Mellon MS 24

 ALCHEMICAL MISCELLANY, in Italian and Latin
 North Italy (Venice?), unsigned, about 1505

 24.1 Christopher of Paris. La somma minore, 1471, in Italian.
 24.2 Christopher of Paris. Cithara, or Medolla della Summeta,
 1474, in Italian.
 24.3 Christopher of Paris. Letter to Andrea Ognibene, 1473, in
 Italian.
 24.4 Christopher of Paris. Three alchemical alphabets, in Latin
 and Italian.
 24.5 Christopher of Paris. Unidentified short tract, in Italian.
 24.6 Christopher of Paris. Letter to Andrea Ognibene, 1476, in
 Italian.
 24.7 John of Rupescissa. De consideratione quinte essentie, in
 Latin.
 24.8 Anonymous. Three recipes for making blue pigments, in Latin.
 24.9 Anonymous. A procedure for etching a design on an iron
 surface, in Latin and Italian.

Paper codex in Italian and Latin, 4to., 212 X 150, ff. 91 (possibly
incomplete at the end), correctly foliated in pen in an old hand, no
signatures, catchwords at quire-endings except in the fourth and fifth
quires, vertical and horizontal bordering lines in blind or in plumbate on
one side of each page outlining a single column, ca. 155 x 98, 28-29 lines to
the page. Collation: (1-9)^^10 (10)^^1. No headlines, headings and some
capitals in pale red, the remainder in rather dark brown ink. Written
throughout by a single scribe in a late humanistic cursive hand sloping
slightly to the right, moderate standard abbreviation, occasional marginalia
by the same hand and by seventeenth- or eighteenth-century hands. Paper of
two batches: one watermarked with an anchor with ring atop the shank, all
within a circle; the other with a plain and illdrawn anchor with thick
flukes, the top of the shank forming a small, neat cross with the short
stock--both probably Italian papers, not directly comparable to the varieties
illustrated by Briquet.

BINDING: Sixteenth-century binding of brown calf, the covers blind-ruled to a
rectangular pattern, the large center rectangle diagonally ruled to a lozenge
pattern, a single quatrefoil impressed in blind in each of the rectangles and
lozenges so formed, edges partly renewed and rebacked in the style of the
period of the binding with compartments formed by three double raised bands,
a gold stamped title label in the second compartment from top reading:
"CHRISTOPHE | DE PARIS | - | RUPESCISSA | MANUSCRIPTS | ITALY | 15TH C." The
endpapers are modern insertions, though of old paper, and the binding, while
of the period of the manuscript, probably had no original connection with
this codex.

PROVENANCE: The Italian collector Pierpaolo Vaccarino, twentieth century,
with his stamp on the front pastedown; an English bookseller, probably J. I.
Davis of Davis & Orioli, London, whose marks and price are written on the
front flyleaf and pastedown in pencil; Denis Duveen, with his inked number
75; Mellon MS 45, acquired with the Duveen collection. De Ricci-Bond 12 (45).

CONTENTS

f. 1r, 1: Copia de Vna lettera che scrive lo excellentissimo doctor mai- |
stro christopholo da paris a Andrea ogniben dela glorio- | sa Arte
transmutatoria Come in questo se contiene chiama- | ta Sumeta: | Fiolo
charissimo Adi ultimo Setembrio . per . F . [The letter, which is followed by
the symbol of a circle within a circle, which occurs again in f. 39v, 21,
perhaps represents "Father (name)":] che e nostro | havi Vna vostra
humanissima et gratiosissima lettera: Et | ricevuta quella cum quella carita
et desiderio...

f. 19r, 3: Zoe acostandovj alla Illustrissima et gloriosissima segnoria de
Venecia. Alla - | quale inverita sum molto affecionato et amo quella
cordialissima- | mente. Impero che quella a dognora doffensato el nome de
Iesu signor | nostro benedecto. Et per algune altre virtu che Vive [sic] in
molti dequelli | padri governadori prudentissimj et cetera .1471. adi .24.
Decembrio | Valete: |

f. 19v, 1: In questo luocho fidellissimamente sera scripto Lo Alphabeto | de
la presente summeta In nomine dominj nostri lesu christi: | A. significa dio
el qual sie causa de tute le cause... [The alphabet continues with shorter
and longer entries, those for "F. significa aqua de Vita," and the final
entry, which closes as follows, f. 21r, 15, being the longest:] ... Tenendo
stillo | et el modo dipassati nostri predecessori Le anime dequalle siano
benedete | in eterno. et Vltra Deo gratias. Amen:
 [24.1: Christopher of Paris, La somma minore, in the form of a letter to
Andrea Ognibene, dated 24 December 1471 (1470 in other copies), TK 562. Cf. T
IV, pp. 348-351, for discussion of Christopher and his works. In this copy
there is appended an alphabet, noted above, explaining the significance of
each of the twenty-three letters and nine following symbols, as in the
printer's alphabet of the time.]

