The manuscript Vat. lat. 2463: some considerations about a medieval medical volume of Galvanus de Levanto by Luca Salvatelli In nomine Domini Nostri Ihesu Christi Amen. Thesaurus corporalis prelatorum Ecclesiae dei et magnatum fidelium Galvani Ianuansis de Levanto umbrae medici1 contra nocumento digestionis stomaci […]. Written in red ink, these are the first words of the medical codex MS Vat. lat. 2463 #reser$ed in the Vatical %ibrary. Meas&rin' 265 x 165 mm, it is a refined small man&script of 116 $ell&m lea$es (ff. *V [I+** #aper, ***+*V membr.2], 116, *- [pa#er])", that dates to the first half of the 14th century (1340-1343). *t has a do&ble col&mn of writin' (171x130mm, interspace 15mm), penned by an *talian littera textualis, in what is #robably 1olognese handwriting. 2he $ol&me is com#rised of fo&r medical works of 3al$an&s *an&ansis de %e$anto, listed accordin' to the index on f. *r index at f. **r, which was written in a ele'ant formal writin' at the end of 16th century 4 a) Thesaurus corporalis praelatorum ecclesiae dei et magnatum fidelium (ff. 1r+!5$., b) Remedium solutivum contra catarrum ad eosdem praelatos et principes (ff. 69r+05$., c) Paleofilon curativus languoris articolorum ad Ven(erabilem) Archiep(iscopum)Ramen (ff. 79r-110r., d) Salutare carisma ex Sacra Scriptura (ff. 110r-114r). 2he frontes#ice on f. 1r contains an ill&minated panel (71x121mm), with a dedicatory scene on a 'old back'ro&nd. *t shows a tons&red doctor, who offers an o#en $ol&me to the pope on his throne. 7neelin' with $eiled hands, the donor is #resented by one of the twel$e seated #relates of the 8olle'e of 8ardinals, who rests his left hand on him as a 'esture of #rotection. 2he decoration of the Thesaurus corporalis et alii is also com#leted by fi$e $e'etal historiated headletters ill&stratin' portraits of doctors and magistri (ff. 1r, $, 69r, 05$, 110r., bl&e and red fili'ree initials characterised 1 This passage has been read as umbr(i)ae in the past, but this reading is not correct because Galvano's origins were in Genoa. The use of umbrae medici (Vat. lat. 2463 f. 1r) or per me umbram medici (lat. 3181, f. 28v) could be a Latin joke to emphasize his modesty and humility in the papal court; see G. LECELERQ, Galvano da Levanto e l'Oriente, in Venezia fra tardo Medioevo e Rinascimento, curated by A. PETRUSI, Venezia 1966, pp. 403-406: 404; P. GUATIER DALCHÉ, Levanto, Galvano da, in Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani (from now referred as DBI) 64 (2005), pp. 733-736:733. 2 In this bifolium (see f. III) it is recognized a fragment of the anonymous Tractatus de conferentibus et nocentibus membris principalibus corporis humani, previously attributed to Arnaldus de Villanova (1240-1311). 3 The actual binding in green leather is not original but the product of a restauration datable at the last quarter of the XVIth century as suggested by Gregorio XIII's golden coat-of-arms (1572-1585) on the front plate. 4 Probably this papery bifolium was added in XVIth century at the time of the restauration cited supra. 1 by floral motifs a risparmio at the be'innin' of each chapter (see for exam#le f. 2r), and bl&e or red signa paragraphi to indicate the be'innin' of a new para'ra#h. 9f partic&lar interest is the -:- of Quantumque quibus scientia in the praefatio of the Thesaurus (f. 1r), that ill&strates 3al$an&s himself at his desk, writin' his works. 2he other headletters, instead, at the o#enin' of the different books and works that compose the $ol&me )ff. $, 69r, 05$, 110r), show fo&r portraits of doctors or magistri teaching. 2he $ol&me contains a collection of medical treatises by the 3enoese doctor 3al$an&s de %e$anto, originally dedicated to #ope 1oniface V*** (1294-1303), and not po#e 1enedict ;* (1303- 1304), as was proposed some years a'o(. The Vatican miscellaneo&s collection is one of fo&r s&r$i$in' co#ies related to the fifteen scientific and medical, didactic, moral, and political treatises by 3al$an&s, which had a limited diff&sion in medie$al E&ro#e. The other three man&scripts are held in =aris in the 1iblioth>?&e nationale de Fance, MS =ar. lat. 3181 (see infra); and MS =ar. No&$. Acq. Lat. 669 (15th century) and in the Staatsbibliothek in Berlin, MS lat. :&. 773 (15th century.! Bltho&'h we know $ery little abo&t 3al$ano's life, the %e$anto family, whose name deri$ed from the homonymo&s town of %e$anto in the %i'&rian Ri$iera, had an infl&ential position in the 3enoese c&ltural en$ironment of the 13th century. One of its members, Obertus (1250-1280) was a spetiarius, with a chemist's sho# near the cathedral. 