Contents
1. Zidat Derakhim (צידת דרכים; lit. Travel Provisions), Ahmad ibn al-Jazzar's Viaticum translated by Moses Ibn Tibbon (fols. 1'-206): beginsאחר זמן לכסיל היה רופא (Steinschneider 1893:704-705). Another copy in Munich, BSB Cod.hebr. 295 (fols. 71-159), belonged to Johann Albrecht Widmanstetter.
2. Pirkei Mosheh (פרקי משה; Chapters of Moshe) by Maimonides (Rambam) (fols. 207-366v) translated by Nathan ha-Meati: beginsאמר החכם הפילוסוף השלם רבינו משה בן עבד אלהי הישראלי רבינו מיימון (Steinschneider 1893:766). Another copy in Munich, BSB Cod.hebr. 287 (fols. 1-140) belonged to Johann Albrecht Widmanstetter.
Scribes
Yishai ben Yehiel (Scribe A*): fols. 1'-63v, 166v (from line 25)-172v. Scribe 20** (Scribe B): fols. 64-166v (lines 1-25), 173-206. Meir ben Itzhak Halevi (Scribe C): fols. 207-366v. Each scribe proofread his own section of the text. * The letters A, B, etc. denote the order of copying by the main scribes and interpolators in this manuscript. ** Running numbers (Scribe 1, 2, etc.) denote anonymous main scribes and interpolators throughout the entire group of Fugger’s Venetian manuscripts. Scribes identified by name are not numbered.
Script
The text is written in semi-cursive Ashkenazi script.
Number of Lines
The text is written in 30 lines per page. in one column.
Ruling
Ruling by stylus: 30 horizontal and 1+1 vertical lines, e.g. fols. 206, 207.
Quires
46 quires of 8 leaves each, except for XXII8-1. Quire composition: I8 (1'-7); II8 (8-15); III8 (16-23); IV8 (24-31); V8 (32-39); VI8 (40-47); VII8 (48-55); VIII8 (56-63); IX8 (64-71); X8 (72-79); XI8 (80-87); XII8 (88-95); XIII8 (96-103); XIV8 (104-111; fols. 104, 107, 108, 111 are single leaves with stubs); XV8 (112-119); XVI8 (120-127); XVII8 (128-135); XVIII8 (136-143); XIX8 (144-151); XX8 (152-159); XXI8 (160-167); XXII8-1 (168-174; fol. 170 is single leaf with stub); XXIII8 (175-182); XXIV8 (183-190); XXV8 (191-198); XXVI8 (199-206); XXVII8 (207-214); XXVIII8 (215-222); XXIX8 (223-230); XXX8 (231-238); XXXI8 (239-246); XXXII8 (247-254); XXXIII8 (255-262); XXXIV8 (263-270); XXXV8 (271-278); XXXVI8 (279-286); XXXVII8 (287-294); XXXVIII8 (295-302); XXXIX8 (303-310); XL8 (311-318); XLI8 (319-326); XLII8 (327-334); XLIII8 (335-342); XLIV8 (343-350); XLV8 (351-358); XLVI8 (359-366).
Catchwords
Catchwords for leaves are written horizontally on the left below the text in semi-cursive script by the text scribe.
Blank Leaves
Fols. 1'v, 206v, 207v.
Location of Reader's Desk
Location of Women's Section
Direction Toward Jerusalem
Colophon
Fol. 366v:
ברוך הנותן ליעף כח ולאין אונים עצמה ירבה/ כה עתירת הכותב והסופר מאיר בר' יצחק/ הלוי שליט (שיחיה לאורך ימים טובים) מק"ק (קהילת קודש) פראג הבירא מארץ פיהם והית')ה(/ השלמתו בעזרת העוזר וגוזר יתברך היום יום ד'/ ה' ניסן שנת חמשת אלפים ושלש מאות ושנים עשר לבריאות עולם פה וויניציאה המהוללה
(Blessed (be He) who gives strength to the weary, and to the powerless (may He) increase might, this is the prayer of the Scribe Meir bar Itzhak Halevi, may he live many good days; of the holy community of Prague, the capital of the land of Bohemia. And it was completed with the help of the helper and judge, blessed be He today is Wednesday, 5th Nisan 5312 (30.03.1552) from the creation of the world, here in Venice the praised).
