Abstract
The number of extant medical manuscripts in Beneventan script is rather small (little more than a dozen). This is surprising given that the School of Salerno was situated in Beneventan terrain. Nonetheless these manuscripts play a key role in the transmission of some Latin medical texts, especially Aurelius–Esculapius, Ps-Galen’s Alphabetum Galeni, and Ps-Apuleius’ Herbarius (together with related texts, especially Ps-Dioscurides’ Liber medicinae ex herbis femininis). The transmissions of these texts are briefly discussed.
In the transmission of the Liber Aurelii manuscripts in Beneventan script are especially prominent. Both the first and the contaminating hands of the most original extant manuscript write in Beneventan script. Besides, a Monte Cassino manuscript is also written in Beneventan as well as the best man- uscript of this text’s abbreviated version. Surprisingly, the mid 11th-century reworking of these and other medical texts by Gariopontus (Passionarius), who apparently worked in Salerno, shows only traces of transmission in Beneventan script. The transmission of the other mentioned texts is as yet less well known. Manuscripts in Beneventan script are of greater importance for the Alphabetum Galeni than for the Herbarius.
This article explores the role of the Beneventan script in the transmission of these texts and tries to establish their relation to Southern Italy and its scrip- toria, especially Monte Cassino and the early school of Salerno. It seems that this script started to be avoided already towards the end of the 12th century for medical texts.
Roelli, Philipp