Marston MS 226     Northern Italy, s. XV 2
Silius Italicus, Punica, with commentary

1. ff. 1r-184v  //Sarrana prisci barce de gente uetustos/
A belo numerabat auos nanque orba marito/
Cum fugeret dido famulam tiron impia diri/...
Nec uero cum te memorat de stirpe deorum/
Prolem tarpei mentitur roma tonantis./  Finis.

Silius Italicus, Punica; J. Delz, ed., Teubner (1987) pp. 1-471, Marston
MS 226 = [Greek], pp. xlvii-xlviii, where it is cited incorrectly as Marston
MS 220.  Text is imperfect:  one leaf missing at beginning with Book I.1-71; one
leaf missing between ff. 106-107 with Book XI.24-85 (...Letas res libye:
et fortunam in marte secuta // Expulit orantem et nuda capitolia consul...);
one leaf missing between ff. 143-144 with Book XIV.197-260 (...Tum cathane
nimium ardenti uicina typheo // Tergemino uenit numero fecunda
pan[t crossed out]hromos...).

2. ff. 1r-181r  [In outer margin:] //Hannibal filius hamilcaris barce
fuit.  nam hamilcar cognomine barcha dictus est.  [below:]  beli duo
fuerunt hic didus pater cognomen accepit ab antiquo illo belo rege
qui regnauit in assyria...[marginalia, beginning of Book II, f. 9v:]
iussa quo ad legatos sed quo ad hannibalem petitiones dicuntur...[concluding
marginalia on f. 184v, XVII.651, partially illegible:]  quia ipse fecit
menia et tu conseruasti ipsa et nos omnes qui reppulit senones.

Marston MS 226 is one of four manuscripts containing the "Anonymous B"
commentary discussed by E. L. Bassett, CTC, v. 3, pp. 366-67 (cited
incorrectly as Marston MS 220); here beginning imperfectly and with some
loss of text in inner margin, f. 1r.  The scribe of the main text
wrote this commentary in the margins and some of the interlinear glosses;
at least two other hands have also contributed annotations and corrections.

Paper (watermarks: similar in design to Piccard Werkzeug und Waffen
III.737, 739-42; unidentified horn; mountain smaller in size but similar
in design to Briquet Monts 11656), ff. 184, 292 x 222 (220 x 110) mm.
Ca. 32 lines of verse.  Vertical and horizontal bounding lines, full length,
ruled in ink or hard point; text lines ruled in hard point.  Additional
vertical ruling in outer margin (perhaps through folding?) to delineate
column for commentary.
I 12 (-1), II-VIII 12, IX (-12), X-XII 12, XIII 12 (-2), XIV 12, XV 10,
XVI 10 (-10).  Vertical catchwords along bounding line, verso.
Text and main commentary written by a single scribe in two sizes of
slanting humanistic cursive.
Spaces for initials and headings left unfilled; marginal rubrics for
ff. 72-144 and 166-184 only.
Binding:  Italy, s. xv.  Parchment binding stays within quires.
Original wound sewing on three tawed skin, slit straps, originally pegged.
Covers wanting; the text block now preserved in
a rigid paper wrapper, s. xix, with an engraving of Petrarch pasted to the
front cover (see provenance below).

Written in Northern Italy in the second half of the 15th century; the
manuscript was wrongly attributed to Petrarch's library on the basis of the
forged inscription added on f. 184v:  "Ioannes Columna Francisco Petrarche
Mnemosynon."  This attribution was supported by various scholars until
the 20th century (pertinent correspondence in library files); see also
L. Arrigoni, Notice historique et bibliographique sur 25 MSS...ayant fait
partie de la bibliotheque de Francois Petrarque (Milan, 1883) pp. 21-23,
no. 1.; Ullman, no. 49; Dutschke, p. 293, no. 2, with bibliography.  Purchased
from B. Rosenthal in 1958 by Thomas E. Marston (bookplate).

Bibliography:  Faye and Bond, p. 90, no. 226.

Barbara A. Shailor