Physica - Hildegard von Bingen

Reference was made to Manuscript W (see the chapter ‘Technique of the Apparatus’).

Much suggests that both the Florence and the Wolfenbüttel manuscripts, as well as the lost manuscript underlying the Strasbourg early printing, are derived directly from Volmar’s Volmar of Disibodenberg (d. 1173) was Hildegard’s long-time secretary and provost; he played a crucial role in recording her visions and scientific observations. transcript. On the other hand, the Brussels manuscript—which shares many text variants with the manuscripts P and V but, unlike them, occasionally integrates additional text—can only be based, along with PV, on a further copy of Volmar’s first transcript. This is not surprising given the later origin of these manuscripts in the 15th century. The following attempt to illustrate these findings through a stemma A 'stemma' is a diagram used in textual criticism to show the relationship between different surviving copies of a text, like a family tree of books. with further explanations can only be regarded as a preliminary research result that still leaves many questions open (see also Hildebrandt 2009).

Stemma for the New Text Edition of Hildegard’s “Physica”

The Hypothetical Initial Stages of the Stemma

X represents the original base text with interlinear Interlinear refers to notes or translations written between the lines of the main text. German/Latin word alternatives. It was likely titled posthumously as the Book of Simple Medicine original: 'Liber simplicis medicinae'.