[1312] Trithemius, De script, eccles. probably has Peter and Jacobus in mind when he states that some writers say that Thomas of Cantimpré knew Greek and translated the works of Aristotle used in the schools.
[1313] As Albert lived six years beyond Aquinas, this would indicate that his Aristotelian treatises were completed early in life. Yet some accuse him of using Thomas’s De natura rerum in these works.
[1314] Additional 17345, late 13th century, imperfect, ascribes the antiqua translatio of the fourteen books of Metaphysics to him, but is the only such MS I know of.
[1315] One wonders if this can mean Thomas Brabantinus, whose name immediately follows that of Wilhelmus Brabantinus in the list, rather than Thomas Aquinas.
[1316] Ferckel (1912), pp. 1-2, 10.
APPENDIX I
THE MANUSCRIPTS OF THE DE NATURA RERUM
Of the half dozen or so MSS which I have examined Egerton 1984, 13th century, fols. 34-145, and Arundel 323, 13th century, fols. 1-98, present a different version from the others, arranged in a different order and somewhat more condensed, although sometimes inserting points omitted in the other MSS, as has already been illustrated in the text in the reproduction of the chapter on the lion. These two MSS open with what is usually the 16th book on the seven regions of the air and continue with the subjects of the heavens and elements to which books 17-19 are usually devoted. Then, omitting the themes of the usual first three books, they consider quadrupeds (Egerton 1984, fol. 51v; Arundel 323, fol. 33r), other animals, and herbs. Then follow precious stones and metals, after instead of before which comes a truncated version of the book on fountains (Egerton 1984, fol. 142v; Arundel 323, fol. 91r). Next comes a treatment of parts of the human body which roughly answers to Thomas’s first book but omits entirely the chapters dealing with generation and obstetrics. Indeed in Egerton 1984 the text breaks off at fol. 145v in the midst of the chapter on teeth and in the middle of a word, and then ends on the upper part of fol. 146r with the closing portion of the chapter De anchis and the chapter on Spondilia. Arundel 323 continues as far as the 44th chapter on the spleen. It then at fol. 98r introduces a brief discussion of geography (Incipiunt Divisiones Provinciarum), at the close of which we read, “Explicit liber lucii annisii Senece Cordubensis fortini stoyci discipuli De naturis rerum.” The text, however, goes on to fol. 103v with a discussion of diseases, remedies, and astrological medicine. Neither this nor the list of provinces forms a part of the De natura rerum as contained in Royal 12-E-XVII and 12-F-VI.
As the Histoire Littéraire de la France listed only MSS of the De natura rerum at Paris and in a few other continental libraries, and as the authorship of Thomas of Cantimpré is seldom recognized in the MSS catalogues, I append a list of MSS in British and continental libraries which are not noted in the Histoire Littéraire. No doubt the list is still very incomplete. C. Ferckel (1912), pp. 11-18 gives a fuller list than that in the Histoire Littéraire, but only those MSS which are marked with an asterisk in the following list have been noted by Ferckel: