Mandragora

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Complete text of entry:

Mandragora Dyascorides alii antiminon aut bulbo quinon aut circeon dixerunt, eius duo sunt genera, una femina et altera masculus, femina etiam triclitia appellatur nigra folia lactucis similia sed minora habens: odoris gravissimi etiam quasi brumosi que folia spansa sunt super terram et in medio mala nascuntur similia uve viridi in quibus semen est simile apio: radices duas aut tres maiores habens sibi invicem coherentes deforis nigras et intus albas cum coreo crosso asta carens, masculus quem multi antemenon dixerunt folia habet alba et maiora et lata et levia sicut bete, mala eius duplicia nascuntur colore croceo odore suavi cum gravedine que pastores manducant et statim sompnum capiunt, radix est illi similis supradicte: sed alba, huic asta non est corium radicis eius exucatur tunsum et expressum et sole siccatum reponitur in vase fictili, exucantur et mala eius et non citius exiccantur, corium radicis eius incisum et lino insertum plurimi servant et cetera. Plinius mandragora alii circelon vocant, duo eius genera, candidus qui et masculus niger qui femina existimatur angustioribus foliis quam lactuce hirsutis et caulibus radicibus binis ternisve foliis albis intus carnosis tenerisque pene cubitalibus. ferunt mala avellanarum nucum magnitudine: et his semen ceu pirorum album sed alii arsen, alii morion, alii ypoplomum vocant, huius folia alba, alterius latiora ut lapati sative, cavent et fossuri contrarium ventum, succus fit e malis et e caule deciso cacumine et radice et cetera. ut Dy. et Ste. mandragoras iubenum lufaha, Avi. vero ioborohaha, sed in latino iabroth scribitur corrupte, sed et Dy. aliud ca. sic, mandragora que morion dicitur nascitur locis umbrosis et in speluncis folia habet similia supradicte, hasta est ei duobus palmis album colorem subtus ad radicem habens radix eius mollis est et alba longa duobus palmis in grossitudine digiti maioris et cetera.


Simon's text sectioned:

Mandragora Dyascorides alii antiminon aut bulbo quinon aut circeon dixerunt, eius duo sunt genera, una femina et altera masculus, femina etiam triclitia appellatur nigra folia lactucis similia sed minora habens: odoris gravissimi etiam quasi brumosi que folia spansa sunt super terram et in medio mala nascuntur similia uve viridi in quibus semen est simile apio: radices duas aut tres maiores habens sibi invicem coherentes deforis nigras et intus albas cum coreo crosso asta carens, masculus quem multi antemenon dixerunt folia habet alba et maiora et lata et levia sicut bete, mala eius duplicia nascuntur colore croceo odore suavi cum gravedine que pastores manducant et statim sompnum capiunt, radix est illi similis supradicte: sed alba, huic asta non est corium radicis eius exucatur tunsum et expressum et sole siccatum reponitur in vase fictili, exucantur et mala eius et non citius exiccantur, corium radicis eius incisum et lino insertum plurimi servant et cetera


Apparatus:

ant iminon A | antiminon C | antiminõ B | anthiminon e | anteminion/ antiminum Dioscorides Longobardus | Graece ἀντιμήνιον /antimḗnion/ {i.e. lit. "against anger"}, ἀντίμιμος /antimimos/ {i.e. lit. "closely imitating"}, ἀντίμηλον /antímelon/ {i.e. lit. "instead of an apple"}, ἀντίμνιον /antímnion/.

bulbo quinõ AC | bulboquilõ B | bulboqlōn e | bulboquilon Diosc.Long. | Graece βομβóχυλον /bombókhylon/ {i.e. "causing a hollow noise"}

circeon C | circeõ A | circerõ B | cicirdij ? e | circeon Diosc.Long. | Graece κιρκαία /kirkaía/ {i.e. "the sorceress Circe's plant"}

duo (sunt e) sũt genera AC e | duo genera sũt B

triclitia AC | aridatio ul' tridizia B | triclicia uel aridaria e {aridatio/ aridaria are just alternative readings offered for the same word} | tridatias Diosc. Long. | Graece θριδακίας /thridakías/ {i.e. "lettuce-like"}

appellatur C e | appellat~ A | appelat~ B

odoris grauissimi (grauissimi e) AC e | odorẽ grauissimũ B

etiam (et e) quasi (quasi A) brumosi AC e | & quasi brumosa B

mala ABC | malue e

coreo crosso AC | corio grosso B e

ãtemenon C | ãtemenõ A | antimenon … alt? merion e | merion uel ãtimenon B | marion Diosc.Long. | Graece μώριον /mṓrion/ {i.e. {"dulling the senses"}

et lenia A | & leuia BC e

bete ABC Diosc.Long. | blete e | Graece τεῦτλον /teûtlon/

mala eius (eius A) ABC | malla eius e

que {que or quam A) pastores AC e | quã pastores B

& statim AC | & statĩ B | et statim et statim e

sompnum C | sompnũ e | sõpnũ A | somnũ B

exucatur C | exucat~ A | exsucatur e | exsucat~ B

tunsum C | tũsuʒ A | tusũ B | tensuʒ e

sole siccatum C | sole siccatũ AB | sole siccatur e

exucatur & C | exucat~ & A | exsucat~ & B | exsucant~ e

exiccãtur C | exiccãt~ A | exsiccãtur B e

et cetera, om. e


Translation:

