Mineralogy, Botany and Zoology in Medieval Hebrew Encyclopaedias

1996 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 263-315 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mauro Zonta
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
13Th Century ◽  
Principal Feature ◽  
Scientific Discussion ◽  
Albert The Great ◽  
Descriptive Approach ◽  
The Middle Ages ◽  
Medieval Hebrew

There are three principal philosophical-scientific encyclopaedias written in Hebrew during the Middle Ages: Yehudah ha-Cohen'sMidrash ha-Ḥokmah(1245–1247), Shem Tov ibn Falaquera'sDe'ot ha-Filosofim(ca. 1270) and Gershon ben Shlomoh'sSha'ar ha-Shamayin(end of the 13th century). All three include detailed treatments of zoology, and the last two of botany and mineralogy as well. The principal feature of their treatments is their “theoretical” – not merely “descriptive” – approach: these encyclopaedias do not contain only lists of stones, plants and animals (such as other Arabic and Latin Medieval encyclopaedias), but also attempts at systematization and philosophical arrangement of the various available theories in the fields of mineralogy, botany and zoologyquasciences. An examination of the doctrines and the sources of these texts shows that, while the treatment of zoology relies upon Aristotle's zoological works and, above all, theirCompendiaby Averroes, the treatment of mineralogy and botany reflects the non-Aristotelian theories of theBrethren of Purity(Iḫwān al-Ṣafā'), rather than such texts as pseudo-Aristotle'sDe lapidibusand Nicolaus Damascenus'De plantis. In particular, Falaquera's encyclopaedia represents the most convincing effort to provide a truly scientific discussion of mineralogy and botany, comparable to that of his contemporary Albert the Great, and based upon theBrethren, Avicenna and, maybe, some lost works by Averroes.

Sa’adyah the Poet

Sa'adyah Gaon ◽  
2013 ◽  
pp. 97-117
Author(s):  
Robert Brody
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Sixth Century ◽  
Hebrew Poetry ◽  
Contemporary Research ◽  
The Middle Ages ◽  
Medieval Hebrew

This chapter focuses on how Sa'adyah Gaon excelled in poetry, which he worked within the most highly structured frameworks that brought great originality to his praxis. It discusses Medieval Hebrew poetry that is typically classified in contemporary research as either liturgical or secular according to its formal function. It also cites poetry that is intended for use in religious ceremonies and classified as piyut or liturgical poetry, while poetry that is not intended is classified as secular. The chapter describes the composers of piyut who were referred to as paitanim during rabbinic times and their poetry that was called hazanut or hazana in the Middle Ages. It mentions a paitan named is Yosi ben Yosi, who is generally presumed to have been active during the fifth or sixth century.

Aristotelianism, medieval

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mark D. Jordan
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Fourteenth Century ◽  
Twelfth Century ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Mathematical Reasoning ◽  
Christian Theology ◽  
John Duns Scotus ◽  
Albert The Great ◽  
Active Rivalry ◽  
The Middle Ages

Although there are many possible definitions, ‘medieval Aristotelianism’ is here taken to mean explicit receptions of Aristotle’s texts or teachings by Latin-speaking writers from about ad 500 to about ad 1450. This roundabout, material definition avoids several common mistakes. First, it does not assert that there was a unified Aristotelian doctrine across the centuries. There was no such unity, and much of the engagement with Aristotle during the Middle Ages took the form of controversies over what was and was not Aristotelian. Second, the definition does not attempt to distinguish beforehand between philosophical and theological receptions of Aristotle. If it is important to pay attention to the varying and sometimes difficult relations of Aristotelian thought to Christian theology, it is just as important not to project an autonomous discipline of philosophy along contemporary lines back into medieval texts. The most important fact about the medieval reception of Aristotle is in many ways the most elementary: Aristotle wrote in Greek, a language unavailable to most educated Europeans from 500 to 1450. Aristotle’s fate in medieval Europe was largely determined by his fate in Latin. Early on, Boethius undertook to translate Aristotle and to write Latin commentaries upon him in order to show the agreement of Aristotle with Plato, and also presumably to make Aristotle available to readers increasingly unable to construe Greek. He was able to finish translations only of the logical works, and to write commentaries on a few of them and some related treatises. Even this small selection from Aristotle was not received entire in the early Middle Ages. Of the surviving pieces, only the translations of the Categories and De interpretatione were widely studied before the twelfth century, though not in the same way or for the same purposes. Before the twelfth century, Aristotelian teaching meant what could be reconstructed or imagined from a slim selection of the Organon and paraphrases or mentions by other authors. The cultural reinvigoration of the twelfth century was due in large part to new translations of Greek and Arabic works, including works of Aristotle. Some translators worked directly from the Greek, among whom the best known is James of Venice. Other translators based themselves on intermediary Arabic translations; the best known of these is Gerard of Cremona. Although the translations from Greek were often the more fluent, translations from the Arabic predominated because they were accompanied by expositions and applications of the Aristotelian texts. To have a Latin Aristotle was not enough; Latin readers also needed help in understanding him and in connecting him with other authors or bodies of knowledge. Hence they relied on explanations or uses of Aristotle in Islamic authors, chiefly Avicenna. The thirteenth century witnesses some of the most important and energetic efforts at understanding Aristotle, together with reactions against him. The reactions begin early in the century and continue throughout it. The teaching of Aristotelian books was condemned or restricted at Paris in 1210, 1215 and 1231, and lists of propositions inspired by certain interpretations of Aristotle were condemned at Paris and Oxford in 1270 and 1277. However, interest in Aristotle continued to grow, fuelled first by the translation of Averroes’ detailed commentaries, then by new translations from Greek. At the same time, some of the most powerful Christian theologians were engaged in large-scale efforts to appropriate Aristotle in ways that would be both intelligible and congenial to Christian readers. Albert the Great composed comprehensive paraphrases of the whole Aristotelian corpus, while his pupil Thomas Aquinas undertook to expound central Aristotelian texts so as to make them clear, coherent, and mostly concordant with Christianity. Very different projects predominate in the fourteenth century. For John Duns Scotus and William of Ockham, the texts of Aristotle serve as distant ground against which to elaborate philosophical and theological teachings often radically anti-Peripatetic. If they are fully conversant with Aristotle, if they speak technical languages indebted to him, they are in no way constrained by what they take his teaching to be. Other fourteenth-century projects include the application of procedures of mathematical reasoning to problems outstanding in Aristotelian physics, the elaboration of Averroistic positions, and the rehabilitation of Albert’s Peripateticism as both faithful and true to reality. By the end of the Middle Ages, then, there is anything but consensus about how Aristotle is to be interpreted or judged. There is instead the active rivalry of a number of schools, each dependent in some way on Aristotle and some claiming to be his unique interpreters.

scholarly journals Roberto Grosseteste: epistemología aristotélica y ciencia teológica / Robert Grosseteste: Aristotelian Epistemology and Theological Science

2008 ◽  
Vol 15 ◽  
pp. 11
Author(s):  
Celina A. LÉRTORA MENDOZA
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
13Th Century ◽  
The Middle Ages

The intoduccion of the Aristotelian Analytica Posteriora in the Middle Ages and their diffusion all through 13th century caused significant changes in the conception of the scientific knowledges, including those of the Theology.This one was clearly distinguished from the Philosophy. In this work I show Grosseteste’s main theological ideas and the lineaments of its epistemological justification: the object and the method of the Theology.

scholarly journals Medical treatment of animals in slavs in the middle ages

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (96) ◽  
pp. 71-74
Author(s):  
V. Prysyazhnyuk
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Correct Diagnosis ◽  
Surgical Instruments ◽  
Medicinal Products ◽  
13Th Century ◽  
Liquid Form ◽  
Wine Vinegar ◽  
Cutaneous Form ◽  
Full Sense ◽  
The Middle Ages

