BOETHIUS

ON THE PRINCIPLES OF ARITHMETIC

IN TWO BOOKS.

EXPLANATION OF THE SYMBOLS. In classical editing, these letters (sigla) are used to identify the specific ancient manuscripts the editor consulted to compare different versions of the text.

f = Munich Codex Latin: codex Monacensis 18480 (Tegernsee 480) From the Benedictine Tegernsee Abbey in Bavaria. from the 11th century; it is both very beautifully and very carefully written. However, many passages deviate so much from the consensus of the other manuscripts that they seem to reflect the thoughts of a knowledgeable scribe rather than the true words of Boethius. It is most similar to codex d.

l = Munich Codex 14601 (Regensburg St. Emmeram F, CIV) From the St. Emmeram's Abbey in Regensburg (Ratisbon). from the 12th century. In the first book, the similarity of this codex to d is so great that it might seem to have been copied from it, especially since it incorporates into the main text the corrections found in d; however, in the second book, it is much more similar to codex b.

r = Munich Codex 3517 (Augsburg City 17) from the 9th–10th century; neatly written. The scribe had a greater knowledge of arithmetic than diligence in forming letters, unless perhaps one person was the reviewer Latin: recensor—the person who checks the text for accuracy and another the scribe of the work. The codex seems to have been revised and corrected not long after it was written. It is similar to codex c and partly even to a. The chapter titles of the second book are similar to the titles in codex f. In several places, there are superfluous additions.

s = Munich Codex 6405 (Freising Codex 205) From the cathedral library at Freising. from the 11th century; most neatly written. However, both worms and use have partially damaged the final leaves. Many things that were written in red ink have either become paler or disappeared. It is most similar to codex a, though not remarkably so. In some places, additions are found that someone added of their own accord.

F = A fragment from an 11th-century codex published by Karl Friedrich Weber at Kassel in 1847.

You may be led to distinguish two types of manuscripts by the fourth chapter of the first book, where one set of codices (a, b) contains the definition of an odd number in the middle of the chapter, while the others (c, d, f, l, r, s) have it at the end. You will find better readings Technical term lectiones: the specific wording found in a particular manuscript version. for the most part in c, d, f, l; but traces exist which make it likely that at least these codices, which I have compared and described above, originated from one and the same source.