Scribal Notes
Fol. 66v: ובמקומות האלו היה חסר לפני (And in these places [the text in my exemplar] was missing in front of me).
Fol. 313: כאן חסר ד' פרקים (Here four chapters are missing).
Watermark
Watermarks: 'B' with a trefoil flower surmounting its vertical in the corner of the folio (31 mm; e.g. fols. 1', 9, 28, 90); an anchor within a circle with a star on top at the centre of the folio (65 mm; e.g. fols. 219, 220, 221, 223, 226): similar to Harlfinger 1974-80, Ancre 24-31 (Venice, 1556).
Binding
Dark green leather on wooden boards (338 x210 mm); gold-tooled with a central roundel on the front and a shield on the back cover within an undulating lozenge in a large rectangle, decorated with floral motifs at the centre of each side and at the corners. The front roundel is inscribed רפואות, and below the letters YYYY. The spine, blind-tooled with hatching, has three hidden cords and head and tail bands. On the edges of the front cover are vestiges of four groups of three plaited leather bands, two on the side and one each on the upper and lower edges, with corresponding holes for four nails on the edges of the back cover (for preserved bands see Cod.hebr. 301). Each group of three bands terminated in a ring intended to hook over the nails in the opposite cover. The leaves are gilt-edged.
This binding was made for Fugger by the 'Fugger Binder' inVenice(Hobson 1999:119-129). Similar bindings in BSB: e.g. Cod.hebr. 27, 33, 39, 42, 47, 51, 55, 59, 61, 65, 66.
Watermarks on flyleaves: None.
Decoration Program
Two headed eagle within a circle by Yishai (fol. 1').
Suggested Reconsdivuction
History/Provenance
Owners' inscriptions: None.
Inscriptions of librarians and researchers:
Front flyleaf, verso: an inscription in brown ink by Librarian 1a: ספר רפואות לרבי משה בן תבון ושמו/ צידת הדרכים/ רבינו משה בר מיימוני בחכמת הרפואה ז"ל. Below, by Librarian 3 in greyish brown ink: Sephaer riphuos le Ribi Moshae baen tibon\ vschmo zedas hadrachim\ Rabenu Moschae bar Maimuni behachmas\ harphua zal\ Rabi Mosis filij Tibon viaticum medicinae\ Rabi Mosis filij Maimuni in medicina seu Aphorismi.
Front pastedown, on the exlibris in plummet: the contents in German.
Exlibris and stamps:
Front pastedown: an exlibris of the Bavarian Court and State Library (227 x 155 mm) with the arms of Elector Maximilian I of 1638 (Dressler 1972:B3ab), stuck over his earlier exlibris (175 x 135 mm) of 1618, before he became Elector in 1623 (Dressler 1972:A3a-f).
Old signatures:
Front cover, lower right corner in black ink: 2 n0 6(?) (Duke's library, Prommer's signature).
Front cover pastedown, upper right corner in black ink: MS. Hebr. 15.
Front flyleaf, recto, upper left corner in black ink: n0. 16.
Spine, on stickers: 73 and 15, spine and back cover pastedown: 19 (current signature).
On the exlibris, upper left corner in plummet: Cod.hebr. 19 (current signature).
Main Surveys & Excavations
Dressler 1972 F. Dressler, Die Exlibris der Bayerischen Hof- und Staatsbibliothek, 17. bis 20. Jahrhundert, Wiesbaden 1972.
Harlfinger 1974-80 D. Harlfinger, Wasserzeichen aus griechischen Handschriften, Berlin, 1974-1980.
Hobson 1999 A. Hobson, Renaissance Book Collecting: Jean Grolier and Diego Hurtado de Mendoza, their Books and Bindings, Cambridge 1999.
Sirat and Dukan, unpublished C. Sirat and M. Dukan, Etude des manuscrits hébreux "sehr inkorrekt"
conservés dans la Bibliothèque de Munich (Institut des Recherche et d'histoire des Textes, CNRS,
Paris), unpublished.
Steinschneider 1893 M. Steinschneider, Die Hebräischen Übersetzungen des Mittelalters und die Juden als Dolmetscher, Berlin 1893.
Steinschneider 1895 M. Steinschneider, Die Hebräischen Handschriften der K. Hof- und Staatsbibliothek in München, Munich 1895.