acquires wings to
fly, and regains its Previous appearance and form.
Let this bird teach us, therefore, by its own example
to believe in the resurrection of the body; lacking
both an example to follow and any sense of reason, it
reinvests itself with the very signs of resurrection,
showing without doubt that birds exist as an example
to man, not man as an example to the birds.
Let it be, therefore, an example to us that as the
maker and creator of birds does not suffer his saints
to to perish forever, he wishes the bird, rising again,
to be restored with its own seed. Who, but he, tells
the phoenix that the day of its death has come, in
order that it might make its covering, fill it with
perfumes, enter it and die
Translation
there, where the stench of death can be banished by
sweet aromas?
You too, O man, make a covering for yourself and,
stripping off your old human nature with your former
deeds, put on a new one. Christ is your covering and
your sheath, shielding you and hiding you on the evil
day.
Do you want to know why his covering is your
protection? The Lord said: 'In my quiver have I hid
him' (see Isaiah, 49:2). Your covering, therefore, is
faith; fill it with the perfumes of your virtues - of
chastity, mercy and justice, and enter in safety into
its depths, filled with the fragrance of the faith
betokened by your excellent conduct.
May the end of this life find you shrouded in that
faith, that your bones may be fertile; let them be like
a well-watered garden, where the seeds are swiftly
raised. Know, therefore, the day of your death, as
Paul knew his, saying: 'I have fought a good fight, I
have finished my course, I have kept the faith:
quam ex cinere\ facta resurrectio fenicis. Ecce
volucrum natura simplicibus\ resurrectionis
augmentum [PL, argumentum] prestat, et quod
scriptura\ predicat, opus nature confirmat. \ [De
caladrio] \ Caladrius sicut dicit Phisiologus\ totus est
albus nullam partem habens nigram.\ Cuius interior
fimus oculorum caliginem curat. Hic\ in atriis regum
invenitur. Siquis est in egritudine\ ex hoc caladrio
cognoscitur, si vivat an moriatur. Si\ ergo est
infirmitas hominis ad mortem, mox ut vi\ derit
infirmum avertit faciem suam ab eo\ et omnes\
Transcription
cognoscunt quia moriturus est. Si autem infirmitas
eius pertinuerit\ ad vitam, intendit in faciem et
assumit omnem egritudinem\ hominis intra se, et
volat in aera contra solem, et comburit\ infirmitatem
eius et dispergit eam, et sanatur infirmus. Caladrius\
habet personam salvatoris nostri. Totus est candidus
dominus noster\ nullam habens nigredinem, qui
peccatum non fecit nec inventus est\ dolus in ore
eius. Veniens autem dominus de excelsis avertit
faciem\ suam a Judeis propter incredulitatem illorum,
et convertit se ad nos\ gentes tollens infirmitates
nostras, et peccata nostra portans, exaltatus\ in
lignum crucis et ascendens in altum captivam duxit
cap\ tivitatem dedit dona hominibus. Sed et cotidie
predictus caladrius\ infirmitates nostras visitat,
mentem per confessionem considerat,\ et eos sanat,
quibus gratiam penitendi prestat. Ab illis vero faciem
aver\ tit, quorum cor impenitens novit. Istos respuit,
sed illos in quos\ faciem intendit, sanos reddit. Sed
dicis quia caladrius secundum legem\ immundus est,
Christo assimilari non debet. Johannes tamen dicit de
deo: Quia sicut Moyses exaltavit serpentem in deserto
ita exaltari oportet filium hominis,\ et in lege dictus
est prudentior omnibus bestiis serpens. Leo et a\ quila
immunda sunt, et tamen Christo assimilata sunt,
secundum decus\
sensorgr
Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of
righteousness' (2 Timothy, 4: 7-8). And he entered,
therefore, into his covering like the worthy phoenix,
filling it with the sweet odour of martyrdom.
In this way, therefore, the phoenix is consumed by
fire but from its ashes is born or brought forth again.
When it dies, it is also born again from its ashes. The
point of this example is that everyone should believe
in the truth of the resurrection to come. Faith in the
resurrection to come is no more of a miracle than the
resurrection of the phoenix from its ashes.
See how the nature of birds offers to ordinary people
proof of the resurrection; that what the scripture
proclaims, the working of nature confirms.
[Of the caladrius]
The bird called caladrius, as Physiologus tells us, is
white all over; it has no black parts. Its excrement
cures cataract in the eyes. It is to be found in royal
residences.
If anyone is sick, he will learn from the caladrius if he
is to live or die. If, therefore, a man's illness is fatal,
the caladrius will turn its head away from the sick
man as soon as it sees him, and everyone
Translation
knows that the man is going to die. But if the man's
sickness is one from which he will recover, the bird
looks him in the face and takes the entire illness upon
itself; it flies up into the air, towards the sun, burns
off the sickness and scatters it, and the sick man is
cured.
The caladrius represents our Saviour. Our Lord is pure
white without a trace of black, 'who did no sin, neither
was guile found in his mouth' (1 Peter, 2:22). The
Lord, moreover, coming from on high, turned his face
from the Jews, because they did not believe, and
turned to us, Gentiles, taking away our weakness and
carrying our sins; raised up on the wood of the cross
and ascending on high, 'he led captivity captive and
gave gifts unto men, (Ephesians, 4:8).
Each day Christ, like the caladrius, attends us in our
sickness, examines our mind when we confess, and
heals those to whom he shows the grace of
repentance. But he turns his face away from those
whose heart he knows to be unrepentant. These he
casts off; but those to whom he turns his face, he
makes whole again.
But, you say, because the caladrius is unclean
accoording to the law, it ought not to be likened to
Christ. Yet John says of God: 'And as Moses lifted up
the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son

Transcription
regale quia leo rex ferarum est, et aquila volatilium.\
De coturnice \ Coturnices a sono\ vocis dictas quas
Greci\ ortigias vocant eo quod vise\ fuerint primum in
Ortigia\ insula. Hee[c] adveniendi habent\ tempora.
Nam estate depulsa\ maria transeunt ortigometra\
dicitur que gregem ducat. Hanc\ terre propinquantem,
accipi\ ter videns rapit, ac propterea\ cura est
universis ducem sollicitare generis externi, pro qua
[PL, per quam] caveant\ prima discrimina, cibos
gratissimos semina venenorum habent, quam ob\
causam veteres eas vesci interdixerunt, solum enim
hoc animal\ sicut et homo caducum patitur morbum.
Coturnices adveniendi\ habent tempora, nam maria
transeant, estate depulsa. Calor\ estatis, est ardor
caritatis. Frigus hiemis, est temptatio refri\ gerate
mentis. Ab amore igitur proximi, per mare mundi
huius trans\ meat iustus ad amorem dei, ut in calida
regione semper maneat\ qui semper calore dilectionis
in semetipso flagrat, ut vitet frigus\ hiemis, procellas
videlicet et ventos improvise temptationis.\
Ortigometra dicitur que gregem ducit, eam terre
propinquantem acci\ piter videns rapit. Terra, sunt
terrena desideria. Maria, mundi\ pericula. Accipiter
insidians, diabolus per suggestionem temptans.\
Propinquantem igitur terre, accipter videns rapit, quia
eos qui terrena\ querunt diabolus secum trahit.
Prelatus igitur qui gregem ante\ cedit, diligenter
provideat, qua intentione terrena petat, utrum\ in
suos usus ea redigat, vel ad necessitatem fratrum ea
querat,\ ne accipiter, id est, diabolus eum rapiat, qui
postpositis spiritalibus\ terrenis inhiare non cessat.
Propterea cura est universis ducem
sensorgr
of man be lifted up' (4:14); and according to the law,
'the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the
field' (Genesis, 3:1). The lion and the eagle are
unclean, yet they are likened to Christ, because of
their royal rank
Translation
because the lion is king of the beasts; the eagle, king
of the birds.
Of the quail
Quails are so called from their call; the Greeks call
them ortigie because they were first seen on the
island of Ortigia.
Quails have fixed times of migration. For when
summer gives way to winter, they cross the sea. The
leader of the flock is called ortigometra, 'the quail-
mother'. The hawk, seeing the quail-mother
approaching land, seizes it; because of this, the quails
all take care to attract a leader from another species,
through whom they guard against this early danger.
Their favorite food is the seed of poisonous plants. For
this reason, the ancients forbade them to be eaten;
for alone among living things, the quail suffers, like
man, from the falling sickness.
Quails have fixed times of migration. For when
summer gives way to winter, they cross the sea. The
heat of summer is the warmth of love. The cold of
winter is the temptation of the lethargic mind. From
love of his neighbour, therefore, the righteous man
crosses the sea of this world to love of God, that he
mat stay forever in a warm land, burning continually
with the heat of love within, in order to avoid the cold
of winter, namely, the storms and winds of
unexpected temptation.
The leader of the flock is called the quail-mother. The
hawk, seeing it approaching land, seizes it. The land
represents earthly longings; the sea, the dangers of
the world. The hawk, lying in wait, is the Devil, who
tempts us by suggestion. Seeing the quail-mother
approaching land, therefore, the hawk seizes it, as
the Devil drags off with him those who seek earthly
things.
Let the churchman, therefore, who heads his flock,
take careful heed of his purpose in seeking earthly
things, whether he acquires them for his own use or
seeks them to meet the need of his brothers, lest the
hawk, that is, the Devil, should seize him, if he has
neglected the things of the spirit and has not ceased
to long for the things of this earth.
Because of this, the quails all take care to attract a
leader
Transcription
sollicitare generis externi per quem caveant prima
discrimina.\ Duo sunt genera hominum, bonorum
videlicet et malorum. Generis\ externi, sunt homines
perversi. Iusti igitur perversos sibi preponunt, dum
casus\ et eventus eorum diligenter attendunt. Dum
hec igitur attente con\ siderant, prima peccandi
discrimina considerando vitant. Hec avis\ sicut homo
caducum morbum patitur, quia spiritalis homo sicut et
car\ nalis aliquociens peccare perhibetur. Nec
quociens peccat moritur, quia ei pe\ nitendi gratia non
negatur. Unde scriptum est: Septies in die cadit
iustus,\ nec tamen desinit esse iustus. Quociens enim
iustus peccat, totiens\ adicit ut resurgat. \ De
cornice \ Cornix annosa avis\ apud Latinos Greco
nomine\ appellatur. Quam aiunt\ augures, hominum
curas\ significationibus agere, insi\ diarum vias
monstrare,\ futura predicere. Magnum\ nefas hec
credere est, ut\ deus consilia sua cornicibus\ mandet.
Huius inter multa auspicia tribuunt, et pluvias proten\
dere [PL, portendere] vocibus. Unde est illud: Tunc
cornix plenam pluviam vo\ cat improba voce. Discant
homines amare filios ex usu et pieta/te cornicum, que
etiam volantes filios comitatu sedulo prose\ quuntur,
et sollicite ne teneri forte deficiant, cibum suggerunt,\
ac plurimo temporis spacio nutriendi officia non
relinquunt.\ At vero femine nostri generis cito
ablactant etiam illos quos dili\ gunt, et cum se
diciores sunt lactare fastidiunt. Pauperiores\ si fuerint
abiciunt parvulos et exponuntur [PL, exponunt] et
deprehensos\ abnegant. Ipse quoque divites ne per
plures suum patrimonium\ dividatur, in utero proprios
necant fetus, et parricidalibus succis\
Transcription
in ipsa genitali alvo pignora sui ventris extingunt,
priusque\ aufertur vita quam traditur. Quis docuit nisi
homo filios abdi\ cari? Quis repperit tam immitia
patrum iura? Quis inter nature\ fraterna consortia
fratres impares fecit? Unius divitis filii diverse sorti\
sensorgr
Translation
of another species, through whom they guard against
this early danger. There are two kinds of men, the
good and the bad. The 'other species' is that of
wicked men. The righteous, therefore, place the
wicked before them, and watch closely what happens
to them. By watching carefully, they see the early
danger of sin, and avoid it.
This bird, like man, suffers from the falling sickness,
in the same way that the spiritually-minded man, just
like the carnally-minded man, is said to sin at times.
No matter how often he sins, he does not die,
because the grace of penitence is not denied him. On
this subject it is written: 'The righteous man falls
seven times in a day' yet he does not cease to be
righteous (see Proverbs, 24:16). For as often as the
righteous man sins, so often does he go on to rise
again.
Of the crow
The crow is a long-lived bird, called cornix in Latin
and Greek.
Soothsayers assert that the crow can represent by
signs the concerns of men, show where an ambush is
laid and foretell the future. It is a great crime to
believe this - that God confides his intentions to
crows. Among the many omens attributed to crows is
that of presaging by their caws the coming of rain.
Hence the line: 'Then the crow loudly cries for rain'
(Virgil, Georgics, 1, 388).
Let men learn from the crow's example and its sense
of duty, to love their children. Crows follow their
young in flight, escorting them attentively; they feed
them anxiously in case they weaken. A very long time
passes before they give up their responsibility for
feeding their offspring.
In contrast, women of our human race wean their
babies as soon as they can, even the ones they love.
Rich women are altogether averse to breastfeeding. If
the women are poor, they cast out their infants,
expose them and, when the babies are found, deny all
knowledge of them. The rich themselves also kill their
children in the womb, to avoid dividing their estate
among many heirs; and with murderous concoctions
Translation
they destroy in the uterus the children of their own
womb; they would rather take away life than transmit
it.
What creature but man has taken the view that
cedunt. Alius tocius paterne sortis asscriptionibus
inundatur, alius\ opulente hereditatis patrie deplorat
exhaustum, atque inopem\ portionem. Nunquid
natura divisit merita filiorum? Ex pari\ omnibus
tribuit, quod ad nascendi et vivendi possint habere
sub\ stantiam. Ipsa vos doceat non discernere
patrimonio, quos titulo\ germanitatis equastis, etenim
quibus dedistis communiter\ esse quod nati sunt, non
debetis his ut communiter habeant id\ quod una
substituti sunt invidere. \ De cigno \ Olor avis quam\
Greci cignum\ vocant. Olor autem\ dicitur quod sit
totus albus\ plumis. Nullus enim\ meminit cignum ni\
grum. Olo enim Grece\ totus dicitur. Cignus autem\ a
canendo est appellatus\ eo quod carminis\
dulcedinem modu\ latis vocibus fundit.\ Ideo autem
suaviter eum canere dicunt quod collum longum\ et
inflexum habet, et necesse est eluctantem vocem per
longum et flex\ uosum iter varias reddere
modulationes. Ferunt autem in hiper\ boreis partibus
precinentibus citharedis, olores plurimos advocari\
apteque admodum concinere. Olor autem Latinum est
nomen\ nam Greci cignus dicunt. Naute vero sibi hunc
bonam prognosim
Transcription
facere dicunt, sicut Emilianus ait: Cignus in auspiciis
semper\ letissimus ales, hunc optant naute quia se
non mergit in undis.\ Cignus plumam habet niveam et
carnem nigrum. Moraliter color\ niveus in plumis
designat effectum simulationis qua caro\ nigra tegitur,
quia peccatum carnis simulatione velatur. Cignus
dum\ in flumine natat, cervicem capitis erectam
gestat, quia superbus qui\ cum rebus transitoriis
trahitur, etiam labentium rerum possessione\ ad
tempus gloriatur. Ferunt in hiperboreis partibus
precinentibus citha\ redis olores plurimos advolare
apteque admodum concinere,\ quia qui voluptatibus
totis desideriis inhiant, quasi advolantes vo\ luptuosis
concordant. Sed et in extremis cum cignus moritur,\
sensorgr
children can be renounced? What creature but man
has endowed parents with such barbarous rights?
What creature but man, in the brotherhood created by
nature, has made brothers unequal? Different fates
befall the sons of a single rich man. One enjoys in
abundance the rights and titles of his father's entire
heritage; the other complains bitterly at receiving an
exhausted and impoverished share of his rich
patrimony. Did nature distinguish between what each
son should receive? Nature has shared things equally
among everyone, giving them what they need to be
born and survive.
Let nature teach you to make no distinction, when
dividing your patrimony, between those whom you
have made equal by the title bestowed by
brotherhood; for truly as you have bestowed on them
the equal possession of the fact of their birth, so you
should not grudge them the equal enjoyment of their
status of brotherhood.
Of the swan
The swan, olor, is the bird which the Greeks call
cygnus. It is called olor because its plumage is wholly
white; no-one can recall seeing a black swan. In
Greek olos means 'entire'.
The swan is called cignus, from its singing; it pours
forth the sweetness of song in a melodious voice.
They say that the swan sings so sweetly because it
has a long, curved neck; inevitably, a voice forcing its
way through a long, flexible passage produces a
variety of tones. They say, moreover, that in the far
north, when bards are singing to their lyres, large
numbers of swans are summoned by the sound and
sing in harmony with them.
The Latin name for the swan, I repeat, is olor; the
Greeks call it cignus.
Sailors say that seeing a swan is a good omen for
them;
Translation
as Emilianus said: 'When you are observing birds for
omens, the swan is always the most favorable bird to
see; sailors set great store by it because it does not
plunge beneath the waves'.
The swan has snow-white plumage and dark flesh. In
a moral sense, the white colour of its plumage
signifies the effect of deception, whereby the dark
flesh is hidden, in the same way that a sin of the flesh
is concealed by pretence.
When the swan swims in a river, it holds its neck and
head high, as a proud man is led astray by transitory
things and even glories at the time in his temporary
valde dulciter moriens canere perhibetur. Similiter
cum de hac vita\ superbus egreditur, adhuc dulcedine
presentis seculi delectatur et que\ male gessit ad
memoriam moriens reducit. Cum vero pluma\ nivea
cignis exuitur, in verum [PL, veru] positus ad ignem
torretur.\ Similiter cum dives superbus moriens
exuitur mundana gloria, des\ cendens ad flammas
inferni cruciabitur per tormenta, et qui ci\ bum
querere consueverat in imis, in abyssum descendens
fit\ cibus ignis. \ De anatibus \ Anas ab assiduitate\
natandi nomen\ aptum accepit, ex quo\ genere
quedam Germanie\ dicuntur quod plus ceteris\
nutriant. Anser anas\ nomen dedit per dirivati\ onem
vel a similitudine\ vel quod ipsa natandi frequentiam
habeat. Iste vigilias noc\ tis clangoris assiduitate
testatur. Nullum autem animal ita\ odorem hominis
sentit ut anser. Unde et clangore eius Gallorum
Transcription
ascensus in capitolio deprehensus est . Omnium
autem genera\ volucrum bis nascuntur, primum enim
ova gignuntur, inde ca\ lore materni corporis
formantur et animantur. Ova autem dicta\ ab eo quod
intrinsecus humore sint plena. Nam humidum\ est
quod exterius humorem habet, vividum quod interius,
quidam\ autem putant ovum Grecam habere originem
nominis. Illi enim\ dicunt oa v littera ablata. Ova
autem quedam inani vento\ concipiuntur, sed tamen
non sunt generabilia nisi que fuerint concubi\ tu
masculino concepta, et seminali spiritu penetrata.
Ovorum\ vim tantam dicunt ut lignum perfusum eo
non ardeat ac ne\ vestis quidem contra aduratur.
Admixta quoque calce glutina\ re fertur vitri
fragmenta. \ De pavone \ Pavo\ nomen\ de sono vo\
cis habet, cuius\ caro tam\ dura est ut\ petredinem
[putredinem]\ vix sentiat\ nec facile coquatur, de quo
quidam sic ait: Miraris quociens\ gemmantes explicat
alas, si potes hunc sevo tradere dura coco.\ Classis
Salomonis per mare semel per tres annos ibat in
sensorgr
possessions.
They say that in the far north, when bards are singing
to their lyres, large numbers of swans fly there and
sing in harmony with them. In the same way those
who long for sensuous pleasure with all their hearts,
like the swans flying north, harmonise with other
pleasure-seekers.
But when, at the very end, the swan dies, it is said to
sing very sweetly as it is dying. Likewise, when the
proud man departs this life, he still delights in the
sweetness of this present world and, dying,
remembers the evil he has done.
When the swan is plucked of its white plumage, it is
set on the spit and roasted at the fire. Likewise, when
a rich, proud man is stripped at death of his worldly
glory, he will descend to the fires of hell where he will
be tormented; he who used to seek food in the lowest
places, descending into the abyss, is fed into the fire.
Of ducks
The duck, anas, has been aptly named because it is
constantly swimming, natare. Some of its species are
called Germanie, 'from Germany', because they eat
more than the rest.
The goose, anser, derives its name from the duck,
either because they are similar or because the goose
too is constantly swimming.
The goose marks the watches of the night by its
constant cry. No other creature picks up the scent of
man as it does. It was because of its noise, that the
Gauls
Translation
were detected when they ascended the Capitol.
Each species of bird is born twice; for first the eggs
are produced, then they are given form and life by the
warmth of the mother's body. They are called eggs,
ova, because inside they are full of fluid. Anything
that has fluid on the outside is umidum, 'wet';
anything with fluid on the inside is called vividum, 'life
containing'.
Some people think that the word ovum is of Greek
origin. For the Greeks call eggs oa, losing the v.
Some eggs are conceived by useless wind; nothing
can be hatched from them, however, unless they
have been conceived through intercourse with a male
bird and penetrated by the spirit carried in his seed.
Such is the quality of eggs, they say, that wood
soaked in them will not burn, nor clothing, in turn,
Tharsis, de\ ferens inde aurum et argentum, dentes
elephantorum et simias\ et pavos. Tharsis
interpretatur exploratio gaudii. Est autem\ gaudium
presentis seculi et futuri. Gaudium presentis vite,
fine\ clauditur. Gaudium vero future, nequaquam fine
terminatur. Gaudium\ presentis vite, dolor et tristicia
sequitur. Gaudium vero future, non\ dolor nec tristicia
subsequetur. Gaudium presentis seculi est honoribus\
sublimari, rebus transitoriis ad tempus perfrui,
abundare paren
Transcription
tum copia, et eorum delectari presentia. Cum autem
aliquis pri\ vatur honoribus spoliatur rebus, cum
aliquis amicorum moritur, tunc\ dolor sequitur. Hoc
gaudium igitur semper doloribus immiscetur. Per tres\
annos semel classis Salomonis per mare mitittur in
Tharsis. Clas\ sis Salomonis, est virtus confessionis.
Hac classe per huius mundi\ mare vehimur, ne
submergamur. In Tharsis ergo mittitur, que\ inde
aurum et argentum dentes elephantorum simias et
pa\ vos deferre perhibetur. Aurum et argentum in
Tharsis esse dicitur,\ id est viri sapientia clari,
eloquentia periti. Qui dum presentis seculi\ gaudium
implorant et exquirunt seipsos cognoscunt, et dum\
per classem Salomonis de Tharsis ad Jerusalem
veniunt, in pace ecclesie\ per confessionem puriores
fiunt. De hoc auro purissimo fecit rex\ Salomon scuta
aurea. Scuta aurea sunt, qui pure vivunt, et\ alios ab
incursu diaboli defendunt. Ex predicto etiam argento\
fiunt tube argentee, id est doctores ecclesie. Attulit
etiam simias et pa\ vos, id est derisores et delicatos
ut qui in Tharsis derisores et de\ licati fuerant, in pace
conversionis humiles existant. Attulit\ etiam classis
Salomonis dentes elefantorum detractiones su\
perborum. Dum enim verbis bonis operibus
simplicium detrahunt, quasi dentibus eorum ossa
rodunt. Nota quod dentes elefantis\ materia fiunt
eboris. Et de materia eboris, fit thronus Salomo\ nis.
Qui enim rapina vivere consueverant, subiecti vero
Sa\ lomoni seipsos postea sedem parant. Per tres
annos semel clas\ sis Salomonis, ire consueverat in
sensorgr
catch fire. In addition, eggs mixed with chalk, it is
said, will glue pieces of glass together.
Of the peacock
The peacock gets its name, pavo, from the sound of
its cry. Its flesh is so hard that it hardly decays and it
cannot easily be cooked. A certain poet said of it: 'You
are lost in admiration, whenever it spreads its
jewelled wings; can you consign it, hard-hearted
woman, to the unfeeling cook?' (Martial, Epigrams,
xiii, 70)
'Solomon's fleet went to Tharsis once every three
years and brought from there gold and silver,
elephants' teeth and apes, and peacocks' (see 2
Chronicles, 10: 21).
Tharsis we take to mean the search for joy. There is
the joy of this world and the joy of the world to come.
The joy of this life is limited. But the joy of the life to
come is wholly unlimited. Pain and sadness each
follow the joy of this life. But neither pain nor sadness
follows the life to come. Joy in this world consists of
being elevated by honours, enjoying to the full and
for the moment things which are transitory, enjoying
a wide circle of relations
Translation
and taking pleasure in their company. But when you
are deprived of your honours or robbed of your
possessions, when one of your friends dies, then grief
follows. Joy in this world, therefore, is always mingled
with sadness.
Once every three years the fleet of Solomon is sent
across the sea to Tharsis. Solomon's fleet is the virtue
of confession. In this fleet we are transported across
the sea of this world, that we might not be drowned in
it.
The fleet is sent to Tharsis, therefore, from where it is
said to bring back gold, silver, elephants' tusks, apes
and peacocks. There is said to be gold and silver in
Tharsis, that is, men eminent in their wisdom, skilled
in their oratory. When they earnestly desire the joy of
this world, they gain knowledge of themselves; and
when they come with Solomon's fleet to Jerusalem,
there in the peace of the Church they become purer
through confession.
From this purest of gold, King Solomon made golden
shields. The shields of gold are those who live
chastely and defend others from the attacks of the
Devil. In addition, from the silver mentioned above,
silver trumpets were made, that is, the teachers of
the Church.
The fleet also brought apes and peacocks, that is, the
Tharsis. Primus annus mora\ liter est cogitatio,
secundus locucio, tercius operatio. Cum igitur de his
tribus\ simul confessio agitur, quasi a servis
Salomonis per tres annos\ semel in Tharsis itur. Sed,
et Josaphat rex Juda sicut ystoria dicit\ classes in
mare fecit, que navigarent in Ophir propter aurum, et
ire\ non potuerunt quia confracte sunt in Asion Gaber.
Josaphat iu\ dicans Judas confessio interpretatur.
Josaphat autem rex Juda dicitur,
sensorgr
mockers and the effete, so that those who had been,
in Tharsis, scoffers and pleasure-seekers might live
with humility in the peace of conversion.
Solomon's fleet also brought back elephants' tusks,
that is, the proud with their disparaging words. For
when the proud speak disparagingly of the good
works of ordinary people, it is as if they gnawed with
their teeth on these people's bones. Note that the
tusks of elephants are of ivory. And from ivory the the
throne of Solomon was made. For those who had
been accustomed to live by preying on others, by
submitting themselves to Solomon, thereafter
furnished a seat for others to sit on.
Once every three years Solomon's fleet used to go to
Tharsis. In moral terms, the first year is meditation;
the second, discourse; the third, action. When
confession treats of all three stages together, it is as
if a voyage is made by Solomon's servants to Tharsis
once every three years.
But, as history relates, 'Jehosaphat, king of Judah,
built sea-going fleets, that they might sail to Ophir for
gold; and they could not, for they were wrecked at
Asiongaber' (see 1 Kings, 22:48).
Jehosaphat we take to mean 'judging'; Judah,
'confession'. Jehosaphat is called 'king of Judah'
Transcription
quia iudicium confessionis [PL, confessioni]
dominatur. Cum enim peccator in confes\ sione
seipsum iudicat, tunc rex Josaphat in Judea regnat.
Ophir\ vero herbosum interpretatur. Herbosa terra
dicitur que aliquo non\ elaboratur. Que vestitur
abundantia graminis, ut moveat affec\ tum
delectationis. In hoc herboso voluptuosi sedent,
desidiosi\ iacent. Sedent assiduitate, iacent
dissolutione. Hoc herbosum\ est hic mundus sterilis et
infecundus. In Ophir igitur classis Josa\ phat ire
propter aurum nititur, ut dum mundi casus attenditur\
mentis puritas adquiratur. Set cum agitur in Asion
Gaber clas\ sis Josaphat fracta fuisse perhibetur.
Gaber sicut Jeronimo dicitur\ iuvenis sive fortis
interpretatur. Non igitur mirum si classem confes\
sionis frangat impetus iuventutis. Quoniam de
premissis plura dixi\ mus, restat ut de pavone de quo
agere intendimus, aliquid\ postea dicamus. Pavo sicut
Ysidorus dicit, a sono vocis\ nomen accepit. Cum
enim ex improviso clamare ceperit, pavo\ rem
subitum audientibus incutit. Pavo igitur a pavore
dicitur, cum per\ vocem eius pavor audientibus
inferatur. Pavo dum in Tharsis\ habitat, delicatos
designat. Cum vero per classem in Jerusalem delatus\
fuerit, doctorum predicantium figuram gerit. Duras
habet carnes\ et putredini resistentes, que vix a coco
coquantur foco, vel a ca\ lore epatis coqui possint in
stomacho. Tales sunt doctorum\ mentes quos nec
flamma cupiditatis exurit, nec calor libidi\ nis
accendit. Habet pavo vocem terribilem, incessum
simplicem,\ caput serpentinum, pectus saphirinum.
Habet etiam in alis\ plumas aliquantulum rufas. Habet
etiam caudam longam, et ut\ ita dicam quasi oculis
plenam. Habet pavo vocem terribilem quando\
predicator minatur peccatoribus iNextinguibilem
Gehenne ignem. Sim\ pliciter incedit quociens in
operibus suis humilitatem non excedit.\ Habet caput
serpentis dum captum [PL, caput] mentis tenetur sub
custodia cal\ lide circumspectionis. Color vero
sapharinus in pectore, celeste\
Transcription
desiderium designat [A in mente. Color r]ubeus in
sensorgr
Translation
because judgement governs confession. For when a
sinner judges himself in confession, then it is as if
King Jehosaphat ruled in Judah. But Ophir is taken to
mean 'grassland'. We call ground which has not been
cultivated 'grassland'. It is deep in grass, producing a
sense of pleasure. The effete sit on the grass, and the
indolent lie on it. They sit endlessly, they lie wantonly.
This stretch of grass is the world, barren and infertile.
Jehosaphat's fleet, therefore, seeks to go to Ophir for
gold, as we might seek purity of mind, waiting for the
destruction of the world. But while they were at Asion
Gaber, Jehosaphat's fleet is said to have been
wrecked. Gaber, as Jerome says, means 'young' or
'strong'. It is not surprising, therefore, if the rashness
of youth wrecks the fleet of confession.
Since we have said a great deal by way of
introduction, it remains for us Next to discuss the
peacock, the subject we intended to deal with.
The peacock, as Isidore says, gets its name from the
sound of its cry. For when it starts, unexpectedly, to
give its cry, it produces sudden fear in its hearers.
The peacock is called pavo, therefore, from pavor,
fear, since its cry produces fear in those who hear it.
When the peacock lives it Tharsis, it signifies the
effete. But when it is brought by the fleet to
Jerusalem, it represents learned teachers.
The peacock has hard flesh, resistant to decay, which
can only with difficulty be cooked over a fire by a
cook, or can scarcely be digested in the stomach,
because of the heat of its liver.
Such are the minds of teachers; they neither burn
with the flame of desire, nor are they set alight by the
heat of lust.
The peacock has a fearful voice, an unaffected walk, a
serpent's head and a sapphire breast. It also has on
its wings feathers tinged with red. In addition, it has a
long tail, covered with what I might call 'eyes'.
The peacock has a fearful voice, as does a preacher
when he threatens sinners with the unquenchable fire
of Gehenna. It walks in an unaffected way, in the
sense that the preacher does not overstep the bounds
of humility in his behaviour. It has a serpent's head,
as the preacher's mind is held in check by wise
circumspection. But the sapphire colour of its breast
Translation
signifies that the preacher longs in his mind for
pennis, amo\ rem designat contemplationis.
Longitudo caude, longitudi\ nem innuit future vite.
Quod autem quasi oculos in cauda habet,\ ad hoc
pertinet quod unusquisque doctor previdet quod
periculum\ in fine singulis imminet. Est etiam in cauda
color viridis, ut\ inicio conveniat finis. Varietas igitur
colorum designat diversita\ tem virtutum. Nota etiam
quod pavo dum laudatur caudam\ erigat, quia
prelatus quilibet adulantium laudibus per vanam glo\
riam mentem levat. Pennas in ordine ponit, quia
quicquid doctor\ agit se ordinate fecisse credit. Cum
autem caudam erigit, po\ steriora nudantur, et sic
quod laudatur in opere, deridetur in elati\ one.
Oportet igitur ut pavo caudam summissam gerat, ut
quod\ doctor agit, cum humilitate fiat.\ De aquila /
Aquila ad acumine oculorum vocata, tanti enim dicitur
esse\ contuitus ut super maria immobili penna feratur
nec\ humanis pateat obtutibus de tanta sublimitate
pisciculos na\ tare videat ad tormenti instar
descendens, raptam predam pen\ nis ad litus
pertrahat. Cum vero senuerit, gravantur ale ipsius,
et\ obducuntur caligine oculi eius. Tunc querit fontem
et contra eum\ evolat in altum usque ad aerem solis,
et ibi incendit alas suas\ similiter et caliginem
oculorum exurit in radio solis. Tunc de\ mum
descendens in fontem trina vice se mergit, et statim
reno\ vatur in multo vigore alarum, et splendore
oculorum. Sic et tu\ homo qui vestimentum habes
vetus, et caligant oculi tui, que\ re spiritualem fontem
domini et eleva mentis oculos ad deum qui est\ fons
iusticie et tunc renovabitur sicut aquile iuventus tua.
Asse\ ritur quoque quod pullos suos radiis solis
obiciat, et in medio ae\ ris ungue suspendat. Ac siquis
repercusso solis lumine intrepidam\ oculorum aciem
in offenso intuendi vigore servaverit, is probatur\
quod veritatem nature demonstravit. Qui vero lumina
sua radio\
Transcription
sensorgr
heaven. The red colour in the the peacock's feathers
signifies his love of contemplation. The length of the
tail indicates the length of the life to come. The fact
the peacock seems to have eyes in its tail, is a
reference to every teacher's capacity to foresee the
danger that threatens each of us at the end. The
colour green, [on the peacock's serpent-like head], is
also present in the tail, that the end might match the
beginning. The diversity of the peacock's colouring,
therefore, signifies the diversity of the virtues.
Note also that the peacock, when it is praised, raises
its tail, in the same way that any churchman gets
ideas above his station out of vainglory at the praise
of flatterers. The peacock sets out its feathers in an
orderly fashion; in the same way, a teacher believes
that no matter he does, he has done it in an orderly
way. But when the peacock lifts its tail, it exposes its
rear, in the same way that whatever is praised in the
conduct of the teacher is derided when he succumbs
to pride. The peacock, therefore, should keep its tail
down, just as what a teacher does, he should do with
humility.
Of the eagle
The eagle is so called because of the sharpness of its
eyes, for it is said to be of such keen vision that it
glides above the sea on unmoving wings, out of
human sight, yet from such a height sees small fish
swimmming below and, swooping down like a missile
thrown from a siege engine, it seizes its prey on the
wing and carries it to land.
When the eagle grows old, however, its wings grow
heavy, and its eyes grow dim. Then it seeks out a
spring and, turning away from it, flies up into the
atmosphere of the sun; there it sets its wings alight
and, likewise, burns off the dimness in its eyes in the
sun's rays. Descending at length, it immerses itself in
the spring three times; immediately it is restored to
the full strength of its wings, the former brightness of
its eyes.
In the same way, you, O man, with your old clothes
and dim eyes, should seek the spiritual spring of the
Lord and raise the eyes of your mind to God, the
fount of righteousness, and your youth will be
renewed like that of the eagle.
It is also said of the eagle that that it exposes its
young to the sun's rays, holding them in its claws in
mid-air. If any of them, struck by the light beating
down from the sun, maintains a fearless gaze without
damaging its sight, this is taken as proof that it has
shown itself true to its nature. But if the young bird
turns its eyes away from the rays
Translation
solis inflexerit, quasi degener et indignus tanto patre
reicitur\ nec estimatur educatione dignus, qui fuit
indignus suscep\ tione. Non ergo eum acerbitate
nature, sed iudicii integritate con\
Transcription
dempnat. Nec quasi suum abdicat, sed quasi alienum
recu\ sat. Hanc tamen ut quibusdam videtur regalis
avis inclemen\ tiam plebeie avis excusat clementia.
Avis cui nomen fulica\ est, que Grece dicitur fene,
susceptum illum sive abdicatum, si\ ve non agnitum
aquile pullum cum sua prole connectit, atque
intermiscens suis eodem quo proprios fetus materne
sedulita\ tis officio, et pari nutrimentorum
subministratione pascit et\ nutrit. Ergo fene alienos
nutrit, nos vero nostros inimici crudeli\ tate proicimus.
Aquila enim si proicit, non quasi suum proicit, set\
quasi degenerem non recognoscit, nos quod peius est
quos no\ stros recognoscimus abdicamus.\ Item de
aquila \ Aquile vocabulo in sacra scriptura aliquando
maligni spiritus\ raptores animarum, aliquando
presentis seculi potestates,\ aliquando vero vel
subtilissime sanctorum intelligentie vel incar\ natus
dominus ima celeriter transvolans et mox summa
repe\ tens designatur. Aquilarum nomine insidiatores
spiritus exprimun\ tur. Jeremia attestante qui ait:
Velociores fuerunt persecutores\ nostri aquilis celi.
Persecutores enim nostri aquilis celi velociores sunt,\
cum tanta contra nos maligni homines faciunt, ut
ipsas etiam\ aerias potestates inventionibus malicie
preire videantur. Aquile\ vocabulo potestas terrena
figuratur. Unde et per Ezechielem dicitur:\ Aquila
grandis magnarum alarum, longo membrorum\ ductu,
plena plumis et varitate venit ad Libanum, et tulit\
medullam cedri, et summitatem frondium eius evulsit.
Qua\ videlicet aquila, quis alius quam
Nabuchodonosor rex Babilo\ nis designatur? Qui pre
universitate [,i>PL, pro immensitate] exercitus
magnarum ala\ rum, pro diurnitate temporum longo
membrorum ductu, pro mul\ tis diviciis plena plumis,
pro innumera autem terrene glorie com\ positione
plena varietate describitur. Que venit ad Libanum\ et
tulit medullam cedri, et summitatem frondium eius
evulsit\
sensorgr
it is rejected as unworthy of its kind and of such a
father and, being unworthy of being begotten, it is
considered unworthy of being reared. The eagle
condemns it not in a harsh manner but with the
honesty of a judge.
Translation
He does it, not as a father denying his own child, but
as one rejecting another's.
seems to some, however, that the kindness of the
common variety of the bird excuses the unkindness of
its regal counterpart. The ordinary bird is called fulica,
coot; in Greek, fene. Taking up the eaglet, abandoned
or unacknowledged, the coot adds it to its brood,
making it one of the family, with the same maternal
devotion as it shows to its own chicks, and feeds and
nourishes the eaglet and its own brood with equal
attention.
The coot, therefore, feeds another's young, while we
cast off our own with the cruelty of an enemy. For the
eagle, even if it rejects its young, does not cast them
off as if they were its own, but will not even
acknowledge them, as if they were unworthy of its
kind. We, which is worse, abandon those we have
already acknowledged as our own.
Again of the eagle
The word 'eagle' in the Holy Scriptures signifies
sometimes evil spirits, ravishers of souls; sometimes
the rulers of this world. Sometimes, in contrast, it
signifies either the acute understanding of the saints,
or the Lord incarnate flying swiftly over the depths
then seeking once more the heights.
The word 'eagle' represents those who lie in ambush
for the spirit. This is confirmed by Jeremiah, who
says: 'Our persecutors are swifter than the eagles of
the heaven' (Lamentations, 4:19). For our
persecutors are swifter than the eagles of heaven
when wicked men do such things against us that they
seem to exceed the very rulers of the air in their evil
machinations.
The word 'eagle' also symbolises earthly power.
Ezekiel says with reference to this: 'A great eagle with
broad wings and long limbs, in full plumage, richly
patterned, came to Lebanon. It took away the marrow
of a cedar-tree, it plucked the highest foliage' (see
Ezekiel, 17:3-4).
This eagle - whom else does it signify but
Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon? By the vastness of
the eagle's great wings is represented the vastness of
Nebuchadnezzar's army; by the length of its limbs,
the length of his days; by its full plumage, his great
wealth; by its rich patterning, his immeasurable
 earthly glory. 'The eagle came to Lebanon and took
away the marrow of a cedar tree, it plucked the
highest foliage',