f. 21v, 1: Copia de Vna altra lettera che, e, Scripta per lo excellentissimo
| doctor maistro christofolo da paris pur al detto Andrea. Nelaqual | se
contien cosse dignissime chiamada medolla dela Sumeta: | Sel excelso et
glorioso dio benigno et piatoxo alli mei desiderj. | Za piu zornj per
singular gratia concedeteme farmi certo e chiaro | de si nobelle et oculta
parte de philosophia: Charissimo fiolo. Io lo extimai | considerate tute le
mirabille condition...

f. 33v, 8: ... Son sempre ali pia- | ceri vostri .1474. Adi .12. Setembrio .
Impressa Impressa Impressa: | [after two-line space:] In hoc loco ponimus
significata litterarum huius practice nostre: | [one-line space:] A.
significa lo eterno dio... [Ends f. 34r, 8:] [Paragraph mark.] Et qui faciamo
fine allo Alphabeto de la violeta over | Cithara nostra predicta: Finis |
[remainder of f. 34r and all of f. 34v blank.]
 [24.2: Christopher of Paris, Cithara or Medolla della Summeta, in the form
of a letter to the same Andrea dated 12 September 1474, TK 1416. As in the
preceding text, an alphabet of "significations" of letter symbols is
appended.]

f. 35r, 1: Copia de la secunda lettera che scrive lo excellentissimo | doctor
Maistro christofulo da paris ad Andrea ogniben etcetera: | Forse che la mia
indusia [sic for "il mio indugio"] diforme dal mio piu frequente scriver |
charissimo et amantissimo fiolo haveva causato e producto | dubitation nel
vostro clarissimo inzegno...

f. 39r, 21: ... Non altro salvo pregar Iesu christo. | che per sua infinita
misericordia eLui conservi tuti sanj nela gratia | sua. Siamo sempre ali
piaceri vostri. Valete.1473. adi .2 marzo: | [remainder of f. 39r blank.]
 [24.3: Christopher of Paris, Lettera to Andrea Ognibene, dated 2 March 1473.
In discussing the letters of Christopher of Paris, Thorndike, loc. cit.,
states that Christopher wrote letters in the name of Andrea Ognibene to
Christopher de Recaneto, whose name does not, however, occur in MS 24.]

f. 39v, 1: Alphabeto dela Cithara over Violeta: | A. significat deum: | B.
significat Aquam fortem simplicem | [The list continues with brief
definitions through the letter "S," followed by, line 20:] Non ho voluto far
questa in Volume grande perche el vostro padre | F. [again the circle-within-
circle symbol as on f. 1r described above, probably intended to indicate
cryptically "Father "] me ha ditto cheJ volumi grandi. Zoe Ruodoli [for
"rotoli"] grandi gesono [? for "ci sono"] | molte senestri alportar:

f. 40r, 1: Alphabeto del Lucidario del parisino: | A Materia. prima. 1. Vinum
album vel Rubeum odoriferum: | .B. Forma .1 Aqua ardens perfecta rectificata:
| ... [This alphabet continues through letter "Z" with very brief
definitions, ending f. 40r, 24:] Z. Ignis Cinerum:

f. 40v, 1: Alphabetum Cristophori Galici Et est alphabetum | apertonale [sic]
Ludicarij: | A Chaos principium. | B Ignis deprivatus informa. | ... [This
alphabet contains twenty-four letters, continuing to "&" after "Z"; all
the definitions are very short. Ends f. 40v, 26.]
 [24.4: Christopher of Paris, Three Latin alphabets, each with a heading in
Italian. The first is no more than a translation of the alphabet already
written in the codex on ff. 33v-34r, q.v., but it closes with the remark in
Italian that the author has not wished to put this matter "in a big volume or
large scroll" because Father says these are too difficult to carry. The
second alphabet may relate, as the heading claims, to Christopher's
Lucidario, or Somma maggiore, not present in this codex. The heading of the
third alphabet also relates it to the Lucidario, but it has been noted by TK
2 from a Munich MS as a separate text, tentatively ascribed to Christopher.]

f. 41r, 1: E per dar forma acompiemento de tuto questo glorioso e sancto |
magisterio in questo picolo Volume. azo chel non rimagna in- | compido. Et
chel possi esser in cadauna parte perfecto termenare | el modo del componer
laqua secreta...

f. 43r, 16: ... [Paragraph mark.] Se tu vorai esser studioso porai per esso
prati- | care. Impero che la latitudine et profundita del nostro ma- |
gisterio, e, infinita: Niente dimeno bixogna prima che | tu intendi la
doctrina de presente phisico alboro nostro: | [one-line space.]
 [24.5: Christopher of Paris, Unidentified short tract, mentioning his other
writings and serving to connect texts in the present manuscript, which the
author appears to describe as an abbreviated compendium of his writings.]

