farfel_n03_122_191

De Proprietatibus Rerum (The Properties of Things)
Bartholomaeus Anglieus (fl 1230-50)
(Cantipratensis)
Das Buch der Natur, a translation of Thomas of Cantimpre's
De Naturis Rerum which contains the earliest printed
illustrations of natural history.
-a book on the Essence of Natural Things, human, animal, vegetable,
mineral etc.
See Sotheby Cat. 6/25/85 #63 MSS Vienna 1473
Konrad von Meganberg "the 1st great scientific writer
in German" was born probably at Megenberg near
Schweinfurt + studied in Erfurt, Paris, Vienna, +
principally at Regensburg where he was a canon of
the Cathedral + died in 1374. Das Buch der Natur,
usually described as the earliest book on natural history
in the German language was composed in 1349-51,
+ is adapted from the De Natura Rerum of Thomas
(c. 1201-63) of Cantimpre (then thought to be by Albertus
Magnus) 8 books - I. on anatomy + physiology (50. chapt.)
II on astronomy (33 chapt.) III on animals (69), followed by birds (72),
sea creatures (20), fish (29), reptiles (37) + incets (34) IV on botany +
trees V concerns herbs VI on precious stones (86)
VII on metals VIII describes streams + waters + human
monstrocities.
(1475) - its 12 plates contain a 100 or so pictures of animals + plants. There
is nothing novel in the text, but the illustrations ammount ot a significant
want in the history of zoological iconography. in the middle of the 13th C,
Thomas of Cantimpre had studied the theories of nature put foreward by
classical authors + written them up as a book, with additions supplied by
his own fertile imagination. A century later C. von Megenberg translated
the book from Latin into german but did not revise it. After another 125 yrs
had elapsed, Conrad's manuscript was published, again unchanged. The
illus. in the Buch du Natur could have come from various sources, but
almost certainly Thomas was not one of them. They possible originated in
medical pattern books, but some such as the dog + horse are
superior to those of suuch exotica as the elephant + the camel + may
have been based on sketched from nature.
1475 - Bamler ed. - 89 herbs + their virtues are described (E. S. Rhodes)