sensorgr
Transcription
quia Judee celsitudinem petens, nobilitatem eius regni
quasi\ medullam cedri abstulit. Et dum tenerrimam
regum pro\ lem a regni sui culmine captivando
sustulit, quasi summi\ tatem frondium eius evulsit.
Aquile vocabulo, subtilis sanctorum\ intelligentia
exprimitur. Unde isdem propheta dum sub anima\
lium specie evangelistas quatuor se vidisse
describeret, in eis quartum\ animal, id est Johannem
significans qui volando terram deseruit, qui per
subtilem intelligentiam in terra misteria verbum
videndo pe\ netravit. Similiter qui adhuc [PL, haec]
terrena mente deserunt, velut\ aquila cum Johanne
per contemplationem petunt celestia. Item\ beatus
Gregorius de aquila: Sicut aquila volans ad escam.
Moris\ quippe aquile est ut irreverberata acie radios
solis aspiciat.\ Sed cum refectionis indigentia urgetur,
eandem oculorum\ aciem quam radio solis infixerat,
ad respectum cadaveris\ inclinat. Et quamvis ad alta
evolet, pro sumendis tamen carnibus\ terram petit.
Sic videlicet sic antiqui patres fuerunt, qui\ in
quantum humanitatis infirmitas admittebat, crea\
toris lucem erecta mente contemplati sunt. Sed
incarnan\ dum hunc in mundi fine prescientes, quasi a
solis radiis ad\ terram oculos deflexerunt, et quasi de
summis adima veni\ unt, dum deum super omnia, et
hominem inter omnia ag\ noscunt. Quem pro humano
genere passurum morturumque\ conspiciunt, qua
scilicet morte semetipsos refici atque reformari\ ad
vitam noverunt, quasi more aquile post contemplatos\
radios solis in cadavere escam querunt. Aliter. Sicut
aquila\ volans ad escam. Aquila enim alto valde volatu
suspen\ ditur, et annisu prepeti ab ethere libratur,
sed per appetitum ven\ tris terram expetit, seseque a
sublimibus repente deorsum fun\ dit. Sic sic
humanum genus in parente primo ad ima de sub\
limibus corruit, quod nimirum condicionis sue
dignitas\
Transcription
in rationis celsitudinem quasi in aeris libertate
suspenderat.\ Sed quia contra preceptum cibum
sensorgr
Translation
as Nebuchadnezzar, seeking dominion over Judea,
carried off the nobility of that kingdom as if they were
the marrow of the cedar. And when he carried the
weakest offspring of the kings from the throne of the
kingdom by taking him captive, it was as if he had
plucked the highest foliage of the cedar.
The word 'eagle' represents the acute understanding
of the saints. The same prophet, Ezekiel, when he
described how he had seen the four evangelists in the
form of animals, saw the fourth among them, that is,
the one signifying John, as an eagle, which left the
earth in flight; as John, on earth, penetrated the
mysteries with his acute understanding by reflecting
on the word. Likewise, those who still leave behind
their earthly mind, seek heavenly things, as the eagle
with John, through contemplation.
Again, the blessed Gregory on the subject of the
eagle: 'Like the eagle that hasteth to the prey' (Job,
9:26). It is the custom of the eagle to look at the
sun's rays with unwavering gaze. But when it is
driven by lack of food, it turns the gaze, formerly
fixed on the sun's rays, to a search for a corpse. And
although it flies high in the sky, it heads towards the
earth for meat to seize.
Clearly, the ancient fathers acted in the same way,
contemplating the light of the Creator with an
upward-reaching mind, insofar as their human frailty
allowed. But when, foreseeing that he would become
flesh at the end of the world, they turn their eyes as if
from the sun's rays to the earth, and come down from
the heights to the depths, they acknowledge God
above all things and man amid all things. They see
that God will suffer and die for mankind, knowing that
by his death they will be restored and refashioned in
newness of life, just as, in the manner of the eagle,
after staring at the sun's rays, they seek food in a
corpse.
There is an another interpretation. 'Like the eagle that
hasteth to the prey'. The eagle flies suspended at a
great height and by the swift beating of its wings
hangs poised in the air, but because of the longings of
its stomach, it seeks the earth, hurling itself suddenly
down from the heights.
Thus, in the same way, the human race in the person
of its first ancestor Adam, fell from the heights to the
depths, because without doubt the dignity of his state
Translation
set him him at the height of reason, as if in the
freedom of the air. But because, against God's order,
contigit, per ventris concupiscen\ tiam ad terras venit,
et quasi post volatum carnibus pascitur, quia illa
libera contemplacionis inspiracula perdidit, et deor\
sum corporeis voluptatibus letatur. Item de aquila.
Reno\ vabitur ut aquile iuventus tua. Solet [PL, dici]
de aquila dum se\ nectute premitur, quod rostrum
illius adunccetur ita ut sumere\ cibum nequeat sed
macie languescat. Veniens ad petram rostrum\ acuit,
et sic cibum capiens, iterum iuvenescit. Petra est
Christus, aquila quilibet iustus, qui ad petram rostrum
acuit, dum se\ ipsum Christo per bonam operationem
conformem reddit. \ De apibus \ Apes dicte,\ vel
quod se\ pedibus alligent, vel\ pro eo quod sine
pedibus\ nascuntur. Nam\ postea et pedes et\ pennas
accipiunt.\ Hee sollertes in\ generandi mellis\ officio
assignatas\ incolunt sedes, do\ micilia inenarrabili\
arte componunt, et ex variis floribus condunt.
Textisque ceris\ innumera prole castra replent.
Exercitum et reges habent, prelia\ movent.\ Fumum
fugiunt, tumultu exasperant, has plerique\ experti
sunt de boum cadaveribus nasci. Nam pro his
creandis vi\ tulorum occisorum carnes verberant ut ex
putrefacto cruore\ vermes creentur, qui postea
efficiuntur apes. Proprie tamen apes\ vocantur orte de
bobus sicut crabrones de equis, fuce de mulis,\
Transcription
vespe de asinis. Castros Greci appellant qui in
extremis fa\ vorum partibus maiores creantur, quos
aliqui reges putant di\ ci quod castra ducant. Sole
apes in omni genere animantium\ communem in
omnibus sobolem habent, unam omnes colunt\
mansionem, unius patrie clauduntur lumine [PL,
limine] in commune om\ nibus labor, communis cibus,
communis operatio, communis \ usus et fructus est
[et] communis volatus. Quid plura? Comm\ unis
omnibus generatio, integritas quoque corporis
virginalis,\ omnibus communis et partus quoniam nec
inter se ullo concubitu\ miscentur, nec libidine
resolvuntur, nec partus quatiuntur doloribus\ et subito
maximum filiorum examen emittunt, foliis atque\
sensorgr
he took food, he came down to earth, driven by the
longing in his stomach, and now feeds on meat, like
the eagle after its flight, because he lost those free
air-currents of contemplation, and now takes
pleasure, on the ground, in carnal desires.
Again of the eagle. 'Thy youth is renewed like the
eagle's' (Psalms, 103: 5). It is usually said of the
eagle that, when it suffers from old age, its beak
grows hooked so that it cannot eat food but grows
weak from under-nourishment. When it comes upon a
rock, it sharpens its beak, and taking food once more,
regains its youth.
The rock is Christ; the eagle, a righteous man, who
sharpens his beak on the rock when he renders
himself like Christ through virtuous conduct.
Of bees
Bees, apes, are so called either because they hold on
to things with their feet, or because they are born
without feet (the Latin word for 'foot' is pes). For
afterwards they acquire both feet and wings.
Expert in the task of making honey, they occupy the
places assigned to them; they construct their
dwelling-places with indescribable skill, and store
away honey from a variety of flowers. They fill their
fortress, made from a network of wax, with countless
offspring.
Bees have an army and kings; they fight battles. They
flee from smoke; they are irritated by noise; many
are found to have been born from the corpses of
oxen. To produce them, you beat the flesh of dead
calves, so that worms come forth from the putrefying
blood; these later become bees.
Properly speaking, however, only the creatures that
come from oxen are called bees; those that come
from horses, are hornets; those from mules, drones;
Translation
wasps, from asses. The Greeks call the larger bees
which are produced on the outer parts of the
honeycomb castros; some think they should be called
'kings' because they they are leaders in the fortress.
Bees, alone among all the kinds of living things, raise
their offspring communally, live in a single dwelling,
are enclosed within a single homeland, and share
their toil, their food, their tasks, the produce of their
labour and their flight.
What else? Procreation is common to all, as is the
purity of their virginal body in the common process of
birth, since this is achieved without intercourse or
herbis ore suo prolem legentes. Ipse sibi regem
ordinant, ipse po\ pulos creant, et licet posite sub
rege sunt tamen libere. Nam\ et prerogativum iudicii
tenent, et fide devocionis affectum\ quia et tanquam
a se substitutum diligunt, et tanto honorant\ examine.
Rex aut[em] non sorte ducitur, quia in sorte eventus
est\ non iudicium. Et sepe irrationabili casu sortis
melioribus ulti\ mus quisque prefertur. Apibus autem
rex nature claris formatur\ insignibus ut
magnitudinem corporis prestet, et speciem. Tum\
quod in rege precipium est, morum mansuetudinem.
Nam\ etsi habet aculeum, tamen eo non utitur ad
vindicandum, sunt\ enim leges nature non scripte
litteris sed impresse moribus ut lenio\ res sint ad
puniendum qui potestate maxima pociuntur\ sed et
apes ille que non obtemperaverint legibus regi, peni\
tentie condempnatione se multant ut immoriantur
aculei sui\ vulnere, quod Persarum populi hodieque
servare dicuntur, ut pro\ commissi precio ipsi in se
proprie mortis exequantur sententia. Itaque\ nulli sic
regem, non Perse qui gravissimas in subditos habent
leges, non Indi, non populi Samaritarum [PL, nec
Sauromatae] tanta quanta apes reveren\ tia
devocionis observant, ut nulle e domibus exire
audeant in\
Transcription
aliquos procedere pastus, nisi rex fuerit primo
egressus et volatus\ sibi vendicaverit principatum.
Processus autem per rura redolentia\ ubi inhabitantes
orti floribus ubi fugiens rivus per gramina\ ubi amena
riparum. Illic ludus alacris iuventutis, illic cam\ pestre
exercicium, illic curarum remissio. Opus ipsum suave\
de floribus, de herbis dulcibus, fundamina castrorum
prima\ ponuntur. Quid enim aliud favus, nisi quedam
castrorum \ species. Denique ab his presepibus apium
fucus arcetur. Que castra\ quadrata tamen possunt
habere artis et gracie, quantum habent crates fa\
vorum in quibus minute atque rotunde cellule
connexione sui\ invicem fulciuntur. Quis architectus
eas docuit exagona illa\ cellularum indiscreta laterum
equalitate componere, ac tenues inter domorum septa
ceras suspendere, stipare mella et\ intexta floribus
horrea nectare quodam distendere. Cernas omnes
certare de munere, alias invigilare querendo victum,
alias\ sollicitam castris exhibere custodiam, alias
futuros explora\ re ymbres, et speculari concursus
sensorgr
lust; they are not wracked by labour pains, yet they
produce at once a great swarm of offspring, collecting
them with their mouths from leaves and grass.
They choose their own king, they appoint themselves
his people; but although they are subject to the king,
they are nevertheless free. For they have the right of
selecting him and of offering him their loyalty,
because they love him as one whom they have
chosen and honour him with such a responsibility.
Moreover, the king is not chosen by lot, because in
such cases the outcome is a matter of chance not
judgement. And often, by the unpredictable chance of
fate, the least suitable candidate is chosen over better
ones.
Among bees, the king has outstanding natural
characteristics, standing forth by virtue of the size
and appearance of his body. And, what is essential in
a king - a merciful nature. For even if he has a sting,
he does not use it for revenge, for there are laws of
nature, unwritten but embedded in custom, that those
who are endowed with the greatest power should be
the more lenient in administering punishment.
The bees who do not comply with the laws of the
king, repent and punish themselves and die by their
own sting. It is custom that the Persians are said to
preserve today: that those who have committed a
crime pay the price by carrying out their own
sentence of death.
Thus no peoples serve their king with the devotion
shown by the bees: not the Indians, nor the Persians,
who are subject to exceedingly harsh laws, nor the
Sarmatians. Their devotion is such that no bees dare
leave their living areas
Translation
in search of food, unless the king has gone first and
has claimed his place at the head of the flight.
Their flight takes them over a scented landscape,
where there are gardens of flowers, where a stream
flows through meadows, where there are pleasant
places on its banks. There young people play lively
games, there men exercise in the fields, there you
find release from care.
The bees' pleasant labours amid the flowers and
sweet grasses provide the foundations of their fort.
For what else is a honey-comb in the bee-hive but a
kind of fortress? After all, from the hives drones are
kept out. What four-cornered fort, however, could
possibly have the skilled workmanship and elegance
that there is in the honey-combs, in which tiny, round
compartments are connected one to another for
support? What master of construction taught the bees
to construct six-sided compartments, each side of the
nubium, alias de floribus\ ceras fingere, alias rorem
infusum floribus ore colligere, nullam\ tamen alienis
insidiari laboribus et raptu vitam querere, atque\
utinam raptorum insidias non timerent. Habent
tamen\ spicula sua et inter mella fundunt venenum si
fuerint laces\ site, animasque ponunt in vulnere
ardore vindicte. Ergo\ mediis castrorum vallibus
humor ille roris infundit, pau\ latimque processu
temporis in mella cogitur, cum fuerit liqui\ dus ab
exordio et coalitu cere florumque odore flagrare\
mellis incipit suavitatem. Merito quasi bonam
operariam\ scriptura apem predicat dicens: Vade ad
apem et vide quo\ modo operaria est eius imitare
operationem. Operationem namque\ quam
venerabilem mercatur apes cuius laborem reges et
me\ diocres ad salutem sumunt, appetibilis est
omnibus et cara.\
Transcription
Audis quid dicat prophetus: Mittit utique te ut apicule
illius sequa\ ris exemplum, imiteris operationem. Vide
quam laboriosa quam grata\ sit, fructus eius ab
omnibus desideratur et queritur, nec pro persona\
rum diversitate discernitur, set indiscreta sui gratia
regibus\ pariter ac mediocribus equali suavitate
dulcescit. Nec solum\ voluptati set etiam saluti est,
fauces obdulcat, et curat vulnera,\ internis quoque
medicamentum infundit ulceribus. Itaque cum\ sit
infirma robore apes valida est vigore sapientie et
amore\ virtutis. Denique regem suum apes summa
protectione defen\ dunt, et perire pro eo pulchrum
putant. Incolumi rege nesci\ unt mutare iudicium,
mentem inflectere. Amisso rege\ fidem servandi
muneris derelinqunt, atque ipse sua\ mella diripiunt,
quod is qui principatum habuit mu\ neris interemptus
est. Itaque cum aves alie vix in anno\ edant singulos
fetus, apes geminos creant, et duplici ceteris\
fecunditate preponderant. \ De arbore que dicitur
perindens \ Perindens est arbor in India. Fructus
autem\ huius arboris dulcis est totus et valde suavis,\
sensorgr
same, unvarying length; to hang between the walls of
each living area fine beds of wax; to compress the
honey-dew; and to fill their storehouses, woven from
flowers, with a kind of nectar?
You can see how the bees all compete with each other
in carrying out their duties: some keeping watch over
those who are seeking food; some keeping a careful
guard on the fort, that is, the hive; some keeping a
look-out for rain, their eye on the massing clouds;
some making wax from the flowers; some collecting
in their mouth the dew poured from the flowers. You
can see too, however, that no bees lie in wait for
other creatures, to take advantage of their toil; and
none take a life by force. If only they themselves did
not need to fear the ambushes of thieves!
Nevertheless, they have their own weapon, the sting,
and pour poison into the honey-dew if they are
provoked; and when they inflict a wound in the heat
of revenge, they lay down their lives in the act.
In recesses deep in its fortress, the hive, the bee
pours out the dewy moisture, and gradually with the
passage of time it is compressed into honey, although
it was liquid to begin wit; and by contact with the wax
and the scent of flowers, it begins to glow with
sweetness of honey.
The Scripture might justifiably extol the bee as a good
workman, as it does the ant, saying: 'Go to the bee
and see how it works and imitate its way of working'
(see Proverbs, 6:6). For the bee is engaged in a
highly respected branch of industry; kings and
commoners alike consume its product for the sake of
their health; it is much sought-after and loved by all.
Translation
Hear what the prophet would say. It is a fact that God
instructs you to follow the example of that little bee
and imitate its way of working. See how industrious it
is, how much it is loved; everyone longs for and seeks
out its fruit of its labour; this is not kept for certain
kinds of people only, but grows sweet in the mouths
of kings and commoners, to the enjoyment of all
without distinction.
Honey is not only a source of pleasure but of health;
it soothes the throat and heals wounds; and it acts as
a remedy for internal ulcers.
Thus although the bee may be weak in terms of
physical strength, it is strong in terms of its vigorous
good sense and love of virtue.
Lastly, bees defend their king, giving him the utmost
amount of protection, and think it a noble act to die
for him. When their king is safe, they cannot change
their judgement or alter their opinion. When they
columbe autem delectantur in fructibus huius\ arboris,
habitantque in ea pascentes fructus\ eius. Draco
autem inimicus est columbis, timetque arborem\ et
umbram eius ubi columbe morantur, et non potest
appropriare [PL, appropinquare]\ arbori neque umbre
eius. Si enim umbra arboris venerit ad\ occidentem,
fugit draco ad orientem, et si venerit umbra\ eius ad
orientem, fugit ad occidentem. Si autem evenerit\ ut
columba inveniatur extra arborem aut umbram eius\
occidit eam draco. Arborem deum patrem intellige,
umbram\ filium, sicut Gabriel dicit ad Mariam: Spiritus
sanctus superveniet\ in te et virtus altissimi
obumbrabit tibi. Fructum, celestem\ sapientiam
deum, scilicet spiritum sanctum. Vide ergo homo\
Transcription
ne postquam acceperis spiritum sanctum hoc est
spiritualem columbam\ intelligibilem de celo
descendentem et manentem super te foris\ fias ab
eternitate, alienus a patre et filio et spiritu sancto, et
draco te in\terimat, id est diabolus. Nam si tu habeas
spiritum sanctum non potest tibi\
Transcription
appropinquare draco. Attende ergo homo et permane
in fide\ catholica, ibique habita ibique persevera, in
una ecclesia catholica. Ca\ve quantum potes ne extra
domum foris inveniaris, et com\prehendat te ille draco
serpens antiquus et devoret te sicut\ Judam qui mox
ut exiit a domino foras et fratribus apostolis\ statim a
demone devoratus est et periit. \ De serpentibus
\Anguis omnium serpentium est genus quod
compli\cari et torqueri potest, et inde anguis quod
angu\losus sit et nunquam rectus. Colubrum ab eo
dictum\ quod colat umbras, vel quod in lubricos
tractus flexibus sinu\osis labatur. Nam lubricum
dicitur, quicquid labitur dum tenetur\ ut piscis,
serpens. Serpens autem nomen accepit quia occultis\
accessibus serpit, non apertis passibus set
squamarum minutis\ simis nisibus repit. Illa autem
que quatuor pedibus nituntur sicut\ lacerte et
sensorgr
have lost their king, they abandon the faithful
discharge of their duty and plunder his store of
honey, because he who commanded their loyalty is
slain.
Although other birds barely produce a single brood in
any one year, bees produce two, and being thus twice
as fertile, they outnumber the rest.
Of the tree called perindens
The perindens is a tree in India. Its fruit is sweet
throughout and exceedingly pleasant; doves delight in
it and live in the tree, feeding on it. The dragon is the
dove's enemy; it fears the tree and its shadow, in
which the doves dwell; and it cannot approach either
the tree or its shadow. If the shadow lies towards the
west the dragon flees to the east, and if the shadow
falls towards the east, the dragon flees to the west. If
it should happen that a dove is caught out of the tree
or its shadow, the dragon kills it.
Take the tree as God, the shadow as his son; as
Gabriel says to Mary: 'The Holy Ghost shall come
upon thee and the power of the Highest shall
overshadow thee' (Luke, 1:35). Take the fruit to be
the wisdom of God, that is, the Holy Spirit. Therefore
see to it, O man,
Translation
that, after you have received the Holy Spirit, that is
the spiritual, apprehensible dove, descending and
remaining upon you, you are not caught outside
eternity, set apart from the Father and the Son and
the Holy Spirit; and that the dragon, that is, the
Devil, does not kill you. For if you have the Holy
Spirit, the dragon cannot
Translation
cannot come near you. Take heed, therefore, O man,
and stay within the catholic faith, live within it, remain
steadfast within it, within the one catholic church. Be
as careful as you can that you are not caught outside
the doors of that house, that the dragon, the serpent
of old, does not seize you and devour you, as Judas
was at once devoured by the devil and perished, as
soon as he had gone forth from the Lord and his
brother apostles.
Of snakes
The word anguis is applied to the entire species of
snake, because the snake's body can be folded and
bent; as a result, it is called anguis because it forms a
series of angles, angulosus, and is never straight.
stiliones, non serpentes sed reptilia nominantur.
Serpen\tes autem reptilia sunt que pectore et ventre
reptant. Quorum\ tot venena, quot genera, tot
pernicies, tot dolores, quot colores\ habentur.\ De
draconibus \Draco\ maior cunc\torum ser\pentium\
sive animan\tium omni\um super ter\ram. Hinc\ Greci
dracon\
Transcription
ta vocant, unde et dirivatum est in Latinum; ut draco
diceretur.\ Qui sepe ab speluncis abstractus fertur in
aerem, concitaturque\ propter eum aer. Est autem
cristatus, ore parvo, et artis fistulis\ per quas trahit
spiritum et linguam exerat. Vim autem non in
dentibus\ set in cauda habet, et verbere pocius quam
ictu nocet. Innoxius ta\men a venenis. Sed ideo huic
ad mortem faciendam venena\ non esse necessaria
dicunt, quia siquem ligaverit occidit. A quo\ nec
elephans tutus est sui corporis magnitudine. Nam
circa se\mitas delitescens, per quas elephantes soliti
gradiuntur crura eorum\ nodis illigat, ac suffocatos
perimit. Gignitur autem in Ethiopia\ et India, ubi in
ipso incendio est iugis estus. Huic draconi assi\milatur
diabolus qui est immanissimus serpens, sepe a
spelun\ca in aerem concitatur, et lucet propter eum
aer, quia diabolus ab\ imis se erigens transfigurat se
in angelum lucis, et decipit stultos\ spe false glorie
leticieque humane. Cristatus esse dicitur, quia ipse
est rex\ superbie, vim non in dentibus sed in cauda
habet, quia suis viribus perditis\ mendacio decipit
quos ad se trahit. Circa semitas per quas elefan\tes
gradiuntur delitescit, quia iter eorum ad celum nodis
peccatorum\ illigat, ac suffocatos perimit, quia siquis
criminum vinculo irretitus\ moritur, sine dubio in
inferno dampnatur.\ De basilisco \Basiliscus Grece
Latine\ interpretatur regulus\ eo quod sit rex
serpentium\ adeo ut eum videntes fu\giant, quia
olfactu suo eos\ necat. Nam et hominem\ si vel
aspiciat interimit.\ Siquidem ab eius aspectu\ nulla
avis volans illesa\ transit, sed quamvis sit procul, eius
ore combusta devoratur.\
sensorgr
The snake is also called coluber, either because it
lives in the shadows, colere umbras, or because it
wriggles along in a slippery way, in sinuous coils. For
anything that slithers when you hold it, like a fish or a
snake, is called lubricus, 'slippery'.
The snake gets its name, serpens, because it creeps
up under cover, not by visible steps, but crawling
along by the tiniest movements of its scales.
Creatures which go on four feet, like lizards and
newts are called not snakes but reptiles. Snakes are
reptiles too, because they crawl, reptare, on their
chests and bellies.
There are as many poisonous snakes as there are
species; as many which bring death or suffering, as
there are colours among them.
Of the dragon
The dragon is bigger than all other snakes or all other
living things on earth. For this reason, the Greeks
Translation
call it dracon, from this is derived its Latin name
draco.
The dragon, it is said, is often drawn forth from caves
into the open air, causing the air to become turbulent.
The dragon has a crest, a small mouth, and narrow
blow-holes through which it breathes and puts forth
its tongue. Its strength lies not in its teeth but in its
tail, and it kills with a blow rather than a bite. It is
free from poison. They say that it does not need
poison to kill things, because it kills anything around
which it wraps its tail.
From the dragon not even the elephant, with its huge
size, is safe. For lurking on paths along which
elephants are accustomed to pass, the dragon knots
its tail around their legs and kills them by suffocation.
Dragons are born in Ethiopia and India, where it is hot
all year round.
The Devil is like the dragon; he is the most monstrous
serpent of all; he is often aroused from his cave and
causes the air to shine because, emerging from the
depths, he transforms himself into the angel of light
and deceives the foolish with hopes of vainglory and
worldly pleasure.
The dragon is said to be crested, as the Devil wears
the crown of the king of pride. The dragon's strength
lies not in its teeth but its tail, as the Devil, deprived
of his strength, deceives with lies those whom he
draws to him. The dragon lurks around paths along
which elephants pass, as the Devil entangles with the

Transcription
A mustelis tamen vincitur quas illic homines inferunt
cavernis\ in quibus delitescunt. Itaque ea visa fugit,
quem illa persequitur\ et occidit. Nichil enim parens
ille rerum sine remedio constituit.\ Est autem
longitudine semipedalis albis maculis lineatus.\ De
regulis \ Reguli autem sicut scorpiones arentia\
queque sectantur, et postquam ad aquas venerint
[PL, ibique aliquem morderint] idro\phobas et
limphaticos faciunt. Sibilus idem est qui\ et regulus,
sibilo enim occidit antequam mordeat vel exurat.\ De
vipera \ Vipera dicta quod\ vi pariat. Nam cum\
venter eius ad partum\ ingemuerit catuli non\
expectantes maturam\ nature solucionem\ corrosis
eius lateribus\ erumpunt vi cum ma\tris interitu.
Ferunt\ autem quod mascu\lus ore inserto vipere
semen expuat. Illa autem ex voluptate\ in rabiem
versa, caput maris ore recepto precidit, ita fit ut
uterque\ parens pereat, masculus cum coit, femina
cum parit. De vipera\ dicit sanctus Ambrosius quia
nequissimum genus bestie est et super\ omnia que
serpentium sunt generis astutior ubi coeundi
cu\piditatem assumpserit, murene maritime notam
sibi requirit\ copulam vel novam preparat.
Progressaque ad litus sibilo testi\ficata presentiam
sui, ad coniugalem amplexum illam evocat.\ Murena
autem invitata non deest, et venenate serpenti
ex\petitos usus sue impertit coniunctionis. Quid sibi
sermo huius\modi vult nisi ferendos esse mores
coniugum, et si absens est eius\
sensorgr
knots of sin the way of those bound for heaven and,
like the dragon, kills them by suffocation; because
anyone who dies fettered in the chains of his offences
is condemned without doubt to hell.
Of the basilisk
The basilisk's name in Greek, translated into Latin,
regulus, means 'little king'. It is so called because it is
the king of crawling things, who flee when they see it,
because it kills them with its scent. It will even kill a
man just by looking at him. Indeed, no bird can fly
past unharmed by its gaze but, however far away, will
be burnt up and devoured in its mouth.
Translation
The basilisk can be conquered by weasels. Men put
them into the caves where the basilisks lie hidden.
The basilisk, seeing the weasel, flees; the weasel
pursues and kills it. For the Creator has made nothing
without a remedy. The basilisk is half-a-foot in length,
with white stripes.
Of the basilisk, or regulus [continued]
Basilisks, like scorpions, seek out dry places; after
they have come to water and bite anyone there, they
make that person hydrophobic and send them mad.
The creature called sibilus is the same as the regulus,
or basilisk; for it kills with its hiss before it bites or
burns.
Of the viper
The viper is so called because the female gives birth
with force, vi pariat. For when her belly aches with
labour pains, her young do not wait to be released at
the right time according to nature, but gnawing
through her sides burst forth, leaving their mother
dead. They say that the male spits his seed into the
female, with his head inserted in her mouth. Mad with
lust she bites it off. Thus it comes about that both
parents die; the male during intercourse; the female
at birth.
Saint Ambrose says of the viper that it the vilest kind
of creature and more cunning than the whole serpent
species. When it feels the desire for intercourse, it
goes in search of a lamprey already known to it or
prepares to copulate with a new partner. It goes to
the shore and makes its presence known with a hiss,
inviting her to its conjugal embrace. The lamprey,
once invited, does not demur and shares with the
poisonous snake the union it seeks.
What should these words signify to us if not that we
should put up with the behaviour of our partner, and
even if his whereabouts
Transcription
comperienda presentia? Sit licet asper, fallax,
inconditus lubri\cus, temulentus, quid peius veneno
quod in coniuge mu\rena non refugit, vocata non
deest, et serpentis lubricum\ sedula caritate
complectitur. Ille tua mala portat et le\vitatis feminee
facilitatem, tu virum tuum non potes mu\lier
sustinere. Adam per Evam deceptus est, non Eva per
Adam.\ Quem vocavit ad culpam mulier, iustum est ut
eum gu\bernatorem assumat, ne iterum feminea
facilitate labatur.\ Sed horridus et incultus est. Semel
placuit, nunquid vir\ frequenter est eligendus.
Comparem suum et bos requirit\ et equus diligit. Et si
mutetur alius tamen trahere iugum nes\cit compar
alterius, et se non tutum putat. Tu iugalem re\pudias
tuum, et putas sepe esse mutandum, et si uno
defue\rit die superducis rivalem, et statim incognita
causa quasi cog\nita iniuriam pudoris exequeris.
Vipera absentem requirit,\ absentem vocat et blando
proclamat sibilo, atque ubi adventare\ comparem
senserit, venenum evomit, reverentiam marito\
deferens verecundata nuptialem gratiam. Tu mulier
advenien\[en]tem de longinquo maritum contumeliis
repellis. Vipera\ mare prospectat, explorat iter
coniugis. Tu iniuriis viam\ viro obstruis. Tu licium
moves venena, non reicis. Tu con\iugalis amplexus
tempore dirum virus exestuas, nec eru\bescis nuptias
nec revereris maritum. Sed etiam tu vir, pos\sumus
enim etiam sic accipere, depone tumorem cordis,
asperi\tatem morum cum tibi sedula uxor occurrit,
propelle indig\nationem cum blanda coniux ad
caritatem provocat. Non\ es dominus sed maritus,
non ancillam sortitus es, sed uxorem.\ Gubernatorem
te deus voluit esse sexus inferioris, non
prepo\tentem. Redde vicem studio, redde amori
gratiam. Vipera vene\num suum fundit, tu non potes
duriciam mentis deponere?
sensorgr
Translation
cannot be discovered, we are to behave as if he were
present?
Let him be harsh, deceitful, uncouth, unreliable,
drunken: are any of these things worse than the
poison from which the lamprey, in intercourse, does
not shrink? When she is invited, she is not found
wanting and embraces the slimy snake with sincere
affection.
The man puts up with your mischief and your
feminine tendency towards triviality. Can you, o
woman, not stand by your man? Adam was deceived
by Eve, not Eve by Adam. It is right that the woman
should accept as her governor the man whom she
urged to do wrong, lest she fall again through her
feminine disposition.
But he is rough and uncouth! He pleased you once.
Are you saying that a husband should be chosen on a
frequent basis? The ox seeks his partner, the horse
cherishes his. If a partner is changed, however, the
one that is left cannot bear the other's yoke and feels
insecure. You reject your conjugal partner and often
think of changing him. If one day he is absent, you
bring in a rival and at once, having discovered no
reason for doing so, you avenge the injury done to
your honour as if you had discovered some reason.
The female viper searches for her absent male,
enticing him with a seductive hiss, and when she
senses that he is approaching, she spits out her
poison, modestly showing reverence to her husband
and the obligations of marriage.
You, o woman, repel your husband with reproaches
when he returns from afar. The viper gazes out to
sea, he searches for a sign that she is on her way.
You put obstacles in your husband's way. You stir up
the poison of strife, you do not get rid of it. You emit
a foul venom in the midst of your wifely embrace, you
show no shame at the thought of your marriage vows,
you show no regard for your husband.
But you too, O man, for we can also bring you into
the discussion, set aside the passion in your heart and
the roughness of your manner when your loving wife
comes to meet you, Get rid of your ill-humour when
your wife sweetly rouses you to express your love.
You are not her master but her husband; you have
gained not a maidservant but a wife. God wished you
to govern the weaker sex, not rule it absolutely.
Return her care with attention; return her love with
grace. The viper pours out its poison; can you not get
rid of your harsh attitude?
Transcription
Si habes naturalem rigorem, debes temperare eum
contempla\tione coniugii, et reverentia coniunctionis
deponere animi\ feritatem. Potest et sic accipi. Nolite
querere viri thorum alie\num, nolite insidiari alie
copule. Grave est adulterium, nature\ iniuria est.
Duos primum deus fecit Adam et Evam, hoc est
vi\rum et uxorem, et uxorem de viro hoc est de costa
Ade et iussit\ ambos esse in uno corpore, et in uno
spiritu vivere. Quid unum\ separas corpus, quid unum
dividis spiritum? Nature adulterium est.\ Sed hoc
docet murene et vipere non iure generis, sed ardore\
libidinis expetitus amplexus. Discite o viri quia [qui]
alienam permol\lire querit uxorem. Cuius serpentis
sibi asciscere cupiat contuber\nium, cui etiam
comparandus ipse serpenti sit. Festinet ad\ viperam,
que se in gremium ubi non directo tramite veritatis\
sed lubrico devii amoris infundit. Festinat ad eam que
vene\num suum resumit ut vipera. Que fertur peracto
coniunctionis\ munere, venenum quod vomuerat
rursus haurire. \ De aspide \ Aspis vocata quod
morsu venena immittit et spargit. Ios\ enim Greci
venenum dicunt, et inde aspis quod morsu\
Transcription
venenato interimit. Currit quidem semper patenti ore
et vapo\ranti. Huius diversa genera et species et
dispares effectus ad\ nocendum. Fertur autem cum
ceperit pati incantatorem qui\ eam in quibusdam
carminibus propriis evocat ut eam de caver\na
producat, illa cum exire noluerit unam aurem in
terram\ premit, alteram cauda obturat et operit,
atque voces illas magicas\ non audiens, non exit ad
incantantem. Tales quidem sunt\ homines istius
mundi qui in desideriis terrenis aurem depri\munt
unam. Aliam vero de perpetratis, ne audiant vocem
domini\ dicentis: Qui non renuntiaverit omnibus que
possidet, non po\test meus esse discipulus nec
servus. Hoc quoque solum aspides fa\ciunt ut aures
obturant. Isti vero et oculos suos excecant ne
vide\ant celum neque recordentur operum domini.
Dissa autem genus\ est aspidis que Latine situla
sensorgr
Translation
If you are severe by nature, you should moderate
your manner in consideration of your married state
and set aside your harshness out of regard for your
relationship.
There is another issue. Do not, O men, seek out
someone else's bed, do not plot another liaison.
Adultery is a serious sin; it does harm to nature. In
the beginning God made two beings, Adam and Eve,
that is, man and wife; and he made the woman from
the man, that is, from Adam's rib; and he ordered
them both to exist in one body and to live in one
spirit. Why separate the single body, why divide the
single spirit?
Adultery happens in nature. The eager embrace of the
lamprey and the viper makes the point: it takes place
not according to the law of the species but from the
heat of lust.
Learn, O men, that he who seeks to seduce another
man's wife is to be compared with that snake with
whom he seeks a relationship. Let him hurry off to the
viper, which slithers into his bosom, not by the honest
way of truth but the slimy route of inconstant love. He
hurries to a woman who recovers her poison as the
viper does. For they say that after the task of mating
is over, the viper sucks up the poison that it had spat
out beforehand.
Of the asp
The asp, aspis, is so called because it injects poisons
with its bite, spreading them throughout the body. For
the Greek word for poison is ios, and from this comes
the word aspis, because
Translation
it kills with a poisonous bite. It moves quickly with its
mouth always open and emitting vapour.
There are various kinds and species of asps which
inflict harm with different effects.
It is said that when the asp begins to endure a snake-
charmer summoning it with music designed for that
purpose, to bring it out of its cave, and it does not
want to come out, it presses one ear to the ground,
and blocks and covers the other with its tail, and deaf
to those magic sounds, does not go out to the man
who is charming him.
Of a similar nature are the men of this world, who
close one ear with earthly desires. The other they
block with their deeds, lest they hear the voice of the
dicitur, quia quem momorderit, siti perit.\ Ypnale
genus aspidis dicta, quod sompno necat. Hanc sibi
Cleo\patra apposuit, et ista morte quasi sompno
soluta est. Emorro\sis aspis nuncupatus, quod
sanguinem sudet. Qui ab eo morsus\ fuerit, ita
languescit, ut dissolutis venis quicquid vite est per
san\guinem evocet. Grece enim sanguis emath
dicitur. Prester aspis\ semper ore patenti et vaporanti
currit, cuius poeta sic meminit:\ Oraque distendens
avibus [avidus] fumantia prester. Hic quem
percusserit\ distenditur, enormique corpulentia
necatur, extuberatum enim pu\tredo sequitur.
Spectaficus aspis qui dum momorderit hominem\
statim eum consumit, ita ut liquefiat totus in ore
serpentis.\ Cerastis serpens dictus, eo quod in capite
cornua habeat similia\ arietum. Ceraste enim Grece
cornua vocantur. Sunt autem illi quadrige\mina
cornicula quorum ostentatione veluti esca illiciens
sollicitata\ animalia perimit, totum enim corpus tegit
arenis, nec ullum in\dicium sui prebet, nisi ex ea
parte qua invitatas aves vel anima\lia capit. Est
autem flexuosus plusquam alii serpentes, ita ut
spinam\
Transcription
non habere videatur. \ De scitali serpente \ Scitalis
serpens est\ vocata quod tanta\ prefulget tergi
varietate ut no\tarum gratia aspicientes se retar\det.
Et quia reptando pigrior est\ quos assequi non valet,
mira\culo sui stupentes capit. Tan\ti autem fervoris
est ut etiam hyemis tempore exuvias corporis\
ferventes exponat, de quo Lucanus: Et scitalis pressis
etiam nunc\ sola pruinis, exuvias positura suas.\ De
anphivena \ Anphivena dicta eo\ quod duo capita
habeat,\ unum in loco suo alterum\ in cauda, currens
ex utroque capite,\ tractu corporis circumlato. Hec\
sola serpentium frigori se com\mittit, prima omnium
precedens\ de qua idem Lucanus: Et gravis\ in
geminum vergens caput\ anphivena.\ Cuius oculi
lucent\ velud lucerne.\ De ydro \ Est ani\mal in\ Nilo
flumine\ quod dicitur idrus\ in aqua vivens.\ Greci
sensorgr
Lord saying: 'Whosoever he be of you that foresaketh
not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple or
servant' (see Luke, 14:33). Asps do no more than
merely close their ears. Men of this world blind their
eyes lest they see heaven and are reminded of the
works of the Lord.
The dissa is a kind of asp, called situla in Latin,
because those it bites die of thirst, sitis.
There is a kind of asp called ypnalis, because it kills
you by sending you to sleep. It was this snake that
Cleopatra applied to herself, and was released by
death as if by sleep.
The emorrosis is an asp, so called because it kills by
making you sweat blood. If you are bitten by it, you
grow weak, so that your veins open and your life is
drawn forth in your blood. For the Greek word for
'blood' is emath.
The prester is an asp that moves quickly with its
mouth always open and emitting vapour, as the poet
recalled like this: 'The greedy prester that opens wide
its foaming mouth' (Lucan, Pharsalia, 9, 722). If it
strikes you, you swell up and die of gross distention,
for the swollen body putrefies immediately after.
The spectaficus is an asp which, when it bites a man,
destroys him, so that he turns entirely into fluid in the
snake's mouth.
The cerastis, is so called because it has horns on its
head like a ram's. For the Greek word for 'horns' is
ceraste. It has a set of four small horns and,
displaying them, it persuades animals that they are
good to eat, then kills its prey; for it covers its entire
body with sand, so that no trace of it shows, except
the part with which it catches the birds or animals it
has attracted. It bends more than other snakes, so
that
Translation
it seems to have no spine.
Of the snake called scitalis
The snake called scitalis gets its name because it
glitters with such a variety of colour on its back that it
slows down those who look at it on account of its
markings. And because it is not a keen crawler and
cannot overtake the prey it pursues, it catches those
who are stunned by the marvel of its appearance. It
gets so hot that even in winter it casts off its burning
skin, something to Lucan refers: The scitalis alone can
shed its skin while the rime is still scattered over the
ground' (Pharsalia, 9, 717).
Of the anphivena
enim\ idros aquam\
Transcription
vocant. Inde dicitur aquatilis serpens a quo isti
obturgescunt cuius\ morbum quidam boam dicunt, eo
quod fimo bovis remedietur.\ Idra draco multorum
capitum qualis fuit in Lerna insula vel\ pallude
provincie Archadie. Hec Latine excedra dicitur quod
uno\ ceso tria capita excrescebant, sed hoc fabulosum
est, nam constat\ idram locum fuisse evomentem
aquas, vastantem vicinam\ civitatem, in quo uno
meatu clauso multi erumpebant. Quod\ Hercules
videns loca exhausit, et sic aque clausit meatus. Nam\
idra ab aqua dicta est. Hic idrus satis est inimicus
cocodrillo,\ et hanc habet naturam et consuetudinem,
ut cum viderit coco\drillum dormientem in littore,
vadit aperto ore et involuit\ se in luto quo facilius
possit in faucibus eius illabi. Cocodrillus\ igitur subito
vivum eum transglutit. Ille vero dilanians omnia\
viscera eius non solum unus, sed etiam exit illesus.
Sic ergo mors\ et infernus figuram habent cocodrilli,
quorum inimicus est\ dominus Jesus Christus. Nam
assumens humanam carnem des[cen]\dit ad
infernum, et dirumpens omnia viscera eius eduxit\
eos qui iniuste tenebantur ab eo. Mortificavit enim
ipsam\ mortem resurgens ex mortuis, et illi insultat
propheta dicens:\ O mors ero mors tua, morsus tuus
ero inferne. \ De boa angue \ Boas anguis\ Italie
immensa mo\les prosequitur greges armen\torum et
bubalos et pluri\mo lacte irriguis se uberibus\ innectit,
et sugens interimit,\ atque inde a bovum
depopu\latione boas nomen accepit. \ De iaculo \
sensorgr
The anphivena is so called because it has two heads,
one where its head should be, the other on its tail; it
moves quickly in the direction of either of its head,
with its body forming a circle. Alone among snakes it
faces the cold and is the first to come out of
hibernation. Lucan, again, says of it: 'The fell
amphisbaena, that moves towards each of its two
heads' (Pharsalia, 9, 719). Its eyes glow like lamps.
Of the ydrus
A creature lives in the River Nile which is called idrus,
because it lives in water. For the Greek word for
water is idros
Translation
Thus it is called aquatilis serpens, 'water-snake'.
Those who are bitten by it swell up, a sickness called
by some boa, because it can be cured by the dung of
an ox, bos.
The idra is a dragon with many heads of the kind that
lived on the island, or marsh, of Lerna in the province
of Arcadia. It is called in Latin excedra because when
one of its heads is cut off, three grow in its place. This
is a myth, however, for it is accepted that the hydra
was a place where water gushed out, destroying the
town nearby; where, as one outlet was closed up,
many others burst open. Seeing this, Hercules
drained the marsh and so closed the water-spouts.
For the word idra is so called from the Greek word for
water.
The idrus is a worthy enemy of the crocodile and has
this characteristic and habit: when it sees a crocodile
sleeping on the shore, it enters the crocodile through
its open mouth, rolling itself in mud in order to slide
more easily down its throat. The crocodile therefore,
instantly swallows the idrus alive. But the idrus,
tearing open the crocodile's intestines, comes out
whole and unharned.
For this reason death and hell are symbolised by the
crocodile; their enemy is our Lord Jesus Christ. For
taking human flesh, he descended into hell and,
tearing open its inner parts, he led forth those who
were unjustly held there. He destroyed death itself by
rising from the dead, and through the prophet mocks
death, saying:'O death, I will be thy plagues; O
grave, I will be thy destruction' (Hosea, 13:14).
Of the snake called boas
The boas is a snake found in Italy; it is of a vast
weight; it follows flocks of cattle and of gazelles,
fastens on their udders when they are full of milk and
sucking on these, kills the animals; from its ravaging
of oxen, bos, it has got its name boas.

