4. CALENDAR: 10. MATERIAL SPECIFIC TO INDIVIDUAL MONTHS --OVERVIEW
The material in MS 17's calendar which are non-generic -- that is, which are exclusively related to an individual month -- fall into three categories: prose appendices of an antiquarian character, marginalia, and zodiac illustrations
The antiquarian appendices are largely drawn from Isidore of Seville's Etymologiae. They describe the alleged historical origins of the Roman months and their names, supplemented by appropriate computistical information. For the months of February-April, this additional information focuses on practical issues affecting Paschal reckoning, but from then onwards, it becomes more purely encyclopedic. The appendices seem to have been carefully planned: for example, the discussion of the division of the Roman months taken from Hrabanus' De computo is spread out over June and July, with cross references. Such appendices are relatively unusual in computus manuscripts. They appear in MS 17 very close cognate, the "Winchcombe Computus", and a very similar configuration can be found in Munich CLM 21557 fols. 12r-22v. Paris BNF lat. 12117 fols. 148v-160r and Oxford, Bodleian Library Bodley 309 fols. 143r-146r also contain prose summaries. This would seem to be a late innovation (none of these manuscripts is later than the eleventh century), and may be connected with Abbo of Fleury: the calendar in PL 90 cols. 759-786 has very elaborate appendices, including rules for diet and bloodletting, as well as some of the computistical notes which are distributed into the margins of MS 17's calendar.1
MS 17's marginalia focuses largely on the computistical peculiarities of each month; some, however, is antiquarian in nature, especially concerning the names of the months.
The following months contain illustrations of the zodiac signs:
4. CALENDAR: 10. MATERIAL SPECIFIC TO INDIVIDUAL MONTHS --OVERVIEW
The material in MS 17's calendar which are non-generic -- that is, which are exclusively related to an individual month -- fall into three categories: prose appendices of an antiquarian character, marginalia, and zodiac illustrations
The antiquarian appendices are largely drawn from Isidore of Seville's Etymologiae. They describe the alleged historical origins of the Roman months and their names, supplemented by appropriate computistical information. For the months of February-April, this additional information focuses on practical issues affecting Paschal reckoning, but from then onwards, it becomes more purely encyclopedic. The appendices seem to have been carefully planned: for example, the discussion of the division of the Roman months taken from Hrabanus' De computo is spread out over June and July, with cross references. Such appendices are relatively unusual in computus manuscripts. They appear in MS 17 very close cognate, the "Winchcombe Computus", and a very similar configuration can be found in Munich CLM 21557 fols. 12r-22v. Paris BNF lat. 12117 fols. 148v-160r and Oxford, Bodleian Library Bodley 309 fols. 143r-146r also contain prose summaries. This would seem to be a late innovation (none of these manuscripts is later than the eleventh century), and may be connected with Abbo of Fleury: the calendar in PL 90 cols. 759-786 has very elaborate appendices, including rules for diet and bloodletting, as well as some of the computistical notes which are distributed into the margins of MS 17's calendar.1
MS 17's marginalia focuses largely on the computistical peculiarities of each month; some, however, is antiquarian in nature, especially concerning the names of the months.
The following months contain illustrations of the zodiac signs:
1 Cf. Jones 1939, 73.