f. 43r, 22: Copia de Vna lettera scrive [sic for "che scrive"] maistro
Cristofolo da paris | ad Andrea Ogniben: | Fiolo dillectissimo La paxe e
gratia delaltissimo Iesu: | fiolo Vnigenito dela maiesta imperial de dio Vno
sia con | Vuj e cun tuti vostri: E perche da la sua infinitissima bonta co- |
mo motor vero del tuto depende ogni gratia: Si spiritual | [f. 43v, 1:] come
corporal...

f. 45r, 8: ... Non altro christo Iesu sia cum Vuj ecuntuti [sic] li | vostri.
Siamo sempre ali piaceri vostri. Ex parius [sic] die .X. Au- | gusti 1476. |
Cristophoro vostro in conforta: | [remainder of ff. 45r, 45v, and 46-50 ruled
but blank.]
 [24.6: Christopher of Paris, Lettera to Andrea Ognibene, dated 10 August
1476, from Paris. See the comments to the letter of 1473, ff. 35r-39r,
above.]

f. 51r, 1: Primus liber de consideratione prime essentie omnium rerum trans-
| mutabilium: In nomine domini nostri lesu christi: Incipit liber de |
stimulatu physice. Evangelio domini nostri lesu christi et pauperibus |
evangilicis viris: | Dixit Salamon [sic] sapientie . capitulo. Vij. Deus
dedit homini scientiam | veram horum que sunt... [f. 79r, 6:] evangelicorum
virorum et honore ecclesie dei. Amen. Explicit primus liber. | Explicit liber
primus: | [one-line space] Raimundi de generalibus remedijs. Liber. Secundus
Incipit: | [one-line space] Licet primus liber qui est de consideratione
christi [?] ... [f 91r, 13:] Nihil efficatius spasmum sedat quam nobilissima
essentia [? An abbreviation consisting of "x--c," the meaning of which is
unclear, is employed; it has been expanded as "essentia."] vel in eius |
absentia aqua ardens. Finis Amen: | Remedium Raimundi doctissimi et
sanctissimi divinum. | de physice stimulatu. opus explicit. Amen: | [four
line space.]
 [24.7: John of Rupescissa, De consideratione quinte essentie, TK 458; DWS
292; etc. In this copy of the well known text the author's name is absent,
Book II is ascribed to Raimundus (Lull?) and, curiously, the words "Quinta
essentia" never occur and were perhaps deliberately suppressed. There are a
few short lacunae in the second book, for which the scribe has left spaces,
and he has briefly noted subject matter of various passages in frequent
marginalia. A three-line passage in the fourth canon of Book I has been
partly canceled and damaged by application of corrosive ink.]

f. 51r, 21: Recepta ad faciendum Azurum optimum: | Recipe Calci vine partes
.x. Limaturam eris partes . Vj ...

f. 91v, 1: Ad Faciendum Azurum finissimum: | Recipe Mercurium [sic] quantum
vis...

f. 91v, 7: Ad Faciendum Azurum secundum probatum per Albertum magnum: |
Recipe. Mercurii. partes duas tertiam vero partem Sulphuris vivi...
 [24.8: Anonymous, Three recipes for making blue pigments, in Latin, the last
attributed to Albertus Magnus. The colors are "artificial," prepared without
azurite or lapis lazuli.]

f. 91v, 15: Ad cavandum et designandum in ferro: | Recipe Olio de linosa et
bracha masinata [?] distempera cum esso olio, Et dese- | gna quello che tu
voli... [Some of the readings are uncertain at the beginning ofthis
procedure; ends line 27:] et sera facto lo incavo che tu fecisti. | Deo
gratias: |
 [24.9: Anonymous, A procedure for etching a design on an iron surface, in
Latin and Italian, by coating the metal surface with almond oil (?), then
scratching the desired design on the surface and bathing in acid; if the
procedure has been correctly understood, it is a very early description of
the etching process, approximately coeval with the earliest known examples of
its use in printmaking.]

SUMMARY: The principal interest of MS 24 lies in its group of shorter works
by the probably pseudonymous Christopher of Paris, very likely a Venetian
alchemist who may have had difficulties with the Republic, as he sometimes
heaps praises on Venice and insists on his loyalty to it. His claim of
Parisian origin seems a transparent pretense. A copy of various works by
Christopher now in Florence, Biblioteca Riccardiana 2581, is dated 1489 while
the present manuscript is probably a little later. In addition to works by
Christopher MS 24 contains the standard text of Rupescissa, a little
defective and probably copied from an imperfect exemplar. Spellings and
formations in the Italian portions of the codex very strongly suggest that
its scribe originated in the Veneto. Thorndike writing in T IV, p.349, has
described Christopher as an eclectic popularizer, as was Rupescissa, and the
collection in this volume relates throughout to mystical, speculative
alchemy. See the description of MS 31 containing a more extensive collection
of Christopher's works, where the contents of both manuscripts are more fully
analyzed and compared. Other copies of the Rupescissa text are found in MSS
9.29, 11.1, 14.1, 21.1, 26.1, and 32.7.