ELIAS VINETUS on Johannes de Sacrobosco, to Johannes Tacitus, philiabon lover of goodness.

An ornamental woodcut initial 'I' decorated with leafy flourishes.

The homeland of Johannes de Sacrobosco was what is now the island of England, formerly called Albion and Britannia. He studied letters and philosophy in Paris and was a Parisian doctor. He wrote on the sphere of the world, on the astrolabe, on the algorithm (the barbarians called the art of calculating this way), on the fifth essence, and on the ecclesiastical computus a method for calculating the date of Easter, in the year of Christ one thousand two hundred and fifty-six. For the verses on this computus, under the title of Peroration, contain this:

In the year of Christ one thousand, two hundred, and fifty-four,
A branch referring to Sacrobosco distinguished the times from Sacrobosco,
To whom divine grace had given the name Johannes.

He was buried in Paris, in the cloisters of the Maturine Friars; a sphere is carved on the middle of his tomb, and around it this epitaph:

Johannes de Sacrobosco, who distinguished the times
As a computist, lies here, snatched away by time.
You who follow in time, be mindful that you will die.
If you are miserable, weep; if you are miserable, I pray, pray for me.

From this poem alone, if I am not mistaken, one could easily conjecture what kind of age it was. Those who do not hesitate to immediately tear down or change what they do not like in the speech of Johannes de Sacrobosco do not consider that in that age, whatever possessed some form of the Latin language and could be understood in some way by those who dealt with Latin letters was considered proven and approved Latin. Hence, "maiorari" to be made greater, "minorari" to be made smaller, and countless other terms of this kind were born: which seemed so elegant to those who invented them that they used them more often than the Latin terms themselves, which were also at hand. Therefore, nothing in the writings of that age should be condemned so rashly. If they seem too barbaric to someone more elegant, let that person write something purer for us to read instead, after the ancient Latins published nothing of the sort that has reached us. My principle has certainly always been this, my Tacitus: that we should take care to preserve, as much as we can, the writings of all the ancients, even the barbarians, in which there is something to learn. Therefore, do not be surprised if I have been so diligent in restoring this little book and explaining in passing several passages that seemed capable of confusing a rather unlearned reader or delaying them. Rather, approve of this work of ours; and if it seems to you worthy of being brought to light, allow it to appear in your name.

Farewell, from your Bordeaux, the Calends of March, 1550.