Transcription
Iaculus serpens volans, de quo Lucanus: Iaculique
volantes.\ Exiliunt enim in arboribus, et dum aliquid
obvium fu\erit, iactant se super eum et perimunt.
Unde et iaculi dicti sunt.\ De sirenis \ In Arabia
autem serpentes albi sunt cum alis, que sirene\
vocantur, que plus currunt ab equis, sed etiam et
volare\ dicuntur, quorum tantum virus est ut morsum
ante mors\ insequatur quam dolor.\ [De sepe] \
Seps exigua serpens que non solum corpus sed et
ossa\ veneno consumit, cuius poeta sic meminit: Ossa
que\ dissolvens cum corpore tabificus seps. \ [De
dipsade] \ Dipsa serpens tante\ exiguitatis fertur ut
cum calcatur non videatur, cuius venenum\ ante
extinguit quam sentiatur, ut facies preventa morte
nec\ tristiciam inducat morituro, de quo poeta:
Signiferum iu\venem Tyreni sanguinis Aulum Torta
caput retro dipsa\ calcata momordit. Vix dolor aut
sensus dentis fuit.\ De lacerto \ Lacertus reptile
genus\ est vocatus, ita quod\ brachia habeat. Genera\
lacertorum plura, ut\ botrax, salamandra,\ saura,
stellio. Botruca\ dicta quod rane ha\beat faciem, nam
Greci ranam botrucam vocant.\ De salamandra \
Salamandra vocata quod\ contra incendia valeat,
cuius inter omnia venenata\ vis maxima est. Cetera
enim singulos feriunt, hec plurimos\ pariter interimit.
Nam et si arrepserit omnia poma inficit\
Transcription
veneno, et eos qui edint occidit. Qui etiam vel si in
puteum cadat\ vis veneni eius potantes interficit. Ista
contra incendia repugnans\ ignes sola animalium
extinguit. Vivit enim in mediis\ flammis sine dolore et
consumptione, et non solum quia non uritur\ sed
extinguit incendium. \ De saura serpente
sensorgr
Of the iaculus
Translation
fly' (Pharsalia, 9, 720). For they spring into trees and
when anything comes their way, throw themselves on
it and kill it. As a result, they are called iaculi,
'javelin-snakes'. Of sirens
In Arabia there are white snakes, with wings, called
sirens, which cover the ground faster than horses, but
are also said to fly. Their is poison is so strong that if
you are bitten by it you die before you feel the pain.
[Of the seps]
The seps is a small snake which consumes with its
poison not just the body but the bones. The poet
refers to it as: 'The deadly seps, that destroys the
bones with the body' (Lucan, Pharsalia, 9, 723).
[Of the dipsa]
The dipsa is a snake which is said to be so small that
you tread on it without seeing it. Its poison kills you
before you feel it, with the result that the face of
anyone dying in this way shows no sadness from the
anticipation of death. The poet says of it: 'So Aulus, a
standard-bearer of Etruscan blood, trod on a dipsa,
and it drew back its head and bit him. He had hardly
any pain or feeling of the bite' (Lucan, Pharsalia, 9,
737).
Of the lizard
The lizard is called a kind of reptile, because it has
arms. There are many kinds of lizards, such as the
botrax, the salamander, the saura and the newt.
The botruca is so called because it has the face of a
frog and the Greek word for 'frog' is botruca.
Of the salamander
The salamander is so called because it is proof against
fire. Of all poisonous creatures, it has the strongest
poison. Other poisonous creatures kill one at a time;
it can kill several things at the same time. For if it has
crawled into a tree, it poisons all the apples
Translation
and kills those who eat them. In addition, if it falls
into a well, the strength of its poison kills those who
drink the water. It resists fire and alone among
creatures can put fires out. For it can exist in the
midst of flames without pain and without being
consumed by them, not only because it does not burn