How the treatment of animals in Galicia evolved before the first printed veterinary works appeared today is little known to tell. The reason for this is the lack of relevant historical research in this area. However, this gap will no doubt be widened over time. This work is long and exhausting, since it is based on archival research and also on literature, which refers to a specific period. These will be pieces from different spheres of life, which, after proper segregation, will make it possible to complete this chapter. The above mentioned text of the treatment of horses by Slavs since 1394 is the oldest known mention of an equine doctor, as well as the salary for surgery and payment for medication. Confirming that in medieval Galicia, both the forging and the treatment of horses belonged to the blacksmith's duties. Preparation of medicines for horses was carried out by those who treated them. The blacksmiths, who were treated, began to be called Konoval. The oldest mention is recorded on parchment in 1505, also there is a guild sign of people of this profession. This is also evidenced by the engraving, whose origins date back to the Middle Ages. Blacksmiths are in the first place in the Middle Ages like equestrian doctors, they are already mentioned in the literature from the XI century. The grooms appear near the blacksmiths, but the name of the groom began dating only in the early 13th century. Since then, there are the first written mentions of poultry, falconers and dog-keepers. They were responsible for the care and treatment of the poultries or animals that had been cared for. In addition to agricultural content, there were also guidelines for the treatment and breeding of pets. In very few cases, veterinary writers describe the signs or causes of diseases, mainly by continuing to give the name of the disease and method of treatment. Therefore, treatment is empirical in the full sense of the word. Following the custom at the time of treatment, describe the treatment of each disease, as it is today in surgery, that is, starting from the head and ending at the feet. When the doctor could not make the correct diagnosis, he called the horse sick and recommended to treat it with a mixture consisting of butter, eggs and salt. By the term “attack” the author understood the signs of a very acute and usually fatal illness. Since drugs that deserve attention, we recommend sulfur, copper greens, turpentine, mustard, quicklime, mercury, tar, used as an ointment or liniment for external treatment. In addition to the aforementioned measures, the burning of the ferrous iron of the tumors was applied and then sprinkled with green copper, indicating the treatment of cutaneous form of sap. Medicines can be divided into three groups, namely: Medicinal products of vegetable, animal and mineral origin. The medicines were mixed and prepared mainly by the horse doctor, the medicines consisted mainly of home remedies and were readily available to anyone. In the liquid form were infused into the mouth, nose, enemas, ablution, bathing. Water, wine, vinegar and olive oil are the basis for liquid medicines. Ointments, suppositories, patches, pastes and poultices were used in the condensed form, Ointments are often used in a warm state. The basis for this was fats and wax. In the form of powdered substances that have blown into the eye or wounds. In addition to the above remedies, medicinal products and magical procedures were used for therapeutic purposes: words with superstitious signs related to religious worship were used to achieve treatment. Dressings and surgical instruments. A horn was served to deliver the medication, with certain preparations filled in the horn. Wounds were washed using a copper syringe. A leather bag made of the same material has replaced today's pourer. A hoof knife, a blood dispenser, a razor to remove hair are also mentioned, and also iron for burning ulcers and eczema. The dressing material is hemp yarn, scarves, mostly blue, spartan shale.

scholarly journals Trends in Colouring Blue Glass in Central Europe in Relation to Changes in Chemical Composition of Glass from the Middle Ages to Modern Age

Minerals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 1001
Author(s):  
Zuzana Zlámalová Cílová ◽  
Michal Gelnar ◽  
Simona Randáková
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Composition ◽  
Middle Ages ◽  
Central Europe ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
13Th Century ◽  
Blue Glass ◽  
Modern Age ◽  
The 19Th Century ◽  
The Middle Ages

The study deals with the development of the chemical composition of blue glass from the 13th to the 19th century in the region of Bohemia (Central Europe). Nearly 100 glass samples (colourless, greenish, and blue) were evaluated by an XRF method to distinguish the colouring components of blue glass. As early as in the 13th century, blue glass based on ash containing colouring ions of Co and Cu was produced here. To achieve the blue colour of glass, a copper-rich raw material was most likely applied. This information significantly complements the existing knowledge about glass colouring in the Middle Ages, as the glass of later periods was typically coloured with raw materials containing cobalt.