2wo other family members, @ederico and Ran&ccio, are recorded as doctors in =isa in doc&ments dated 1267, 1280 and 12810. 3al$an&s himself is mentioned as a magister in the in$entory of a 3enoese @ranciscan monastery D b&t e$en if he co&ld be considered a medicus devotus amicus et fidelis5, he can only has been an associate of the 5 G. MARINI, Degli archiatri pontifici, Roma 1784, pp. 60-61; L. THORNDIKE, Vatican Latin Manuscripts in History of Science and Medicine, in Isis 13 (1929), pp. 53-102: p.72; ID, Notes, upon Ones Medieval Latin Astronomical Astrological and Mathematical Manuscripts, Part I, in Traditio 44 (1956), pp. 391-404:pp. 391-392, P. MICHELONI, La medicina nei prima tremila manoscritti vaticani latini, Città del Vaticano 1950, p.70; A. ESPOSITO, La biblioteca di Guglielmo d’Estouteville, in Scrittura e biblioteche a Roma nel quattrocento. Aspetti e problemi, Atti del seminario (Città del Vaticano, Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, 1-2 giugno 1979), ed. C. BIANCA, M. MIGLIO, A. MODIGLIANI, Città del Vaticano 1980, pp. 309-342: pp. 333-334; A. PARAVICINI BAGLIANI, Bonifacio VIII, Torino 2003, pp. 259-270 and cited bibliography; ID, Le dediche alla corte dei papi nel Duecento e l'autocoscienza intellettuale, in Filologia mediolatina 17 (2010), pp. 69-85: p. 82 6 Galvano's mss are recognized in the inventories of papal libraries yet, see recensio Bonifaciana (1311), item nn° 53- 54; recensio Benedectina (1339), item n° 253; see F. Ehrle, Historia bibliothecae romanorum pontificum tum Bonifatianae tum Avenionensis, I, Città del Vaticano 1890, pp. 53-54; A. Pelzer, Addenda et emendanda ad Francisci Ehrle Historia romanorum pontificum tum Bonifatianae tum Avenionensis, Città del Vaticano 1947, pp.16, 53, 62. 7 G. PETTI BALBI, Arte di governo e crociata: il Liber sancti passagii di Galvano da Levanto, in Università degli studi di Genova, facoltà di magistero. Istituto di civiltà classica cristiana medievale. Studi e ricerche, VII (1986), pp. 131-168: 133, 138, 149ss. 8 See V. PROMIS, Libro degli anniversari del convento di san Francesco in Castelletto in Genova, in Atti della Società Ligure di Storia Patria 10 (1874), pp. 388-453: 395: [...] In isto libello sive kalendario continentur anniversaria personarum notabilium pro quarum animabus conventus janue recepit magna beneficia vel que fuerunt devote magis ordinis et conventus predicti [...] Die VIIII. Anniversarium Magistri Galvani phisichi. devotissimi amici ordinis et 2 order, and not a f&ll member of @ranciscan order6. *ndeed, at the bottom of f. 24v of the MS =ar. lat. 3181, magister Galvanus is portrayed as a layman with his wife and two sons as described in the accompanyin' inscription4 uxor, filius et filius. 2his fact is also confirmed by doc&mented dated B#ril 1312 in which a woman, *aco#ina, is named as vidua magistri Galvani10. Eowe$er, s&ch a lay status a#pears to be contradicted by the de#ictions present in f. 1r MS Vat. lat. 2463. *n the Vatican co#y the exact ori'inal status of 3al$ano seems conf&sed: the a&thor is twice portrayed as a member of a ecclesiastical order11, and not sim#ly as belon'ing to Third Franciscan Order. 2he %i'&rian magister, comin' from the %i'&rian coast, was a protégé of two im#ortant members of the powerf&l Fieschi family: the cardinals Albertino Fieschi (1280-1336), L&ca Fieschi († 1336.12. *n addition to the cardinal ne#hews of 9ttobono @ieschi =ope Bdrian V (1276)13, 3al'an&s also enGoyed the s&#port of the cardinal =ietro Valeriano H&ra'&erra de =i#erno (†17 Hecember 1302)14, as it is shown by the ill&minated #icture at f. 1r of Vatican man&script. 2his is clearly demonstrated by the inci#it of Paleofilon curativus languris (f. 79r), which is dedicated to Archiepiscopo Ramensi domino Alberto de Flisco15. 2he mention of @ieschi as archibisho# of Ceims (1280 + Ian&ary 1307) and the dedication to #ope 1oniface V*** #ro$ide important termini ante quem for the archetype of the medical collection and 3al$ano's #resence in the Roman c&ria between the end of X***th century and the first years of the 14th16 . *n the #refatory letter of Paleofilon Paleofilon's #refatory letter 3al$ano mentioned another medical work, abo&t kidney or bladder stones, (f. 79r.4 […] ut disci latius in Libro manu (sic. Dei contra calcolosum languorem sanctissimo papae Bonifatio VIII intitulato, dedicated by the title to the pope himself17. Jnfortunately, the essay is not inserted in the MS Vat. lat. 2463, and no co#y of it s&r$i$es in any of the existin' medical collections by 3al$an&s today.