Transcription
Saura lacertus qui quando senescit cecantur oculi
eius, et\ intrat per foramen parietis aspiciens contra
orientem\ et orto sole intendit et illuminatur. \ De
stellione\ Stellio de colore inditum nomen habet. Est
enim tergo\re pictus lucentibus guttis in modum
stellarum. De quo\ Ovidius: Aptumque colori. Nomen
habet variis stellatus corpore\ guttis. Hic autem
scorpionibus adeo contrarius traditur, ut viso\ eo
pavorem his afferat et torporem. Sunt et alia genera
ser\pentium, ut admodite, elephantie,
camedracontes. Postremo\ quantus nominum, tantus
mortuum numerus. Omnes ser\pentes natura sua
frigide sunt nec percuciunt nisi quando calescunt.\
Nam quando sunt frigidi nullum tangunt. Unde et
venena eorum\ plus die quam nocte nocent. Torpent
enim noctis algore, et merito\ quia frigidi sunt
nocturno rore. In se enim adducunt vapo\rem corporis
frigide pestes, et nature gelide. Unde et in hieme\ in
nidos torpent, estate solvuntur. Inde est quod
quicumque veneno\ serpentium percutitur primum
obstupescit, et postea ubi in illo ca\lefactum ipsum
virus exarserit, statim hominem extinguit. Ve\nenum
autem dictum, quia per venas vadit. Infusa enim
pestis eius per\ venas vegetatione[m] corporis aucta
discurrit, et animam exigit.\ Unde non potest
venenum nocere, nisi hominis tetigit sanguinem.\
Lucanus: Noxio serpentium est, admixto sanguine
pestis. Omne autem\ venenum est frigidum, et ideo
anima que est ignea fugit venenum\ frigidum. In
naturalibus bonis que nobis et irrationabilibus\
animantibus videmus esse communia, vivacitate
quadam sensus\ serpens excellit. Unde legitur in
Genesi: Serpens autem erat sapi\
Transcription
sensorgr
but because it puts the fire out.
Of the snake called the saura
Translation
The saura is a lizard which goes blind when it grows
old; it enters a crack in a wall and, looking toward the
east, it bends its gaze on the rising sun and regains
its sight.
Of the newt
The newt, stellio, gets its name from its colouring. For
it is adorned on its back with shining spots like stars,
stella. Ovid says of it: 'Its name fits its colour; it is
starred on the body with spots of various colours' (see
Ovid, Metamorphoses, 5, 461). It is said to be so
hostile to scorpions, that the sight of it paralyses
them with fear.
There are other species of snakes, like the admodite,
elephantia, camedracontes.
Finally, it can be said that snakes inflict as many
kinds of death as they have names.
All snakes are cold by nature; they will only strike you
when their body warms up. For as long as it is cold,
they will touch no-one. As a result, their poison is
more harmful by day than by night. For they become
sluggish in the cold of the night; and rightly so,
because they grow cold in the night-time dew. For the
deathly cold and freezing weather draw off the
warmth of the body. Thus in winter they lie inactive in
their nests; in summer, they grow lively again. So, if
you are struck by a snake's poison, you are numbed
at first; then, when the venom warms up and begins
to burn, it kills you at once.
Their poison is called 'venom', venenum, because it
spreads through your veins. For when its deathly
effect is introduced, it courses in every direction
through the veins, increased by the quickening of the
body, and drives out life. As a result, poison cannot
hurt unless it infects your blood. Lucan says: 'The
poison of snakes is only deadly when mixed with the
blood' (Pharsalia, 9, 614). All poison is cold; as a
result, the soul, which is by nature hot, flees from the
poison's icy touch.
In terms of the natural qualities which we observe
that we, reasoning beings, share with animals, who
have no capacity for reason, the serpent stands out
by virtue of its lively intelligence. On this subject, it
says in Genesis: 'Now the serpent was
Translation
entior, omnibus pecoribus terre. \ De natura
serpentium \ Serpens vero tres\ habet naturas,
pri\ma eius natura hec est.\ Cum senuerit caligant\
oculi eius, et si voluerit\ novus fieri, abstinet\ se et
ieiunat multis\ diebus donec pellis eius\ relaxetur, et
querit angustam\ rimam in petra et in\trat in eam, et
contri\bulat se et deponit\ veterem pellem. Et nos per
multam tribulationem et absti\nentias pro Christo
deponamus veterem hominem et indumen\tum eius,
et queramus spiritualem petram Christum, et
angustam\ fissuram, id est angustam portam.
Secunda eius natura est, cum vene\rit ad flumen
bibere aquam non portat suum venenum\ secum, sed
in foveam dimittit illud. Debemus et nos cum in\
collectam venimus aquam vivam atque sempiternam
hau\rientes audire divinum sermonem et celestem in
ecclesia, abi\cere a nobis venenum, id est terrenas et
malas concupiscentias. Ter\cia natura eius est, si
viderit nudum hominem, timet eum, et\ si viderit
vestitum, exilit in eum. Sic et nos spiritualiter\
intelligamus quia primus homo Adam quamdiu fuit
nudus\ in Paradiso non prevaluit serpens exilire in
eum, sed postquam\ est indutus, id est mortalitate
corporis, tunc exilivit in eum ser\pens. Si habes ergo
in te mortalem vestem, id est veterem hominem,\ et
inveteratus fueris dierum malorum, exilit in te
serpens.\ Si autem expolies [PL, exspolies] te
indumento principum et potestatum\
Transcription
seculo huius tenebrarum, tunc non poterit exilire in te
serpens, id est\ diabolus. Serpens quoque pastu
feniculi cecitatem repellit ex\ceptam. Itaque ubi
oculos sibi obduci senserit, nota remedia pe\tit, ne
fraudatur effectu. Testudo visceribus pasta serpentis,\
cum venenum adverterit sibi serpere, origano
medicinam sue sa\lutis exercet. Ieiuni hominis
sputum si serpens gustaverit, moritur.\ Dicit autem
Plinius: Creditur quod si serpentis caput etiam si cum\
duobus digitis evaserit, nichilominus vivit. Unde et
totum\ corpus obicit pro capite ferientibus. Anguibus
universis hebes visus\ est, raro in adversum
contuentur. Nec frustra cum oculos non\ in fronte sed
in timporibus habeant, adeo ut cicius audiant quam\
aspiciant. Nullum autem animal in tanta celeritate
linguam\ movet ut serpens, adeo ut triplicem linguam
habere videatur,\ cum una sit. Serpentium humida
sensorgr
more subtle than any beast of the field' (3:1).
Of the nature of snakes
The snake has three characteristics.
The first of these is that when it grows old, its eyes
grow dim; if it wants to regain its youth, it fasts for
many days until its skin grows loose; then it seeks out
a narrow crack in a rock, enters it, and scrapes
through, sloughing off its old skin.
Let us, too, through much affliction and abstinence in
Christ's name, slough off our former self and garb,
and seek Christ, the spiritual rock, and the narrow
crack, that is 'the strait gate' (Matthew, 7:13).
The snake's second characteristic is this: when it
comes to a river to drink water, it does not bring its
venom with it, but discharges it into a pit.
When we come together in church, drinking in the
living, eternal water, to hear God's heavenly word, we
too should get rid of our venom, that is, earthly and
evil desires.
The snake's third characteristic is this: if it sees a
naked man, it fears him; if it sees him clothed, it
attacks him.
In the same way, we are to understand in spiritual
terms, that for as long as Adam, the first man, was
naked in Paradise, the serpent was unable to attack
him; but after he was clothed, that is, in mortal flesh,
then the serpent assaulted him. If you are clad in
mortal clothes, that is, in your former self, and if you
have grown old in evil days, the serpent attacks you.
If, however, you divest yourself of the robes of
princes and of the power
Translation
of the darkness of this world, then the serpent, that
is, the Devil, cannot attack you.
The snake, at the onset of blindness, wards it off by
eating fennel. Thus, when it feels its eyes growing
dim, it has recourse to remedies it knows, knowing
that it can rely on their effect.
The tortoise, when it feeds on the snake's entrails and
becomes aware of the venom spreading through its
own body, cures itself with oregano.
If a snake tastes the spittle of a fasting man, it dies.
Pliny says:It is believed that if the head of a snake
escapes, even if only two fingers' length of the body is
attached, it continues to live. For this reason it places
sunt corpora, adeo ut quaque\ eunt viam humore
designent. Vestigia sunt serpentium talia\ ut cum
pedibus carere videantur, costis tamen et squamarum
ni\sibus repunt, quas a summo gutture usque ad
imam alvum pa\rili modo dispositas habent. Squamis
enim quasi unguibus, costis\ quasi cruribus innituntur.
Unde si in qualibet corporis parte ab\ alvo usque ad
caput aliquo ictu collidatur, debilis reddita cursum\
habere non possit, quia ubicumque ille ictus inciderit,
spinam sol\vit, per quam costarum pedes et motus
corporis agebantur. Serpen\tes autem diu vivere
dicuntur, adeo ut deposita veteri tunica\ senectutem
deponere atque in iuventutem redire perhibeantur.\
Tunice serpentium exuvie nuncupantur, eo quod his
quando\ senescunt sese exuunt. Dicuntur autem
exuvie et induvie quia\ exuuntur et induuntur.
Pytagoras dicit de medulla hominis\ mortui que in
spina est serpentem creari. Quod etiam Ovidius\ in
Metamorphoseorum libris commemorat dicens: Sunt
qui\ cum putrefacta spina sepulchro mutari credant,
humanas\
Transcription
angue medullas. Quod si creditur merito evenit ut
sicut per ser\pentem mors hominis, ita et hominis
morte serpens. \ Incipit de vermibus \ Vermis est
animal\ quod plerumque de carne vel de ligno\ vel de
quacumque re terrena sine ullo\ concubito gignitur,
licet non nunquam\ et de ovis nascantur, sicut
scorpio. Sunt\ autem vermes aut terre aut aque,\ aut
aeris, aut carnium, aut frondi\um aut lignorum, aut
vestimentorum.\ Aranea vermis aeris ab areis [PL,
aeris] nutrimento cognominata, que\ exiguo corpore
longa fila deducit, et tele semper intenta, nunquam\
desinit laborare, perpetuum sustinens in sua arte
dispendium.\ Multipes terrenus ex multitudine pedum
vocatus, qui con\tractus in globum urnas amplificat.
Sanguissuga vermis\ aquatilis dicta quod sanguinem
sugit, potantibus enim insidi\atur. Cumque illabitur
faucibus vel ubi uspiam adheserit, sangui\nem haurit,
sensorgr
its whole body in the way to protect its head against
its assailants. All snakes suffer from poor sight; they
can rarely see what is in front of them. This is not
without reason, since their eyes are not at the front
but in the temples of the head, so that they hear
better than they see. No creature moves its tongue as
swiftly as the snake, to such an extent that it seems
to have a triple tongue, when in fact there is only
one.
The bodies of snakes are moist, so that wherever they
go, they mark their path with moisture. The tracks of
snakes are such that, since they seem to lack feet,
they crawl using their flanks and the pressure of their
scales, which are laid out in the same pattern from
the throat to the lowest part of the belly. For they
support themselves on their scales as if on claws, and
on their flanks as if on legs.
As a result, if a snake is struck on any part of the
body, from the belly to the head, it is disabled and
cannot get away quickly, because where the blow
falls, it dislocates the spine, through which the foot-
like movement of the flanks and the motion of the
body are activated.
Snakes are said to live for a long time, to such an
extent that it also claimed that when they shed their
old skins, they shed their old age and regain their
youth. The snake's skin is called exuvie, because they
shed it, exuere, when they grow old. We refer to
clothing as both exuvie and induvie because it is both
taken off, exuere, and put on, induere.
Pythagoras says that the snake is created from the
marrow of dead men, which is to be found in the
spine. Ovid has the same point in mind in the
Metamorphoses, when he says: 'There are those who
believe that when the spine has rotted in the grave,
the human
Translation
marrow changes into a snake'. This, if it can be
believed, has a certain justice, for as the snake brings
about the death of man, so it is created by the death
of man.
Here begins the account of worms
The worm is a creature which generally springs from
flesh, or wood or some other earthly material, but not
as the result of intercourse, although occasionally
they are hatched from eggs, like the scorpion.
There are worms that live in earth or in water, in air,
in flesh, in leaves or in wood, or in clothes.
The spider, aranea, is a worm of the air, and gets its
name from the fact that it lives on air; it draws out
et cum nimio cruore maduerit, evomit quod hau\sit,
ut recentiorem denuo sugat. Scorpio vermis terrenus,
qui\ pocius vermibus asscribitur non serpentibus,
animal armatum aculeo\ et ex eo Grece vocatum
quod caudam figat, et arcuato vulnere\ venena
diffundat. Proprium autem scorpionis est, quod
manus\ palmam non feriat. Bombocis frondium
vermis, ex cuius\ textura bombicinium conficitur,
appellatus autem hoc nomine\ ab eo quod evacuetur
dum fila generat, et aer solus in eo remanet.\ Eruca
frondium vermis, in olere vel pampino involuta ab
ero\dendo dicta, de qua meminit Placitus [PL,
Plautus]: Imitatus[r] nequam bestiam\ et maleficam
pampinium involutam. Implicat se idem nec\ advolat,
ut locusta huc illucque discurrens, semipasta dimittit,\
sed permanet perituris frugibus et tardo lapsu et
pigris morsibus\
Transcription
universa consumit. Teredonas Greci vocant lignorum\
vermes quod terendo edant. Hos nos tarmites dicimus
ita\ enim apud Latinos ligni vermes vocantur, quos
tempore\ importuno cese arbores gignunt. Tinea
vestimentorum\ vermis dicta quod terat, et eo usque
insideat, quo erodat.\ Unde et pertinax, quod in
eandem rem idemtidem urgeat.\ Vermes carnium
emigramus, lumbricus, ascaride, coste, pediculi,\
pulices, lendex, tarmus, ricinus, usia, cimex.
Emigramus\ vermis capitis vocatus, lumbricus vermis
intestinarum, dictus\ quasi lumbicus, qui labitur, vel
quod in lumbis sit. Pediculi ver\mes carnis a pedibus
dicti, unde et pediculosi dicuntur, quibus\ pediculi in
corpore efervescunt, pulices vero vocati sunt, quod\
ex pulvere magis nutriantur. Tarmus vermis est lardi.
Ricinus\ vermis est canis vocatus eo quod hereat in
auribus canum. Ce\nos enim Grece canis est. Usia est
vermis porci appellata, quia\ urit. Nam ubi
momorderit adeo locus ardet, ut ibi vesice\ fiant.
Cimex de similitudine cuiusdam herbe vocatur, cuius\
sensorgr
long threads from its small body, and devotes itself
continually to spinning its web, never ceasing to toil,
constantly suffering loss in its art.
The land-based millipede, multipes, is so called from
its large number of feet; rolled up in a ball, it swells in
pitchers.
The leech, sanguissuga, a water worm, is so called
because it sucks blood, sanguinem sugere, and takes
by surprise anyone who is drinking water. When it
slides down the throat or adheres to any other part of
the body, it drains the blood and when it can hold no
more, it vomits what it has already swallowed in order
to start sucking fresh blood again.
The scorpion is a land worm, to be classed rather with
worms than snakes; it is armed with a sting, aculeus,
and from that it gets its Greek name, because it sticks
its tail into its victim and spreads the poison through
the bow-shaped wound. It is a characteristic of the
scorpion, that it will not sting the palm of the hand.
The silk-worm is a leaf worm; from the threads it
weaves, we make silk. It gets its name because it
empties itself when it makes thread and only air is left
inside its body.
The caterpillar is a leaf worm, often found enveloped
in a cabbage or a vine; it gets its name from erodere,
'to eat away'. Plautus recalls it in this way: 'She
imitates the wicked and worthless beast, wrapped in
vine leaves' (Cistellaria, 728-30). It folds itself up and
does not fly about like the locust, which hurries from
place to place, in all directions, leaving things half-
eaten, but stays amid the fruit that is destined to be
destroyed and, munching slowly,
Translation
consumes everything.
The Greeks call the wood worm teredon because they
eat by gnawing their way into wood. We call them
termites, for in Latin that is the name given to wood
worms, which are hatched from trees felled at the
wrong season.
The worm found in clothes is called tinea because it
gnaws at fabrics, and burrows into them until they are
eaten away. For this reason, it is called pertinacious,
pertinax, because it works away all the time at the
same thing.
Worms of the body are the emigramus, the stomach-
worm, the ascaride, the coste, the louse, the flea, the
lendex, the tarmus, the tick, the usia, the bug.
The emigramus is a worm of the head.
fetorem habet, proprie autem vermis in carne putrida
nascitur. Ti\nea in vestimentis, eruca in olere, teredo
in ligno, tarmus in\ lardo. Vermis non ut serpens
apertis passibus vel squamarum\ nisibus repit, quia
non est illis spine rigor ut colubri, sed in\directum
corpusculi sui partes gradatim porigendo con\tractas,
contrahendo porrectas, motus explicat, sicque\
agitatus prolabitur. \ Incipit de piscibus \ Pisces
dicti unde et pecus, a pascendo scilicet.\ Reptilia ideo
dicuntur hec que natant, eo\ quod reptandi habeant
speciem et naturam.\ Quamvis se in profundum
mergant, tamen\ in natando repunt. Unde et David
ait: Hoc mare magnum et spaciosum manibus illic
reptilia quorum\
Transcription
[De balena] \ [A ... Sic illi paciuntur qui incredulo
animo sunt, et ignorant diaboli astucias spem suam in
eum ponentes, atqe suis operibus se obligan-]tes,
simul merguntur cum illo in Gehennam ignis. Natura
belue est\ talis quando esurit aperit os suum, et
odorem quendam bene\ olentem exalat de ore eius,
cuius dulcedinem ut sentiunt mino\res pisces,
congregant se in ore eius. Cum vero senserit os
suum\ esse repletum, subito claudit os suum et
transglutit eos. Sic pa\ciuntur illi qui sunt modice fidei
addicti voluptatibus et leno\ciniis ad escam, quamsi
sensorgr
The stomach-worm, lumbricus, creeps into or lives in
the loins, lumbus.
Lice, pediculi, are worms of the body which get their
name from their feet, pedes; people on whose bodies
lice swarm are called lousy, pediculosi.
Fleas, pulices, however, are so called because they
live mainly on dust, pulvis.
The tarmus is a worm found in pork fat.
The tick, ricinus, is a worm associated with dogs, so
called because it sticks to their ears, aures; for cenos
is the Greek for 'dog'.
The usia is a worm found in pigs, so called because it
burns, urere. For when it bites, the place burns so
much that blisters form.
The bug, cimex, gets its name from its resemblance
to a plant which has the same stench; properly
speaking, this worm originates in putrid meat.
To repeat, you find the moth in clothes, the caterpillar
in vegetables, the termite in wood and the tarmus in
pork fat.
The worm does not crawl like a snake with visible
steps or by the pressure of its scales, because it lacks
the firm spine which you find in snakes; but, moving
in a straight line, by expanding the contracted parts
and contracting the expanded parts of its little body,
it unfolds in motion and, impelled in this way, creeps
forwards.
Here begins the account of fish
Fish, pisces, get their name, like cattle, pecus, from
the word for grazing, namely, pascere. They are
called reptiles because, when they swim, they have
the appearance and manner of crawling. Although
they can dive deep, nevertheless they crawl as they
swim. On this subject David says: 'So is this great
and wide sea, wherein are things creeping
innumerable' (Psalms, 104: 25)
Translation
[Of the whale]
[They suffer in the same way, those who are
unbelievers and know nothing of the Devil's cunning,
who place their hope in him,] bind themselves to do
his work, together they will be plunged with him into
the fires of Gehenna.
The nature of this animal is such that when it feeds, it
opens its mouth and breathes out from it a kind of
sweet-smelling odour, so that when smaller fish scent
quibusdam odoribus subito absorbentur a diabolo.\
Item de balena \ Balene autem sunt immense\
magnitudinis bestie ab emittendo et fundendo aquas\
vocate ceteris enim bestiis maris alcius iaciunt undas,
balenim\ Grece emittere dicitur. Masculus balene est
musculus enim\ coitu concipere hec belua perhibetur.
\De belua que dicitur serra \ Est belua in mari que
dicitur serra, pennas habens immanes.\ Hec cum
viderit navim in pelago velificantem, elevat\ pennas
suas super aquam et contendit velificare contra
navim\ stadiis triginta vel quadraginta, et non
sustinens laborem deficit, et deponens\ pennas ad se
attrahit eas. Unde vero maris iam lassam reportant\
ad locum suum in profundum. Hec belua figuram
habet seculi. Navis\ vero iustorum habet exemplum,
qui sine periculo et naufragio fidei\ transierunt per
medias huius mundi procellas et tempestates. Serra
vero\ id est belua illa que non valuit velificare cum
navi, figuram il\lorum gerit, qui in inicio ceperunt
bonis operibus insistere, postea\ non permanentes in
eis, victi sunt diversis viciorum generibus que\ illos
tanquam fluctuantes maris unde mergunt usque ad
inferos. Non\ enim incipientibus sed perseverantibus
premium promittitur. \ De delfinibus \ Delfines
certum habent nomen vel vocabulum\ quod voces
hominum sequantur, vel quod ad simphoniam\
gregatim conveniunt. Nichil in mari velocius. Nam
plerumque\ naves salientes transvolant, quando
autem preludunt in fluctibus et un\darum se molibus
saltu precipiti feriunt, tempestates significare\
Transcription
videntur, hi proprie simones nominantur. Est et
delfinum genus\ in Nilo flumine dorso seriato qui
cocodrillos tenera ventrium\ secantes interimunt. \ De
porcis marinis \ Porci marini qui vocantur vulgo
suilli, quia dum que\ runt escam more suis terram sub
aquis fodunt. Circa\ guttur enim habent oris officium,
et nisi rostrum arenis inmer\gant, pastum non
sensorgr
it, they gather in its mouth. When the whale feels that
its mouth is full, it closes it suddenly and swallows the
fish.
They suffer in the same way, those who are of limited
faith, who succumb to the food of desires and
enticements, they are suddenly devoured by the Devil
as if they had been overwhelmed by certain scents
Again of the whale
Whales are beasts of huge size, so called because of
their habit of drawing in and spouting out water; for
they make waves higher than other sea creatures;
the Greek word balenim [balein] means 'to emit'.
The male is called musculus; for it is alleged that the
females conceive by intercourse.
Of the monster called the flying-fish.
There is a sea monster called the flying-fish, which
has huge wings. When it sees a ship under sail on the
sea, it raises its wings over the water and tries to
keep pace with the ship for three or four miles; when
it fails to keep pace, it lowers its wings and folds
them. The waves carry it, exhausted, back to its
home in their depths.
The flying-fish represents this world. The ship
symbolises the righteous, who sail through its storms
and tempests without putting their faith in danger or
at risk of shipwreck. But the flying-fish, which could
not keep up with the ship, represents those who at
the start apply themselves to good works, but do not
afterwards persevere with them and yield to all sorts
of vice, which carry them, like the restless waves of
the sea, down to hell. For the prize goes not to those
who begin the race, but to those who stay the course.
Of dolphins
Dolphins are known by that particular name or word
because they follow the sound of men's voices, or
gather in schools at the sound of music.
There is no swifter creature in the sea. For they often
leap through the air over ships; but when they play
beforehand in the swell and leap headlong through
the mighty waves, they seem to foretell storms.
Translation
They are correctly called simones.
There is a species of dolphin in the River Nile, with a
serrated back, which kills crocodiles by cutting into
the soft parts of their bellies.
Of sea-pigs
colligunt. Gladius dicitur eo quod rostro mu\crinato
sit, ob hoc naves perfossas mergit. Serra nuncupata
quia\ serratam cristam habent, et subter natans
naves secat. Scorpio dictus\ quia ledit dum manu
tollitur, tradunt decem cancris est comici [PL, cum
ozymi] ma\nipulo alligatis omnes qui ibi sunt
scorpiones ad eundem\ locum congregari. \ De
cocodrillo \ Cocodrillus a croceo colore dictus,
gignitur in Nilo flumi\ne animal quadrupes in terra et
aqua valens, lon\gitudine plerumque viginti
cubitorum, dentium et ungui\um immanitate
armatum. Tantaque cutis duricia ut quam\vis fortium
ictus lapidum tergo repercuciat, non nocet, nocte\ in
aquis die in humo quescit. Ova in terra fovet,
masculus\ et femina vices servant. Hunc pisces
quidam serratam ha\bentes cristam tenera ventrium
desecantes interimunt.\ Lupum aviditas piscem
appellavit in captura ingeniosum.\ Denique
circumdatus rete, fertur arenas arare cauda, atque\
ita conditus transire rete. Mullus vocatus quod mollis
sit\ atque tenerrimus, cuius cibo tradunt libidinem
inhibere,\ oculorum aciem hebetant, homines quibus
sepe pastus pis\cem olent. Mullus in vino necatus hi
qui inde biberint te\dium vini habent. Mugilis nomen
habet, quod sit multum agilis.\ Nam ubi dispositas
senserit piscatorum insidias, confestim\ retrorsum
rediens ita transilit rete, ut volare piscem vide\as.
Innumeri itaque usus innumera genera piscium. Alii\
Transcription
ova generant ut varii maiores quos vocant tructas, et
sensorgr
Sea-pigs are commonly called swine, because when
they seek food, they dig under the water like swine
digging into the ground. For they have what serves as
a mouth around their throat, and unless they
immerse their snout in the sand, they cannot gather
food.
The sword-fish is so called because its snout is
pointed; it sinks ships by piercing them with it.
Sawfish, serra, are so called because they have a
serrated crest; they swim under ships and saw
through their keels.
The sea-scorpion is so called because it wounds you if
you pick it up in your hand; they say that if ten crabs
are bound with a handful of basil, all the scorpions
around will gather at that place.
Of the crocodile
The crocodile, cocodrillus, gets its name from its
saffron colour, croceus; it comes from the River Nile,
a four-legged creature, at home on land and in water,
sometimes twenty cubits in length, armed with huge
teeth and claws. So hard is its skin that even if you
struck it on the back with blows from heavy stones,
you would not harm it. It rests by night in the water,
by day on the bank. It hatches its eggs on land, male
and female taking turns to guard them. Certain fish
with serrated crests kill it by cutting open the soft
part of its belly.
Its wolf-like greed for fish gives the pike its name,
lupus. It is a tricky fish to catch. It is said that when it
is finally surrounded by the folds of the net, it ploughs
up the sand with its tail and, hidden, swims through
the net.
The mullet, mullus, is so called because it is delicate,
mollis, and very tender; they say that eating it curbs
lust; eating mullet can also impair your vision; men
who often eat it give off a fishy smell. If you soak a
dead mullet in wine, those who drink the liquor
afterwards develop a loathing for wine.
Another kind of mullet, mugilis, gets its name
because it is extremely agile, multum agilis. For when
it is aware of the way in which fishermen have set
their nets for it, it does not delay, but pulls back, then
leaps over the net, so that you can actually see the
fish fly.
The ways of fish are countless, as are their species.
Some
Translation
lay eggs, like the speckled, large fish called trout, and
aquis\ fovenda committunt. Aqua igitur animat et
creat, et adhuc\ mandati illius tanquam legis perpetue
munus exesequitur,\ blanda quedam mater
animantium. Alii vivos fetus edunt,\ de suo corpore ut
cete ingentia, delphines et foce aliaque cetera\
huiusmodi, que cum ediderint partus siquid forte
insidiarum\ terrorisque presenserint circa catulos suos
unquam moliri, quo tu\eantur eos vel tenere etatis
pavorem materno affectu compri\mant, aperire ora et
innoxio partus suos dente suspendere,\ interno
quoque recipere corpore, et genitali feruntur alvo
abscondere.\ Quis humanus affectus hanc piscium
pietatem possit imitari?\ Oscula nobis sacietati sunt,
illis non satis est aperire viscera,\ natosque recipere,
ac revocare integros, atque iterum fotu quodam\ sui
caloris animare, et spiritu adolere suo duosque in
corpore uno\ vivere donec aut [PL, ad] securitatem
deferant, aut corporis sui obiectu\ natos suos
defendant a periculis. Quis hec videns et si possit
ob\tinere non tante piscium pietati cedat? Quis non
miretur et stu\peat, ut servet natura in piscibus, quod
non servat in hominibus?\ Plerique in suspicione
novercalibus odiis appetiti, suos occiderunt\ filios, alie
in fame ut legimus partus proprios comederunt.
Huma\nis pignoribus mater sepulchrum facta est,
piscium proli uterus paren\tis sicut murus vallo
quodam intimorum viscerum pignora\ inoffensa
conservat. Diversa igitur piscium genera, diversos
usus habent.\ Alii ova generant, alii vivos et formatos
pariunt fetus. Et qui\ ova generant, non nidos texunt
ut aves, non diuturni fotus\ laborem induunt, non cum
molestia sui nutriunt. Cecidit o\vum, quod aqua
gremio quodam nature sue quasi nutrix blanda\
suscepit, et animal celeri fotu reddidit. Continuo,
enim, tactu pa\rentis animatum ovum cecidit, et
piscis exivit. Tum deinde\ quam pura et inviolata
successio, ut nullus sed generi suo misceatur.\
Transcription
Nesciunt enim alienorum piscium adulterina contagia,
sensorgr
leave them in the water to hatch. Water, therefore,
gives the life and form and, a gentle mother to living
things, fulfils this obligation as if she were obeying an
immutable law.
Other fish produce living offspring from their bodies,
like the great whales, dolphins, seals and others of
this sort; when they have produced their young and
have, perhaps, a premonition that these are ever
threatened by some kind of trap or in danger, in order
to protect them or to calm with a mother's love the
fear of those of tender years, they are said to open
their mouths and hold their young, without harming
them, in their teeth, and also to take them back into
their body, concealed in their womb.
What human affection can equal the sense of duty
that we find in fish? For us, kisses suffice. For them, it
is not enough to open the innermost parts of their
body, to swallow their young then bring them back
whole, to give their offspring life once again with their
own warmth, to breathe into their young their own
breath, and to live as two in one body until either
they have carried them off to safety or by interposing
their own bodies, have protected their young from the
threatened danger.
Which fisherman seeing this, even if he were still able
to catch the fish, would not give in to such a display
of duty? Who would not marvel and stand amazed
that nature has preserved in fish a quality that is not
found in men?
Many men, acting out of mistrust, driven by
malevolence and hatred, have killed their children; we
have read of others, women, who have eaten their
own children in times of famine. The mother thus
becomes a tomb for her infants. To the spawn of the
fish, however, the mother's womb is like a wall; she
preserves her harmless brood by turning her
innermost parts into a sort of fortress.
The different species of fish, therefore, have different
habits. Some lay eggs, others produce living, full-
formed offspring. Those who lay eggs do not weave
nests like birds; they do not go through the bother of
a long process of hatching their young; and they do
not have the trouble of feeding them. The egg has
been laid, and the water has reared it on what is, in
effect, her own natural bosom, like a gentle nurse,
incubating the egg quickly so that it becomes a living
thing. For, given life by the constant touch of its
mother, the water, the egg disintegrates and the fish
emerges. How pure and unspoiled this process of
generation is, involving, as it does, no creature
outside that particular species.
Translation
For male fish know nothing about adulterous contacts
sicut ea\ que coeunt. Asinorum equarumque inter se
genera magna cura\ hominum perpetrantur vel rursus
cum equis asine miscentur, que\ sunt vere adulteria
nature. Nam utique maius est quod in nature\
colluvione committitur quam quod in persone iniuria.
Et o homo ista\ procuras interpres adulterii
iumentalis, et illud animal preciosius putas\ quod
adulterinum, quam quod verum est. Ipse genera
aliena confun\dis, diversaque misces semina, et ad
vetitos coitus plerumque cogis\ invitos, et hoc
industriam vocas, hoc quia de hominibus facere non\
potes ut diversi generis commixtio fetum possit
excludere,\ tollis homini quod natus est, et virum de
viro exuis, abscisaque\ corporis parte, sexum necas,
spadonem efficis, ut quod negavit\ natura in
hominibus, impleret audatia. Quam bona autem
ma\ter aqua, hinc considera. Tu homo docuisti
abdicationes patrum\ in filios, separationes, odia,
offensas, disce que sit parentis et\ filiorum
necessitudo. Vivere pisces sine aqua non queunt, nec\
a sue parentis consortio separari, neque a sue altricis
discerni mu\nere. Et hoc fit natura quadam ut
separati moriantur ilico. Quid\ autem de densitate
dicam dentium? Non enim ut oves aut\ boves ex una
parte dentes habent, sed utraque pars armata est
den\tibus qui in aqua sunt, et si diutius cibum
versarent, et non cito\ transmitterent, aquarum
illuvione de dentibus eorum esca pos\set auferri ac
dilui. Ideo densos et acutos habent dentes ut cito\
incidant cito conficiant cibum, et ut facile et sine
aliqua mora\ et dilatione transmittant. Denique non
ruminant. Solus tamen\ scarus ruminare perhibetur ut
ferunt quibus aut eventus aut\ usus fuit aut studium
comprehendere, sane nec ipsi a suis poten\tie evasere
violentiam, et avaricie potentiorum subiectum\ ubique
inferiores sunt, quo quisque infirmior eo prede patet.
Et\ plerique quidem herbis pascuntur, minor apud illos
esca maioris\
Transcription
sensorgr
with fish of other species, like the females with whom
they copulate.
Species of donkeys and mares are created by
interbreeeding with the special intervention of man,
or in the other way, when horses mount asses; in the
context of nature, these are truly acts of adultery. For
undoubtedly, what is done in a natural context by
interbreeding is more significant than what happens in
a personal context by injury.
O men, you bring these things about as an agent of
adultery between animals and you consider a hybrid
animal more valuable than one which is pure bred.
You interbreed different species and mix the seed of
one with another, and frequently you force animals
unwillingly to take part in intercourse which is
forbidden, and you call this 'industry'; because you
cannot interbreed among men, in such a way that the
mixing of two species can exclude the creation of
offspring, you take away from a man what he was
born with, you take the virility from a man, you
destroy his sex by cutting off part of his body and you
create a eunuch, so that what nature denies in man,
your presumption achieves.
As to how good a mother water is, think about this.
You, O man, have taught the denial, separation,
hatred, crimes, of fathers against sons; learn what is
essential to that relationship. Fish cannot live without
water; they cannot be separated from the company of
their parent; they cannot be parted from the services
of their wet-nurse. If this should happen, it is their
nature, when separated, to die there and then.
What can I tell you about the quantity and density of
their teeth? For creatures that live in water are not
like sheep or cattle, whose teeth grow in one part of
the mouth, but every part of their mouth is armed
with teeth, and if they are slow to chew their food and
swallow it, it can be washed down and dissolved by
the flow of water from their teeth.
Their teeth are close-set and sharp, so that they can
cut food quickly and consume food quickly, and
swallow it without delay or hesitation. In short, they
do not ruminate, that is, chew the cud. Only the
scarus is reported to be a ruminant, chewing on
everything that it takes in by chance, habit or
purpose.
It is a fact that fish cannot escape violence from their
own kind, and wherever there are smaller fish, they
become the subject of the greed of more powerful
fish, so that a weaker species is the prey of a
stronger. There are many, indeed, which feed on
vegetation. But among fish the smaller species is the
food of the larger;
Translation
est, et rursus ipse maior a validiore invaditur, et sic
esca al\terius, predator alieni. Itaque usu venit ut
cum ipse alium devo\raverit, ab alio devoretur, et
unum ventrem utrumque con\veniat, cum devoratore
proprio devoratus, sitque simul in uno\ viscere prede
vindicteque consortium. Et ex ipsis sponte forte hec\
accrevit iniuria, sicut in nobis non ex natura cepit, sed
ex ava\ricia. Aut quia ad usum hominum dati sunt, in
signum quoque\ facti sunt, ut in his nostrorum morum
vicia videremus, et eorum\ caveremus exempla,
nequis pocior inferiorem invaderet, datu\rus in se
potentiori exemplum iniurie. Itaque qui alium ledit\
sibi laqueum parat. Et tu piscis es qui viscera invadis
aliena,\ qui demergis infirmum qui credentem
persequeris usque in pro\fundum. Cave ne dum illum
persequeris, incidas ipse validi\orem, et deducat te in
alienas insidias qui tuas vicat, priusque\ tuam
expectet erumpnam, qui te persequente propriam
formidabat.\ Escarius dictus eo quod escam solus
ruminare perhibetur, denique\ alii pisces non
ruminant. Tradunt autem hunc ingeniosum\ esse.
Namque inclusum vasis non fronte erumpere, nec
infestis\ viminibus caput inserere, sed adversum
caude ictibus crebris lax\are fores, atque ita
retrorsum redire. Quem luctatum eius\ si forte alius
escarius videat, apprehensa mordiciis cau\da adiuvat
nisus erumpentis. Echenais et semipedalis\ pisciculus
nomen sumpsit, quod navem adherendo teneat,\
ruant licet venti, seviant procelle, navis tamen quasi
radi\cata in mari stare videtur, nec moveri potest, non
retinen\do hoc facit sed tantum modo adherendo.
Hunc Latini moram ap\pellant, eo quod cogat stare
navigia. Anguille similitudo\ anguis nomen dedit.
Origo eius ex limo, unde et quando capitur\ adeo lenis
est ut quanto fortius presseris, tanto cicius elabitur.\
Ferunt autem orientis fluvium Gangen anguillas
trigenis\
Transcription
pedibus gignere. Anguille vino necate qui ex eo
biberint, tedi\um vini habent. Murenam Greci
mirinnam vocant, eo quod\ complicet se in circulos.
Hanc feminini tantum sexus esse tra\dunt et
sensorgr
in turn, the larger fish is seized by an even stronger
one, and thus the predator becomes the prey.
Thus it is the way among fish that when one devours
another, it is devoured by a third, and they each end
up in the same belly, since each has been consumed
by its appropriate consumer, and together in the
same entrails is a twosome, one of them preyed
upon, the other avenged. Among fish this aggression
grew deliberately, just as it did in us, for it did not
start in nature but in greed. Or because fish are given
for man's use, but are also given as a guide, that we
might see in them the vices inherent in our own ways,
and heed their example; lest the stronger should
swallow up the weaker, he should be shown what
harm he might suffer at the hand of one even
stronger.
So, he who harms another, ties a noose for himself.
And you, you are the fish that attacks the entrails of
the other, you overpower the weak, you pursue the
believer down to the depths. Take care lest, while you
are in pursuit, you meet one who is stronger than
you, that he who can defeat your snare does not lead
you into another and that your prey is preoccupied
with his own danger, before he witnesses yours.
The escarius is so called because, they claim, it alone
ruminates its food, esca; other fish do not. They say it
is a clever fish. For, caught in a pot, it does not try to
break out with its forehead or try to stick its head
through the wicker sides, but with rapid blows of its
tail loosens the rear entrance of the pot and thus
swims out through the back. If by chance another
escarius sees it struggling, it seizes the captive's tail
between its teeth and helps it to break out.
The echenais is a very small fish, six inches long,
which gets its name from the fact that it holds a ship
fast by sticking to it; although the winds roar and the
storms rage, the ship stays still, rooted, it seems, in
the sea, immobile. The fish does this, not by holding
the ship back, but simply by sticking on to it. Latin-
speakers call this fish mora, because it forces vessels
to stay in one place, thereby causing a delay, mora.
Eels, anguille, get their name from their similarity to
serpents, angues. They are born from mud; for this
reason, if you catch an eel, it is so smooth that the
harder you grip it, the quicker it slithers away. They
say that in the River Ganges, in the east, there are
eels thirty
Translation
feet long. If dead eels are soaked in wine, anyone
drinking the liquor develops a loathing of wine.
The lamprey, murena, is called by the Greeks
concipere a serpente, ob id a piscatoribus tanquam a
serpen\te sibilo evocatur et capitur. Ictu autem fustis
difficulter interi\mitur, ferula protinus. Animam
habere in cauda certum est nam\ capite percusso, vix
eam interimi cauda statim exanimari. Poi\lippus, id
est multipes plurimos enim nexus habet. Iste
ingeniosus\ hamum appetens, brachiis complectitur in
morsu, nec prius\ dimittit, quam escam circumroserit.
Torpedo vocata eo quod\ corpus torpescere faciat, si
eam quisque viventem tangat. Nar\rat Plinius
secundus ex Indico mari torpedo etiam procul et e\
longinquo vel si hasta virgaque attingatur, quamvis
preva\lidos lacertos torpescere, quamlibet ad cursum
veloces alligate\ pedes. Tanta enim vis eius est, ut
etiam aura corporis sui\ afficiat membra. Cancer
quoque quas cibi gratia prestigias\ struit. Namque et
ipse ostreo delectatur, et carnis eius epulum\ sibi
querit. Sed quia ut appetens cibi ita prospiciens est
peri\culi, quam cum [quantum] difficilis est venatio,
tunc [tantum] periculosa. Difficilis\ quia testis
validioribus esca interior includitur, nam velut\ muris
quibusdam molliciem carnis precepti imperialis
inter\pres natura munivit, quam medio testarum
quodam\ sinu concavo nutrit ac fovet, et quasi in
quadam valle\ diffundit, et ideo cassa omnia
temptamenta sunt cancri\ quia aperire clausum
ostreum nulla vi potest, et periculo\sum est si chelam
eius includat. Ad argumenta confugit,\ et insidias
nova fraude molitur. Itaque quia omnia genera\
delectatione mulcentur, explorat si quando ostreum
remo\tis in locis ab omni vento contra solis radios
dipticum il\lud suum aperiat, et referet claustra
testarum, ut libero\
Transcription
aere visceris sui voluptatem quandam capiat, et tunc
clan\culo calculum immittens impedit conclusionem
ostrei, ac\ sic aperta claustra reperiens tuto inserit
chelas, visceraque interna\ depascitur. Sic igitur
homines viciosi sunt qui cancri usu in\ aliene usum
circumscriptionis irrepunt, et infirmitatem\ proprie
virtutis, astu quodam suffulciunt, fratri dolum\
sensorgr
mirinna, because it twists itself into circles. Lampreys,
it is said, are of the female sex only and conceive
from intercourse with snakes; as a result, fishermen
catch it by calling it with a snake's hiss. It is difficult
to kill a lamprey with a single blow from a cudgel; you
need to beat it repeatedly with a stick. It is a fact that
the life-spirit of the lamprey is its tail, for when it is
beaten on the head, it is difficult to kill; but when it is
beaten on the tail, it dies at once.
The name of the poilippus means 'many-footed',
because it has a large number of coiling legs. It is a
clever fish; it makes for the fisherman's baited hook,
catches hold of it by entwining it in its limbs, and does
not let go until it has nibbled round the bait.
The torpedo is so called because it numbs the body of
anyone who touches it when it is alive. According to
Pliny the second, if a torpedo from the Indian sea is
touched by a spear or rod, even from a considerable
distance, the muscles of the fisherman's arms, even if
they are very strong, grow numb, and his feet,
however fast they run, cannot move. So great is the
power of the torpedo, that even its breath has this
effect on the limbs of the body.
The crab also plans a series of tricks to acquire food.
For it has a taste for oysters and sets out to feast on
their flesh. But because seeking food means looking
out for danger, the more difficult the chase, the
greater the danger.
The crab's quest is difficult because the food is
enclosed within two very strong shells, for nature,
acting in accordance with the will of the Creator, has
furnished the softness of the flesh with walls, so to
speak, nourishing and warming it within the shells in
a bosom-like cleft, and the oyster spreads its flesh out
as if in a valley. As a result, all the efforts of the crab
come to nothing, because it has not the strength to
open the closed oyster.
The crab's quest becomes dangerous if the oyster
shuts its shell on one of the the crab's claws. The crab
resorts to strategy and works on the idea of setting a
trap, using a new kind of trick. Because all kinds of
animals yield to pleasure, the crab watches out for
the time when the oyster, safely out of the wind and
lying in the rays of the sun, opens its double-shelled
prison in order to
Translation
satisfy its inner longing for some fresh air. Then the
crab, stealthily inserting a pebble, stops the oyster
from closing its shell and, finding what was shut now
open, it inserts its claws in safety and feeds on the
flesh inside.
In the same way, therefore, there are evil men who,
nectunt, et alterius pascuntur erumpna. Tu autem
propriis\ esto contentus, et aliena te dampna non
pascant. Bonus\ cibus est simplicitas innocentie. Sua
bona habens insidiari\ nescit alienis, nec avaricie
facibus inardescit, cui lucrum\ omne ad virtutem
dispendium est, ad cupiditatem incen\dium. Et ideo
beata est si bona sua noverit cum veritate pau\pertas,
et omnibus preferenda thesauris, quia melius est
exigu\um cum dei timore, quam thesauri magni sine
timore. Melior\ est enim hospitalitas in oleribus cum
gratia, quam vitulorum\ pinguium preparatio cum
discordia. Utamur ergo ingenio ad\ querendam
gratiam et salutem tuendam, non ad alienam\
circumscribendam innocentiam, licet nobis uti
exemplis\ maritimis ad profectum nostre salutis non
ad aliene periculum.\ Echinus animal exiguum, vile ac
despectabile maritimum\ loquor, plerumque index
future tempestatis aut tranquillita\tis aut nuncius
solet esse navigantibus. Denique cum procellam\
ventorum presenserit, calculum validum arripit,
eumque\ velut saburram vehit, et tanquam anchoram
trahit ne excu\ciatur fluctibus. Itaque non suis se
liberat viribus sed alieno sta\bilit et regit pondere.
Quo indicio naute velud signum fu\ture
perturbationibus capessunt et sibi precavent ne eos
impa\ratos turbo improvisus inveniat. Qui
mathematicus qui astro\logus qui ve Caldeus potest
siderum cursus, sic et celi mo\tus et signa
comprehendere? Quo ingenio ista colligit,\
Transcription
quo doctore percipit? Quis ei fuit tanti interpres
augurii?\ Sepe homines confusionem aeris vident et
sepe falluntur,\ quod plerumque eam sine tempestate
discuciant. Echinus\ non fallitur, echinum sua
nequaquam signa pretereunt. Unde\ exiguo animali
tanta scientia ut futura prenuntiet, quod ma\gis in eo
nichil est quam tantam habere prudentiam. Crede
quod\ per indulgentiam domini reorum omnium, hic
quoque presci\entie huius munus acceperit. Etenim si
fenum deus sic vestit\ ut miremur, si pascit volatilia,
si parat corvis escam, pulli\ enim eorum clamant ad
dominum, et si mulieribus dedit\ texture sapientiam,
si araneam que tam subtiliter ac docte\ laxos casses
suspendit in foribus sapientie non relinquat\
sensorgr
in the manner of the crab, deceive others by stealth,
and bolster their own incapacity by a degree of
cunning; they enmesh their brothers in deceit and
feed off another's troubles. Be content with what is
yours, and do not grow fat on the misfortunes of
others. The right food is the sincerity of innocence.
The man who has his own sense of worthiness cannot
waylay others; he does not burn with the flames of
avarice; profit he regards as loss of virtue and an
incentive to greed. Therefore, blessed is poverty if it
teaches a man to know truly the worth of his
possessions; it is preferable to any treasure, for
'Better is little with the fear of the Lord than great
treasure and trouble therewith. Better a dinner of
herbs where there is love, than a dinner of fatted calf
where there is hatred' (see Proverbs, 15:16-17).
Let us use our intelligence, therefore, to seek grace
and attain salvation, not to deceive another in his
innocence; and let us use the examples of sea-
creatures to the advancement of our salvation, not to
endanger others.
The urchin is small, worthless and contemptible - I
am talking about the maritime kind - and is
customarily taken by seafarers as a sign of a storm
ahead or as a herald of calm weather. When it senses
that a stormy blast is on the way, it seizes a good-
sized pebble and carries it as a kind of ballast, and
drags it like an anchor lest it is thrown up by the
swell. Thus it saves itself not by its own strength but
by using weight from another source to steer a stable
course.
Sailors seize on this behaviour as a sign of bad
weather to come and take precautions lest an
unexpected hurricane should catch them unprepared.
What mathematician, what astrologer, what Chaldean
can make sense in this way of the course of the stars,
or of the motions and signs of the heavens. By what
instinct has the urchin acquired this skill?
Translation
From what teacher has it learned this art? Who
interpreted such omens for it? Men often observe
turbulence in the air and are often deceived, because
frequently it disperses without a storm. The urchin is
not mistaken; the significance of the signs it sees
does not escape it. From where did this tiny creature
get such knowledge that it can foretell the future,
because it has no innate capacity to display such
foresight.
You must believe that it is through the kindness of the
Lord of all things that the echinus. too, has received
the gift of foresight. For if 'God so clothe the grass of
the field' that we marvel, if he feeds 'the fowls of the
immunem, si ipse virtutem equo dedit, et solvit de
cervice\ eius formidinem eut [ut] exultet in campis, et
occurrens regi\bus arrideat, odoretur bellum eminus,
excitetur sono\ tube, si hec irrationabilia pleraque et
alia insensibilia, ut fe\num ut lilia repleta sue
dispositione sapientie, quid du\bitamus, et quod etiam
in echinum contulerit huius gra\ciam prescientie?
Nichil enim inexploratum, nichil dissi\mulatum
relinquit. Omnia videt qui pascit omnia, om\nia replet
sapientia qui omnia in sapientia fecit ut scrip\tum est.
Et ideo si echinum visitationis sue exortem non\
pretermisit, si eum considerat, et futurorum informat
indi\ciis, tua non considerat? Immo vero considerat si
[sic] contestatur\ eius divina sapientia dicens: Si
respicit volatilia si pascit\ illa, nonne vos pluris estis
illis? Si fenum agri quod hodie\ est, et cras in ignem
mittitur deus sic vestit, quantomagis vos\ minime
fidei? Conce conclee ex hac causa vocate, quia de\
ficiente luna cavantur, id est evacuantur. Omnium
enim clau\sorum animalium maris atque concarum
incremento lune\
Transcription
membratim crescunt, defectu evacuantur. Luna enim
cum\ in augmento fuerit, auget humorem, cum vero
in defectum\ fuerit humores minuuntur. Hoc phisici
dicunt. Conce autem\ prime posicionis nomen,
conclee vero per diminutionem quasi concu\le.
Concarum genera multa sunt, inter quas et
margaritifere\ que occeloe dicuntur in quarum carne
preciosus calculus solidatur.\ De quibus tradunt hi qui
de animantium scripserunt naturis,\ eo quod nocturno
tempore littora appetant et ex celesti rore\
margaritam concipiunt, unde et occeole nominantur.
Murica\ coclea est maris dicta ab acumine et
asperitate, que alio nomine\ concilium nominatur,
propter quod circumcisa ferro lacrimas\ purpurei
coloris emittat, ex quibus purpura tingitur, et inde\
ostrum appellatum quod hec tinctura ex teste humore
elicitur.\ Cancros vocari quia conce sunt crura
habentes inimica ostreis\ animalia. Eorum enim
sensorgr
air' (see Matthew, 6:26, 30); if 'he provideth for the
raven his food, when his young ones cry unto God'
(Job, 38:41); if he gives women the skill of weaving;
if he has not left the spider, which hangs its open
network on doorways, without the gift of knowledge;
if he has given strength to the horse and loosed terror
from its mane, so that it exults on the battlefield and
laughs in the face of kings and 'smelleth the battle
afar off' and says Ha! at the sound of the trumpets
(see Job, 39: 19-25) ... if these many creatures, who
lack the capacity of reason, together with the grass
and the lilies of the field, are filled with the wisdom
which the Lord has dispensed, why should we doubt
that he has also conferred upon the echinus the grace
of foresight?
For there is nothing that the Lord has not examined,
nothing that has not been revealed to him. He sees all
things, who nourishes all things; he fills all things with
wisdom, who has made all things in wisdom, as it is
written (see Psalms, 104:24). For this reason, if he
has not neglected the echinus, if he has not left him
out of his visitation; if he attends to it and instructs it
in signs of things to come, does he not take care of
you?
Indeed he does, as he proves in his divine wisdom,
saying: 'If your heavenly father sees the fowls of the
air and feeds them, are ye not much better than
they? If God so clothe the grasses of the field, which
today is, and tomorrow is cast into the oven, shall he
not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith? '
(Matthew, 6: 26, 30).
The conca and concle are so called because they are
hollow, that is to say, they empty themselves, at the
waning of the moon. For the limbs of all the enclosed
sea-creatures and shellfish grow at the waxing of the
moon
Translation
and empty when the moon is waning. For when the
moon waxes, it increases a humour; when it wanes, it
diminishes them. This is what physicians say. Conce is
the name for those in the first state, that is, growing;
but conclee are what they are called after they have
shrunk - conculee, little conce, so to speak. There are
many species of the conca, among them the pearl-
bearing oysters called occeloe, in whose flesh a
precious stone is formed.
The authors of the book of the natures of living things
relate that at night these creatures go ashore and are
fertilised by the dew from heaven, for which reason
they are called occeole, ob celestem.
The murica is a sea snail, so called from its sharp
point and rough surface; it is known by another
name, concilium, because when you cut around it with
carnibus vivunt miro ingenio. Nam quia\ validam
testam eius aperire non potest, explorat quando
ostrea\ claustra testarum aperiat. Tunc cancer
latenter lapillum inicit,\ atque impedita conclusione
ostree carnes erodit. Tradunt enim\ quidam decem
cancris concimi manipulo alligatis, omnes qui\ ibi sunt
scorpiones ad eum locum coituros. Duo sunt autem\
genera cancrorum fluviales et maritimi. Ostrea dicta
est a testa\ qua mollicies interior carnis munitur.
Greci enim testam ostream\ dicunt. Musculi sunt
conclee, a quorum lacte concipiunt ostree.\ Et dicti
musculi quasi masculi. Testudo dictus eo quod
tegmi\ne teste adopertus in camere modum. Sunt
autem quatuor genera.\ Terrestres, maritime, lutarie,
id est in ceno et palude viventes, quar\tum genus
fluviales que in dulci aqua vivunt. Tradunt aliqui\ quod
incredibile est, tardius ire navigia, testudinis pedem
dex\trum vehentia. Rane a garrulitate eo quod circa
genitales stre\punt paludes, et sonos vocis importunis
clamoribus reddunt.\
Transcription
Ex quibus quedam aquatice dicuntur quedam
palustres, quidam\ rubete ob id quod in vepribus
vivunt, grandiores ceteris. Alie cala\mites vocantur
quoniam inter arundines fruticesque vivunt, mini\me
omnium et viridissime mute et sine voce sunt.
Egredule\ rane parvule in sicco vel agris morantes
unde et nuncupate.\ Negant quidam canes latrare,
quibus offa rana viva fuerit\ data. Animalium omnium
in aquis viventium nomina\ centum quadraginta
quatuor. Plinius ait divisa cum generibus beluarum\
serpentium communium terre et aque. Cancrorum,
conca\rum locustarum, peloridum philopporum,
solearum, la\certorum, ut luligo, et huic similia. \ De
arboribus \ Arborum nomen sive herbarum ab ar\vis
inflexum creditur,\ eo quod terris fixis\ radicibus
adhereant. Utraque autem ideo\ sibi pene similia
sunt, quia ex uno al\terum gignitur. Nam dum
sementem\ in terram ieceris, herba prius oritur.
sensorgr
an iron blade, it produces tears which are purple in
colour, from which purple dye is made; from this
comes the other name for purple, ostrum, because
the dye is made from the fluid enclosed in the shell
(in Greek, ostreon).
The crab, cancros or cancer, is so called because they
are shellfish, conce, with legs, crura; they are the
enemies of oysters. They live on the flesh of oysters
by extraordinary cleverness. For because they cannot
open the oyster's strong shell, they watch out for a
time when the oyster itself opens the closed leaves.
Then the crab secretly inserts a small stone and,
preventing the oyster from closing up again, gnaws
away its flesh. They say that if ten crabs are bound
together with a handful of basil, all the scorpions in
the neighbourhood assemble at that point. There are
two kinds of crab, river and sea.
The oyster gets its name from the shell which protects
the softness of the flesh within. For the Greek word
for 'shell' is ostreon.
Musculi are small shellfish; oysters conceive from
their milk. They are called musculi, meaning, so to
speak, masculi, 'males'.
The tortoise, testudo, is so called because it is
covered by the vault of its shell, in the manner of an
arched roof. There are four species: land, sea, mud -
that is, living in swamps or marshland; the fourth
species belongs to rivers and lives in fresh water.
Some relate the incredible fact that ships sail more
slowly when they carry the right foot of a tortoise.
Frogs, rane, get their name from their constant
chatter, because they make a croaking noise all
around the marshes where they breed, calling out in
an uncouth manner with their peculiar sound.
Translation
Of these, some are called water frogs, others marsh;
some are called toads, rubete, because they live in
brambles, rubus; they are larger than the others.
Others are called calamites, since they live among
reeds, calamus, and bushes; they are the smallest of
all, they are green, they are dumb, and they have no
croak. Egredula are very small frogs living on dry
ground or in fields, ager, from which they get their
name. Some say that dogs will not bark if you give
them a live frog to eat.
According to Pliny, the names of the creatures living
in water total one hundred and forty-four, divided,
into the following species: monsters, amphibious
serpents, crabs, shellfish, lobsters, mussels, polyps,
flatfish, lizards, rockfish and those like it.
Of trees
Dehinc\ confota surgit in arborem, et infra\ parvum
tempus, quam herbam vi\deras arbustam suspicis.
Arbusta quasi arboris hasta. Alii\ arbustum locum in
quo arbores sunt volunt accipere, sicut\ salictum et
salicta, et turecta [PL, virecta], ubi salices et virgule
novelle\ et virentes. Frutex brevis est appellatus,
quod terram frondet\ et tegat, cuius plurale nomen
frutecta. Nemus a numinibus\ nuncupatum, quia
pagani ibi idola consecrabant, sunt enim\ nemora
arbores maiores umbrose frondibus. Lucus [PL,
Saltus] est\ densitas arborum alta vocata hoc nomine
eo quod exi\liat in altum et in sublime consurgat.
Inficio [PL, insitio] dicitur cum\ inciso trunco surculus
secunde [PL, fecunde] arboris sterili inseritur. Plante\
sunt de arboribus. Plantaria vero que ex semine nata
sunt\
Transcription
cum radicibus et a terra propria transferuntur. Radix
appellatur quod\ quasi radiis quibusdam fixa terris in
profunda mergitur. Nam\ phisici dicunt parem esse
altitudinem radicum et arborum.\ Truncus est statura
arboris insistens radici. Corticem veteres\ corucem
vocabant, dictus autem cortex quod corio lignum\
tegat. Liber est corticis pars interior, dictus a liberato
cortice, id est ab\lato. Est enim medium quiddam
inter lignum et corticem.\ Rami sunt qui de trunco
manant, sicut a ramis surculi. Sur\culi sunt a
precisione serre nuncupati. Virgultum est quod de
radice\ pullulat. Ramus de ipso robore arboris. Virga
que de ramis,\ proprie autem virgultum appellatur,
quod ad radicem arboris\ nascitur, et quasi inutile ab
agricolis amputatur, et hinc dictum\ virgultum quod
ex virga tollitur. Virga vel a virtute dicitur, quia\ vim
in se habeat multam vel a viriditate vel quia pacis
indicium\ est quod vireat. Unde hac utuntur magi ad
placandos inter se\ serpentes, et iccirco in ea hos
sustinent illigatos, hac etiam phi\losophi, hac reges et
magistri, et nuntii et legati utuntur.\ Flagella dicuntur
summe arborum partes, ab eo quod crebros\
sensorgr
The word for trees, arbores, and grasses, herbe, is
believed to come from arva, a field, because they
adhere to the earth with their roots which lie fast
within it. The two words are almost the same,
because one springs from the other. For when you
throw a seed into the earth, first a grass shoot rises.
Thereafter, with nourishment, it grows into a tree and
within a short time, from looking down at shoot of
grass you are looking up at a sapling.
The word arbusta is, as it were, arboris hasta, 'the
shaft of the tree'; the word arbustum is taken by
others take it to mean 'plantation', a place where
there are trees; as salictum and salicta, and turecta
mean places where there are willows and small trees,
young and turning green.
A shrub, frutex, is small and is so called because puts
forth leaves and covers, tegere, the ground; the
plural form is frutecta.
A wood, nemus, gets its name from numina, deities,
because the heathen consecrated their idols there; for
woods contain large trees, whose boughs give deep
shade.
A tall thicket of trees, lucus, is so called because it
springs to a great height, rising to the sky. Grafting,
insitio, is said to take place when a shoot from a
fertile tree is implanted, inserere, into a cut made in
the trunk of a barren tree.
Cuttings, plante, are taken from trees. But sets,
plantaria, are those which are grown from seed
Translation
with roots and are subsequently transplanted from
the soil in which they were grown.
The root, radix, is so called because it is fixed deep in
the ground as if by stakes, radius. Indeed, scholars of
natural philosophy say that the depth of the root is
equal to the height of the tree.
The trunk is the vertical part of the tree, based on the
root.
The ancients called cortex, bark, corux; the word
cortex itself comes from the fact that bark covers the
tree like a hide, corium.
The inner part of the bark, liber, so called because the
bark is freed, liberatus, from it, that is, stripped away.
For it is a buffer between the wood and the bark.
Branches are what spread forth from the trunk, as
twigs from the branches.
ventorum sustinent flatus. Cimas vocatas quasi
comas, fo\lia Grece sylia dicuntur. Unde est ad nos
hoc nomen per dirivatio\nem translatum. Flores
nominati, quod cito solvuntur de arbo\ribus quasi
fluores, quod cito solvantur. In his duplex gratia,
coloris\ et odoris. Austro enim flores solvuntur,
zephiro fiunt. Gramen\ dicimus surculum pregnantem
a generando unde et gene\ratio. Fructus accepit
nomen a frumine, id est eminente gut\turis parte qua
vescimur, unde et fruges, fructus autem\ proprie
dicuntur agrorum et arborum quibus utique utimur.\
In animalibus vero abusive et translative vocari
fructum. Po\ma dicta ab opimo, id est a copie
ubertate. Matura dicuntur\ quia apta sunt ad
manducandum. Ligna dicta quia accensa\
Transcription
convertuntur in lumen, unde et lignus dicitur quod
lumen det.\ Torris lignum adustum, quem vulgus
titionem vocat, foco\ semiustum et extinctum.
Quisquilie sunt stipule inmixte\ surculis ac foliis aridis.
Sunt purgamenta terrarum. \ De pro\ priis
sensorgr
Twigs, surculi, are so called because they are pruned
with a saw, serra.
The word virgultum refers to the thin twigs which
sprout from the root. The branch springs from the
trunk. The twig, virga, from the branch. The word
virgultum is used correctly, however, because it
means the twigs which grow at the root and are cut
off by farmers as if they were useless; they are so
called because they are removed from the other
twigs.
The word virga comes from strength, virtus, because
a branch is very strong, or from its green colour,
viriditas, or because it is a sign of peace, because it
turns green with leaves, a symbol of growth.
Magicians use them to calm snakes fighting amongst
themselves, supporting them coiled around the
branch; philosophers, kings, magistrates, heralds and
ambassadors use them for this purpose.
The highest parts of the tree are called flagella,
whiplashes, because they catch repeated gusts of
wind.
Foliage, cime, is so to say, come, hair. Leaves, folia,
in Latin, are sylia in Greek; the Latin word has come
down to us by derivation from the Greek.
Blossom, flores, is so called because it is dispersed
quickly from the trees, like currents in a stream, fluor,
which quickly dissipate. Blossom has a twofold charm
- its colour and its scent. For it is stripped off by the
south wind and is brought to flower by the wind of the
west.
A shoot ready to flower, we call gramen; the word
comes from generare, to beget, which also gives us
generatio.
Fruit, fructus, get its name from frumen, the larynx,
that is, the projecting part of the throat, with which
we eat; fruges comes from the same source. Properly
speaking, 'fruit' means in particular the produce of
fields and trees which we use. But it is also applied,
improperly and by transference, to animals. Apple,
pomum, comes from opimus, rich, referring to its
abundance. Things are said to be ripe, maturus,
because they are then suitable for eating.
Wood in its various forms, ligna, is so called because
when it is kindled
Translation
they are turned into light, lumen; wood is also called
lignus because it gives light. The word for a burning
brand of wood is torris; it is commonly called titio,
when it lies partly burned and cold on the hearth.
nominibus arborum. \ Palma dicta quia manus
victricis\ ornata est, vel quod oppansis est ramis in
modum palme\ hominis. Est enim arbor insignis [PL,
insigne] victorie proceroque ac decoro\ virgulto
diuturnisque vestita frondibus et folia sua sine
suc\sensione [PL, successione] conservans. Hanc
Greci phenicem dicunt, quod diu\ durat, ex nomine
avis illius Arabie, que multis annis vi\vere perhibetur,
fructus eius dactilia digitorum similitudine\ nuncupati
sunt. Laurus a verbo laudis dicta, hac enim victo\rum
capita coronabantur. Apud antiquos autem laudea
no\minabatur. Postea quinta littera sublata, et
subrogata r dicta est\ laurus, ut in auriculis que in
inicio audicule dicte sunt, et\ medidies qui nunc
meridies dicitur. Hanc arborem Greci daphi\nem
vocant, eo quod nunquam deponat viriditatem. Inde
il\la pocius victores coronantur. Solaque hec arbor
vulgo fulmina\ri et minime creditur. Malus a Grecis
dicta quod sit fructus eius\ pomorum omnium
rotundissimus. Unde et hec sunt vera\ mala que
vehementer rotunda sunt. Malomellus a dulcedi\ ne
appellata quod fructus eius mellis saporem habeat,
vel\ quod in melle serventur. Malum punicum dicitur,
quod ex Punica\ regione sit genus eius translatum.
Idem et malum granatum eo quod\ inter rotunditatem
corticis granorum contineat multitudinem.\ De ficu \
Ficus Latine a fecunditate vocatur,\ feracior est enim
arboribus ceteris, nam ter quaterque per singulos\
annos generat fructum, atque altero maturescente
alter oboritur.\ Hinc et carice a copia nominate. Ficus
Egiptia fecundior fertur,\ cuius lignum in aquam
missum continuo mergitur et cum in limo\
Transcription
aliquandiu iacuerit, deinde in superficiem sustollitur
versa vice nature\ quoniam madefactum debuit
humoris pondere residere. A senibus\ in cibo sepius
sumpte ficus rugas eorum fertur distendere. Tau\ros
sensorgr
Quisquilie is the word for the mixture of stalks,
withered shoots and dead leaves; they are the
sweepings of the trees.
Of the particular names of trees
The palm, palma, is so called because it adorns the
victorious hand, or because its branches are spread
out in the manner of the palm of man's hand. For the
tree is the symbol of victory; it bears long and
beautiful branches, and is clad in long-lasting foliage,
which it keeps without any replacement. The Greeks
call this tree 'phoenix', because it lasts a long time,
taking the name of the bird of Arabia, which is said to
live for many years; the fruits of the palm are called
dactilia, from their resemblance to fingers.
The laurel, laurus, comes from the word laus, praise,
for the heads of the victorious were crowned with
laurel. In fact, among the ancients, laurels were called
laudea. Later the letter D was removed and replaced
by R, so that it was called laurus, as in the words
auricule, which was originally audicule, and medidies,
now called meridies. The Greeks call the laurel
daphne, because it never loses its greenery; that is
why it was preferred as a crown for the victorious. It
is commonly believed to the only tree which is never
struck by lightning.
The apple-tree, malus, was so called by the Greeks
because its fruit was rounder than any other. From
this comes the belief that real apples are those which
are exceedingly well-rounded.
The tree known as malomellus is so called from its
sweetness, either because its fruit has the taste of
honey, mel, or because it is preserved in honey. The
Punic apple, malum punicum, is so called because its
species was imported from the area of Carthage,
Punicus. It is also called the seeded apple, malum
granatum, because it contains, within the sphere
formed by its skin, a large quantity of seeds, granum.
Of the fig tree
The fig tree is so called from its fruitfulness,
fecunditas, for it is more fruitful than other trees,
bearing fruit three or four times in a single year, one
crop ripening as the other appears. For this reason
the figs known as carice are so called because of their
abundance. The Egyptian fig tree is said to be more
fruitful. If you throw its wood into water, it sinks right
down; when it has lain on the mud
Translation
for some time, then it is born up to the surface,
contrary to nature, since like any waterlogged object,
it should have remained at the bottom, held down by
the weight of the water. It is said that when old
quoque ferocissimos ad fici arborem colligatos,
repente\ mansuescere dicunt. \ Item de arboribus \
Morus a Grecis vocata quam Latini rubum appellant\
eo quod fructus eius vel virgultum eius rubet. Est\
enim morus silvestris fructum afferens, quibus in
deserto pa\storum fames ac penuria confovetur.
Huius folia superiactata\ serpenti fertur interimi. \
Item \ Sicomorus sicut morus\ Greca nomina sunt,
dicta autem sicomorus eo quod folium eius sit\ simile
moro. Hanc Latini celsam appellant ab altitudine,
quia\ non est brevis ut morus. \ Item \ [N]ux
appellata quod\ umbra vel stillicidium foliorum eius
proximis arboribus noceat,\ hanc alio nomine Latini
iuglandem vocant, quasi Jovis glandem,\ fuit enim hec
arbor nomine arbor consecrata Jovi. Cuius pomum
tantam\ vim habet ut missum inter suspectos
herbarum vel fungorum ci\bos, quicquid eis
virulentium est exsudet, rapiat et extinguat.\ Item \
Nuces autem generaliter dicuntur omnia poma corio,\
duriori tecta, ut pinee nuces, avellane glandes,
castanee, ami\gdale. Hinc et nuclei dicti quod sint
duro corio tecti. At contra\ poma omnia mollia mala
dicta sunt, sed cum adiectione terra\rum in quibus
antea nata sunt ut Persica, Punica, Mattiniana.\
Amigdala Grecum nomen est, que Latine nux longa
vocatur.\ Cunctis enim arboribus prior flore se vestit,
et ad inferenda poma\ arbusta sequentia prevenit.
Castaneam Latini a Greco appellant\ vocabulo. Hanc
enim castaneam vocant, eo quod fructus eius\ gemini
in modum testiculorum intra folliculum sunt
reconditi.\ Qui dum eiciuntur, quasi castrantur. Hec
arbor simul ut exci\sa fuerit, tanquam silva
expullulare consuevit.\ Iterum
Transcription
Ilex ab electo vocata. Huius enim arboris fructum,
homi\nes primum ad victum sibi elegerunt. Unde et
sensorgr
people eat figs frequently, their wrinkled skin fills out.
They say, too, that if you gather the fiercest bulls at
the foot of a fig tree, they suddenly become docile.
Again of trees
The mulberry tree is called morus by Greeks; in Latin
it is called rubus, because its fruit or its branches are
red in colour. There is a wild species which bears fruit,
which shepherds in the wilderness use to assuage
their hunger and need. It is said that if you throw its
leaves on a snake, you will kill it.
Again of trees
The sycamore, sicomorus, like morus, has a Greek
name. It is so called because its leaf is like that of a
mulberry tree. In Latin it is called celsa, from its
height, because it is not short like the mulberry.
The nut tree, nux, is so called because its shadow or
the moisture that drips from its leaves does harm,
nocere, to neighbouring trees; it has another Latin
name, juglans, 'Jove's nut tree', so to speak, for this
tree was consecrated by name to Jupiter. Its fruit is
so strong that, set amid dishes of vegetables or
mushrooms thought to be poisonous, it expels their
poison in liquid form, draws it off and renders it
harmless.
Again of nut trees
The word 'nuts', nuces, is generally applied to all fruit
with a fairly hard shell like pine nuts, filberts,
chestnuts and almonds. For this reason they are also
called nuclei, because they are covered with a hard
shell. In contrast, however, all fruit with soft skins are
called mala, adding the place where they originated,
like Persica, from Persia, a peach; Punica, from
Carthage, a pomegranate; Mattiniana, Matian, a crab-
apple.
The word for almond, amigdala, is Greek; in Latin it is
nux longa, 'long nut'. For of all trees, the almond is
the first to blossom and produces its fruit before other
trees.
In Latin the chestnut, castanea, is called by its Greek
name. It is so called because its twin fruits are
concealed within a pod like testicles. When they are
expelled from the pod, it is as if they were castrated.
As soon as this tree is felled, it grows again, just like
woodland trees.
Again
Translation
The word for oak, ilex, comes from electus, chosen.
For the fruit of this tree was the first to be chosen by
poeta: Morta\les primi ructabant gutture glandem,
prius enim quam frumen\ti usus essent, antiqui
glande vixerunt. \ Iterum \ Fagus et esculus arbores
et glandifere ideo vocate dicuntur,\ vel creduntur
quod earum fructibus olim homines vixerunt,\
cibumque sumpserunt, escamque habuerunt. Nam
esculus ab\ esca dicta, fagus vero a Greco vocata,
fage enim Grece comedere\ dicitur. Cilicicon quam
Latini corrupte siliquam vocant. Et ideo\ a Grecis tale
nomen accepit, eo quod ligni eius fructus sit dulcis.\
Xilon quippe Greci dicunt lignum ilicon dulcem. Huius
ar\boris pomo succus expressus, accatia a Grecis
dicitur. \ Iterum \ Pistatia arbor quod cortex pomi
eius nardi pistici odorem\ referat. Primus ardor [PL,
Pinus arbor] picea, ab acumine foliorum vocata,
pin\num autem antiqui acutum nominabant, pinnum
autem\ aliam possin aliam Greci peucen vocant, quam
nos piceam dici\mus, eo quod desudet picem. In
Germannie autem insulis huius\ arboris lacrima
electrum gignit. Gutta enim defluens rigore\ vel
tempore in soliditatem durescit, et gemmam facit, de
qua\litate sua et nomen accipiens, id est sucinum, eo
quod succus arbo\ris. Pinus creditur prodesse cunctis
que sub ea servantur, sicut ficus\ nocere omnibus. \
Iterum \ Abies dicta est quod pre ceteris ar\boribus
eat longe, et in excelsum promineat. Cuius natura
expers\ est terreni humoris, ac proinde habilis atque
levis habetur. Hanc\ quidam [PL, Gallicam] vocant
propter candorem est autem sine nodo. \ Iterum \
Cedrus est quam Greci cedros vocant, cuius folia
ci\pressi similitudinem habent. Lignum vero iocundi
odo\ris est, et diu durans, nec a tinea unquam
exterminatur. Unde et\ in templis propter
diuturnitatem ex hoc ligno lacunaria fi\unt. Huius ligni
resina cedria dicitur, que in conservandis libris\
Transcription
sensorgr
men for food. In this context, the poet says: 'The first
mortals belched the nut from their throats'; for before
the ancients used corn for food, they lived on nuts.
Again
The beech tree, fagus, and the Italian oak, esculus,
both nut-bearing trees, get their names, it is said or
at any rate believed, because men formerly existed
on their fruit, using them for their own food and for
fodder. For esculus comes from esca, food; while
fagus is a Greek word, for fagein in Greek means 'to
eat'.
The carob tree, cilicicon, is corrupted in Latin to
siliqua. It got its Greek name because the fruit of its
wood was sweet. For xilon is 'wood' in Greek and
ilicon, 'sweet'. The juice pressed from its fruit is called
in Greek acacia.
Again
The pistachio tree is so called because the shell of its
fruit gives forth the scent of pure nard.
The pitch-pine gets its name from its pointed leaves,
for the ancients used the word pinnus to mean
'pointed'. The Greeks called one kind of pine possis,
another peuce; we call it picea, because it oozes
resin, pix. In the islands of Germany the 'tears' of this
tree produce amber. For the sap, flowing down,
solidifies, either in the cold or by the passage of time,
and creates a precious stone, which gets its name,
sucinum, amber, from its nature, because it is the
juice, sucus, of the tree.
The pine is thought to be beneficial to everything that
grows beneath it, just as the fig tree does harm to
everything.
Again
The fir tree, abies, is so called because it grows higher
than other trees and stands high above them. It is
characterised by the fact that it contains no earthly
fluid and is accordingly considered easy and light to
work. Some call it 'Gallic' because of its white colour.
It has no knots in it.
Again
The cedar, cedrus, is the tree which the Greeks call
cedros. Its leaves resemble those of the cypress. Its
wood, however, has a pleasant scent which lingers for
a long time and can never be destroyed by worms.
For this reason - its durability - temple ceilings are
made of cedar wood. The resin of this wood is called
cedria and is so good for preserving books
Translation
adeo est utilis ut perliniti ex ea nec tineas paciantur,
nec per tem\pora consenescant.\ Iterum \ Cipressus
Grece dicitur quod caput eius\ a rotunditate in
canumen [A, cacumen] erigitur. Unde et conus
vocatur, id est\ alta rotunditas. Hinc et fructus eius
conum, quia rotunditas\ eius talis est ut conum
imitetur. Unde et conifere cypressi\ dicuntur. Huius
lignum cedro pene proximam habet virtutem, tem\
plorumque trabibus aptum inpenetrabili soliditate
perseverat.\ Antiqui cipressi ramos prope rogum
constituere solebant, ut odo\ rem cadaverum dum
urerent oppriment iocunditate sui odoris.\ Item \
Juniperus Grece dicta sive quod ab amplo in
angu\stum finit ut ignis sive conceptum diu teneat
ignem, adeo\ ut si prune ex eius cinere fuerint
cooperte, usque ad annum perve\niant, piro enim
apud Grecos ignis est. \ Iterum \ Platanus a
latitudine foliorum dicta vel quod arbor\ ipsa patula sit
et ampla. Nam platos Greci latinum [PL, latum]
vocant.\ Expressit huius arboris scriptura nomen et
formam dicens:\ Quasi platanus dilata sum in plateis.
Est autem tenerri\mus [A, tenerrimis] foliis ac
mollibus vitium similibus. \ Iterum \ Quercus sive
querimus quod ea soliti erant dii\ gentium responsum
precanere, arbor multum an\nosa, sicut legitur de
quercu Mambre sub qua habitavit\ Abraham, que
fertur usque ad Constantini regis imperium per\ multa
secula perdurasse, fructus huius galla appellatur. \
Item \ Fraxinus vocari fertur quod magis inter aspera
loca\ montanaque fraga nascatur, hinc per
dirivationem\ fractinus, sicut a monte montanus, de
qua Ovidius: Et frax\inus utilis hastis. Alnus quod
alatur amne, proxima enim\ aque nascitur, nec facile
extra undas vivit, hinc et tenera
sensorgr
that when their binding is smeared with it they do not
suffer damage from worms and they do not decay
with the passage of time.
Again
The cypress is so called in Greek because its head
rises from a round base to a point. For this reason it
is also called conus, a cone, that is, 'a tall round
shape'. On this account, its fruit, too, is called conus,
because its round shape is such that it looks like a
cone. As a result, the cypress is also called conifer,
'bearing fruit of a conical form'.
The wood of the cypress has a quality close to that of
the cedar and is suitable for the roof-beams of
temples, because it remains firm and unyielding.
The ancients used to place cypress branches near a
funeral pyre, so that the stench of burning corpses
would be smothered by their fragrance.
Again
The juniper is so called in Greek, either because its
shape tapers from wide to narrow, like fire, or it
continues to burn long after it has been kindled, so
that if you cover live brands from its ashes, they will
last for a year; piro [pur] is the Greek word for fire.
Again
The plane tree gets its name from the width of its
leaves or because the tree itself has a wide spread.
For the Greek word for 'broad' is platos. The Scripture
portrays the name and shape of this tree, saying: 'As
a plane tree I spread over the streets' (see
Ecclesiasticus, 24:19). Its leaves are very tender and
soft like those of the vine.
Again
The oak is called quercus or querimus because it was
by means of this tree that heathen gods used to
answer queries about the future.
It lives to a great age, as we read in the case of the
oak of Mamre, under which Abraham lived, which is
said to have lasted for many centuries until the reign
of the Emperor Constantine.
The fruit of the oak is called gall.
Again
The ash tree, fraxinus, is said to get its name because
its berry tends to grow in harsh and mountainous
places; in this way fractinus is derived from fraga, as
montanus, mountainous, comes from mons,
mountain. Ovid says of it: 'the ash, good for making
spears'.

Transcription
et mollis quia in humecti loco nutritur.\ Iterum \
Ulmus nomen accepit, quod uliginosis locis et
humi\dis melius proficit. Nam in montanis et asperis
minus leta\ est. Populus dicta quod ex eius calce
multitudo nascatur. Cuius genus\ duplex est, nam
altera est alba, altera nigra, alba autem populus
dicta\ quia folia eius una parte sunt alba altera viridia.
Hec ergo bicolor\ habens quasi noctis et diei notas
quo tempore occasuque constat.\ Generat etiam
resinam circa Heridanum fluvium vel ut\ alii
memorant, in finibus Syrie.\ Iterum \ Salix dicta
quod\ celeriter saliat, hoc est velociter crescat. Arbor
lenta, vitibus\ habilis vinciendis. Cuius seminis hanc
dicunt esse naturam\ ut siquis illud in poculo hauserit,
liberis careat, sed et femi\nas infecundas efficit.
Populus et salix et tilia, mollis ma\terie sunt, et ad
sculpturam apte.\ Item \ Vimen vocari, eo quod vim
habeant multam viro\ris, natura enim eius talis est, ut
etiam et si arefacta\ abluatur virescit, deinde excisa
atque in humo fixa, radicibus\ sese ipsa demergit.\
Item \ Buxus Grecum nomen est, ex\ parte a Latinis
corruptum, pixos enim appellatur a Grecis,\ semper
virens, et lenitate materie elementorum api\cibus
apta, unde et scriptura: Scribe in buxo.\ Ysidorus de
natura hominis \ Natura dicta eo quod nasci aliquid\
faciat, gignendi enim et faciendi\ potens est. Hanc
quidam deum esse\ dixerunt, a quo omnia creata
sunt\ et existunt. Genus a gignendo dic\tum cui
dirivatum nomen e terra
sensorgr
The alder, alnus, is so called because it is nourished
by water; for it grows near water and survives with
difficulty away from water. For this reason it is a
delicate
Translation
and soft because it is nourished in a wet environment.
Again
The elm, ulmus, gets its name because it flourishes in
a damp, uliginosus, environment. It does less well in
mountainous and harsh places.
The poplar, populus, is so called because from a
single cutting many can be grown. There are two
kinds of species: for one is white, the other black. The
silver poplar, alba populus, is so called because its
leaves are white on one side, green on the other. It is
therefore bi-coloured, as if it carried the signs of night
and day, which it displays in accordance with the time
and position of the sun.
The poplar which grows in the region of the River Po,
Eridanus, or as others relate, in Syria, also produces a
resin.
Again
The willow, salix, is so called because it springs,
salire, swiftly, that is, grows rapidly. It is a pliant tree,
suitable as a support on which to bind vines.
They say it is the nature of its seed that if a man
drinks it in a potion, he will be sterile; but it also
makes women barren.
The poplar, the willow and the lime tree, are of soft
wood and suitable for carving.
Again
The osier, vimen, is so called because they have great
strength in their greenery. Its nature is such that
even if it is dried, it grows green again when you
moisten it; if you then cut it and plant it in the
ground, it takes root.
Again
The word for the box tree, buxus, is Greek, partly
corrupted in Latin; for it is called pixos in Greek.
It is always green and of a smooth wood, suitable for
the letters of the alphabet. For this reason, the
Scripture says: 'Write it on box wood' (see Isaiah,
30:8).

Transcription
ex qua\ omnia\ gignuntur.\ Ge enim Grece terra
dicitur.\ Vita dicta\ propter vigo\ rem vel\ quod vim\
teneat nas\cendi atque\ crescendi.\ Unde et ar\bores
vi\tam habere\ dicuntur\ quia gignunt\ et crescunt.\
Homo dic\tus quia ex\ humo est\ factus, sicut et in
Genesi dicitur: Et creavit deus hominem de humo
terre. Abusi\ ve enim pronunciatur, ex utraque
substantia totus homo, id est ex\ societate anime et
corporis. Nam proprie homo ab humo. Gre\ci enim
antropum appellaverunt eo quod sursum aspectet\
sublevatis [PL, sublevatus] ab humo ad
contemplationem artificis sui. Quod\ Ovidius poeta
designat cum dicit: Pronaque cum spectant animalia\
Transcription
cetera terram. Os homini sublime dedit celumque
videre.\ Iussit et erectos ad sidera tollere vultus. Qui
ideo erec\tus celum aspicit ut deum querat, non ut
terram in\tendat, veluti pecora que natura prona et
ventris obe\dientia finxit. Duplex est autem homo
interior et exteri\or. Interior homo anima; exterio
homo corpus. Anima\ autem a gentilibus nomen
accepit, eo quod ventus sit.\ Unde et Grece ventus
animos dicitur, quod ore trahen\tes aerem vivere
videamus [PL, videamur]. Sed apertissime falsum
est,\ quia multo prius gignitur anima quam concipi aer
ore pos\sit, qui iam in genitricis utero vivit. Non est
igitur aer\ anima quod putaverunt quidam qui non
potuerunt\ incorpoream eius cogitare naturam.
Spiritum idem esse quod\ animam evangelista
pronuntiat dicens: Potestatem ha\beo ponendi
animam meam, et potestatem habeo iterum\ sumendi
eam. De hac quoque anima in ipso domini passio\nis
tempore memoratus evangelista ita protulit dicens:
Et\ inclinato capite emisit spiritum. Quid est emittere
sensorgr
Isidorus on the nature of man
Nature, natura, is so called because it brings a thing
to birth, nasci, for it has the power to beget and to
form. Some have said that nature is God, by whom all
things are created and exist.
Race, genus, comes from gignere, to generate; this
derives from the word for 'earth',
Translation
from which all things spring. For the Greek word for
'earth' is ge.
Life, vita, is so called from vigor, 'active power', or
because it has within it the force of birth and growth.
As a result, trees are said to have life, because they
spring from the earth and grow.
Man, homo, is so called because he is made from the
soil, humus, as it says in the book of Genesis: 'And
the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground'
(2:7).
It is said incorrectly that man in his entirety is formed
from two substances, that is, from the union of a soul
and a body. Strictly speaking, man, homo, comes
from soil, humus.
The Greek word for man is antropos [anthropos],
because he looks upwards, raised up from the ground
to contemplate his creator. This is what the poet Ovid
means, when he says: 'And though other animals are
prone and fix
Translation
their gaze upon the earth, he gave to man an uplifted
face and bade him look at heaven and raise his
countenance to the stars.' (Metamorphoses, 1, 84-6).
Standing erect, he looks at the heavens in search of
God; he does not turn towards the ground, like the
beasts who have been fashioned by nature and
obedience to their appetite to bend their heads.
But man is twofold: inner and outer. The inner man is
the soul; the outer, the body.
The soul gets its name, anima, from the pagans,
because they conceived of it as the wind; for this
reason it is also called wind in Greek, animos,
because we seem to live by taking air in through our
mouths. This is clearly wrong, because the soul is
created long before it can take air into its mouth and
it is already alive in its mother's womb. The soul,
therefore, is not the same as air, as some believe,
who cannot conceive of its nature as being without
spiritum, nisi\ quod animam ponere? Sed anima dicta
propter quod vivit.\ Spiritus autem vel spirituali
natura vel pro eo quod inspiret in\ corpore. Item
animum idem esse quod animam, sed anima\ vite est,
animus consilii. Unde et dicunt philosophi, etiam\ sine
animo vitam manere, et sine mente animam durare.\
Unde et amentes. Nam mentem vocari ut sciat,
animam ut\ velit. Mens enim vocata quod emineat,
vel quod meminit.\ Unde et immemores amentes.
Quapropter non animas [PL, anima], sed quod
ex\cellit in anima mens vocatur tanquam caput eius
vel oculus.\ Unde et ipse homo secundum mentem
ymago dei dicitur. Ita enim\
Transcription
hec nomina adiuncta sunt anime ut una res sit. Pro
effi\cientiis enim causarum diversa nomina sortita est
anima.\ Nam et memoria mens est. Unde et
immemores amen\tes. Dum ergo vivificat corpus
anima est. Dum vult\ animus est. Dum scit mens est.
Dum recolit memoria est.\ Dum rectum iudicat, ratio
est. Dum spirat spiritus est. Dum\ aliquid sentit
sensus est. Nam inde animus sensus dicitur,\ pro his
que sentit. Unde et sententia nomen accepit. Cor\pus
dictum eo quod corruptum perit. Solubile enim atque\
mortale est, et aliquando solvendum. Caro enim a
crean\do est appellata. Crementum enim semen est
masculi,\ unde animalium et hominum corpora
concipiuntur.\ Hinc et parentes creatores vocantur.
Caro enim ex quatuor\ elementis compacta est. Nam
terra in carne est, aer in alitu,\ humor in sanguine,
ignis in calore vitali. Habent enim\ in nobis elementa
queque suam partem, cuius quid debetur\ compage
resoluta. Caro enim et corpus diversa significant.\ In
carne semper corpus, non semper in corpore caro.
Nam caro\ est quod vivit, idem et corpus. Corpus
quod non vivit\ idem nec caro. Nam corpus dicitur aut
sensorgr
substance.
The spirit, spiritus, is the same as the soul, anima, of
which the evangelist speaks, saying: 'I have the
power to lay down my life, anima, and I have the
power to take it again' (see John, 10:18). It is to this
same thing that the evangelist, recalling the time of
our Lord's passion, refers, in this way: 'He bowed his
head and gave up the ghost, spiritus' (John, 19:30).
What does 'to give up the ghost, spiritus,' mean if not
that he laid down his life, anima? But the soul, anima,
is so called because it lives. The spirit, spiritus, is so
called either because of its spiritual nature, or
because it gives breath, inspirare, to the body.
Again, the mind, animus, is the same as the soul,
anima; but the soul is to do with life, the mind with
thought. For this reason, philosphers say that life can
continue even without the mind, animus, and the soul
can endure without the intellect; this is demonstrated
by those who are 'mindless', amentes. They call the
intellect, mens, the faculty of knowing; the soul,
anima, the faculty of willing.
The intellect, mens, is so called because it stands out,
eminere, in the soul, or because it has the capacity to
remember, meminisse. Thus, those who are forgetful
are also called 'mindless', amentes. For this reason, it
is not the soul itself, but the most eminent part of it,
the equivalent of its head or eye, that we call the
intellect, mens.
Thus man himself, because of his intellect, is called
'the image of God' (see Genesis, 1:26, 27). For in this
way
Translation
these terms and the faculties they represent are
united in the soul, so that it is a single thing.
For different names are allocated to the soul in
respect of its faculties. The memory, memoria, is also
the intellect, mens; for this reason the forgetful are
called 'mindless', amentes. When it gives life to the
body, it is the soul, anima. When it wills something, it
is the mind, animus. When it knows something, it is
the intellect, mens. When it remembers, it is memory,
memoria. When it judges what is right, it is reason,
ratio. When it breathes, it is the life-giving spirit,
spiritus. When it perceives or feels anything, it is
sense, sensus. For the mind, animus, is called sense,
sensus, on account of the things which it senses,
sentire. For this reason, it is also known as the
opinion, sententia.
The body, corpus, is so called because it perishes in a
state of corruption, corruptum. For it can be reduced
and die and at some time will decompose.
quod post vitam est\ mortuum, aut sine vita est
conditum. Interdum et eum [etiam]\ vita et corpus et
non caro, ut herba et lignum. Sensus cor\poris
quinque sunt, visus, auditus, gustus, odoratus et
tac\tus. Ex quibus duo aperiuntur et clauduntur, duo
semper\ patentes sunt. Sensus dicti, quia per eos
anima subtilissime\ totum corpus agitatur, vigore
sentiendi. Unde et presentia nun\cupantur quod sint
pre sensibus sicut pre oculis. Visus est qui\ a
philosophis humor vitreus appellatur. Visum enim\
Transcription
quidam fieri asserunt aut terra, aut extrema etherea\
luce aut interno spiritu lucido per tenues vias a
cerebro veni\entes, atque penetratis tunicis in aere
exeuntis [PL, exeuntes] et tunc\ commixtione materie
similis visum dantes. Visus\ dictus quod vivatior sit
ceteris sensibus ac prestantior sive\ velocior,
ampliusque vigeat, quantum memoria inter\ cetera
mentis officia. Vicinior est enim cerebro unde om\nia
manant. Ex quo fit ut ea que alios [e]pertinent
sensus,\ Vide dicamus. Veluti condicimus [PL, cum
dicimus]. Vide quomodo sa\pit, sic et cetera. Auditus
appellatus quod voces hauriat,\ hoc est aere
verberato suscipiat sonos. Odoratus quasi\ aeris
odorat tactus. Tacto enim aere sentitur, sicut et
ol\factus quod odoribus efficiatur. Gustus a gutture
dictus.\ Tactus eo quod pertractet et tangat, et per
omnia membra\ vigorem sensus aspergat. Nam tactu
probamus, quicquid\ ceteris sensibus iudicare non
possumus. Duo enim genera\ tactus sunt. Nam aut
extrinsecus et usu venit quod fe\riat, aut intus in ipso
corpore oritur. Unicuique enim sen\ sui propriam
sensorgr
But flesh, caro, gets its name from creare, to create.
For the semen of the male has the power of growth;
the bodies of men and animals are conceived from it.
For this reason parents are also referred to as
'creators'.
Flesh is composed of four elements. There is earth in
the flesh itself, air in the breath, water in the blood,
and fire in the living heat. For the elements each have
their own part in us; if any part is withheld, the whole
dissolves.
Flesh, caro, and the body, corpus, mean different
things. There is always a body where there is flesh,
but where there is a body there is not always flesh.
For flesh is that which lives, the same as the body.
But a body which is not alive is not the same as flesh.
For we use the word 'body', corpus, to mean either
something which, after life, is dead, or something
which was created without life. Sometimes also a
thing can have life yet be called a body, corpus, not
flesh, caro, like grass or wood.
The body has five senses: sight, hearing, taste, smell
and touch. Of these, two are opened and closed to
sensations, two are always open.
The senses, sensus, are so called because through
them the soul very delicately activates the whole body
with the force of sensation, sentire. As a result we say
things are 'present', presentia, because they are
before, pre, the senses, as, for example, they are
before the eyes.
Sight, visus, is what philosophers call humor vitreus.
For
Translation
some claim that sight comes either from the earth, or
from an external air-born light or an internal light-
bearing spirit, which travel from the brain through
narrow passages, and, after penetrating the coating
of the eye, emerge into the air and, mixed with
similar matter, give vision.
Vision, visus, is so called because, compared to the
other senses, it is more lively, vivatior, more
important, or swifter, velocior, and more powerful,
vigere, as memory is, compared to the other faculties
of the mind. For it is located closer to the brain, the
source of all the senses. For this reason we use the
word 'see' when we refer to things which pertain to
the other senses. As when we say 'see how it tastes'
and so on.
Hearing, auditus, is so called because it receives,
haurire, voices, that is, it takes up sounds from the
air which has been struck by them.
naturam datam. Nam quod videndum\ et oculis
capitur, quod audiendum auribus. Mollia ac\ dura
tactu estimantur, sapor gustu, odor naribus ducitur.\
Prima pars corporis tantum, datumque illi hoc no\men
eo quod sensus omnes et nervi inde inicium capiant,\
atque ex eo omnis vigendi causa oriatur. Ibi enim
om\nes sensus apparent. Unde ipsius anime que
consulit\ corpori quodammodo personam gerit. Vertex
est ea pars qua\ capilli capitis colliguntur, et in qua
cesaries vertitur,\ unde et nuncupatur. Calvaria ab
ossibus calvis dicta\
Transcription
delectionem [PL, per defectionem] et neutraliter
pronuntiatur. Occipicium\ capitis pars posterior quas
[PL, quasi] contra captium [PL, capitium] vel quod sit\
capitis retrorsum. Capilli vocati quasi capitis pili, facti\
ut decorem prestent, et cerebrum adversum frigus
muniant,\ atque a sole defendant. Pilos enim dictos
[PL, pili autem dicti] a pelle qua prode\unt, sicut et
pilum dicitur a pila ubi pigmentum tunditur. Ce\saries
a cedendo vocata, ideoque tantum virorum est.
Virum\ enim tonsum esse decet, mulierem non decet.
Come sunt\ proprie non cesi capilli, et est Grecus
sermo. Nam comas Greci\ kaimoc [kaimos], a
secando nominant. Unde et kirin tondere.\ Inde et
cirri vocantur quod idem Grec maaonem\ vocant.
Crines proprie mulierum sunt. Dicti enim crines\ eo
quod vittis discernantur. Unde et discriminalia
dicun\tur a quibus divisi religantur. Timpora sunt que
calva\rie dextra levaque subiacent, que ideo sic
nuncupantur\ quia moventur, ipsaque mobilitate quasi
tempora a quibus\dam intervallis mutantur. Facies
dicta ab effigie. Ibi enim\ est tota figura hominis et
uniuscuiusque persone cognitio.\ Vultus vero dictus,
sensorgr
The sense of smell, odoratus, comes, so to speak,
from the phrase, aeris odorat tactus, 'the touch of the
air carrying a scent'. For smell is experienced through
the touch of the air, just as the other word for
'smelling', olfactus, comes from odoribus efficiatur,
'sensation acquired from odours'.
Taste, gustus, gets its name from guttur, the throat.
Touch, tactus, is so called because it takes hold of
and handles things, and diffuses the force of the
sensation through every limb. For we explore by
touch whatever we cannot judge with the other
senses. There are two kinds of touch. For the
sensation of touching comes either from outside the
body by experience, or it arises within the body itself.
Each sense has been given its own peculiar nature.
For what is visible is captured by the eyes; what is
audible, by the ears. Softness and hardness are
assessed by touch; flavour by taste; odour is brought
by the nostrils.
The head, caput, is the principal part of the body and
gets its name because all the senses and nerves take,
capere, their beginning from there, and the entire
source of energy springs from it. It is the seat of all
the senses. In a certain way it takes the role of the
soul itself, which takes thought for the body.
The crown, vertex, is the part of the head where the
hair is gathered and on which the hair parts, vertere,
which is how it gets its name.
The word for skull, calvaria, comes from ossa calva,
bare bones,
Translation
by ellipsis; it is used in the neuter form.
The occiput, occipicium, is the rear part of the head,
as if the word came from contra capitium, 'opposite
the covering of the head' or because it is behind the
head, capitis retrorsum.
The word for hair, capilli, comes as if from capitis pili,
'hairs of the head'. Hair was created to embellish the
head and to protect the brain from cold and to keep
the sun off it. The word for hair, pilos, comes from
pellis, the skin, from which the hair emerges, as
pilum, the pestle, comes from pila, the mortar, in
which it pounds colours. A hairstyle is called cesaries,
from cedere, to cut; for this reason it only applies to
men. For cutting the hair is appropriate for men; it is
unfitting for women.
The word coma is strictly speaking, 'uncut hair', and
comes from the Greek. For the Greeks call uncut hair
kaimos from their word for 'cutting off'; they have
also the word kirin [keirein] 'to clip or crop'.
eo quod per eum animi voluntas osten\ditur.
Secundum voluntatem enim in varios motus mutatur.\
Unde et differunt sibi utroque. Nam facies simpliciter
ac\cipitur, de uniuscuiusque naturali aspectu, vultus
enim\ animorum qualitatem significat. Frons ab
oculorum fo\raminibus nominata est. Hec ymago
quedam animi men\tis motum specie sua exprimit,
dum vel leta vel tristis est.\ Oculi vocati sive quia eos
ciliorum tegminia occultant, ne qua\ incidentis iniurie
offensione ledantur, sive quia occultum\ lumen
habent id est secretum vel intus positum. Hic\
Transcription
inter omnes sensus viciniores anime existunt. In
oculis\ enim omne mentis indicium est. Unde et anime
perturbatio\ vel hilaritas in oculis apparet. Oculi enim
idem et lumi\na, et dicta lumina quod ex eis lumen
manat, vel quod\ inicio sui clausam teneant lucem,
aut extrinsecus acceptam\ visui proponendo
refundant. Pupilla est medius punc\tus oculi in quo vis
videndi est. Ubi quia parve ymagines\ vobis videntur
propterea pupille appellantur. Nam par\vuli pupilli
dicuntur, hanc plerique pupullam vocant. Vo\catur
enim pupilla, quod sit pura atque impolluta, ut sunt\
puelle. Phisici dicunt easdem pupillas quas videmus
in\ oculis morituros ante triduum non habere, quibus
non visis\ certa est desperatio. Circulus vero quo a
sensorgr
From this comes the word for curls, cirri, which the
Greeks call maaonem [mallos], a lock of hair.
The word crinis properly speaking refers to women's
hair. The locks are so called because they are parted,
discernere, by the bands of a filet.
From this source also comes the word discriminalia,
the hairpins by which the parted locks are fastened in
place.
The temples, timpora [tempora], lie below the skull,
on the left and right. They are so called because they
are mobile; with that mobility, they are changed at
certain intervals like the seasons, tempora.
The word for face, facies, comes from effigies,
likeness. For it portrays the whole nature of a man
and reveals each person's character.
The countenance, vultus, is so called because it
displays the desires, voluntas, of the soul. For it is
changed, as the soul wills, into different movements
of the features.
For this reason the face, facies, and the countenance,
vultus, differ from each other. For we understand by
the face, facies, simply a person's natural
appearance; the countenance, vultus, signifies their
inner disposition.
The forehead, frons, gets its name from the openings,
foramen, in which the eyes are set. It provides a
certain representation of the mind and expresses in
its own appearance the motion of the intellect,
showing when it is either happy or sad.
The eyes, oculus, are so called either because the
coverings of the eyelids hide them, occultare, lest
they should be harmed by the impact of an injury, or
because they have a hidden, occultus, light, that is,
one which is secret or is located within. Here
Translation
the eyes are, of all the senses, the most closely allied
to the soul. For they reflect every aspect of the
intellect. As a result, confusion or joy within the soul
is visible in the eyes.
The eyes are the same as lights and are called 'lights',
lumen, because light pours forth from them, or
because from the beginning they hold light enclosed
within them, or because they take in light from
outside and reflect it to create vision.
The pupil, pupilla, is the middle point of the eyes, in
which the power of seeing resides. Because you see
small images at this point, it is called pupilla, a word
pupilla albe partes oculi\ separantur discreta nigredine
corona dicitur, quod rotunditate\ sua ornet ambitum
pupille. Volvos enim quidam appel\lant vertices ipsos
oculorum a similitudine valvarum.\ Palpebre sunt
sinus oculorum a palpitatione dicte, quia\ semper
moventur. Concurrunt enim invicem, ut assiduo\ motu
reficiant obtutum. Munite sunt enim vallo capillorum\
ut et apertis oculis siquid inciderit repellatur, ut et
sompno\ cohibentibus tanquam involuti quiescant
latentes. In summi\tate enim palpebrarum locis
quibus se ultraque clausa [PL, utreque clause]
contin\gunt, extant annotati ordine servato capilli
tutelam oculis\ ministrantes, ne irruentes facile
iniurias excipiant et ex eo\ noceantur, ut pulveris vel
cuiusquam crassioris materie\ arceant contactum, aut
ipsum quoque aerem concidendo\ mitificent, quo
tenuem atque serenum faciunt visum. La\crimas a
laceratione mentis quidam putant dictas, alii\
Transcription
existimant quod Greci lassiria vocant. Cilia sunt
tegmina\ quibus cooperiuntur oculi. Et dicta scilia
quod celent oculos,\ tegantque, tuta custodia.
Supercilia dicta, quia superposita sunt\ ciliis. Que
iccirco pilis vestita sunt, ut oculis munimenta\
pretendant, et sudorem a capite defluentem
depellant. Inter\cilium vero est medium illud inter
supercilia quod sine pilis\ est. Gene sunt inferiores
oculorum partes, unde barbe\ inchoant. Nam Grece
gene barbe. Hinc et gene quod inde\ incipiant barbe
gigni. Male sunt eminentes sub oculis\ partes ad
protectionem eorum subposite. Vocate autem\ male
sive quod infra oculos in rotunditatem prominent,\
que Greci melam appellant sive quod sunt supra
maxillas.\ Maxille per diminutionem a malis sicut
paxillus a palo\ taxillus a talo. Mandibule sunt
maxillarum partes, ex\ qua et nomen factum. Barbam
veteres vocaverunt quod\ virorum sit non mulierum.
sensorgr
for 'little children'. For little boys are called pupilli.
Many people call the pupil pupilla, 'the little girl',
because it is pure and undefiled, as girls are.
Physicians say that those who are dying lack for three
days before death those pupils which we see in the
eyes; if they are not visible, it is a clear sign that the
patient's condition is hopeless.
The circle by which the white of the eye is separated
from the pupil, defined by its black colour, is called
the corona, because its roundness enhances the
circumference of the pupil like a garland, corona.
Some call the upper lid, vertex, of the eye, volvus,
from its similarity to the leaf of a door, valva.
The eyelids, palpebre, fold over the eyes. The word
comes from palpitatio, 'frequent, rapid movement',
because the lids are always in motion. For they move
quickly to meet each other, so that by their constant
motion they refresh the vision.
The eyelids are fortified by a rampart of hairs, so that
if anything should fall into the eyes when they are
open, it is repelled; also that, with the lids closing in
sleep, the eyes should rest hidden as if wrapped up.
At the extreme edges of the eyelids, in the places
where they touch each other when closed, lashes
stand in line, providing protection for the eyes, lest
they should be easily hurt by things blundering into
them and be damaged as a result. These lashes are
also designed to prevent contact with dust or any
heavier matter, or, in addition, soften the air itself by
filtering it, making vision clear and bright.
Some think that the word for tears, lacrime, comes
from the phrase, laceratio mentis, 'rending of the
mind'; others
Translation
think that it is because the Greeks call them lassiria
[dakrua].
Cilia is the word for the lids with which the eyes are
covered. They are called cilium or scilium because
they conceal, celare, the eyes and cover them to keep
them safe.
Eyebrows, supercilia, are so called because they are
placed above the eyelids. They are clad with hairs so
as to offer protection to the eyes and turn aside the
sweat which flows down from the head.
Intercilium, however, is space between the eyebrows
which is without hairs.
The cheeks, gena, are the part of the face under the
eyes, where the beard begins to grow. For the Greek
Aurium inde dictum nomen\ a vocibus hauriendis.
Unde et Virgilius: Vocemque his au\ribus hausi. Aut
quia vocem ipsam Greci audien[lidien] vocant\ ab
auditu. Per immutationem enim littere aures quasi\
audes nuncupate sunt. Vox enim repercussa per
anfractus\ quo sensum excipiant audiendi earum
sompnum facit.\ Pinnola summa pars auris ab
acumine dicta. Pinnion\ enim antiqui acutum dicebant.
Unde et bipennis et pin\na. Nares iccirco nominantur,
quia per eas odor vel spiritus\ manare non desinit,
sive quia nos odore admonent, ut o\dorem aliquid
acuamus. Unde econtra inscii ac rudes\ ignari
dicuntur. Olfecisse enim veteres scisse dicebant.
Terentius:\ Ac non toti sex mensibus prius olfecissent,
quam ille quicquam ceperit.\
Transcription
Narium recta pars eo quod equaliter sit in longitudine
et\ rotunditate porrecta, columpna vocatur.
Extremitas eius\ pirula ac formula pomi peri. Que vero
dextra levaque sunt pen\nule ab alarum similitudine.
Medium autem interfini\um. Os dictum quod per
ipsum quasi per ostium et cibos intus\ mittimus, et
sputum foras proicimus, vel quia illuc ingredi\untur
cibi et inde egrediuntur sermones. Labia a laben\do
[PL, lambendo] sunt nominata. Quod autem superius
est labium dici\mus, quod inferius eo quod grossius
sensorgr
word for beard is gene [geneias]. They are also called
gena because it is here that the beard begins to grow,
gigni.
The cheek bones, mala, are the protruding parts
under the eyes, placed under them as protection.
They are called mala either because they project
under the eyes in their roundness, which the Greeks
call mela [melon], or because they are placed above
the jawbone, maxilla.
The jawbone, maxilla, is a diminutive of mala, as
paxillus, peg, comes from palus, stake, taxillus, a
small die, from talus, a full-sized die.
The mandibles, mandibule, are parts of the jaws,
which is how they get their name.
The ancients called barba, beard, that which is
peculiar to men, not women.
The word for ear, auris, comes from the phrase voces
haurire, 'to hear voices'. In this context Virgil says: 'I
have heard the voice with my ears' (see Aeneid, 4,
359).
Alternatively, it is so called because the Greek word
for voice itself is audien [aude] from the same root as
auditus, hearing. For by the substitution of a letter,
ears are called aures for audes. For the voice,
rebounding along the twisting passage by which the
ears take in their sense of hearing, produces a sound.
The tip of the ear, pinnola, 'little point', gets its name
from its sharpness. For the ancients called anything
sharp pinnion. From this we get bipennis, two-edged,
and pinna, a fin.
The nostrils, nares, are so called because odour or
breath continually flows, manare, through them, or
because through odour they warn us, admonere, that
we should learn something from an odour. For this
reason, in contrast, the unlearned and uncouth are
called ignari, ignorant. The ancients said that to smell
something was to know something. Terence: 'And
would they not have smelled it six whole months
before he started anything?' (Adelphi, 397).
Translation
The straight part of the nose, of equal extent in
roundness and length, is called 'the column', columna.
The end of the nose is called pirula, 'little pear',
because it is pear-shaped.
But the right and left parts of the nose, from their
resemblance to wings, are called pennule, 'little
wings'.
sit labrum. Alii virorum\ labra, mulierum labia dicunt.
Lingue a ligando cibo\ putat Varro nomen impositum.
Alii quod per articulos\ sonos ligat verba. Sicut enim
plectrum cordis, ita lin\gua illiditur dentibus, et
vocalem sonum efficit. Dentes\ Greci odontes dicunt,
et inde in Latinum videntur tra\here nomen. Horum
primi precisores dicuntur, quia omne\ quod accipitur
ipsi prius incidunt. Sequentes canini vo\cantur,
quorum duo in dextera maxilla, et duo in sinistra\
sunt. Et dicti canini quia ad similitudinem caninorum\
existunt, et canis ex ipsis ossa confringit, sicut et
homo\ ut quod non possunt priores precidere, illis
tradunt ut\ confringant. Hos vulgus pro longitudine et
latitudine et\ rotunditate, colomellos vocant. Ultimi
sunt molares, qui\ concisa a prioribus atque confracta
subigunt et molunt, atque\ immassant. Unde et
molares vocati sunt. Dentium autem\ numerum
discernit qualitas sexus. Nam in viris plures,\ in
feminis pauciores existunt. Gingive a gignendis
dentibus\ nominate. Facte sunt ad decorem dentium,
ne torti hor\rori pocius quam ornamenta [PL,
ornamento] existerent. Palatum nostrum sicut\
Transcription
celum positum est, et inde palatum a palo [PL, polo]
per dirivationem.\ Sed et Greci similiter palatum
uranum appellant eo quod\ pro sui concavitate celi
similitudinem habeat. Fauces a\ fundendis vocibus
nominate vel quod per eas famur. Arthe\rie vocate
sive quod per eas a pulmone aer hoc est spiritus
fertur,\ seu quod artis et angustis meatibus spiritum
vitalem retineant.\ Unde vocis sonos emittunt. Qui
sensorgr
The part between nostrils is called the septum,
interfinium.
The mouth, os, is so called because, as if through a
door, ostium, we send food inside and eject sputum
outside; or because food goes in there and speech
comes out.
Lips, labia, get their name from lambere, to lick. The
upper lip we call labium; the lower, and thicker,
labrum. Others say that men's lips are labra;
women's, labia.
Varro thinks that the tongue, lingua, got its name
from the phrase, ligare cibum, to bind food. Others
say that it is because it binds words together from
distinct sounds. For the tongue hits the teeth, like a
plectrum hitting strings, producing the sound of the
voice.
The Greeks call teeth odontes, from which they seem
to have taken their Latin name, dentes.
The first of the teeth are called incisors, precisores,
because they first cut up, praecidere, everything that
we take into our mouth.
The Next are called canines, canini; two of them are
in the right jaw, two in the left. They are so called
because they look like the teeth of dogs, canis. Dogs
use these teeth to break up bones, just as men do;
such food as the incisors cannot cut up, they pass on
to the canines to break up. They are commonly called
colomelli, 'little columns', because of their length,
breadth and roundness.
The last of the teeth are called molars, molares; they
work, grind and chew the food which the incisors have
cut up and the canines have broken up; they get their
name from molere, to grind.
The number of teeth is determined by sex. For there
are more in a man's mouth; fewer in a woman's. The
gums, gingive, are so called because they produce,
gignere, the teeth. They were created to adorn the
teeth, lest a row of crooked teeth might seem more of
a horror than an ornament.
Our palate, palatum,
Translation
is placed like a vault over the mouth; the word comes
from polus, a pole, or figuratively, the sky. The
Greeks call the palate uranus [ouranos], since in its
curved shape it resembles the sky.
The throat, fauces, gets its name from the phrase
fundere voces, 'to produce sounds', or because we
speak, fari, through it.
soni uno modo sonarent, nisi\ lingue motus distantias
vocis efficerent. Toles Gallica\ lingua dicuntur, quas
vulgo per diminutionem toxillos\ vocant, que in
faucibus turgescere solent. Mentum dictum\ quod
mandibule inde oriantur, vel quod ibi iungantur.\
Gurgulio a gutture nomen trahit, cuius meatus ad os\
et nares protendit, habens viam qua vox ad linguam
trans\mittitur ut possit verba collidere. Unde et
garrire di\cimus. Rumen proximum gurgulioni, quo
cibus et pocio\ devoratur. Hinc bestie que cibum
revocant ac reman\dunt, ruminare dicuntur.
Sublinguium vel operculum\ gurgulionis quasi parva
lingua que foramen lingue\ recludit a pituita. Collum
dictum quod sit rigidum\ et teres ut columpna
baiulans caput et sustentans\ quasi capitolium. Cuius
anterior pars gula vocatur,\ posterior cervix. Cervix
autem vocata, quod per eam par\tem cerebrum ad
medullam spine dirigitur quasi cerebri\via. Veteres
autem plurali tantum numero cervices di\cebant. Prius
Ortensius cervicem singulariter. Cer\ vix autem
numero singulari membrum ipsum significat,\ nam
pluraliter contumaciam sepe demonstrat. Cicero in\
Verrinis: Pretorem tu accuses frange cervices. Humeri
dicti\
Transcription
quasi armi ad distinctionem hominis a pecudibus
mu\tis, ut hi humeros ille armos habere dicantur.
Nam proprie armi\ quadrupedum sunt. Olam summi
humeri pars poste\ rior. Bracchia a fortitudine
nominata. Bari enim Grece,\ forte et grave
sensorgr
The windpipes, artherie, are so called because air,
that is the breath, aer, is conveyed through them
from the lung, or because they keep the vital breath
in narrow, artus, confined passages. From these they
produce the sounds of the voice. The sounds would be
all of one kind if the movements of the tongue did not
make them different.
Toles, a word in the Gallic tongue meaning goitre,
becomes in common speech, by diminution, toxilli,
tonsils, which often swell up in the throat.
The chin is called mentum, or 'coping stone', because
the two mandibles begin or are joined together there.
The soft palate, gurgulio, gets its name from guttur,
the gullet. Its passage extends to the mouth and
nostrils, having within it a channel by which the
sounds of the voice are sent to the tongue, so that it
can bring them together as words. From this we get
the word garrire, to babble.
Next to the windpipe is the oesophagus, rumen, by
which we swallow food and drink. Hence animals
which regurgitate food and chew it again, are said to
ruminate, ruminare.
The epiglottis, sublinguium, is otherwise known as
'the lid' of the windpipe. It is like a little tongue which
shuts off the opening at the rear of the tongue from
secretions such as phlegm.
The neck, collum, is so called because it is rigid and
rounded like a column, columpna, carrying the head
and supporting it like a capitol.
The front part is called the throat, gula; the rear, the
nape, cervix. The nape, cervix, is so called because
the brain, cerebrum, is linked in a straight line
through that section to the spinal chord; it is, so to
speak, cerebri via, 'the route of the brain'.
The ancients spoke of napes, or necks, in the plural.
Hortensius was the first to speak of it in the singular.
In fact, cervix in the singular means that specific part
of the body. In the plural, it often signifies 'obstinate
resistance'. Cicero in his orations against Verres: 'You
accuse the praetor. Curb your boldness, cervices'
(6,110).
The shoulders humeri,
Translation
are like armi, forequarters. They are so called to
distinguish men from dumb animals, so that we say
men have shoulders, humeri; animals, forequarters,
armi. For, strictly speaking, 'forequarters' applies to
four-legged animals.
significatur. In bracchis enim thori lacer\torum sunt et
insigne musculorum robur existit. In\ his sunt tori
idem musculum, et dicti tori, quod illic vis\cera torta
videantur. Cubitum dictum quod ad cibos su\mendos
in ipso cumbamus. Ulna secundum quosdam
utriusque\ manus extensio est, secundum alios
cubitus, quod magis verum\ est quia Grece ulenos
cubitus dicitur. Ale sub brachia sunt appel\late, eo
quod ex eis in modum alarum motus bracchorum\
inchoat, quas quidam ascellas vocant, quod ex eis
bra\chia cilluntur id est moventur. Unde et oscilla
dicta ab eo quod oscillantur hoc est moveantur ora.
Nam cillere est movere.\ Has quidam subhircos
vocant propter quod in plerisque\ hominibus hircorum
fetorem reddunt. Manus dicta quod\ sit tocius corporis
munus. Ipsa enim cibum ori ministrat\ ipsa operatur
omnia atque dispensat, per eam accipimus et da\mus.
Abusive autem manus etiam ars vel artifex. Unde\ et
manus precipium [PL, pretium] dicimus. Dextra
vocatur a dando, ipsa\ enim pignus pacis datur. Ipsa
testis fidei atque salutis\ adhibetur, et hoc est illud
apud Tullium: Fidem publicam\ iussu senatus dedi id
est dextram. Unde et apostolus dicit: Dext\ras mihi
dederunt et Barnabe societatis. Leva quod aptior \ sit
ad levandum. Sinistra autem vocata quasi sine
dextera\ sive quod rem fieri sinat. A sinendo enim
sinistra voca\ta est. Palma est manus expansis digitis
sicut et tractus\
sensorgr
The part at the rear of the highest point of the
shoulder we call the shoulder-blade, ola.
The word for arms, brachia, is associated with that for
strength. For in Greek barus means 'strong' and
'heavy'. Muscles swell between the shoulder and
elbow and in muscles there is remarkable strength.
In the arms there are bulges, tori, which are muscles;
they are so called because the inner parts seems to
be twisted, tortus.
The elbow, cubitus, is so called because we lean on it,
cumbere, to eat.
The ulna, according to some, is an extension of either
hand; according to others, of the elbow; the latter
seems more likely to be true because the elbow in
Greek is ulenos [olene].
The pits under the arms, ale, are so called because
the movement of the arms begins there, like that of
wings, ale.
Some call the armpits ascelle, because from that
point the arms are set in motion, cillere. For this
reason they are also called oscilla, because the arms
are swung, oscillare, that is they are moved, movere,
from the extremity of the body, ora; since movere
and cillere mean the same, to move from the
extremity becomes ora cillere.
Some call the armpits subhirci, 'undergoats',because
in many people they give off the rank smell of goats.
The hand, manus, is so called because it performs a
service, munus, for the whole body. For it serves food
to the mouth, does everything and disposes of
everything; with it, we take and we give.
The word is used incorrectly for labour or workmen,
'hands'. For this reason, we talk about manupretium,
'workman's wage'.
The right hand, dextra, gets its name from dare, to
give, for it is given as a pledge of peace. It is used as
a proof of faith and in greeting, and is used in this
context in Tully: 'By order of the Senate, I have
pledged the public faith', that is, the right hand
(Cicero, Catiline, 3, 8). And the apostle says: 'They
gave to me and Barnabas the right hands of
fellowship' (Galatians, 2:9).
The left hand, leva, is so called because it is more
suited to raising, levare. It is also called sinistra, sine
dextera, 'without the right hand', so to speak, or
because it permits, sinere, something to be done. For
sinistra comes from sinere. The palm, palma, is the
hand with the fingers spread; when they are
contracted
Transcription
pugnus. Pugnus autem a pugillo dictus, sicut palma
ab\ spansis palme ramis. Digiti nuncupati vel quod
decem sunt,\ vel quia decenter iuncti existunt. Nam
habent in se nume\rum perfectum et ordinem
decentissimum. Primus pollex\ vocatus quod inter
ceteros polleat virtute et potestate. Secundus\ index
et salutaris sive demonstratorius, quia fere eo
salu\tamus, vel ostendimus vel indicamus. Tercius
impudi\ cus, quod plerumque per eum obprobrii
insectatio exprimitur.\ Quartus anularis eo quod in
ipso anulus geritur. Idem et\ medicinalis, quod eo
trita colluria a medicis colliguntur [PL, collinuntur].\
Quintus auricularis pro eo quod eo aurem scalpimus.
Un\gulas ex Greco vocamus, illi enim has onices
dicunt. Trun\cus media pars corporis a collo ad
inguinem. De quo Ni\gidius: Caput collo vehitur,
truncus sustinetur coxis et genibus\ cruribusque.
Torax a Grecis dicitur anterior pars trunci a collo
usque\ ad stomachum, quam nos dicimus archam eo
quod ibi\ archanum sit, id est secretum quo ceteri
arcentur. Unde et area [PL, arca] \ et ara dicta quasi
res secrete. Cuius eminentes pulpe ma\mille. Inter
quas pars illa osse aspectus [PL, ossea pectus] dicitur,
dextra levaque\ coste. Pectus vocatum quod sit
pexum, inter eminentes ma\millarum partes. Unde et
pectinem dici, quod pexos ca\pillos faciat. Mamille
vocate quia rotunde quasi male per\ diminutionem
sunt. Papille capita mammarum quas su\gentes
comprehendunt. Et dicte papille quod eas infantes\
quasi palpant dum lac sugunt. Proinde mamille om\nis
eminentia uberis. Papilla vero breve illud lac trahit.\
Ubera vero dicta vel quia lacte uberta, vel quia
humida [PL, uvida] humore scilicet lactis in modum
uvarum plena. Lac vim nominis a colore\
sensorgr
Translation
it is called the fist, pugnus. The word comes from
pugillus, a handful, just as the word for the palm,
palma, comes from the outspread branches of the the
palm tree.
Fingers are called digiti, either because there are ten,
decem, of them, or because they are joined together
in a proper fashion, decenter. For they amount in
themselves to a perfect number and are ranged in a
most regular order,
The first, the thumb, pollex, is so called because it
surpasses, pollere, the others in strength and power.
The second finger, index, is also known as salutaris or
demonstratorius, the greeting or indicating finger,
because we generally use it in greeting, showing or
pointing.
The third finger is called impudicus, lewd; it is
frequently used to express the pursuit of something
shameful.
The fourth is the ring finger, anularis, because it is
the on which a ring is worn. It is also called
medicinalis, the medical finger, because it used by
physicians to smear on ground-up salves.
The fifth finger is called auricularis, because we
scrape our ear, auris, with it.
Our word for nails, ungule, comes from the Greek, for
they call them onices.
The trunk, truncus, is the middle part of the body,
from the neck to the groin. Nigidius says of it: 'The
head is carried by the neck, the trunk is supported by
the hips, knees and legs' (Opera, 108). Thorax is the
Greek word for the front part of the trunk from the
neck to the stomach; we call it the ark, archa,
because what is there is arcanus, hidden, that is,
secret; others are kept out by it. For this reason both
arca, a chest, and ara, an altar, have names implying
secrecy.
The soft mounds on this part of the body are called
breasts, mamille.
Between them is a bony part called the breast bone,
pectus. To the right and left are the ribs, coste.
The breast bone, pectus, is so called because there is
a nap, pexus, between the protruding parts of the
breasts. In the same way, a comb is called pecten,
because it makes hairs smooth.
The breasts, mamille, are so called because they are
round, as if the word were a diminutive of mala,