scholarly journals Italy and Provence: Cultural Connections in the Middle Ages

2021 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-46
Author(s):  
Elena Grinina ◽  
◽  
Galina Romanova ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Literary Language ◽  
13Th Century ◽  
Cultural Life ◽  
Cultural Connections ◽  
The Middle Ages

The Provencal language and lyrics of troubadours had the highest authority in the Middle Ages, having influenced the development of poetic art, in particular, and the development of philological thought, in general, in adjacent territories. Undoubtedly, there were the closest ties of medieval Provence with Catalonia. However, Italy was also involved in the orbit of the cultural life of Provence. The purpose of the article is to show how Italy and Provence were connected in the 13th century and to what extent Italy contributed to the development and preservation of the grammar of the Provencal literary language of that era.

Albert the Great—new mathematician of the middle ages?

1962 ◽  
Vol 55 (4) ◽  
pp. 291-295
Author(s):  
Marie Stephen
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Thirteenth Century ◽  
Tenth Century ◽  
Alfred The Great ◽  
Albert The Great ◽  
Mathematics And Science ◽  
The Middle Ages

There is an Alfred the Great, tenth-century scholar and king of England, and an Albert the Great, thirteenth-century scientist and Dominican friar. It is interesting to note that both are giving historians of medieval mathematics and science a rough time deciding whether or not they were authors of commentaries on Euclid.

scholarly journals Los inicios del pensamiento escolástico: el Sic et non de Pedro Abelardo / The Beginning of the Scholastic Thought: «Sic et non» by Pierre Abelard

2012 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
pp. 31
Author(s):  
Natalia JAKUBECKI
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
13Th Century ◽  
The West ◽  
Modus Operandi ◽  
Peter Abelard ◽  
The Creation ◽  
Methodological Principles ◽  
Medieval Universities ◽  
The University ◽  
The Middle Ages

As is well know, one of the most impressive mentalities of the Middle Ages was that of scholastic thought. The scholastic, in its true sense, must be understood as a particular type of didactics used to understand the Holy Scriptures and doctrines of the faith. Nevertheless it was specifically the modus operandi of the masters of the medieval universities. It reached its zenith in the 13th century thanks, fundamentally, to two simultaneous phenomena: the return to the West of Aristotle’s works and the creation of the University. However, this forma mentis had already begun to develop in the works of several previous thinkers, perhaps the most significant of which being Sic et Non, by Peter Abelard. Without claiming to be exhaustive, this article will focus on the methodological principles that Abelard introduces in the prologue of his work. This will then allow us to compare the substance of the rupture with, and renovation of, previous thinking as well as to emphasise the contributions that so intimately link it to the first scholastic.

scholarly journals Pre-Christian Scandinavian royalty. From the legendary kings to the 11th century kingship

2014 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. 95-104
Author(s):  
Alexandra Airinei
Keyword(s):  
Middle Ages ◽  
Point Of View ◽  
13Th Century ◽  
The Ideal ◽  
The Middle Ages

This article focuses, as the title already expresses it, on the Pre-Christian Scandinavian Royalty, not from a political point of view, but from the perspective of what we nowadays call ideology of power. This means that we will try to identify the whole system of beliefs regarding the ideal ruler and the concepts that support his right to the throne and to the exercise of his authority . The ideas used to build the image of the perfect kingship in the pagan Scandinavia continued to exist long after the difficult process of christianisation, thing which meant in fact that the conversion was never fully completed and that this area remained distinct from the rest of the continent during the Middle Ages and even later. Even if the article refers to the Northern monarchy up to the 11th century, we included in our references a 13th century work allegedly written by the king Håkon Håkonsson, “Konungs Skuggsja”, to show this particular aspect: the fact that the pagan ideas were deeply rooted in the endemic society, the fact that they still shaped the concept of the perfect king and that there was no breach between the Christian period and the previous one, but rather a balanced continuity.

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