Transcription
trahit quod albus liquor. Leucos enim Greci album
dicunt,\ cuius natura ex sanguine commutatur. Nam
post partum siquid\ sanguinis non dum fuerit uteri
nutrimento consumptum,\ naturali meatu fluit in
mammas, et earum virtute albes\cens, lactis accipit
qualitatem. Cutis est que in corpore pri\ma est
appellata quod ipsa corpori superposita incisionem\
paciatur prima. Cutis enim Grece incisio dicitur. Idem
et pellis, quod\ externas iniurias corporis tegendo
pellat, pluviasque et ven\ tos solisque ardores
perferat. Pellis autem mox detracta sub\ acta iam
corium dicitur. Corium autem per dirivationem caro\
appellatum quod eo tegatur, sed hoc in brutis
animalibus propri\um. Pori corporis Greco nomine
appellantur, qui Latine proprie\ spiramenta dicuntur,
eo quod per eos vivificus spiritus exterius
mi\nistretur. Arvina est pinguedo cuti adherens. Pulpa
est caro\ sine pinguedine, dicta quod palpitet, resilit
enim sepe.\ Hanc plerique et viscum vocant, propter
quod glutinosa sit. Mem\bra sunt partes corporis.
Artus quibus colligantur membra,\ ab artando dicti.
Nervi Greca dirivatione appellati, quos\ illi neutra
vocant. Alii Latine vocatos nervos putant, eo quod\
artuum coniunctiones invicem his inhereant.
Maximam\ autem virium substantiam nervos facere
certissimum est.\ Nam quanto fuerint densiores tanto
propensius augescere\ firmitatem. Artus dicti quod
colligati invicem nervis\ coarcentur, id est stringantur,
quorum diminutiva sunt articuli.\ Nam artus dicimus
membra maiora ut brachia, articula [i]\ minora
membra ut digiti. Compago capita sunt ossuum\
dicta, eo quod sibi compacta sunt nervis, velut glutino
quo\ dam adhereant. Ossa sunt corporis solidamenta,
in his\
sensorgr
apple.
The nipples, papille, are the tips of the breast;
suckling infants take hold of them. They are called
papille because babies seem to stroke them, palpare,
while they suck milk from them. Accordingly, the
word mamilla refers to the whole mound of the
breast; uber, the part from which the baby is suckled.
But the nipple is the short bit that conveys the milk.
Uber is so called either because it is filled, uberta,
with milk, or because it is moist, uvida, with fluid,
namely, full of milk, as a grape, uva, moist with juice.
Milk, lac, gets the force of its name from its colour
Translation
because it is a white fluid. For the Greek word for
white is leucos [leukos].
The nature of milk comes by a process of change from
blood. For after birth, any blood not consumed as
nourishment for the womb, flows by its natural
passage into the breasts and, becoming white from
their particular quality, acquires the properties of
milk.
Skin, cutis, is what you meet first on the body. It is so
called because, placed over the body, it is the first
part to suffer any cut. For the Greek word for 'cut' is
cutis.
Skin or hide, pellis, is the same thing. It is so called
because it keeps off, pellere, external injuries by
covering the body, and takes the force of rain, wind
and the heat of the sun.
When the skin has been removed, what is now
revealed underneath is called 'hide', corium. The word
is derived from caro, flesh, because flesh is covered
by it, but this applies to brute animals.
The pores, pori, of the body have a Greek name; in
Latin they are properly called spiramenta, 'breathing-
holes', because the vitalising spirit is supplied through
them from outside.
Arvina is the fat which adheres to the skin.
Pulpa is flesh without fat, so called because it
pulsates, palpitare, for it often recoils. Many also call
it viscus, because it has a gluey quality.
Limbs, membra, are the parts of the body.
The joints, artus, by which the members are fastened
together, get their name from artare, to compress.
Sinews, nervi, get their name from the Greek; the

Transcription
enim posicio omnis roburque subsistit. Omnia autem
a\ busto [ab usto] dicta propter quod cremarentur ab
antiquis sive ut\ alii putant ab eo quod ibi pateant,
namque ubique cute vis\ceribusque obtecta celantur.
Medulle appellate quod madefa\ ciant ossa, irrigant
enim et confortant. Vertibule[a] sunt\ summe ossuum
[PL, ossium] partes crassioribus nodis conglobate,
dicte\ ita eo quod ad inflexionem membrorum illa
vertantur. Car\tilagines ossa mollia et sine medulla.
Quod genus auri\cule et narium discrimen et
costarum extremitates habent\ sive operacula ossuum
[PL, ossium] que moventur. Et dicti cartilagines\ quod
levi attritu carent dolore dum plectuntur. Costas
ap\pellari quidam putant quod ab ipsis interiora
custodiantur,\ et tota mollicies ventris vallata
salvetur. Latus quia ia\centibus nobis, latet enim leva
pars corporis. Dextro au\tem lateri habilior motus est,
levo fortior et oneri ferendo\ accommodatior. Unde et
leva nuncupata quod aptior\ sit ad levandum aliquid
et portandum. Ipsa enim gestat\ clipeum, ensem,
pharetram et reliqua onera, ut expedita\ sit dextera
ad agendum. Dorsum est a cervice usque ad\ renes.
Dictum autem dorsum quod superficies durior
cor\poris, in modum saxi fortis, et ad portandum et
ad perpe\tiendum. Terga quia in ea supini iacemus in
terra quod\ solus homo potest. Nam muta animalia
tantum aut\ in ventre aut in latere iacent. Unde in
animalibus abusi\ve terga dicuntur. Scapula a
scandendo dicitur. Intersca\ pilium est spacium quod
inter scapulas est, unde et nomi\natum. Pale sunt
dorsi dextra levaque eminentia mem\bra dicta quod in
luctando eas primimus, quod Greci\
sensorgr
Greeks call them neutra [neura]. Others think that
they are called nervi, strings, in Latin, because the
connections of the joints are in turn attached to them.
It is definitely the case that the sinews are the
greatest source of our strength. For the thicker they
are, the more likely they are to increase our strength.
Limbs or joints, artus, are so called because, bound
together in turn by the sinews, they are compressed,
coartare, that is, drawn together; the diminutive of
artus is articulus, joints. For we call the larger limbs,
like the arms, artus; the smaller limbs, like the
fingers, are articuli.
Compago is the word we use for the heads of the
bones, because they are pressed to each other by the
sinews, as if by glue.
Bones, ossa, are the foundations of the body; in them
Translation
is the basis of its posture and all its strength. The
word comes from ustus, burnt, either because the
ancients burned bones or, as others think, because
bones are visible when flesh is burnt, for indeed
everywhere else they are hidden under a covering of
skin and organs.
Marrow, medulla, is so called because it moistens the
bones, refreshing and strengthening them.
The vertebrae, vertibula, are the extremities of the
bones, pressed together by thick knots; they are so
called because they swivel, vertere, to allow the
members to bend in different directions.
Cartilages, cartilagines, are soft bones without
marrow. The external part of the ear, the partition
between the nostrils and the ends of the ribs are of
this kind, or the coverings of those bones which are
articulated. They are so called because, if they rub
together lightly when they are bent, there is no pain,
carere dolore.
Ribs, costa, are so called, some think, because the
interior of the body is guarded, custodire, by them;
surrounded by them, as by a palisade, the entire soft
part of the belly is kept safe.
The side, latus, is so called because when we lie down
it is hidden, latere, for it is the left part of the body.
On the right side, movement is easier; the left is
stronger and better fitted for carrying a load. For this
reason, the left, leva, is so called because it is more
suitable to lifting, levare, and carrying anything. It is
the left side which carries the shield, sword, quiver
and other burdens, leaving the right hand free for

Transcription
palin dicunt. Spina est iunctura dorsi dicta quod
habeat\ radiolos acutos cuius iuncture spondilie
appellantur propter\ partem cerebri que fertur per
[h]os longo tractu ad ceteras cor\poris partes. Sacra
spina est ima perpetue spine quam Greci\ hyronoston
vocant quoniam primum infante concepto nascitur,\
ideoque et bestia ad primum a gentibus diis suis
dabatur, unde\ et sacra spina dicitur. Renes ait vario
[PL, Varro] dictos quod rivi\ ab his obsceni humoris
nascuntur. Nam vene et medulle te\nuem liquorem
desudant in renibus. Qui liquor rursus\ a renibus
calore venerio resolutus decurrit. Lumbi ob libi\dinis
lasciviam dicti, quia in viris causa corporee volup\tatis
in ipsis est, sicut in umbilico feminis. Unde et ad Job\
in exordio sermonis dictum est: Accingere sicut vir
lum\bos tuos, ut in his esset resistendi preparatio, in
quibus libidi\nis est usitata dominandi occasio.
Umbilicus est medius\ locus corporis, dictus quod sit
umbus illorum [PL, iliorum]. Unde et um\bo appellatur
locus in medio clipei a quo pendet. Ilium\ Greco
sermone appellatur, quod ibi nos obvolvamus,\ Grece
enim ileos obvolvere dicitur. Clunes vocate quod sunt\
iuxta collum quod est longum. Nates quod in ipsis
innitimur\ dum sedemus. Unde et conglobata est in
eis caro ne pre\mentis corporis mole ossa dolerent.
Genitalia corporis\ partes ut nomen ipsum docet
gignende sobolis acceperunt\ vocabulum, quod his
procreatur et gignitur. Hec et pudenda\ pro
verecundia sive a pube unde et indumento
operiuntur.\ Dicuntur autem ista et inhonesta quia
non habent eam speciem\ decoris, sicut membra que
in promptu locata sunt. Idem et\ veretrum quia viri
est tantum, sive quod ex eo virus emittitur.\
sensorgr
action.
The back, dorsum, runs from the neck to the loins. It
is so called because it is a very hard, durior, surface
of the body, strong like stone, able to carry loads and
to bear things steadfastly.
The hinder parts,terga, get their name because we lie
flat on them on the ground, terra, something that
only man can do. For dumb animals can only lie either
on their belly or side. For this reason it is incorrect to
use the word in connexion with animals.
The shoulder, scapula, comes from scandere, to
mount.
The interscapilium is the space between the
shoulders, from which it gets its name.
The protruding parts on the right and left of the back
are called pale, because we press on them in
wrestling, which the Greeks
Translation
call palin [pale].
The spine, spina, is what we call the series of joints of
the back, because it has sharp little spokes; its joints
are called spondilie, from the part of the brain which
is carried by them on a long course to other parts of
the body.
The sacral spine, sacra spina, is the end of the
continuous spine, which the Greeks call hyronoston
[hieron ostoun], since it is the first part of an infant to
be created after conception; and also because it was
the first part of the beast offered by pagans in
sacrifice to their gods; for this reason also it is called
sacra spina.
Varro says that the kidneys, renes, are so called
because streams, rivus, of the obscene fluid [semen]
rise there. For the veins and spinal cord, medulla,
exude a thin liquid into the kidneys. Freed by the heat
of sexual desire, it runs down from the kidneys.
The loins, lumbi, get their name from the wantonness
of lust, libido, because the seat of fleshly pleasure in
men is there, just as in women it is in the navel. For
this reason the Lord says to Job at the beginning of
his speech: 'Gird up now thy loins like a man' (Job,
38:2), in order that he should make ready his
resistance there, where the dominance of lust
normally begins.
The navel, umbilicus, is the centre of the body, so
called because it is like a knob, umbo, in the middle of
the groin. For this reason the boss in the middle of a
shield, from which it hangs, is called umbo.

Transcription
Nam virus proprie humor dicitur, fluens a natura viri.
Testicula\ per diminutionem a testibus dicti, quorum
numerus incipit\ a duobus. Hii semen calamo
ministrant quod ab spine me\dulla et renes et lumbi
suscipiunt, ad germen procreandi.\ Viscus est pellis in
qua testiculi sunt. Posteriora vocata quod\ retro sunt,
et a vultu aversa, ne dum alvum purgamus\
inquinaremus aspectum. Meatus inde appellatus
quod\ per eum meant, id est egeruntur stercora.
Femora dicta quod ea\ parte a femina sexus viri
discrepet, sunt autem ab inguini\bus usque ad genua.
Femina autem per dirivationem femorum\ partes
sunt, quibus in equitando tergis equorum inheremus.\
Unde olim preliatores sub feminibus equos amisisse
dicebantur.\ Coxe quasi coniuncte axes in ipsis enim
femora moventur\ quorum concava vertebra
vocantur, quod in eis capita femorum\ vertunt.
Suffragines quia subtus fra[n]guntur, id est flectuntur,
non\ supra sicut in brachiis. Genua sunt commixtiones
femorum\ et crurium, et dicta genua eo quod in utero
sint genis opposita,\ coherent enim sibi et cognita
[PL, cognata] sunt oculis lacrimarum indicibus\ et
misercordie. Nam a genis genua dicuntur. Denique
complica\tum gigni formarique hominem, ita ut genua
sursum sint\ quibus oculi formantur, ut cavi ac
reconditi fiant. Hennius:\ Atque genua comprimit arta
gena. Inde est quod homines dum\ ad genua se
prosternunt, statim lacrimantur. Voluit enim eos\
natura uterum maternum rememorare ubi quasi in
tenebris\ considebant, antequam venirent ad lucem.
sensorgr
The word for groin, ilium, comes from the Greek,
because we cover ourselves there, for the Greek word
ileos [eileo]means 'to wind round'.
The buttocks, clunes, are so called because they are
beside the straight gut, colum quod est longum.
The rump, nates, is so called because we bear down
upon it, inniti, when we sit. For this reason the flesh
on the rump is compressed into a round shape, lest
the bones should ache under the weight of the body
pressing down on them.
The sexual organs, genitalia, as their name itself
shows, are parts of the body named from the
begetting of offspring, which are created and
produced by them. They are also called pudenda,
'shameful parts', either on account of our modesty, or
from the hair, pubis, with which they are covered at
puberty. They are called 'shameful' because they lack
the same decent appearance of the other parts of the
body which are visible.
The same part is called the penis, veretrum, because
it is found in men only, viri est tantum, or because
semen, virus, is emitted from it.
Translation
For virus strictly means the fluid which comes from a
man's organs of generation.
The word for testicles, testiculi, is a diminutive of
testis, witness; there is a minumum of two. They
supply to the penis, calamus, semen which the
kidneys and loins take from the spinal cord, in order
to create a fetus.
The skin which contains the testicles is called viscus.
The posterior parts of the body are so called because
they are at the rear, turned away from the face, lest
when we empty our bowels, we should defile our
gaze. The anus or passage, meatus, is so called
because excrement passes, meare, through it, that is,
it is discharged from it.
The thighs, femur, are so called because the male sex
is distinguished from the female, a femina, by that
part; they extend from the groin to the knee.
The word femen comes from femur; the femina are
the parts of the thighs with which we grip the horse's
back when we ride. For this reason, it used formerly
to be said that warriors lost their horses 'from under
their thighs'.
The word for hips, coxe, comes, so to speak, from
coniuncte axes, 'axles joined together', for the thighs
Crura dicta\ quia in his currimus et gressum facimus,
sunt autem sub genibus\ usque ad suras. Tibie vocate
quasi tube sunt autem et longi\tudine et specie
similes. Talus dictus a tolo, nam tolus est\
Transcription
eminens rotunditas. Unde et fastigium templi rotundi\
tolus vocatur. Talus autem sub crure est sub talo
calcanei.\ Pedes ex Greca ethimologia nomen sortiti
sunt. Hos enim\ Greci podas dicunt, qui alternis
motibus solo fixi incedunt.\ Plante a planicie
nuncupate, quia non sunt rotunde ut\ in quadrupedis
ne stare non possit bipes homo, sed plane\ atque
longiores formate sunt, ut stabile corpus efficerent.
Sunt\ autem plante anteriores partes que etiam de
multis ossibus\ constant. Calcis prima pars plante a
callo illi nomen impo\situm quo terram calcamus. Hinc
et calcaneus. Solum inferi\ or pars pedis dictum quia
eo vestigia terre imprimimus. Sed et\ solum dicitur
omne quod aliquid sustinet quasi solidum, unde\ et
solum terra quod cuncta sustineat, et solum pedis,
quod\ totam molem corporis portat. Viscera non
tantum intestina\ dicimus, sed quicquid sub corio est
a visco quod est inter cutem\ et carnem. Item viscera
capita nervorum ex sanguine et ner\vis copulata.
Item lacerti sive mures quia sic in singulis mem\bris
corporis loca sunt ut cor in media tocius corporis
parte\ appellanturque a nomine similium animalium
sub terra\ delitescentium. Nam inde musculi a
murium similitudine.\ Idem etiam tori quod illic
sensorgr
are moved on them. Their joints are called hollows,
concava, because the heads of the thigh bones turn in
them.
The hollows of the knee, suffragines, are so called
because they are broken underneath, subtus
franguntur, that is, they bend downwards and not
upwards like the arm.
The knees are the junction between the thighs and
the legs. They are called genua because in the womb
they are opposite the upper part of the face, gena;
knees and cheeks press closely together and, in the
same way as the eyes signify grief, the knees signify
the desire for mercy. For genua comes from gena.
Finally, they say that a man is born in a folded shape,
so that his knees are on top, as a result of which his
eyes are formed so that they are hollow and hidden.
Ennius: 'And the cheek presses against bent knees'
(Incerta, 14). For this reason, when men fall on their
knees, they start to cry. For nature wills them to
remember their mother's womb, where they stayed,
before they came into the light.
The legs, crura, are so called because we run,
currere, and take steps on them; they extend from
under the knee to the lower calf.
The word for shins, tibia, comes, so to speak, from
tuba, trumpets, which they resemble.
The ankle, talus, comes from from the word for a
dome, tholus; for a dome is
Translation
is of a prominent, round shape. For this reason the
roof of a circular temple is called tolus.
The ankle is under the leg; under the ankle is the
heel, calcaneum.
The feet, pedes, have been assigned a name from the
Greek. For the Greeks call them podas [poas],
meaning that they proceed with alternating footsteps,
firmly on the ground.
The sole, planta, gets its name from planities, a flat
surface, because they are not rounded, as they are in
quadrupeds, lest a two-legged person might not be
able to stand on them, but are flat and long in shape,
so that they keep the body stable. The sole has a
front part which also is made up of many bones.
The heel, calx, at the end of the foot, gets its name
from callus, thick skin, with which we tread the earth.
Calcaneus, heel, comes from the same root.
The sole is the under part of the foot, so called
because with it we imprint our footsteps. Everything
viscera torta videantur. Cor a Greca\ appellatione
dirivatum, quod illi cardinan dicunt, sive\ a cura, in eo
enim omnis sollicitudo et scientie causa manet.\ Quod
ideo pulmoni vicinius est, ut cum ira accenditur,
pul\monis humore temperatur. Huius due arterie sunt,
e quibus\ sinistra plus sanguinem habet, dextera plus
spiritum. Unde et in\ dextro brachio pulsum
inspicimus. Precordia sunt loca cor\dis vicina quibus
sensus perspicitur. Et dicta precordia eo quod\
sensorgr
which supports something is called solum, as if it
were solid, solidus; for this reason the earth is called
solum, because it supports everything, and the sole of
the foot, solum, because it bears the whole weight of
the body.
We use the word viscera not only for intestines, but
for anything under the skin, from viscus, the layer
between the skin and the flesh. Likewise the word is
used of the tips of sinews, which are made from blood
combined with nerves.
Again, muscles, lacerti, or mures, exist because there
are places in every member of the body like the
heart, cor, in the middle part of the whole body; and
they are called by names of animals -lacerti, lizards,
mures, mice - which like them lie hidden under the
ground. Thus the muscle, musculus, is name from its
likeness to a mussel, or 'sea-mouse'.
It is also called torus because in areas where there is
muscle, the inner parts seem to be twisted, tortus.
The heart, cor, comes either from the Greek word,
because they call it cardinan [kardia], or from cura,
care, for the heart is the seat of concern and the
source of knowledge. For this reason it is near the
lung, so that when it is aflame with anger, it can be
cooled by the fluid of the lung.
The heart has two arteries, arterie: the left one has
more blood; the right, more life-giving spirit. For this
reason we see the pulse beating in the left arm.
Precordia are places near the heart in which we
perceive feeling. They are so called because
Transcription
ibi sit principium cordis et cogitationis. Pulsus
vocatus\ quod palpitet cuius indicio aut infirmitatem
intelligi\mus aut sanitatem. Huius duplex est motus
aut simplex\ aut compositus. Simplex est qui uno
saltu constat. Com\positus est qui ex pluribus motibus
inordinatus et inequalis\ existit qui motus certa
habent spacia. Dactilium percussum quam\diu sine
vicio sunt, siquando [a]ut scitatiores sunt ut
dorcacizon\tes, aut leniores ut mirmizones, mortis
signa sunt. Vene dic\te eo quod vie sunt natantis
sanguinis atque rivi per corpus omne\ divisi, quibus
universa membra irrigantur. Sanguis ex Greca\
ethimologia nomen duxit, quod vegetetur, et
sustentetur et vivat.\ Sanguis autem est dum in
corpore est, effusus vero cruor dicitur.\ Nam et cruor
vocatus ab eo quod effusus decurrit, vel ab eo\ quod
currendo corruat. Alii cruorem interpretantur
sanguinem\ corruptum qui emittitur. Alii aiunt
vocatum sanguinem quia\ suavis sit. Sanguis autem
non est integer nisi in iuvenibus.\ Nam dicunt phisici
minui sanguinem per etatem, unde in se\nibus
tremorem. Proprie autem sanguis anime possessio
est.\ Inde genas lacerare mulieres in luctu solent,
inde et purpuree ve\ stes et flores purpurei mortuis
prebentur. \ Ysidorus de membris hominis \ Pulmo
ex Greco trahit vocabulum,\ pulmonem enim Greci
pleumon vocant, eo\ quod cordis flebellum sit in quo
pneuma\ id est spiritus inest, per quod et agitantur et
moventur,\ unde et pulmones vocati sunt. Nam Grece
pneuma a spiritu dicitur,\ qui flando et agitando
aerem amittit et recipit, a quo mo\ventur pulmones et
palpitant, et aperiendo se ut flatum capi\ant
stringendo ut eiciant, est enim organum corporis.
Iecur\
sensorgr
Translation
there is the origin of emotion and of thought.
The pulse, pulsus, is so called because it throbs,
palpitare. From its sign we learn whether the body is
in in sickness or health.
The motion is twofold, single or complex. The single
motion consists of a single movement. The complex is
uneven and irregular because it makes many
movements, with fixed intervals between them. It
strikes a dactyl as long as there is nothing wrong; if
the beats are more rapid, like dorcacizontes
[dorkadazontes] or fainter, like mirmizontes
[murmizontes], they are a sign of death.
The veins, vena, are so called because they are the
channels, vie, of flowing blood and streams which are
spread throughout the whole body, by which the
members are supplied with blood.
Blood, sanguis, gets its name from Greek etymology,
because it is active, it survives and it has life. When it
is in the body, it is called sanguis; when it pours
forth, it is called gore, cruor.
It is called cruor because when it is spilled, it runs
down, decurrere; or because when it runs, it sinks
into the ground, corruere. Others take cruor to mean
corrupt blood which is discharged from the body.
Others say blood is called sanguis because it is sweet,
suavis.
Except in young people, the blood supply does not
remain constant. For physicians say that it diminishes
with age, which is why old people have tremors.
Strictly speaking, however, blood is a property of the
soul. For this reason women tear their cheeks in grief,
and we furnish the dead with purple clothing and
purple flowers.
Isidore on the parts of man's body
The lung, pulmo, gets its name from the Greek. The
Greeks call the lung, pleumon, because it acts as a
fan for the heart, in which the pneuma, that is, the
spirit resides, by which they are both activated and
set in motion; for this reason lungs too are called
pulmones. In Greek the spirit is called pneuma; by
inflating and activating, it sends out and takes in air,
causing the lungs to move and throb, opening in
order to catch a breath, contracting to expel it, for it
is the organ of the body.
The liver, iecur
Transcription
nomen habet eo quod ibi ignis habeat sedem qui in
cerebro sub\volat. Inde ad oculos ceterosque sensus
et membra diffunditur,\ et calore suo ad se succum ex
cibo tractum vertit in sanguinem\ quem ad usum
pascendi nutriendique singulis membris pre\bet. In
iecore autem persistit voluptas et concupiscentia,
iux\ta eos qui de phisicis disputant. Fibre iecoris sunt
extremi\tates sicut et extreme partes foliorum in
vitibus, sive quasi\ lingue eminentes, dictas autem
fibras quod apud gentiles\ in sacras [sacris] ad Phebi
aras ferebantur ab ariolis, quibus oblatis\ atque
succensis responsa acciperent. Splen dictum a
supplemento\ ex contraria parte iecoris ne vacua
existeret, quem quidam\ etiam risus causa fictum
existimant. Nam splene ridemus,\ felle irascimur,
corde sapimus, iecore amamus, quibus quatuor\
elementis constantibus integrum est animal. Fel
appellatum\ quod sit folliculus gestans humorem qui
vocatur bilis.\ Stomachus Grece os vocatur, eo quod
hostium ventris ipse\ cibum excipiat, atque in
intestina transmittat. Intestina di\cuntur eo quod
corporis interiori parte cohibentur. Que iccirco\ longis
nexibus in circulorum modum ordinata sunt, ut
sus\ceptis cibis non impediantur. Omentum
membranum quod\ continet intestinorum maiorem
partem quod eippaon\ Greci vocant. Disceptum
intestinum quod discernit ventrem\ et cetera intestina
a pulmonibus ad cor. Cetum intestinum\ quod sit sine
foramine et exitu, quod Greci tiaonentipon di\cunt.
Ieiuna tenue intestinum, unde et ieiunium dicitur.\
Venter autem et alvus, et uterus inter se differunt.
Venter\ est qui acceptos cibos digerit et apparet
extrinsecus, pertinetque\ a pectore ad inguinem. Et
dictus venter quod per totum corpus\
sensorgr
Translation
gets its name because it is the seat of a fire which
flies up to the brain. From there the fire is spread to
the eyes and other senses and members of the body,
and by its own heat, draws the moisture from food to
itself and turns it into blood which supplies each part
of the body with food and nourishment.
Pleasure and lust reside in the liver, according to
those who debate scientific matters.
The extremities of the liver are filaments, fibre, like
the outer parts of leaves on the vine or like projecting
tongues. They are said to be so called because among
pagans they were borne by soothsayers in religious
rites to altars of Phoebus, so that when they had been
offered up and burned, the soothsayers would receive
answers.
The spleen, splen, gets its name from supplementum,
because it fills up the part opposite the liver lest there
should be an empty space; some reckon that it was
created as a seat of laughter. For we laugh with the
spleen, grow angry with the bile, discern with the
heart and love with the liver; the whole animal is
formed from these four elements in harmony.
The gall bladder, fel, is so called because it is a little
bag holding the humour called bile, bilis.
The gullet, stomachus, is called in Greek os because,
as the door, ostium, of the belly it takes in food and
sends it on to the intestines.
The intestines, intestina, are so called because they
are contained in the inner, interior, part of the body.
They are arranged in long coils, so that they are not
obstructed by food that has been swallowed.
The caul, omentum, is a skin containing the greater
part of the intestines; the Greeks call it epiploon.
The diaphragm, disceptum intestinum, is so called
because it separates the belly and other intestines
from the lungs and heart.
The blind intestine, cecum, is so called because it
lacks an opening or exit; the Greeks call it
tiaonentipon [tuphlon enteron].
The thin intestine is calledieiuna; from it comes
ieiunium, fast day.
The belly, venter, the bowel, alvus, and the womb,
uterus, differ from each other.
The belly digests food that has been swallowed and is
visible from outside; it extends from the breast to the
groin. It is called venter because it conveys
throughout the body
Transcription
vite alimenta transmittat. Alvus est que cibum re\cipit
et purgari solet. Sallustius: Simulans sibi alvum\
purgari. Et vocata alvus quod abluatur, id est,
purgetur.\ Ex ipsa enim sordes stercorum defluunt.
Uterum\ sole mulieres habent, in quo concipiunt ad
similitudinem\ caliculi, tamen, auctores uterum pro
utroquelibet sexu ventrem\ plerumque ponunt, nec
poete tantummodo sed et ceteri. Vocatus\ autem
uterus quod duplex sit, et ab utraque in duas se
di\vidat partes que in diversis diffuse ac reflexe
circumpli\cantur in modum cornu arietis vel quod
impleatur fetu\ interius. Hinc est uter quod aliquid
intrinsecus habuerit ut mem\bra et viscera.
Aqualiculus autem proprie porci est. Hinc ad\ ventrem
translatio. Matrix dicitur, quod in eo generetur.
Semen\ enim receptum confovet, confovendo
corporat, corporatum\ in membra distinguit. Vulva
vocata quasi valva, id est, ianua\ ventris, quod vel
semen recipiat, vel quod ex ea\ fetus procedat.\
Vesica dicta, quia sicut vas aque ita de renibus urina
collecta\ completur, et humore distenditur. Cuius usus
in volucri\bus non habetur. Urina autem dicta sive
quod urat,\ sive quia ex renibus egreditur. Cuius
indicio et salus et egritudo futura monstratur. Qui
humor vulgo locium [lotium]\ dicitur, quod eo lota, id
est munda vestimenta afficiantur.\ Semen est quod
iactum sumitur, aut a terra aut ab utero,\ ad
gignendum vel fructus vel fetus. Est enim liquor ex\
cibi et corporis decoctione factus, ac diffusus per
venas atque\ medullas. Qui inde desudatur in modum
sentine, concres\cit in renibus eiectusque per coitus,
et in utero mulieris suscep[tus]\ calore quodammodo
viscerum et menstrualis irrigatione\
Transcription
sanguinis formatur in corpore. Menstrua super\
vacuus mulierum sanguis. Dicta autem men\strua a
circuitu lunaris luminis, quo solet hoc\ evenire
profluvium. Luna enim Grece mene dicitur,\ hec et
muliebria nuncupantur. Nam mulier solum a\nimal
menstruale est, cuius cruoris tactu fruges non\
germinant, acescunt musta, moriuntur herbe,
sensorgr
Translation
the food of life. The bowel is the part that receives the
food and is regularly purged. Sallust: 'Pretending that
he purged his bowels' (History, 1, 52). It is also called
the bowel, alvus, because it is washed out, abluere,
that is, purged. For from it flows out excremental
filth.
Only women have a womb; in it they conceive as in a
small cup; but there are writers who assign a womb
to either sex, often calling it venter, belly - and not
just poets, but others also. The womb is called uterus
because it is double and divides itself into two parts
which bend in different and opposing directions like a
ram's horn; or because it is filled inside with a fetus.
For this reason it is called uter, a bag, because it has
something inside it, such as limbs and intestines.
Paunch, aqualiculus, is properly the word for a pig's
belly. For this reason it is translated as venter, belly.
It is called the matrix because the baby is generated
in it. It fosters the semen it has received, and by
cherishing it, turns it into flesh; and what it has
turned into flesh, it separates into parts of the body.
The vulva is so called as if it were a folding-door, that
is, the door of the belly; either because it receives the
semen or because the fetus goes forth from it.
The bladder, vesica, is so called as if it were a water-
container; thus it is filled with urine collected from the
kidneys, and is distended by the fluid. There is no
need for this in birds.
Urine is so called either because it burns, urere, or
because it comes from the kidneys. Its appearance
reveals future health or sickness. The fluid is
commonly called lotium, because you use it to wash
clothes clean, lotus. Semen, seed, is so called
because once scattered it is consumed either by the
earth or by the womb, to produce either fruits or a
fetus. For it is a liquor concocted from food and the
body, which is spread through the veins and spinal
cord. From there it is sweated out like bilgewater; it
thickens in the kidneys and is ejaculated during
intercourse, and taken up into the woman's womb, by
a sort of intestinal heat and the flow of menstrual
Translation
blood, it is shaped in the body.
The menstrual flow is the superfluous blood of a
woman. It is called menstrua from the cycle of the
light of the moon which regularly brings about this
flow. For the Greek word for 'moon' is mene;
menstruation is also called muliebria, 'womanly
amit\tunt arbores fetus, ferrum rubigo corrumpit,
nigres\cunt aera, siqui canes inde ederint, in rabiem
efferuntur.\ Glutinum asfalti quod nec ferro nec aquis
dissolvitur,\ cruore ipso pollutum sponte dispergitur.
Post plurimos\ autem dies menstruos ideo non esse
semen generabile,\ quia non est iam menstrualis
sanguis a quo perfusus irri\getur. Tenue semen
muliebribus locis non adheret, labi\tur enim nec habet
vim adherendi, similiter et crasum vim\ non habet
gignendi, quia muliebri sanguini se miscere non\
potest, propter nimiam sui spissitudinem. Hinc et
steriles\ mares vel feminas fieri, vel per nimiam
seminis crassitu\dinis, vel sanguinis, vel propter
nimiam raritatem. Pri\mum enim aiunt cor hominis
fingi, quod in eo sit et vita\ omnis et sapientia deinde
quadragesimo die totum corpus\ expleri, quod ex
abortionibus collectum est. Alii fetus a ca\pite
exordium sumere dicunt. Unde et in avium fetu
pri\mum oculos in ovis fingi videmus. Fetus autem
dictus\ quod adhuc in utero foveatur. Cuius secunde
dicuntur folli\culus qui simul cum infante nascitur
continetque eum\. Dictus quia et cum editur, sequitur.
Nasci autem patribus\ similes aiunt, si paternum
semen validius sit. Ma[t]ribus\
Transcription
si ma[t]ris hac ratione[s] similes exprimi vultus. Qui
autem\ utriusque parentis figuram reddunt, equaliter
mixto pa\terno maternoque semine concipiuntur.
Avorum proavorumque\ similes fieri, quia sicut in
terra multa semina occulta\ sic in hominibus semina
celantur, nobis figuram parentum\ redditura. Ex
paterno autem semine puellas nasci, et\ ex materno
pueros, quia omnis partus constat duplici se\mine,
cuius pars maior cum involvit, occupat similitudi\nem
sexus. In corpore nostro quedam et utilitatis causa
facta\ sunt ut viscera, quedam et utilitatis et decoris
ut sensus in\ facie, et in corpore manus et pedes.
Quorum membrorum et uti\litas magna est, et species
decentissima. Quedam tantum\ decoris, ut mamille in
viris, et in utroque sexu umbilicus. Que\dam
discretionis ut in viris genitalia, barba prolixa, pectus\
amplum. In mulieribus leves gene et angustum
pectus, ad\ concipiendos autem et portandos fetus
renes et latera dilatata.\ Quod ad hominem et partes
attinet corporis ex parte dictum\ est, nunc etatis [PL,
etates] eius subiungamus. \ De etate hominis \
sensorgr
business'. For the woman is the only creature which
menstruates. When they come into contact with
menstrual blood, crops do not put forth shoots, wine
turns sour, grasses die, trees lose their fruit, iron is
corrupted by rust, copper blackens, if dogs eat it they
become rabid. Asphalt glue, which cannot be melted
by fire or dissolved by water, when it is tainted by this
blood, disintegrates by itself.
After many days of menstruation, the semen cannot
generate, because there is no further flow of
menstrual blood by which it can be moistened. Semen
of thin consistency does not stick to the womanly
parts and is unstable, for it has not the strength to
adhere; likewise thick semen has not the power to
generate, because it cannot mix with the woman's
blood, so dense is it. For this reason men and women
become sterile, either through excessive density of
the semen, or the blood, or excessive thinness.
For they say that a man's heart is the first part to
come into existence, because in it is all life and
wisdom; then on the fortieth day, the whole body is
complete, a fact gathered from abortions. Others say
that the fetus takes its beginning from the head. For
this reason we see in eggs that in the fetus of birds
the eyes are the first things to grow.
The fetus is so called because it is still being fostered,
fovere, in the womb. The afterbirth, secunda, of the
fetus is called folliculus, 'little sack'; it is produced
simultaneously with the baby and contains it. It is
called secunda because when the baby comes forth, it
follows, sequi. They say that children are born
resembling their fathers, if the father's semen is
stronger. They resemble the mother
Translation
if her seed is stronger; for this reason countenances
have a similar appearance.
Infants who have the face of both parents were
conceived in an equal mix of their their paternal and
maternal seed.
They resemble grandparents and great-grandparents
because, just as there are many seeds hidden in the
earth, so there are seeds hidden in mankind, which
give us the features of our ancestors.
From the paternal seed girls are born; from the
maternal, boys; because each birth consists of a
double seed, and when the greater of the two parts
overcomes the other, it produces a similarity in sex.
In our body certain things are created for a functional
purpose, such as the intestines; some for utility and
ornament, like the sensory organs on the face and the
hands and feet on the body. The usefulness of these
Gradus etatis vi sunt. Infancia, puericia,\
adolescentia, iuventus, gravitas, atque se\nectus.
Prima etas infantia est, pueri nas\centis ad lucem,
que porrigit in vii annis.\ Secunda puericia est, id est
pura et nec dum ad\ generandum apta, tendens
usque ad quartum decimum an\num. Tercia
adolescentia ad gignendum adulta, que porri\gitur
usque viginti octo annos. Quarta iuventus firmissima\
omnium etatum finiens in quinquagesimo anno.
Quinta\ etas senioris, id est gravitas que est declinatio
a iuventute in\
Transcription
senectutem, non dum senectus set iam non iuventus,
quia\ senioris etas est quam Greci presbiterum
vocant, nam senex\ apud Grecos non presbiter sed
geron dicitur. Que etas a quinquagesimo\ anno
incipiens, septuagesimo terminatur. Sexta etas
senec\tus que nullo annorum tempore finitur, sed
post quinque illas\ etates quantumcumque vite est
senectuti deputatur. Senium\ autem pars est ultima
senectutis, dicta quod sit terminus\ sexte etatis. In
his igitur sex spaciis philosophi descripserunt vi\tam
humanam, in quibus mutatur et currit et ad mortis\
terminum pervenit. Pergamus ergo breviter predictos
gradus eta\tum, ethimologias earum in homine
demonstrantes. In\fans dicitur homo prime etatis.
Dictus autem infans quod\ adhuc fari, id est loqui non
potest. Non dum enim bene ordina\tis dentibus minus
est sermonis expressio. Puer a puritate\ vocatus, quia
purus est et nec dum lanuginem floremque\ genarum
habens. Hi sunt ethebi a Phebo dicti, nec dum\ pro
nativitate viri adolescentuli lenes. Puer autem tribus\
sensorgr
parts is great and their appearance most seemly.
Some are there for ornament only, like men's nipples
and the navel in both sexes.
Some are there to distinguish one sex from the other,
like the genitals, the long beard and the broad chest
in men; the soft cheeks and narrow breast in women;
but for conceiving and carrying babies their loins and
hips are widened.
What pertains to man and the parts of his body has
already been said; now we will go on to the ages of
his life.
Of the age of man
There are six stages of life. Infancy, childhood,
adolescence, youth, maturity and old age.
The first age is infancy, which lasts from the time the
child enters the light till it is seven.
The second is childhood, that is, when the child is
pure and not yet old enough to generate young; it
extends to the fourteenth year.
The third is adolescence, when the child is old enough
to generate children; it lasts until the twenty-eighth
year.
The fourth is youth, the the most robust of all the
ages; it ends in the fiftieth year.
The fifth age is that of riper years, that is, of
maturity, and represents the movement away from
youth to
Translation
old age; you are not yet ancient, but you are no
longer young; the Greeks call someone at this age of
maturity presbiteros, an elder; an old man they call
geron. This age, beginning in the fiftieth year, ends in
the seventieth.
The sixth age is that of old age, which has no end-
date; whatever of life is left after the five Previous
ages is classed as 'old age'.
The final part of old age is senility, senium, so called
because it marks the end of the sixth age, sexta etas.
Philosophers, therefore, have categorised human life
in these six periods, during which it is changed and
runs its race and comes to an end, which is death.
So, let us proceed briefly through the above-
mentioned categories of the ages, pointing out their
etymology in the context of man.
modis dicitur. Pro nativitate ut Ysaias: Puer natus est
nobis.\ Pro etate ut octennis decennis. Unde est illud:
Iam pueri\le iugum tenera cervice gerebat. Pro
obsequio et fidei puri\tate ut dominus ad prophetam:
Puer meus es tu, noli timere, dum\ iam Jeremias
longe puericie excessisset annos. Puella par\vula
quasi pulla, unde et pupillos non pro conditione sed\
pro etate puerili vocamus. Pupilli autem dicti quasi
sine ocu\lis, hoc est a parentibus orbi. Hi autem vere
pupilli dicuntur\ quorum patres vel parentes ante
decesserunt, quam ab his no\men acciperent, ceteri
orbi vocantur. Orphani idem qui et\ pupilli. Illud enim
Grecum nomen est, hoc Latinum. Nam\
sensorgr
Man at the first stage is called infans; this is because
he is incapable of speaking, fari. As his teeth are not
yet arranged correctly, his capacity to produce words
is restricted.
Boy, puer, is so called from purity, puritas, because
he is pure, with no down or bloom yet on his cheeks.
These are ethebi [ephebi], named after Phoebus; not
yet grown men but gentle little boys.
The word 'boy' is used in three ways. In the context
of birth, as in Isaiah: 'Unto us a child is born' (9:6).
In the context of age, as 'a boy of eight' or 'a ten
year-old boy'. In this context: 'Now he bore the yoke
on his tender neck'. And in the context of compliance
and purity of faith, as the Lord said to the prophet:
'You are my son, do not fear' (see Jeremiah, 1:7-8),
although Jeremiah had long since outlived the years
of his childhood.
Girl, puella, comes from parvula, very small female,
or 'chicken', pulla, so to speak.
For this reason we refer to 'orphans', pupillus, not
from their status but because of their childish age.
They are called pupillus as if they were without eyes,
that is, bereft, orbus, of their parents. They are
properly called 'orphans' if their parents died before
they were named; others call them 'parentless', orbi.
'Orphan', orphanus, means the same as pupillus. The
one is the Greek word; the other, the Latin;
Transcription
et in psalmo ubi legitur: Pupillo tu eras adiutor.
Grecus habet\ orphano. Puberes a pube vocati, id est
a pudentia corporis nun\cupati, quod hec loca primo
lanuginem dicunt. Quidam\ autem pubertatem
existimant, id est c[e]um puberem esse qui xiiii\
annos expleverit, quamvis tardissime pubescat.
Certissime\ autem c[e]um puberem esse qui et ex
habitu corporis pubertatem\ ostendit, et generare iam
possit. Puerpere sunt que annis pu\erilibus pariunt.
Unde et Oracius: Laudatur primo iam prole\ puerpera
nato. Et dicte puerpere vel quod primo partu
gravantur\ vel quod primum pueros pariunt.
Adolescens dictus eo quod\ sit ad gignendum adultus,
sive accrescere et augere. Iuvenis\ vocatus quod
iuvare possei [posse] incipit ut in bobus iuvenci cum\
a vitulis discesserint. Est enim iuvenis in ipso etatis
incremen\to positus, et ad auxilium preparatus. Nam
iuvare hominis\ est opus aliquod conferentis. Sicut
autem tricesimus perfecte\ etatis est annus in
hominibus, ita in pecudibus ac iumentis ter\cius
robustissimus. Vir nuncupatus quia maior in eo virtus\
est quam in feminis. Unde et virtutis nomen accepit
sive quod\ vi agat femina. Mulier vero a mollicia
tanquam mollior r [l] de\tracta littera vel mutata, est
mulier. Utrique enim fortitudine\ et imbecillitate
corporum separantur. Sed ideo viri maxima\ virtus,
mulieris minor ut paciens viro esset, scilicet ne
femi\nis repugnantibus libido cogeret viros aliud
appetere, aut\ in alium sexum proruere. Dicitur mulier
igitur secundum femineum sex\um, non secundum
corruptionem integritatis, et hec est lingua\ sacre
scripture. Nam Eva statim facta de latere viri sui, non\
dum contacta a viro mulier appellata est, dicente
scriptura:\ Et formavit eam in mulierem. Virgo a
viridiori etate dicta\
sensorgr
Translation
as also in the psalm where it says: 'Thou art the
helper of the fatherless' (Psalms, 10: 14). The Greek
text has orphano.
The pubescent are so called from pubis, that is, they
get their name from the private parts of the body
because these first show the down of puberty. Some
think of puberty as a specific age, that is, they call
'pubescent' someone who has reached the end of his
fourteenth year, even though the signs of puberty
may appear much later. It is certain, however, that a
child has reached puberty when it shows the physical
signs and can generate children.
The word puerpure refers to women who give birth
during the years of puberty. In this context Horace
says: 'The young mother is praised for her firstborn
male' (Odes, 4, 5, 23). The word is also used of those
who are pregnant with their first child, or those who
bear sons for the first time.
The adolescent, adolescens, is so called because he is
old enough to beget children, or because he grows in
maturity and size.
A young man, iuvenis, is so called because he begins
to be able to help, as among oxen bullocks, iuvencus,
are so named when they have withdrawn from the
calves. For a young man is at that particular growth
period and is ready to be of help. For it is incumbent
on a man to devote himself to helping others. Just as
the thirtieth year is that of perfect age in men, so the
third is that of greatest strength among cattle and
beasts of burden.
Man, vir, is so called because there is greater virtue,
virtus, in him than in women. It is for that reason that
he takes the name, or because he acts with force in
his relationship with woman.
Woman, mulier, however, gets her name from her
softness, mollicia, as if mollior, softer, with the letter l
removed or changed, giving mulier.
There are differences between men and women in
physical strength and weakness. But because the
man's strength is greater, the woman's is less and
she is subject to him, lest rejected by women, lust
should drive men to seek something else, or to fall on
their own sex.
Woman gets her name, therefore, from her female
sex, not as a result of her corruption of man's
integrity, as the words of the holy scripture show. For
Eve was made directly from her husband's side, and
was called 'woman' before she had been touched by a
man, as the scripture says: 'He made the rib a
woman' (see Genesis, 2: 22).
 A virgin, virgo, is so called because she is in the
green, viridus, or blooming age of her life

sensorgr
Transcription
est, sicut et virga, sicut et vitula. Alias ab
incorruptione quasi\ virago, quod ignoret femineam
passionem. Virago vocata\ quia virum agit, hoc est
opera virilia facit, et masculini vigo\ris est. Antiqui
enim fortes feminas ita vocabant. Virgo autem\ non
recte virago dicitur, si non viri officio fungitur, mulier
vero\ si virilia opera agit, recte virago dicitur ut
Amazona. Que vero nunc\ femina antiquitus vira
vocabatur, sicut a servo serva, sicut\ a famulo
famula, ita a viro vira. Hinc et virginis nomen qui\dam
putant. Femina vero a partibus femorum dicta ubi
sexus\ species a viro distinguitur. Alii Greca
ethimologia femi\nam ab ignea vi dictam putant, quia
vehementer concupis\cit, libidinosiores enim viris
feminas esse, tam in mulieribus\ quam in animalibus.
Unde nimius amor apud antiquos fe\mineus
vocabatur. Senior est adhuc viridior. In sexto libro
Ovidius: Senior inter iuvenemque [PL, senemque].
Terentius: Quo iure sumus\ adolescentiores. Non
utique magis adolescens, sed minus ut\ senior minus
sene ubi comparativus gradus minus signifi\cata [PL,
significat] positivo. Ergo senior non satis sicut
iuvenior intra\ iuvenem, sicut pauperior intra
pauperem. Senes autem qui\dam dictos putant a
sensus diminutione, et quod iam\ pro vetustate
desipiant. Nam phisici dicunt stultos homi\nes esse
frigidioris sanguinis, prudentes calidi. Unde et se\nes
in quibus iam friget, et pueri in quibus nec dum calet\
minus sapiunt, inde est quod convenit sibi infantium
etas\ et senum. Senes enim per nimiam etatem
delirant, pueri\ per lasciviam et infantiam ignorant
quid agant. Senex autem\ masculini tamen est
generis sicut anus feminini. Nam anus dicitur\ sola
mulier. Anus autem appellata a multis annis quasi\
sensorgr
Translation
like a slender green branch, virga and a calf, vitula.
Otherwise the word may come from her uncorrupted
state, as virago, because she does not know womanly
passion.
A virago is so called because she acts like a man, vir
agere, that is, she does manly things and has the
strength of a man. For this is the name the ancients
gave to strong women. But it is not correct to call a
virgin a virago if she does not perform the office of a
man; nevertheless, a woman who does masculine
things, like an Amazon, is rightly called a virago.
What we now call a woman, femina, was, in former
times, called vira; as serva, maid-servant, from
servus, famula, handmaid from famulus, so vira from
vir. Some think that the word virgo has the same
derivation. We get the word femina, however, from
those parts of the thighs by which this sex is
distinguished from the man.
Others think that femina derives by Greek etymology,
from the phrase 'fiery force', because a woman lusts
fiercely; for females are more lustful than males,
among women as as among animals. For this reason
excessive love was called 'womanly love' among the
ancients.
To be 'elder', senior, is to be still more vigorous. Ovid
writes in his sixth book: 'The elder, between youth
and old age' (Metamorphoses, 12, 464]. Terence: 'By
this law we are younger' (Hecyra II, Prologue, 3).
Undoubtedly adolescentior here does not mean 'more
adolescent' but 'less', as an elder is less of an old
man, where the comparative form signifies less that
the positive. Senior, therefore, is not as old as senex,
just as a 'younger' man stands between youth and
seniority and a 'poorer' man stands between rich and
poor.
Some think that the aged, senes, are so called from
the reduction of their senses and the fact that they
act foolishly because of their old age. For physicians
say that foolish men are of cold blood, the wise of
hot. For this reason, the aged, whose blood has now
grown cold, and children, whose blood has not yet
warmed up, are less wise. As a result, infancy and old
age are alike. The old lose their wits from their
excessive age, and the very young, through frivolity
and immaturity, do not know what they are doing.
The word senex, old man, however, is used of the
masculine gender, as anus, old woman, is of the
feminine. For anus is used only of a woman. It comes
from the word for 'many years old',
Transcription
annosa. Nam si commune esset nomen cur non
diceret Teren\tius senem mulierem? Hinc et vetula
quasi vetusta. Sicut\ autem a sene senectus, ita ab
anu anilitas nominata est.\ Canicies autem vocata a
candore quasi candicies. Unde\ est illud florida
iuventus, lactea canicies, prout diceret candida.\
Senectus autem multa secum et bona et mala affert.
Bona\ quia nos a potentissimis dominis liberat,
voluptatibus imponit\ modum, libidinis frangit
impetus, auget sapientiam, dat\ maturiora consilia.
Mala autem quia senium miserrimum\ est debilitate et
odio. Subeunt enim morbi tristisque senectus.\ Nam
duo sunt quibus imminuuntur corporis vires,
senectus\ et morbus. Mors dicta quod sit amara, vel a
Marte qui est\ effector mortuorum, sive a morsu primi
hominis quod vetite\ arboris primum [PL, pomum]
mordens mortem incurrit. Tria sunt autem\ genera
mortis, acerba, immatura, naturalis. Acerba
infan\tum, immatura iuvenum, merita, id est naturalis
senum. Mor\tuus autem ex qua parte orationis
declinetur incertum est.\ Nam sicut ait Cesar. Ab eo
quod est morior in participio pre\teriti temporis in tus
exire debuit, per unum scilicet u non per duo. Nam
ubi geminata est littera u nomen est non participium,\
ut fatuus arduus. Convenienter itaque factum ut
quem\admodum id quod significat non potest agendo,
ita\ ipsum nomen posset loquendo declinari. Omnis\
autem mortuus aut funus est aut cadaver. Funus est\
si sepeliatur, et dictum funus a funibus accensis,
quos\ ante feretrum papiris circumdatis cera ferebatur
[PL, ferebant].\ Cadaver autem est si insepultum
iacet. Nam cadaver\ nominatum a cadendo, quia iam
stare non potest.\
Transcription
Quod dum portatur exequias dicimus. Crematas
sensorgr
Translation
annosa, so to speak. For if the word were common to
both genders, why does Terence not use the words
senem mulierem?
In the same way vetula, a little old woman, comes
from vetustus, aged. Just as senility, senectus, comes
from senex, so 'old womanhood', anilitas, comes from
anus.
Hoariness, canities, comes from candor, 'shining
whiteness', as if it were candities. This gives the
phrase 'blooming youth, milky age', as if to say
'white'.
Senility brings with it the good and the bad in
quantity. The good, because it frees us from our post
powerful masters, imposes moderation on our
pleasures, bridles the onset of our lust, increases our
wisdom, gives more mature counsel. Bad, because
the most wretched thing about being old is the frailty
you feel and the resentment you meet. For diseases
and miserable old age approach together. For there
are two things by which the body's powers are
lessened: senility and sickness.
Death, mors, is so called because it is amarus, bitter,
or from Mars, the deliverer of death, or from the bite,
morsus, of the first man, because by biting into the
apple of the forbidden tree, he incurred death.
There are three kinds of death: premature, untimely
and natural. Premature is the death of a child;
untimely, the death of a young man; fitting, that is,
natural, the death of the old.
There is some doubt, however, according to which
part of speech, mortuus, dead, is to be declined. For
as Caesar said, on the basis that it is from morior, in
the past participle, it should end in -tus, namely, with
one u not two. For where the letter u is doubled, it is
an adjective not a participle, as in fatuus, arduus.
Thus, it is not inapt that in so far as what death
means cannot be shown physically, so the word itself
cannot be declined orally.
Every dead man is a corpse, either funus or cadaver.
His body is called funus if it is buried, the word
coming from the burning ropes of reeds in wax, which
they used to carry before the bier.
It is called cadaver, if it lies unburied. The word
comes from cadere, to fall, because it cannot stand
up.
Translation
When the body is carried, we speak of a funeral
re\liquias conditum iam sepultum. Corpus autem a
con\suetudine dicitur ut illud: Tum corpora luce
carentum. De\functus vocatus, quia officia complevit
vite officium. Nam dicimus\ functos officio, quia officia
debita compleverunt. Unde est\ et hominibus [PL,
honoribus] functus. Hinc ergo defunctus quod ab
officio vite\ sit depositus, sive quod sit die functus.
Sepultus autem\ dictus eo quod iam sine pulsu et
palpitatione est, id est sine\ motu. Sepelire autem est
condere corpora, nam humare ob\ruere dicimus, hoc
est humum inicere. \ De lapidibus igniferis
Transcription
Sunt lapides igniferi in quodam monte orientis qui\
Grece terrobolem dicuntur masculus et femina.\ Isti
quando longe sunt ab invicem ignis in eis non
accen\ditur. Cum autem casu appropinquaverit
femina masculo,\ statim ignis accenditur, ita ut
ardeant omnia que sunt cir\ca illum montem. Unde et
vos homines dei qui istam vitam\ geritis, separate vos
longe a feminis, ne cum appropinquave\ritis
adinvicem, accendatur in vobis ille ignis geminus, et
con\sumat bona que Christus contulit in vobis. Sunt
enim angeli\ Sathane qui semper impugnant iustos,
non solum sanctos viros,\ sed etiam feminas castas.
Denique Samson et Joseph ambo\ per mulieres
temptati sunt. Unus vicit, alter victus est. Eva\ et
Susanna temptate sunt, hec vicit, illa victa est.
Custodi\endum est igitur cor et divinis preceptis
omnimodis monendum.\ Nam amor feminarum
quarum peccatum ab inicio cepit,\ id est ab Adam
usque nunc, in filios inobedientie debachatur.\ De
lapide adamas \ Phisiologus dicit:\ Est lapis qui
dicitur ada\ mas et in quodam monte orien\tis
invenitur. Ita tamen ut noc\te queratur, non die,
quoniam noc\te lucet ubi fuerit, per diem autem\ non
lucet, quoniam sol obtundit\ lumen eius, hunc lapidem
non\ ferrum non ignis nec alius lapis contra eum
potest\ prevalere. De hoc lapide adamante dicit
propheta:\ Vidi virum stantem super murum
adamantium
sensorgr
procession, exequie. When the remains are burned,
we call them reliquie. When the body is interred, we
say it is now buried, sepultus.
The common word is corpus as in the quotation: 'The
bodies of those lacking light' (Vergil, Georgics, 4,
255).
We call someone dead, 'defunct', defunctus, because
he has completed the office of life. For we talk of
someone having discharged an office, functus officio,
because they have completed the duties required of
them. In the same way we also talk of someone
discharging public business. For this reason,
therefore, we use the word defunctus, because the
deceased has been set aside from the office of life, or
because he has completed the duties of life's day.
The word for 'buried', sepultus, is so called because
the body is that point without a pulse, sine pulsu, or
palpitation, that is, motionless.
The word sepelire means to bury bodies; we use the
words humare and obruere, that is, to cast earth on
the body.
Of fire-bearing stones
Translation
On a certain mountain in the east, there are fire-
bearing stones which are called in Greek terrobolem;
they are male and female. When they are far from
each other, the fire within them does not ignite. But
when by chance the female draws near to the male,
the fire is at once kindled, with the result that
everything around the mountain burns.
For this reason, men of God, you who follow this way
of life, stay well clear of women, lest when you and
they approach each other, the twin flame be kindled
in you both and consume the good that Christ has
bestowed upon you. For there are angels of Satan,
always on the offensive against the righteous; not
only holy men but chaste women too.
Finally, Samson and Joseph were both were tempted
by women. One triumphed; the other succumbed. Eve
and Susanna were tempted; the latter held out; the
former gave in. The heart, therefore, should be
guarded and guided by all forms of divine teaching.
For the love of women, which has been the cause of
sin from the beginning, that is from Adam to the
present day, rages uncontrolled in the sons of
disobedience.
Of the adamas stone
Physiologus says: There is a stone called adamas
found on a certain mountain in the east. Such is its

Transcription
et in manu eius lapidem adamantem in medio\ populi
Israel. Creatori autem creatura prevalere non potest\
et ideo adamas Christus est. Stat autem super murum
ada\ mantium super sanctos et vivos lapides, de
quibus edifica\tur celestis Jerusalem. Hii sunt apostoli
prophete et martires quibus neque\ ignis, neque
gladius neque bestiarum dentes prevalere\ potuerunt.
Ex illo vero adamante omnes sancti adamanti\ni
lapides a propheta dicti sunt, sicut de nomine Christi
Christiani\ nominantur. Nam quia propheta dicit: Vidi
virum stantem\ super murum adamantium, ecce
inquid in manu eius\ adamas, id est filius dei et filius
hominis qui in utero\ Marie carnem assumere
dignatus est ipsum tenet in\ manu in gloria divinitatis
sue, sicut testatur de ipso\ Daniel dicens: Vidi, et ecce
inquid vir indutus\ baldin. Vir autem qui dicitur
deitatis significat maies\tatem, baldin vero carnalem
hominem, quem in\duere dignatus est. Baldin enim
lineum interpretatur in\dumentum quod de terra
nascitur. De viri appella\cione beatus Petrus apostolus
dicit: Jesum inquid Nazarenum\ dominum n[v]obis
manifestum. Nec non et beatus Paulus di\cit:
Desponsavi enim vos uni viro virg[i]nem castam\
exhibere Christo, et ut manifestius agnoscamus quia
[quod] ipse\ Christus de quo dixerit testatur ipse
Paulus dicens: An\ experimentum eius queritis qui in
me loquitur Christus?\ Ergo mons quem dicit
Phisiologus orientalis in\ quo lapis adamas invenitur,
dominum patrem ingenitum\ significat, ex quo omnia
oriuntur. Montem vero al\tum et inaccessibilem
gloriam dicit sicut ait apostolus
Transcription
Paulus de se ipso, qui solus habet inmortalitatem\ et
lucem habitat inaccessibilem, [gloriam dicit sicut\ ait
apostolus Paulus de se ipso, qui solus habet
sensorgr
nature, that you should search for it by night, not
day, since it shines at night where it lies, but it does
not shine by day, since the sun dulls its light. Against
this stone, neither iron, fire or other stones can
prevail.
The prophet says of it: 'I saw a man standing on a
wall of adamant
Translation
and in his hand was an adamant stone in the midst of
the people of Israel' (compare Amos, 7:7).
But a creature cannot prevail against its creator, and
for this reason Christ is the adamas stone. He stands
on a wall of such stone, on the holy and living stones
of which heavenly Jerusalem is built. These are the
Apostles, the prophets and the martyrs, over whom
neither fire, nor the sword nor the teeth of beasts
could prevail. All the saints are called adamantine by
the prophet, after that one true stone, just as
Christians are named after Christ.
The prophet says: 'I saw a man standing on a wall of
adamant, and behold in his hand was an adamant
stone', that is, the son of God and the son of man
who deigned to take flesh in Mary's womb. The man
held the stone in his hand, signifying the glory of his
divinity, as Daniel testifies, saying: 'I looked, and
behold, a certain man clothed in baldachin' (see
Daniel, 10:5).
The man in the text signifies the majesty of the divine
nature; the baldachin represents carnal man, whose
form Christ saw fit to assume. For 'baldachin' is taken
to mean linen, clothing which has its origin in the
earth. Of Christ being called a man, blessed Peter, the
Apostle, says: 'Jesus of Nazareth, the Lord made
manifest to you' (see Acts, 2:22). And the blessed
Paul says: 'I have espoused you to one husband, that
I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ' (2
Corinthians, 11:2). In order that we should know
more clearly that it is Christ of whom he speaks, Paul
says: 'Do you seek proof of Christ speaking in me?'
(see 2 Corinthians, 13:3).
The mountain in the east, therefore, on which,
according to Physiologus, the adamant stone is found,
signifies the Lord our father unbegotten, from whom
all things spring. He says that mountain is high and
that his glory is inaccessible, just as the Apostle
Translation
Paul says of him, who alone has immortality and
inhabits the inaccessible light in which the stone is
found: 'Christ is in the Father and the Father in me'
inmorta\litatem et lucem habitat inaccessibilem.] I[i]n
quo ipse\ lapis invenitur, id est: Christus in patre et
pater in me est. Et iterum:\ Qui me videt videt et
patrem. Quod lapis per hominem [luminem]\ non
invenitur significat Christum celasse descensionem\
suam celestibus virtutibus et dominacionibus et
potestati\bus qui tanquam luminaria dei assistunt.
Non ergo scie\runt iustum celeste portantem
ministerium descensionis\ eius et incarnacionis quod
facturus erat in terris. Denique\ iam transactis
omnibus mirabilibus eius que fecit pro huma\ni
generis redempcione cum ascendisset in celos
integrum\ atque perfectum hominem indutus videntes
eum superne civi\tatis agmina dixerunt: Quis est iste
rex glorie? Qui as\ cendit ex Edom, rubrum
vestimentum eius ex Bosra? Quis\ est iste qui
ascendit ex sanguinea [sanguine] et rubor vestimenti\
eius ex carne? Et quia [quod] nocte invenitur ille
lapis, qui\ in istius seculi tenebris descendit et
illuminavit omnem\ hoc genus quod sedebat in
tenebris et in regione umbre\ mortis, sicut dicit David
propheta ex persona tocius humani\ generis:
Quoniam tu illuminas lucernam meam domine. Deus\
meus illumina tenebras meas. Venit ergo dominus
noster et\ lucernam quam extinxerat diabolus, id est
animam et corpus in se sus\cipiens illuminavit
splendore glorie vivificans et repor\tans, manifestius
dicente apostolo de tam admirabilis mis\terii
sacramento. Etenim evidenter inquid magnum
misterium\
Transcription
pietatis quod manifestum est in carne iustificatum est
in\ spiritu, quod apparuit angelus predicatum est
gentibus, credi\tum est in hoc mundo, assumptum est
in gloria. Quod\ autem de eo lapide dicit Phisiologus,
quod neque ferrum illi\ prevalet, id est mors illi non
dominabitur. Delevit mortem enim\ et conculcavit
sicut per apostolum testatur dicens: Devicta est\ mors
in victoria. Ubi est mors contricio tua, ubi est mors\
aculeus tuus? Sed neque ignis illi potest quicque
facere\ id est diabolus qui ignitis iaculis suis succendit
omnem\ terram et civitates, luxuriosos, ebriosos, et
iracundos,\ de quibus Ysaias dicit: Terra autem
deserta civitates vestre\ igni cremate. Dominus autem
Jesus Christus interficiet eum spiri\tu oris sui. Sed
neque alter lapis nocuit, id est nullus homo\ penitus
neque ulla creatura poterit adversus eum. Omnia\
enim per ipsum facta sunt, et sine ipso factum est
nichil. \ Adamas lapis parvus et indecorus
ferrugineum\ habens colorem et splendorem
crista\llinum et in\ modum nuclei avellani. Hic nulli
cedit ma\terie nec ferro quidem nec igni nec unquam
incalescit, un\de et nomen interpretacione Greca
indomita vis ac\cepit. Sed dum sit invictus ferro
ignisque contemptor,\ hyrcino sanguine rumpitur
sensorgr
(see John, 14:10). Again: 'He that hath seen me hath
seen the Father' (John, 14:9).
The fact that the adamant stone is not found in the
light signifies that Christ hid his descent from the
heavenly virtues and dominions and powers which,
like luminaries, stand beside God. They did not know,
therefore, of the righteous one, who bore the
heavenly-assigned office of his descent and
incarnation, to be fulfilled on earth. In the end, when
he had performed all his wonders for the redemption
of the human race and ascended into heaven, clad as
a whole and perfect man, the ranks of the heavenly
city seeing him said: 'Who is this that cometh from
Edom, with red garments from Bozrah?' (see Isaiah,
63:1). Who is he who rises from blood and the red of
his clothing from flesh?
The stone is found at night because Christ descended
into the darkness of this world and gave light to the
race that stayed in darkness and in the place of the
shadow of death, just as David the prophet says,
personifying the whole human race: ' For thou wilt
light my candle, Lord; my God will enlighten my
darkness' (Psalms, 18:28). Our Lord came therefore
and, taking up the light which the devil had
extinguished, that is, the soul and the body, he lit it
with the splendour of his glory, giving it new life and
taking it back with him.
The Apostle puts this more clearly, saying of this
sacrament of such marvellous mystery: 'Without
controversy, great is the mystery
Translation
godliness; God was manifest in the flesh, justified in
the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles,
believed on in the world, received up into glory' (1
Timothy, 3:16).
Moreover, Physiologus says of the adamant stone that
iron does has no effect on it, just as, death will not
rule Christ. For he destroyed death and trampled on
it, as the apostle bore witness, saying: 'Death is
swallowed up in victory. O death, where is thy sting?'
(1 Corinthians, 16:54-55).
Nor is this stone affected by fire, meaning the devil
who with his blazing darts burns the whole earth, its
cities and its wanton, drunken and raging inhabitants;
of these Isaiah says: 'Your country is desolate, your
cities are burned with fire' (Isaiah, 1:7). 'The Lord
Jesus Christ shall consume him with the breath from
his mouth' (see 2 Thessalonians, 2:8).
No other stone can damage adamant, that is, no man
at all, nor any creature, can oppose Christ. 'All things
were made by him, and without him was not any
thing made' (John, 1:3).
recenti, et calido maceratus,\ sicque multis ictibus
ferri perfrangitur. Cuius fragmenta\ sculptores pro
gemmis insignendis perforandis utuntur.\ Hic autem
dissidet cum magnete lapide in tantum ut\ iuxta
positus ferrum non paciatur abstrahi in magne\tem,
sed si ammotus fuerit adamas magnetem [magnes]
rapit\
Transcription
comprehendit et aufert. Fertur quoque in electri
simili\tudine ven[en]a depellere metus vanos
expellere malefi\cis resistere artibus, genera eius
sex.\ De lapide qui dicitur mermecoleon \ Item
lapis est in mari qui Latine dicitur mer\ mecoleon
Grece concasabea, quia concava est et rotunda.\ Est
autem in duas partes\ divisa, ita ut cum vo\luerit
claudat. Hic ergo de fun\do maris et matutinis\ horis
habet intra se car\nem. Ergo cum ascen\derit a loco
suo supra mare, aperit os suum et susci\pit intra se
de rore celi et circumfulget eum radius\ solis, et sic fit
intra eum margarita preciosa et splen\dida valde,
quippe que rore celi concepta est, et radio solis\
clarificata. Lapis ergo iste qui dicitur conchus, figuram
ge\rit sancte Marie, de qua prophetavit Isaias dicens:
Exiet\ virga de radice Jesse. Et iterum ipse. Ecce virgo
con\ cipiet in utero et pariet. De qua virga et virgo
[virgine] sancta Maria\ est dicta: Flos vero qui de
sancta Maria natus est, dominus noster\ Jesus
Christus est. Sicut enim de mari ascendit ille lapis, sic
sancta Maria ascendit de domo patris sui ad templum
dei,\ et ibi accepit rorem celestem. Hec sunt verba
que dicta\ sunt ad eam ab archangelo Gabriele:
Spiritus sanctus superveni\et in te, et virtus altissimi
obumbrabit tibi, ideoque et\ quod nascetur ex te
sanctum vocabitur filius dei. Ecce hii sermo\
sensorgr
Adamant is a small and unsightly stone, with a dusky
colour and the brightness of crystal, and is about the
size of an Abelline nut. It yields to no other matter,
not iron, nor indeed fire, and it never grows hot; for
this reason its name, translated from Greek, means
'invincible force'.
While adamant remains unconquered by iron,
however, and scorns fire, it can broken by the fresh
blood of a goat, softened by heat and thus crushed
with repeated blows of iron. Engravers use fragments
of it for engraving and cutting gemstones.
Adamant is at odds with the magnet stone in so much
as, placed near iron, it will not suffer the metal to be
drawn to the magnet; if the adamant is removed,
however, the magnet seizes
Translation
holds and bears away the metal.
They say also that it resembles amber, repelling
poisons, banishing vain fears, resisting evil spells.
There are six kinds of adamant.
Of the stone called mermecoleon
There is a stone in the sea which is called in Latin
mermecoleon and in Greek concasabea, because it is
both hollow and round. It is, moreover, divided into
two parts, so that if it wants to, it can close up.
The stone lies at the bottom of the sea and comes to
life early in the morning. When it rises from its
resting-place to the surface of the sea, it opens its
mouth and takes in some heavenly dew, and the rays
of the sun shine around it; thus there grows within
the stone a most precious, shining pearl indeed,
conceived from the heavenly dew and given lustre by
the rays of the sun.
The stone, therefore, is called conchus; it symbolizes
Saint Mary, of whom Isaiah foretold, saying: 'There
shall come forth a rod out of the stem of Jesse'
(Isaiah, 11:1). And again: 'Behold a virgin shall
conceive and bear a son' (Isaiah, 7:14). Of the rod
and the virgin, Saint Mary, it is said: 'A flower was
born of Saint Mary, our Lord Jesus Christ'. For just as
the stone rises from the sea, so Saint Mary went up
from the house of her father to the temple of God and
there received the dew from heaven. These are the
words which were said to her by the archangel
Gabriel: 'The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and
the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee;
therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of
thee shall be called the Son of God' (Luke, 1:35).
Behold these words
Transcription
nes sunt ros celestis, sicut ante iam [eam] patriarcha
Ysaac be\nedicens filium su[u]m significans quia
[quod] Christus ex semi\ne eius nasceretur, ait ad
eum dicens: Det tibi deus de\ rore celi et de ubertate
terre castam atque intactam vir\ginem Mariam
significans. Matutinis autem horis\ quod dicitur
tempus orationis describit. Quod autem aperit os
su\um conchus significat ubi dicit Maria ad ange\lum:
Ecce ancilla domini fiat michi secundum verbum\
tuum.\ Fundamenta muri civitatis omni\ lapide
precioso ornata, id est prophete et apostoli super\
quorum fidem et doctrinam tota civitas ecclesie
fun\data est, de quibus dicitur in [psalmis] fundata
est in montibus\ sanctis, omni lapide precioso
ornatus. Erant suple[ta], id est omni ge\nere virtutum
et bonorum operum nec non solum pro\phete et
apostoli fundamenta dicuntur, sed etiam alii minores\
qui fidem et vitam ipsorum habuerunt, vel habent qui
non\ racione personarum sed operacione virtutum,
fundamen\ta dicuntur, quia per [eas] ecclesiam
fundaverunt, [propter] quod Johannis, hic osten\dit
quibus virtutibus ipsi in ecclesia [lux erant],
reponens\ eos sub duo denario [duodecimo] numero,
ut sic ostendat eos splen\duisse omnibus virtutibus.
Hic enim numerus universita\tem significat, quia ex
partibus septenarii conficitur,\ id est ternario et
quaternario, et quia [quod] fides inter virtutes pri\ma
est, iuxta illud Prudentii.\ Versus \ Prima petit
cam\pum dubia sub sorte duelli, pugnatura fides. Et\
quia sine fide [non] placet deo, ut dicitur Hebreos xi,
primo, in primo fun\damento, ponitur fides, nec
moveat te quod lapides
Transcription
fundamenta dicuntur, quia per virtutes fundamenta.\
Unde cum dicitur lapis esse fundamentum, sensus est
sensorgr
Translation
are the heavenly dew, just as before her, the
patriarch Isaac, blessing his son, signifying that Christ
would be born from his seed, said to him: 'God give
thee of the dew of heaven and the fatness of the
earth' (Genesis, 27: 28), signifying the chaste,
untouched virgin Mary.
'Early in the morning' refers to the time of prayer.
The mussel opening its mouth signifies the occasion
when Mary says to the angel: 'Behold the handmaiden
of the Lord; be it unto me according to thy word'
(Luke, 1:35).
'The foundations of the wall of the city were garnished
with all manner of precious stones' (Revelation,
21:19), that is, the prophets and Apostles on whose
faith and doctrine the whole city of the church is
founded.
Of these it is said in the Psalms: it is founded on holy
hills (see, eg, Psalms, 15:1); the wall was adorned
with every precious stone (see Revelation, 21:18-19).
They were furnished, that is, with every kind of virtue
and good work.
It is not only the prophets and apostles who are called
'foundations', but lesser men also, who had or have a
life and faith like theirs. They are called 'foundations'
not by virtue of their personalities, but the way in
which they exercised their virtue; because it was
through their virtue that they founded the church.
On account of this, John shows here in which virtues
they were as a light in the church, reckoning their
number as twelve, demonstrating that they shone in
every virtue. For this number signifies the universe,
because it is made from parts containing seven, that
is by threes and by fours; and that faith is first among
the virtues according to the statement of Prudentius.
Verse
Faith, the first of the virtues, ready to fight, takes to
the field in battle with doubt. And because without
faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews, 11:6),
faith is set in the first foundation.
It should not trouble you that stones
Translation
are called foundations, because by foundations are
meant virtues. For this reason when the stone is said
, id est in fundamenti ornatum. \ Primus lapis in
funda\mento muri est Jaspis \ Fundamentum
primum, id est\ primi fundamenti ornamentum,
Jaspis\ id est fides semper virens, et visum
confortans, sed nu[m]quid\ fides erit in patria, sive in
triumphante ecclesia de qua\ hic agitur non sed
venientibus ad ecclesiam prima occurit,\ per quam in
predictam civitatem intratur quam\ qui non habuit in
eam intrare non poterit. \ Versus \ Jaspidis esse
decem species septemque feruntur. Hic et mul\torum
cognoscitur esse collorum. Et multis nasci peribetur\
partibus orbis. Optimus in viridi perlucentique colo\re.
Et qui plus soleat virtutes habere probatur.\
Secundus Saphirus \ Secundum, id est secundum
fundamentum, id est\ secundum fundamenti
ornamentum, est Saphirus.\ Cuius color cereno
[sereno] celo simile est, qui percussus\ radiis solis,
ardenter emittit fulgorem et per hoc\ significat spem
qua rapimur ad celestia et per hoc in\ amorem
celestium inflammamur contempto seculi\ amore, ut
possimus vere dicere cum apostolo: Nostra con\
versacio in celis est, Philippenses, iii, Ysaia, liiii:
Fundabo te\ in saphiris.\ Versus \ Saphiri species
digitis aptissi\ ma regum. Egregium fulgens puroque
similima\ celo. Quem natura potens tanto ditavit
hono\re. Ut sacer et merito gemmarum gemma
vocetur. \ Tercius Calcedonius
Transcription
Tercium, id est fundamenti ornamentum est
cal\cedonius, qui lapis pallenti lucerne similis\ est, et
fulget magis sub divo quam in domo, cale\factus a
sole vel digitorum attritu, paleas ad se trahit
scul\penti non argumentis resistit, et significat
caritatem que\ intus in corde celata, pallet quasi lux
in lucerna, sed cum ad\ aliorum utilitatem exire
cogitur, tunc qualis intus erat,\ exterius ostenditur, et
tacta a sole Christo vel spiritu, scilicet digito,
pec\catores ad se trahit et omnino secari nequit quia
sensorgr
to be a foundation, it should be interpreted as a
decoration of the foundation.
John says, therefore:
The first stone in the foundation of the wall is
jasper.
The first foundation, that is, the adornment of the
first foundation, is jasper, that is, faith ever green,
strengthening the sight, but whether it be faith in
one's country or in the Church triumphant, which is in
question here, does not primarily occur except to
those coming to the Church; through it there will be
entry to the aforesaid city, while he who does not
have it will not be able to enter.
Verse
Jasper is said to have seventeen species. It is also
known to be of many colours. It is said to come from
many regions of the world. The best is a translucent
green in colour. It is shown to have more virtues than
any other.
The second, sapphire
The second, that is, the second foundation, that is,
the second decoration of the foundation, is sapphire.
Its colour is similar to that of a clear sky; struck by
the rays of the sun, it sends forth, burning, a flash of
lightning, signifying the hope by which we are carried
off to heaven; through it we are fired with a love of
heavenly things, disdaining love of the present world,
so that we can truly say with the apostle: 'Our
conversation is in heaven' (Philippians, 3:20); 'I will
lay thy foundations with sapphires' (Isaiah, 54:11).
Verse
The image of the sapphire is most fitting for the
fingers of kings. It shines in an outstanding way and
resembles most a clear sky. The power of nature has
endowed it with such honour that it is called sacred
and deservedly the gemstone of gemstones.
The third, chalcedony
Translation
The third, that is, the third decoration of the
foundation is chalcedony; it is pale yellow, similar to
lamp-light, and shines more under the open sky than
indoors; warmed by the sun or by a rub of the
fingers, it attracts particles to itself; it does not resist
the subjects of the engraver, and it signifies the
charity which is within us, hidden in the heart.
It is pale yellow like lamplight, but when it is forced
into the open for the benefit of others, then what its
nulla ad\versitate deficit, sed magis proficit. Unde
Canticum Canticorum viii: Fortis\ est ut mors dilectio
et dura sicut infernus emulacio, lam\pades eius
lampades ignis atque flammarum. Aque mul\te non
poterunt extinguere caritatem. Sculpi ergo\ non
potest, quia adversitate non frangitur nec etiam
adulatoria\ laude emollitur. Unde Psalmis: oleum
peccatoris non inpinguet\ caput meum;\ i Corinthios,
xiii: Caritas paciens est benigna est,\ omnia suffert,
omnia sustinet, non inflatur, non est ambiciosa et
cetera. \ Versus \ Calcedon lapis est hebeti pallo\re
refulgens. Inter iacinctum medioctinus atque
beril\lum. Hiis qui portat eum perhibetur vincere
causis.\ Quartus Smaragdus \ Quartum,
smaragadus\ qui omnes herbas et arborum frondes
viriditate\ superat et gerentes eam, reddit intuentibus
graciosos,\ aerem vicinum virescere facit ymaginem
sicut\ speculum reddit, et significat virginitatem, que
virorem\ carnis integre servat, et omnes alias virtutes
quodam\ modo superat, quia virginitatem servare,
magis est
Transcription
angelicum quam humanum, graciosa autem est
an\gi[e]lis et deo et hominibus et in se portat
ymaginem\ Christi quia sequitur agnum quocumque
ierit, et unde hic\ lapis quartus dicitur, quia virginitas
in quatuor evangeliis\ commendatur. \ Versus \
Omne virens superat forma viridan\te smaragdus. \
Quintus Sardonix \ Quintum sardonix ex duorum
nominum societa\te vocatus, ut dicit Ysodorus, habet
enim cando\rem ut onix et ruborem ut sardius et est
tricolor ut dicit\ Glossator niger in imo, candidus in
medio, rubeus in sum\mo, et insignando nichil cere
avellit, unde signat sanctorum\ pacientiam per quam
in imo, id est in mundo sunt viles et despera\ti, unde
Job, [x]ii, deridetur iusti simplicitas, lampas contemp\
ta apud cogitaciones divitum, sed in medio, id est
iustus in corde sive in consciencia sunt candidi, per
innocenciam\ superius rubei, per ardorem martyrii
propter Christum, et hec nichil\ de cera avellit quia
suis persecutoribus plene et ex corde re\mittit, nullum
rancorem retinentes, iuxta [...] Ecclesiastici xxviii:\
Relinque proximo tuo nocenti te tunc deprecanti tibi
peccata\ solventur, quia [quod] virtus quinta dicitur
sensorgr
virtue was inside is demonstrated outside. Touched by
the sun, that is Christ, or the spirit, namely the finger,
it attracts sinners to itself; that it cannot in any way
be cut signifies that it is not wanting in times of
adversity but is rather of advantage. In this context,
it is said in the Song of Solomon: 'Love is strong as
death; jealousy is cruel as the grave: the coals
thereof are coals of fire, which hath a most vehement
flame. Many waters cannot quench love' (8:6-7). It
cannot, therefore, be carved, because it is not
shattered by adversity or even softened by fulsome
praise. In this context, the psalms: 'My head shall not
be annointed with the oil of wicked men' (NEB, Psalms
141: 5); 1 Corinthians, 13: 'Charity is patient; it is
kind; charity it suffers everything; it endures
everything; it is not puffed up; it is not ambitious etc.'
(see 13:4-5).
Verse
Chalcedony is a stone which shines with a faint
paleness. It comes between the hyacinth and the
beryl. Anyone who carries it will, it is said, be
successful in lawsuits.
The fourth, smaragdus
The fourth foundation, smaragdus, outdoes in its
greenness every kind of grass and the boughs of
trees; it makes those who wear it appear attractive; it
makes the air around grow green; it yields an image
just as a mirror does; it signifies virginity, which
wholly preserves the freshness of the flesh; and it
surpasses all other virtues in a way. Because it
preserves virginity
Translation
it is more angelic than human; moreover, it is
pleasing to angels and God and man and carries
within itself the image of Christ because it follows the
lamb wherever it goes; and for this reason this stone
is called the fourth, because virginity is recommended
in the four Gospels.
Verse
The smaragdus surpasses every green thing in its
greenness.
The fifth, sardonyx
The fifth foundation, sardonyx, gets its name from the
association of two names, as Isidorus says; for it has
the white of onyx and the red of sard; and it is three-
coloured, as the Glossator says, black at the bottom,
white in the middle and red at the top; and when
used for sealing, it does not pull any of the wax away.
From this, it signifies the suffering of the saints. At
quia in infirmitate cor\poris descendit quod quinque
sensibus regitur. \ Versus \ Sardonicem faciunt duo
nomina sardus et onix. Tres capit ex bi\ nis unus lapis
iste colores.Hic solus lapidum ceram\ convellere
nescit. \ Sextus Sardius \ Sextum sardius, sic dicit,
quia a primo a Sardis\ est repertus sanguinei coloris
tantum. Unde signat per\fectam constanciam
martyrum qui pro Christo sanguinem
Transcription
suum fuderunt, et ideo sexto loco ponitur, quia
Christus\ sexta etate et sexto die sanguine suo
martyrium con\ secravit. \ Versus \ Sardius a Sardis
est a quibus ante repertus.\ Sortitus nomen rubei
solet esse coloris. \ Septimus crisolitus \ Septimus
crisolitus auro simile in colore,\ unde dicitur a crisis
quod est aurum, et sintillas ardentes\ videtur
a[e]mittere ut dicit Glossator, et significat sapienciam,
que omnia\ dona superat, sicut aurum omnia in
metalla, que pre\dicando scintillas ardentes emittit, id
est exhortaciones\ et iustificaciones [instruciones],
corda audientium inflamantes.\ Unde Ezekieli primo
dicitur de sanctis animalibus: Scintille quasi aspectu
eris\ ca[n]dentis; Sapiencie iii: Fulgebunt iusti et
tanquam scintille in\ arundineto discurrent. Hic
septimo loco ponitur, quia inter\ dona sancti spiritus
locum tenet septimum ascendendo. \ Versus \ Auro
crisolitus micat et scintillat ut ignis. Iste mari\ simile
quiddamque viroris adumbrans. Ethiopes le\gimus
nobis hanc mittere gemmam. \ Octavus Berillus \
Octavum berillus. Hic lapis in sexangulam for\mam
politus, lucet quasi aqua sole percussa, qui etiam\
tante caliditas [caliditatis] dicitur esse, ut calefaciat
manum tenen\tis et significat virtutem misericordie
sensorgr
the bottom, that is in the world, they are considered
worthless and despised; in this context, Job, 12: 'The
just upright man is laughed to scorn ... a lamp
despised in the thought of him that is at ease' (12:4).
In the middle, that is the righteous man in his heart
or conscience, they are white, as a result of their
innocence. At the top they are red, by reason of the
zeal of their martyrdom for Christ.
The stone does not pull any of the wax away, because
the righteous man forgives his persecutors fully, from
the heart, retaining no bitterness, according to
Ecclesiasticus, 28: 'Forgive thy neighbour the hurt
that he hath done unto thee, so shall thy sins also be
forgiven when thou prayest (28:2).
This virtue is said to be the fifth because it diminishes
infirmity of the body, because it is ruled by the five
senses.
Verse
Two names, sard and onyx, make the sardonix. This
single stone has taken from the two stones three
colours. Alone of precious stones, it cannot pull away
wax.
The sixth, sard
The sixth foundation, sard is so called because it was
first found in Sardis; it is of the colour of blood only.
For this reason it signifies the perfect constancy of the
martyrs, who poured forth their blood for Christ.
Translation
and for that reason it is placed in the sixth position,
because Christ in the sixth age and on the sixth day
consecrated his martyrdom with his blood.
Verse
The sard gets its name from Sardis where it was first
found. It gets its name from its reddish colour.
The seventh, chrysolite
The seventh foundation, chrysolite, is similar in colour
to gold. For this reason its name comes from crisis
[chrysos], which means 'gold'; it seems to give out
glittering sparks, as the Glossator says; and it
signifies wisdom, which exceeds all other gifts, just as
gold exceeds all other metals.
Wisdom, through the medium of preaching, gives out
glittering sparks, that is, encouragement and
doctrine, setting alight the hearts of those who hear
them. In this context, Ezekiel 1, on the sacred
animals: 'They sparkled like the colour of burnished
brass' (1:7); The Wisdom of Solomon, 3: 'The
que sex operibus se exercet\ corda frigida hominum
infirmorum calefaciens in amo\rem dei et proximi
iuxta id Proverbiorum, xxv: Si esurierit inimicus tu\ us
ciba illum. Si sitit, potum da ei, sic enim faciens
con\geres carbonum super caput eius. Mattheus, v:
Sic luceat lux vestra\ coram hominibus, ut videant
opera vestra bona, et glorificent patrem vestrum qui
in celis est.\ Hic virtus octavo loco ponitur, quia non
hic sed in octava eta\
Transcription
te, mercedem expectat. Unde Psalmis: Labores
manuum\ tuarum quia manducabis, in futuro, scilicet,
beatus es et bene\ tibi erit, Gregorius: Illis erit male
qui hic manducant la\bores, scilicet sicut ypocrite. \
Versus \ Conspicuos reddit sex\angula forma
berillos. Qui nisi fiat hebes hiis pal\lorum esse videtur.
\ Nonum topazius \ Nonum topacius, hic lapis
quamvis omnium sit\ colorum, maxime tamen duos
habet colores, aureum et\ ethereum ut dicit Glossator
super Exodus xxxiiii, et cum splendo\re solis tangitur,
omnium gemmarum claritates excedit, in\ aspectum
suum provocat singulariter aspicientes, qui\ si poliatur
obscuratur, si nature sue relinquatur, clari\or est, et
est gemmarum amplissima , et regibus cara, et\
significat contemplacionem, que ex caritate qua
fervet, et\ est aurea, et ex cognicione qua lucet,
ethera, ubi dominus\ limpidius videtur, ad cuius
amorem homines aperti\ singularius trahuntur, et qui
tales sunt, si honoribus\ seculi poliantur, obscurantur,
quia turbantur circa plurima sicut\ Martha, quod hic
lapis omni colore resplendet, hic est quia\
contemplacio omnium virtutum splendore refulget,\ et
est gemmarum latissima, quia contemplacio maxime\
cor dilatat et qui vere reges sunt, nichil carnis
sensorgr
righteous shall shine and run to and fro like sparks
among the stubble' (see 3:1,7).
This stone is placed in the seventh position, because
it holds the seventh place in order of ascendancy
among the gifts of the holy spirit.
Verse
Chrysolite shines like gold and flashes like fire. It is
similar to the sea, displaying something of its green
colour. We read that the Ethiopians send us this
stone.
The eighth, beryl
The eighth foundation is beryl. This stone is polished
into a hexagonal shape; it shines like water struck by
the sun; it is also said to be of such heat that it
warms the hand of the holder; and it signifies the
virtue of mercy.
Mercy operates in six ways, warming the cold hearts
of the infirm to a love of God and one's neighbour,
according to Proverbs, 25: 'If thine enemy be hungry,
give him bread to eat; and if he thirsty give him water
to drink: For thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his
head' (25:21-23). Matthew, 5: 'Let your light so shine
before men, that they may see your good works and
glorify your Father which is in heaven' (5:16).
This virtue is placed in the eighth position, because
not here but in the eighth age
Translation
it expects its reward. In this context, the psalm: 'Thou
shall eat the labour of thine hands: happy shalt thou
be, and it shall be well with thee' (Psalms, 128:2).
Gregory: 'It will be bad for those who eat their
labours here, like hypocrites.'
Verse
Its hexagonal form causes beryl to shine brightly;
otherwise it seems to have a faint pallor.
The ninth, topaz
The ninth foundation is topaz; this stone, although it
is multi-coloured, has two colours especially, gold and
a clear colour, as the Glossator of Exodus, 34, says:
And it is touched by the splendour of the sun. It
exceeds all other gemstones in clearness; its
appearance is singularly pleasing to those who look at
it; if it were polished, it would be dulled; left to its
own nature, it is clearer; it is the largest of stones;
and it is cherished by kings.
Topaz signifies contemplation. The love with which
con\templacione habent, et unde nono loco ponitur
quia homines\ contemplativos novem ordinibus
angelorum contem\placio associat. \ Versus \
Nominis eiusdem topazion\ insula gignit. Qui quanto
rarus tanto magis est\ preciosus. Gignit et hunc
Arabum gemmis ditissima\ tellus.
Transcription
Decimum crisopassus \ Decimum crisopassus.\ Hic
lapis secundum Isydorum, Indicus est, et coloris
pur\purei, guttulis distinctis aureis, unde et nomen
recipit\ crisopassus, quasi passim habens aurum, et
significat desiderium\ celestis patrie, quod quanto
plus tribulacionibus excu\titur, tanto amplius
accenditur, quia ut dicit Gregorius: Quod\ flatus
carboni, hic facit tribulacio caritati et unde de\cimo
loco ponitur quia sancti per desiderium, ad decimum
or\dinem angelorum per observanciam decalogi
venire\ festinant, decimus ordo dicitur, qui ex
hominibus restau\rabitur, unde et homo dicitur Luce,
xv: Decima dragma quam mu\lier querens invenit. \
Versus \ Et crissopassum lapi\dem domus India
mittit. Hic priori [porri] suctum [succum] refe\rens
mixtusque colore, Aureolis guctis [guttis] retinet quasi
pur\pura tincta. \ Undecimum Iacinctus \
Undecimum iacinctus. His lapis cum aere mutatur\ in
sereno prospicuus [perspicuus] est in nubilo obscurus
est, unde\ significat discrecionem sanctorum, per
quam secundum dominum omnibus se con\formant,
ut omnes lucrifaciant, sicut dicit apostolus, i
Corinthios, ix: Omnibus omnia factus sum ut omnes
faceret [facarem] salvos; Romanos, xii\ gaudete
[gaudere] cum gaudentibus flere cum flentibus; per
hanc\ etiam virtutem sciunt sancti doctores quid,
quibus, quando, et qualiter\ predicandum. Hic
undecimo loco ponitur, quia per hanc\ maxime
transgressio omnis vitatur. \ Versus \ Iacincti
species\ docti tres esse loquuntur. Optimus huic tenor
est quem\ non aut densior equo, Obscurat suctus
[succus] aut rarus perspi\cium dat, Set flos purpureus
murtum componit utroque\
sensorgr
contemplation burns, colours it gold; the
understanding which illuminates contemplation, gives
it its clear colour. In contemplation the Lord is seen
more clearly; and men are more especially drawn to
his love when they are open to it. Their nature is such
that, if they are embellished by the honours of this
world, they see less clearly, because, like Martha,
they have many distractions. This stone shines with
every colour, because contemplation shines with the
splendour of every virtue. It is the biggest of stones,
because contemplation expands the heart greatly, and
those who are truly kings think nothing of the flesh. It
is placed in the ninth position, because contemplation
aligns contemplative men with the nine orders of
angels.
Verse
Topaz comes from the island of the same name. It is
all the more precious as it is rare. The land of the
Arabs, rich in stones, produces it.
Translation
The tenth, chrysoprase
The tenth foundation is chrysoprase. This stone,
according to Isidorus, comes from India, and is purple
in colour with separate, small gold marks; for this
reason it gets its name crisopassus, 'scattered
everywhere with gold'. It signifies desire of the the
heavenly land, which burns the more brightly, the
more it is affected by tribulation, because, as Gregory
says: 'What a bellows does to coal, tribulation does to
love.'
Chrisoprase is placed in the tenth position, because
holy men, in their desire for heaven, hasten to reach
the tenth order of angels by observing the ten
commandments. The tenth order is the one which will
be renewed from men. In this context, man is called,
in Luke, 15, the tenth piece of silver which the woman
searched for and found (see 15:8-10).
Verse
India, its home, sends us the stone called
chrysoprase. It shines with the sap of the leek and is
of mixed colour, tinted with purple and marked with
gold.
The eleventh, hyacinth
The eleventh foundation is hyacinth. This stone
changes in accordance with the weather: on clear
days, it is transparent; when the sky is overcast, it is
opaque. For this reason it signifies the judgement of
holy men, who use it, as the Lord did, to adapt to all
conditions of life, in order to win the hearts of all
men; as the apostle says, 1 Corinthians, 9: 'I am

Transcription
Hic et in os missus plus frigidus esse probatur,
Duricie\ solida cedi sculpi quia [que] recusat,
Fragmentis tamen superabilis est adamantis.\
Duodecimum Amatistus\
Duodecimum amatistus. De quo dicit Ysidorus:\ Inter
gemmas purpureas principatum amatistus\ inclitus
[Indicus] tenet, purpureus quidem est permixto colore
vio\le et rose quasdam flammulas de se effundens, et
est scul\turis facilis, unde per ipsum, significatur
humilitas sanctorum cuius\ comes est obediencia ut
dicit Ambrosius: Humilitas bre\vis est ut viola,
pulchra, ut rosa, facilis ad omnia quecumque facere;\
aut dicit: Et sunt que flamme incendentes ad
amo\rem videntes, omnibus enim placet humilitas
etiam inimi\cis, sicut econtrario superbia est omnibus
odiosa, ut dicit Ecclesiasticus,\ xv: Odibilis coram deo
et hominibus est superbia. Hic unde ultimo lo\co
ponitur quasi custos omnium, et quasi ultimam
reputat se\ semper et ultimum locum semper tenet.
Unde Gregorius qui ceteras\ virtutes sine humilitate
congregat quasi pulverem in vento\ portat. Unde et
Paulus: Qui modicus, id est humilis interpretatur,\
locum decimum meruit possidere. \
De effectu lapidum
\ Diamas, lapis est inter omnes lapides durissimus
domans\ omnes lapides preciosos et vult poni in
calibe et\ dari non desideratus nec permittit
descindere bona illius\ qui eum habet.
2 Rubi habet virtutem omnium lapidum\ preciosorum
qui si in aqua lavetur et illa aqua detur ad po\tandum
arietibus [arentibus] infirmis, convalescent si sit
secundum\ suam naturam virtuosus.
3 Smaragdus, oculos vivi\ficat, corpus exhillarat illius,
qui eum intuetur et a\
sensorgr
made all things to all men, that I might by all means
save all' (see 9:22); Romans, 12: ' Rejoice with them
that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep'
(12:15). This virtue enables holy teachers to know
what, to whom, when and how to preach.
This stone is placed in the eleventh position, because
through it, especially, all manner of sin is avoided.
Verse
The learned say that there are three kinds of
hyacinth. The best is the kind whose colour is not so
dense as to be obscure or so light as to be
transparent but has a purple, myrtle-like bloom drawn
from both parts of the spectrum.
Translation
This stone, placed in the mouth, proves to be colder
than others. It is very hard and resists cutting or
engraving. But it can be marked by a fragment of
diamond.
The twelfth, amethyst
The twelfth foundation is amethyst. Isidorus says of
it: Among purple stones, the Indian amethyst holds
first position; it is, indeed, purple but of mixed
coloration, giving forth violet and rose-coloured lights;
it is easy to engrave. For this reason the humility of
the saints is signified by it; associated with humility is
obedience, as Ambrose says: 'Humility is small, like
the violet, beautiful like the rose, easy to apply to all
things'; or: 'They are like burning flames, looking at
love'. For humility is acceptable to everyone, even to
our enemies; as pride, in contrast, is viewed by
everyone with detestation, as it says in Ecclesiasticus,
15: 'Pride is hateful before God and men' (see 10: 7).
For this reason the amethyst is placed in the final
position, as if watching over all, and as if humility
always reckons itself the least and always takes the
last place. In this context, Gregory: 'He who
assembles in himself the other virtues without
humility is like one who carries dust in the wind. Also
Paul: 'He who is modest, that is to be understood as
humble, deserves to possess the tenth place.'
Of stones and what they can do
The diamond is amongst all stones the hardest,
cutting all other precious stones; it likes to be set in
steel; it does not wish to be given away; and it will
not allow the goods of him who possesses it to be
divided.
2 The ruby has the virtue of all precious stones, that
if it is washed in water and that water is then given to
the sick who are thirsty, they grow well if each one is
according to his nature virtuous.

Transcription
morem servat.
4 Saphirus inhibet sanguinem, et\ occidit le felun.
5 Topacius, est croceus, sicut lambrum\ sed magis
iocundus, et prohibet ebullicionem olle et po\situs ad
os scicientis, aufert sitim.
6 Turgesius, por\tat iram et audaciam.
7 Mardonicus [Sardonicus], est tricolor dat
au\daciam, et portat victoriam.
8 Crapodinus por\tat victoriam in placito et bello.
9 Amatistus portat\ omen bosci et fluvii, et vult dari,
non desideratus.\
[10] Jaspis est viridis sicut smaragdus, sed non ita
iocundus\ et inhibet sanguinem et conservat amorem,
dantis\ et accipientis.
11 Cornelius est rubicundus et inhibet\ sanguinem.
Parlus, est albus et rotundus et\ dat affectum
dormiendi.
12 Lapis decapun, est\ eiusdem coloris, et videtur
guttatus sanguine, et portat victo\riam in omni area.
13 Cristallus molitus et bibi\tus aqua reddit lac
mulieri, que illud amisit.
Nota\ quod sanguis hirsinus calidus destruit
dyamantem.\ 14 Margarita lapis parvus est, sed
preciosus, candi\ dus, solidus, in conchis marinis
natus, de rore celes\ to conceptus ut dicit Ysidorus.
16 Et nota qui de\ rore matutino concipitur, candidior
est, et melior quam\ qui de rore vespertino. Aliquando
tamen margarita nomen est\ generale lapis preciosi.
Sed quocumque modo margari\ta accipiatur, certum
est quod duodecim margarite secundum\ sensum
moralem sunt duodecim virtutes, per duode\cim
lapides designate sicut planius invenietis.\ Adamas
sive dyamas clarus lapis ut cristallus, set\
sensorgr
3 The smaragdus refreshes the eyes; it cheers the
body of him who looks upon it; and
Translation
preserves love.
4 The sapphire restrains the flow of and blood and
kills le felun.
5 Topaz is saffron coloured, like amber, but more
pleasing and it prevents a pot from boiling over;
placed in the mouth of a thirsting man it removes his
thirst.
6 Turquoise brings anger and boldness.
7 Sardonyx is tri-coloured; it gives you boldness and
brings victory.
8 The toadstone brings you victory in achieving your
ends and in war.
9 The amethyst brings an omen of wood and water; it
is better given than desired.
10 Jasper is green like the the smaragdus but not so
pleasing; it restrains the flow of blood and preserves
the love of the person who gives or receives it.
11 Carnelian is red and restrains the flow of blood.
12 The pearl, parlus, is white and round and disposes
you to sleep.
12 The stone decapun is of the same colour; it seems
to be marked with blood and brings victory in every
field.
13 Crystal when ground and drunk in water restores
milk to a woman who has lost it.
Note that hot goat's blood dissolves a diamond. 14
The pearl, margarita, is a small stone but a precious
one; it is white, compact, found in shellfish and
conceived by heavenly dew, as Isidore says.
16 Note that the pearl conceived from the morning
dew is whiter and of better quality than that from the
evening dew. Sometimes, however, margarita is a
general word for a precious stone. However the word
is to be understood, it is certain that the twelve
'pearls', interpreted in the moral sense, are the twelve
virtues, symbolised by twelve stones as you will more
plainly see.
The diamond, adamas or dyamas, is a transparent
stone, like crystal, but
Transcription
colorem habens ut ferrum politum, set ferro vel igne
vel alio modo\ frangi non potest nisi sanguine hyrcino
calido apposito, et ex frag\mentis acutis sculpantur et
poliuntur gemme alie. Hic maior nuce\ parva non est,
sed adamantis sex sunt species, ferrum attrahit,
vene\num expellit, parit electum [electrum], metus
varios [vanos] et maleficiis resistentibus.\ Hic in India
invenitur, quedam in Grecia, quedam in Cypra, et hac
utuntur\ incantatores. Item virtutem prebet, prohibet
fantasmata, tollit\ iram et rixam, sanat freneticos,
defendit ab inimicis includi\ debet auro vel argento, et
brachio sinistro deferri. Invenitur similiter in Arabia.\
Acates lapis sic dictus a nomine aque per mediam
Ciciliam curren\tis, lapis niger, radios habens albos,
pluras [plures] habens figuras, aliquando re\gis,
aliquando bestiarum quas natura apposuit. Alterius
modi invenitur\ in Creta similis corallo, venas habens
similes auro.
Hic utilis contra\ venenum, alius invenitur in India in
quo sunt rami ut arboris et for\ma hominis. Hic aufert
sitim, et confortat visum.
Alius est qui odorem\ habet mirre quando ponitur in
igne.
Alius sanguineas habens maculas.
Alius\ cere colorem, sed quia tot sunt, minoris precii
sunt, defendit tamen hominem\ et prebet vim, confert
colorem, et bonum consilium et quod credi de\beat.\
Electorius crescit in ventre altilis postquam est trium
annorum,\ et crescit usque sit septem, nec maior est
quam nux, vel faba, cla\rus ut cristallus et aqua,
confert homini qui portat eum victoriam, au\fert sitim,
si ponatur in ore sicientis, revocat dispersos, adquerit\
amicos, efficit eloquentem et amatum. Confert
dilectionem inter\ virum et mulierem, et has habet
virtutes si in ore feratur.
Sernatites est lapis niger talis nature quod si in ore
loco sub lingua\ teneatur statim percipiet quid cogitat
de ipso, nec femina\ valet eius voluntati resistere, et
eius virtus sit probatur, si unguatur\ quis melle et
lacte inter quotquot muscas positus sit si habeat
lapidem\
Transcription
sensorgr
Translation
having the colour of polished iron, but it cannot be
destroyed by iron, fire or any other means, unless it is
placed in the hot blood of a goat; with sharp pieces of
diamond other stones are engraved and polished. It is
no greater than a small nut. There are six kinds,
however Adamant attracts metal; it expels venom; it
produces amber [and is efficacious against empty
fears and for those resisting spells]. It is found in
India, in Greece and in Cyprus, where magicians
make use of it. It gives you courage; it averts
apparitions; it removes anger and quarrels; it heals
the mad; it defends you from your enemies. It should
be set in gold or silver and worn on the left arm. It is
likewise found in Arabia.
Acates is a stone so called from the name of a river
flowing through the middle of Sicily. It is a black
stone with white lines, having several images,
sometimes of a king, sometimes of beasts, placed
there by nature. Another kind is found in Crete,
similar to coral, having veins like gold. This stone is
used against poison.
Another kind is found in India; it is marked with veins
like the branches of a tree, and in the form of men.
This stone removes thirst and strengthens the sight.
There is another kind which has the scent of myrrh
when it is placed in fire.
Another kind has marks the colour of blood.
Another has the colour of wax. But because there are
so many kinds, it is of less value. It defends a man,
however; it gives him strength; puts colour in his
face; it endows him with good counsel; and it makes
him persuasive.
Electorius grows in the stomach of a fowl after it is
three years old and grows until the bird is seven. It is
no bigger than a nut or a bean; it is clear like crystal
or water; it gives victory to the man who wears it; it
takes away thirst if it is placed in the mouth of the
thirsty; it summons back those who are scattered; it
acquires friends for him; it makes him eloquent and
loved. It bestows love between a man and a woman.
It has all these virtues if it is carried in the mouth.
Sernatites is a black stone of such a nature that if it is
placed in the mouth and held under the tongue, a
man can perceive what people think of him, and no
woman can withstand his will. You can test its nature
by smearing someone with honey and milk and
placing him in the midst of a swarm of flies; if he has
the stone
Translation
in ore non pungitur, amoto lapide, pungere non
desistunt.\ [J]aspidis sunt septemdecim maneries et
multos habet colores et cres\cit in partes Cecilie, et
ille melior et maioris virtutis qui viri\dis et
translucens, illum castum portantem defendit a febre
et ydro\pisy, a fantasmate, confert amiciciam, et
defensionem, et dat forti\tudinem, et eius virtus
maior in argento quam in auro.\
Saphirus tante virtutis est quod gemma gemmarum
vocatur, colorem\ habet firmamenti, quando sine
nube est, et dicitur sercites quia in harena\ Libie pre
sirtes invenitur, hic clarus, sed ille melior qui invenitur
apud Turcos,\ licet non adeo clarus, eius virtus
confortat ferentem, membra conservat\ integra,
invidiam et fraudem vincit, aufert timorem, et educit
de carcere,\ solvit vincula. Interficit antracem,
infrigidat hominem supra modum cale\factum
interius, tritus cum lacte servat malagmata, utilis
oculis, malo lingue\ dolorem aufert capitis, et qui fert
caste ferri debet.\
Smaragdo viriditate vincit omnia, sex habet species,
quidam de Sci\cia, de Britannia [Bactriana], quidam
de Nilo qui currit de Paradyso, quidam iuvenis [in
venis]\ matalli [metalli] invenitur, et quidam vocatur
Calcidonia, qui de Scicia, et adeo clarus\ ut possit visu
penetrandi, et qui retinet aerem sibi proximum melior
est,\ nec mutat colorem propter solem vel lunam vel
umbram et lapis talis planus\ bonus est ad visum,
sicut consuevit et Nero, per hanc adquiruntur res in
aquis\ per hanc accrescunt divicie si caste feratur,
confert eloquenciam acceptabi\lem si collo feratur,
sanat febrem emitriciam, guttam caducam aufert,
tem\pestatem et luxuriam et eciam colorem accipit, si
discoloretur et lavetur\ vino et unguatur oleo viridi
privat colorem. \
Crisapacion nascitur\ in Ethiopia, cuius color est ut
aurum et nocte lucet ut ignis et cetera.\
Sardonius ex duobus lapidibus nomen habet, et ex
hiis tres colores. Pri\mum colorem habet nigrum,
supra nigrum album, supra album ru\beum, et lapis
hic quinque species habet, sed ille qui tres colores
habet non mixtos ma\gis valet, nec cere adheret,
virtutem alteram non habet, sed castus et humilis\ ad
hanc virtutem habendam, ex India et Arabia veniunt,
et si collo vel di\gito ferantur, gravia sompnia
demonstrant, et efficit contenciones et\ etiam infantes
aliquantulum perspicaces, cuius species sunt
quinque.\
Transcription
Sardinus nomen habet ab insula ubi prius inventa est,
sensorgr
he is not bitten; remove the stone and the flies bite
him ceaselessly. There are seventeen kinds of jasper;
it has many colours; and it grows in parts of Sicily.
The green and translucent kind is better and of more
virtue than the rest. Jasper defends any chaste
person wearing it from fever and the dropsy, and
from apparitions; it strengthens friendship, keeps you
safe and gives you courage. It is of greater virtue if
set in silver rather than gold.
Sapphire is of such virtue that it is called the
gemstone of gemstones. In colour, it is like the sky
when it is cloudless. It is called serc[t]ites because it
is found on the shore of Libya in front of sandbanks.
This kind is clear; but a better kind is that found in
the land of the Turks, although it is not so clear. Its
virtue strengthens him who wears it, preserves his
limbs intact, overcomes envy and deception, takes
away fear, brings him out of prison, and loosens his
bonds. It gets rid of an ulcer and cools you if you are
overheated internally. Ground up with milk, it serves
as an emollient; it is good for the eyes and for an
injury to the tongue, and it takes away a headache. If
you wear it, you should behave in a chaste fashion.
Smaragdus surpasses everything in its greenness.
There are six kinds: from Scythia, from Britannia
[Bactria], from the Nile, which flows from Paradise;
one is found in the veins of mines; one is called
Chalcedonian. The one from Scythia is so clear that
you can see through it; it colours the air around. It is
the better kind. Smaragdus does not change its colour
on account of the sun or moon or shade; it is so even
that you can look through it, as Nero used to do; you
can use it to find things under water. It brings wealth
if it is worn chastely; it endows you with persuasive
eloquence if it is worn on the neck. It cures fever; it
gets rid of the hemitertian fever and epilepsy; and it
banishes storms and wantonness. It also takes on
colour: if it is discoloured and washed in wine and
anointed with green oil, the discoloration is dissolved.
Crisapacion comes from Ethiopia; its colour is like
gold and at night it shines like fire etc.
Sardonyx gets its name from two stones, and from
these it gets three colours. Its first colour is black;
above the black is white; above the white is red. This
stone has five types, but the one which has the three
colours not mixed together is worth more. It does not
stick to wax; it has no other virtue, but you must be
chaste and humble for it to have this virtue. The
stone comes from Arabia and India. If worn on the
neck or finger, it brings deep sleep, cures strife and
also makes infants somewhat sharp-sighted. There
are five kinds.
Translation
Sard gets its name from the island where it was first
rubei coloris est\ vilissima gemmarum, nec aliud
virtutis habet nisi pulcritudinem\ et quod aufert lapidi
onide suum nocumentum, et hic quinque species
habet.\
Crisolitus similitudinem habet aque maris, et interius
granum auri,\ et scintille ut ignis, virtus eius est
contra nocturnos timores, si perforetur et\ ponatur
seta asine in medio et portetur in sinistro brachio,
fugat de\mones et invenitur in Ethiopia. \
Berillus formam habet sex angularem\ ut maiorem
reddat claritatem, qui melior est, colorem habet olei
vel aque maris,\ in India invenitur amorem confert
inter virum et mulierem, honorem\ ferenti, calefacit
manum stringentis ipsum, aqua ubi iacuit valet oculis\
aufert suspiria, dolores et febrium et eius sunt novem
species.\
Topazius nomen habet ex insula, et ubi invenitur, et
carior est quia radiorum\ duas habet species, color
unius sicut auri, alterius clarior aliquantu\lum valet ad
ficum, et dicitur quod sentit lunam aquam bullientem
fa\cit quiescere, venit de Arabia. \
Crisopassus venit de India, color\ eius ut ius porete
guttas habet aureas, sed eius virtus non scribitur.\
Iacunctus tres habet species et omnis confortat, et
tollit tristiciam et suspicio\nem vanam, quidam
aquatici coloris infrigidit qui hunc portat collo\ vel
digito tutus ire potest in alienam provinciam, et tutus
ingurgita\cione, et honorabitur ab hostibus et quod
iuste petit recipiat, et scul\pi non potest facere.\
Amatistus colorem habet viole vel [in] gut\te vini
rubei vel aliquantulum [coloris] albidum, ex India
ve\nit, facilis ad frangendum, carior esset si esset
rarior, et quinque species habet\ quas require.\
Celidonius lapis est. Invenitur in ventre hyrun\dinis
duos habet colores nigrum et rubeum, niger valet
lu\naticis sanat diamonicos [demonicos] et alios
langores, facit hominem\ eloquentem et dilectum,
sinistro brachio debet ferri in panno lineo.\
Lapis rubeus [valet] adiuvat ad perficiendum quod
incho\atur, valet contra minas et iras regum et
principum, si tingatur\ in croco et feratur in lineo
panno sanat febricitantem et restrin\git humores
noxios.\
Gagates nascitur in Licia qui meli\or est, invenitur in
Anglia, cum calescit attrait [attrahit] paleam ardet
sensorgr
found; it is red in colour; the least valuable of
gemstones, it has no virtue other than its beauty and
the fact that it removes the harmful effect of the onyx
stone. There are five kinds.
Chrysolite resembles the water of the sea and has a
grain of gold within it, and sparks like fire. Its virtue is
to counter night-time fears; if it is pierced, with the
hair of an ass placed in the middle, and worn on the
left arm, it puts demons to flight. It is found in
Ethiopia.
Beryl has a hexagonal shape to give it greater clarity;
the better kind has the colour of oil or sea water. It is
found in India. It bestows love between a man and a
woman; it brings honour to him who wears it; it
warms the hand of anyone who holds it; water in
which it has lain is good for the eyes; and it takes
away asthma and the pains of fevers. There are nine
kinds.
Topaz gets its name from the island, Topazos, where
it is found. It is valued more because it has two kinds
of radiance: one the colour of gold; the other, clearer.
It is quite good for piles; it is said to feel the pull of
the moon; and it causes water to stop boiling. It
comes from Arabia.
The chrysoprase comes from India. Its colour is like
the sap of a leek, with golden marks; but there is
nothing on record about its virtue.
There are three kinds of hyacinth. Each one gives
strength, and removes sadness and false suspicion.
The kind with a watery colour chills you; anyone who
wears it on his neck or finger can go in safety in
foreign parts and is safe from overeating; he will be
honoured by his enemies and anything he seeks in a
righteous fashion, he will receive. The stone cannot
be engraved.
The amethyst is the colour of a violet or a drop of red
wine or whiteish. It comes from India. It is easy to
shatter. If it were rarer, it would be more valuable.
There are five kinds to look for.
Chelidony is a stone. It is found in the stomach of the
swallow; it has two colours, black and red; the black
kind is helpful to the insane, heals demonic
possession and other kinds of weakness; it makes a
man eloquent and loved; it should be worn on the left
arm wrapped in a linen cloth.
The red kind helps to bring things to completion; it
offers protection against the threats and rages of
kings and princes; if it is moistened in saffron and
worn in a linen cloth, it heals anyone with a fever and
restrains noxious humours.
Jet comes from Lycia. The better kind is found in
England. When it is made warm it attracts straw; it
burns
 Translation

in water; it is quenched in oil, Anyone wearing it who

Transcription
suffers from a swelling between the skin and the flesh
(ie dropsy), will benefit, if it is poured in. Ground and
in aqua, extinguitur in oleo, utilis est ferenti qui habet
mixed with water, it fixes loose teeth in place. By
inflacionem inter\ cutem et carnem infundura, si
means of inhalation in hot baths it restores menstrual
pulvis misceatur cum aqua confirmat\ dentes qui firmi
flow. The odour given out by jet when it burns will, in
non sunt, per estuvias supra reddit feminibus
inhaled, get rid of epilepsy, and it puts snakes and
naturas\ suas, si odor eius sentitur cum ardet aufert
demons to flight. It helps those who have an upset
caducam guttam, et odor eius\ fugat serpentes et
stomach; it is good for ringing in the ears; and it
demones, valet habentibus ventrem reversum, va\let
offers protection against spells; it is said to be a test
auribus tinientibus defendit incantaciones, probat
for virginity. A woman who suffers from the flux, if it
virginitatem\ ut dicitur, femina que patitur fluxum si
is of the womb, will be healed by water in which jet
uteri aqua per tres dies in qua lavatur\ sanabitur.\
has been soaked for three days.
Magnates invenitur inter Draconitidos et India,\
Lodestone is found in the land of the cave-dwellers
colorem habet ferreum et ferrum attrahit, eius virtus
and in India. It has a metallic colour and attracts iron.
est si quis voluerit\ scire si uxor eius sit casta vel non,
Its virtue is that if a man wants to know if his wife is
ponat lapidem sub capite eius cum\ dormierit, si casta
chaste or not, he should place the stone under her
est deosculabitur eum, si alia cadet a lecto acsi ma\nu
head when she is asleep; if she is chaste, she will
pulsaretur, et hoc contingit ex odore lapidis, si latro
embrace him warmly; otherwise, she will fall from the
intret in do\mum furandi et in diversas partes domus
bed as if struck by a hand; this happens because of
ponat vivum carbonem\ et desuper pulverem
the odour of the stone. If a thief should enter a house
magnatis ita quod inde fumus exeat per quatuor
to rob it, and should place in different parts of the
angu\los domus videbitur hiis qui sunt in domo quod
house a live coal and on top of it powdered lodestone,
cadat, et sic fugient, et latro\ locum furandi habere
so that it gives off smoke to the four corners of the
potest, fert concordiam inter hominem et feminam,
house, it will seem to those who are in the house that
con\fert graciam, eloquenciam, sensum disputandi, si
the house is collapsing; as a result, they will flee and
datur ad bibendum\ purgat ydropsim, pulvis valet si
the thief can rob the place. Lodestone produces
supra ponatur arsure.\
harmony between man and woman; it bestows grace,
eloquence, skill in argument. If it is given in the form
Corallus crescit ut arbor in mari et tunc viridis est, sed
of a drink, it purges dropsy. Its powder, put on a fire,
postea\ indurescit et accipit colorem rubeum,
quenches it.
similitudinem habet\ rami, virtus euis est fugat
fulgura et tempestatem ab omni loco ubi est\ et si
Coral grows like a tree in the sea, at which time it is
prociatur [proiciatur] inter vinetum vel olivetum vel in
green; afterwards, however, it hardens and takes on
campo vel in semine de\fendit a grandine et
a reddish colour. It resembles the branch of a tree. Its
tempestate, multiplicat fructus, aufert fantas\mata
virtue is that it drives away lightning and storms,
bonum finem et licium confert in operando.\
wherever it is; and if it is scattered around a vineyard
or olive-grove, or on a field or on seeded ground, it
Alemandina venit de parte Asie que vocatur
protects it from hail and storms and it increases its
Alablanda, sim\ilitudinem habet sardine et non
yield. It banishes apparitions and brings a good
defacile discernitur ab illa.\
outcome to legal business.
Cornelius obscurum habet colorem, virtus eius est
Almandine comes from the part of Asia called
hec, aufert iram dis\putancium, sistit sanguinem de
Alablanda. It resembles sard and is not easily
fluxu sanguinis de quolibet\ membro et maxime
distinguished from it.
menstruum. \
Carnelian has a pale colour. Its virtue is this: it
Carbunculus invenitur in Libia ubi ma\nent
quenches the anger of people in dispute, and it
traconitidide mittit radios ut carbo vivus, et hoc de
staunches blood flowing from any part of the body,
noc\te non de die. \
especially menstrual flow.
Ligurium nascitur de urina lincis que videt per
The carbuncle is found in Libya where cave-dwellers
medium\ lapidis sicut per medium vitrioli bestia
live; it sends out rays like a live coal, by night but not
cooperit urinam suam harena\ ne inveniatur
by day.
eius[......] aufert dolorem ventris et sistit\
Ligurium comes from the urine of the lynx. You can
see through the middle of the stone as through glass.
sensorgr

Transcription
fluxum et aufert janiz.\ Ethites est lapis quem aquila
ex ultimis finibus terre fert ad nidum\ suum, nec ponit
antequam in nidum portetur et ibi remanet
quo\adusque pulli maturi sint. Hic lapis lapidem habet
intra se, et propterea\ utilis est mulieri pregnanti, et
similiter ad partum debet deferri in sinistra parte\
perhibet ebrietatem, accrescit divicias, confert
dilectionem et victoriam,\ conservat infantes sanos,
aufert guttam caducam, et siquis suspectus\ fuerit de
veneno dando ponatur lapis iste sub disco eius et
quamdiu moratur\ ibi non manducabit qui suspectus
est, si verum est amoto lapide potest.\
Celnites est lapis colorem habet iaspidis, vocatur
silenites quia crescit et\ decrescit cum luna, confert
dilectionem, valet corpori, nascitur in\ Persia\
Sagatromen [Gagatronem] lapis maculatus est ut
pellis ca\preoli, confert principi victoriam, et fugat
hostes.\
Ceraunius lapis est cadens cum fulgure, qui cum caste
fertur ubi est\ nec cadit fulgur nec tempestas, valet in
bello et in pla\cito, confert sensum [somnium] et
pulcra fantasmata. Dupplicem habet colorem.\
Eliotropia lapis huius nature, si ponatur in vasa contra
solem facit\ colorem eius rubeum, et eclipsim novam
et cito ebullire vas\ in quo ponitur et aqua eicere hac
si plenum esset, qui fert plura potest dicere de\
futuris, confert homini laudem, sanitatem, sistit
sanguinem, est contra\ venenum et fraudem, collatus
cum herba que eiusdem nominis esse, pergit\ quo
voluerit non videbitur, et hoc cum incantatione que ad
hoc spectat.\ Venit de Ethiopia et Affrica, coloris est
smaragdinis et guttas habet\ sanguineas.\
Epistites lapis rubeus et splendens, et eius\ natura est
quod caldaria ebulliencia sistit, et post pauca
infri\gidat aufert de terris seminatis aves nocentes, et
tempestates,\ aufert rixas, et facit hominem securum,
si contra solem ponatur\ claritatem reddat ut ignis,
vult ferri ex parte sinistra.\
Ematites nomen habet ex sanguine, pulvis eius cum
albu\ bine [albumine] ovis valet ad asperitatem
palpebrarum. Item per cotim\ factus et aque mixtus
valet equo [eo] qui iactat sanguinem, restringit\
mensium, aufert carnem que super excrescit in plaga,
restrin\git fluxum ventris, si bibatur cum vino valet
contra vene\
sensorgr
The beast hides its urine in the sand lest it should be
found. The virtue of ligurium is that it takes away
stomach-ache and staunches
Translation
flux and takes away jaundice. Eaglestone is a stone
which the eagle carries from the ends of the earth to
its nest. It does not put the stone down until it is
inside the nest; there the stone remains until the
eagle's young have grown up. This stone has another
stone within it: for this reason it is of benefit to
pregant women; likewise at childbirth. It should be
worn on the left side. It prevents drunkenness; it
increases wealth; it bestows love and victory; it keeps
young children healthy; and it takes away epilepsy. If
anyone should be suspected of giving poison, the
stone should be placed under his plate; as long as it
stays there, the suspect will not be able to eat; if the
suspicion is true, he can eat only when the stone has
been removed.
Moonstone has the colour of jasper. It is called
silenites because it waxes and wanes with the moon.
It bestows love; it is good for the health. It comes
from Persia.
Gagatromen is a stone which is marked like the skin
of a a wild goat. It gives a leader victory and puts his
enemies to flight.
The thunderstone falls to earth with a bolt of
lightning. If you wear it and behave chastely,
lightning will not strike the spot on which you stand,
and no storms will arise. It helps you in war and to
achieve your purpose. It bestows sleep and sweet
dreams. It has two colours.
The bloodstone is of this nature: if you place it in a
vessel facing the sun, it makes the sun turn red and
causes a new eclipse; it also makes the vessel boil
and spill water if it is full. Anyone wearing it can
foretell much of the future. It bestows praise on a
man, and good health. It staunches a flow of blood
and works against poison and trickery. If you wear it
together with the herb of the same name, you can go
where you want, invisible, using the appropriate spell.
The bloodstone comes from Ethiopia and Africa. It is
of the colour of the emerald with blood-coloured
marks.
Epistites is a brilliant red stone. Its nature is that it
quenches a boiling cauldron, and after a short while
cools it. It scares harmful birds away from seeded
ground; it repels storms; it banishes quarrels; and it
keeps you safe safe. Placed in the sun, it gives out
light like fire; It is better worn on the left.
Hematite gets its name from blood. Powdered and
mixed with the white of egg, it is good for roughness
 of the eyelids. Ground and mixed with water, it helps
anyone who spits blood. It restrains menstruation; it
takes away the scar tissue that grows in wounds; and
it restrains a flux of the stomach. Drunk in wine, it
works against poison

sensorgr
Transcription
num, contra morsum serpentis, cum melle valet oculis
dolentibus\ frangit petram interius venit de Affrica et
Ethiopia et Arabia.\
Abestos est de Archadia, color ferri, cuius natura si
semel accenditur\ semper ardet.\
Penantes concipit lapidem et parit et\ propterea valet
mulieribus habentibus in ventrem et parturientibus.\
Sadda gravis ad inveniendum sic invenitur, adheret
navibus\ nec aufertur nec cecetur [secetur], in terra
Caldeorum invenitur.\
Modus [Medus] intra Turcorum invenitur confert vitam
et mortem\ si confricatur ad cotim viridem et
misceatur cum lacte mulieri\ et ponatur ad oculos
cecos dat visum, si cum lacte ovis que nusquam\ nisi
unum agnum habuerit, aufert podagram et sanat
renes, de\bet includi argento et quando sic bibitur
debet vespere, et ante pran\dium, sed si daretur
pulvis cum aqua, evomaret pulmonem\ et hic
moreretur, et sic lavans oculos excecaretur, color eius
niger est.\
Selaor [Gelatia] lapis adeo durus quod frangi non
potest et adeo frigidos quod\ non calefieri potest.
Exacontalitos sexaginta habet colo\res in proprio loco
invenitur in terra draconitidarum. \
Dionisia colo\rem habet nigrum, guttas rubeas, cum
aqua trita saporem habet vini et\ tamen aufert
ebrietatem.\
Eriselectrus [Criselectrus] colorem habet auri et
electri,\ si detur mane fert gaudium, sed iram et
tristiciam nisi sepius videatur.\
Diadocos valet incantatoribus per aquam, sed si
tangat mor\tuum amittit virtutem.
Pirites non permittit quod stringatur\ quia si
constringitur ardet manum.\
Chelonite lapis quem fert testudo quidam in India,
purpurei et\ varii coloris est, si feratur in ore bene
lavato sub lingua, lu\na crescente, potest futura
videre, a prima diei usque ad sextam, et cum\ nova
est luna est xva per totum diem, hic lapis non tenet
ignem.
sensorgr
Translation
and against snakebite; taken with honey it is good for
eye trouble; and it softens the stone in the bladder. It
comes from Africa, Ethiopia and Arabia.
Asbestos comes from Arcadia. It has a metallic colour.
Its nature is that if you once ignite it, it burns forever.
Penantes conceives and gives birth to another stone;
for this reason it is good for women who are pregnant
or in labour.
Sagda is hard to find. This is how you find it: it sticks
to ships and cannot be taken or cut off. It is found in
the country of the Chaldeans.
Medus is found among the Turks. It bestows life and
death if it is ground on a green grindstone and mixed
with a woman's milk. Placed on sightless eyes, it
restores their vision. Dissolved in the milk of a ewe
that has had no more than one lamb, and that one a
male, it takes away gout and cures the kidneys. It
should be kept in silver and drunk in the evening and
before lunch. If the powder is administered in water,
whoever drinks it will vomit up his lungs and die; and
if he bathes his eyes with it, he will go blind. Its
colour is black.
Gelatia is a stone so hard that it cannot be shattered
and so cold that it cannot be warmed.
Exacontalitus has sixty colours within it. It is found in
the land of the cave-dwellers.
Dionysia is black in colour, with red marks. Ground in
water, it has the flavour of wine; nevertheless, it
banishes drunkenness.
Chryselectrum has the colour of gold and amber. If it
is given in the morning it brings joy; but it brings
anger and sadness if it is not looked at often.
Diadocos is of value to those who cast spells in water,
but if it touches a dead man it loses its virtue.
Pyrite does not allow you to grasp it, because if you
do so, it burns your hand.
Chelonite is a stone, carried by a certain kind of
tortoise in India. It is a mixture of purple and other
colours. If you put it in your mouth, well washed,
under your tongue, at the waxing of the moon, it
gives you the power to see the future; on the first day
you can do this up to the sixth hour; when the moon
is new, you have the power for the full twenty-four
hours, up to the fifteenth day. This stone is unaffected
by fire.
sensorgr