Mandragora {"mandrake"} according to Dyascorides. Some people also have called it antiminon {see Apparatus} or bubloquinon {see Apparatus} or circeon {see Apparatus}. There are two kinds of it, one is female and the other male; the female one is also called triclitia {see Apparatus}. It has dark leaves similar those of lactuca {"lettuce"} but smaller. It is has also a very strong smell, almost a stench. Its leaves are spread over the ground and in the middle grows an apple{-like fruit} similar to (1) uva {"grape", better "sorb apple"}. It is green and in it there is seed similar to (2) apium {"celery", should be pirus "pear"}. The two or three big roots cling together; they are black on the outside and white on the inside, with a thick skin, and the plant is lacking a stalk.

The male plant, which many people have called (3) antemenon has leaves that are white and very big, broad and light like those of beta {"beet"}. It has apple{-like fruit}, that is twice as big; these grow coloured like saffron, are of sweet odour with a certain pungency. The shepherds eat them and fall asleep immediately. The plant has a root similar to the afore-mentioned {i.e. female mandragora}, but it is white; and it has no stalk either. The skin of its root is pounded and pressed out and used for juice; and after it has been dried in the sun it is stored in an earthen container. And its apples are used for juice as well, but (4) they are not dried very fast. Many preserve the peeled skin of its root by hanging it on a linen thread.


(1) uva "grape", but the Greek says όα /óa/ "service -tree, Sorbus domestica; Latin uva Greek όα /óa/, was the translator fooled by the phonetic similarity?

(2) apium "celery”, should be pirus {"pear"}, because the Greek says ἄπιον /ápion/ "pear"; the translatior definitely fell victim to a faux ami: Latin apium ≠ Greek ἄπιον /ápion/.

(3) antemenon, must be the same as antiminon above; Dioscorides Longobardus has marion, Greek original is μώριον /mṓrion/.

(4) "they are not dried very fast" - non cicius siccantur is not in the Greek text, instead the original has: ἀνειμένον δὲ γίνεται τὸ ἐξ αὐτῶν χύλισμα - "the juice from them becomes weaker". It is either a mistranslation or a quote from a different source.


Commentary:

Simon's entry is ultimately taken from Dioscorides Longobardus, 4, 71, ed. Stadler (1901: 40-2) De mandragora. Latin mandragora, from Greek μανδραγόρας /mandragóras/, is of uncertain origin. Frisk (1960-71: II.170) mentions some theories, none of which are convincing. Similar speculation is recorded in Carnoy (1959: 170); see also Genaust (1996: 365).

The Greek synonyms of mandrake had already suffered considerable corruption in the Longobardus translation together with a number of minor mistakes, which Simon inherited. These are mentioned in the Apparatus and the translation text above. As a man of the clergy Simon probably felt obliged to delete the sentence, where the perceived aphrodisiac nature of the plant was mentioned in his source text: Hujus radicem ad amorem multi dant – "Many people give the root of this plant for love purposes", an opinion also mentioned in the original Greek: 4, 75, ed. Wellmann (1906-14: II.233-7) cf. (1906-14: II.233): δοκεῖ ἡ ῥίζα φίλτρων εἶναι ποιητική "it seems its root is capable of making love-potions/ -charms".


Simon's text sectioned:

Plinius mandragora alii circelon vocant, duo eius genera, candidus qui et masculus niger qui femina existimatur angustioribus foliis quam lactuce hirsutis et caulibus radicibus binis ternisve foliis albis intus carnosis tenerisque pene cubitalibus. ferunt mala avellanarum nucum magnitudine: et his semen ceu pirorum album sed alii arsen, alii morion, alii ypoplomum vocant, huius folia alba, alterius latiora ut lapati sative, cavent et fossuri contrarium ventum, succus fit e malis et e caule deciso cacumine et radice et cetera.


Apparatus:

mãdragora BC e | mãdragorã A {Greek accusative: μανδραγόραν /mandragóran/}

circeion C | circeon e | circaeon Pliny | circelon A | circelõ B {'i' misread as 'l'} {i.e. "the sorceress Circe's plant"}

niger que (que AC) ABC | Niger quã e

existimatur C | existimat~ A | exstimat~ e | extimatur B

foliis ABC e | rufulis Pliny

hirsutis AC | hyrsutis e | yrsutis B

ternisue AC | ternis ue e | trinisque B

carnosis AC e | & carnosis B

auellanarum C | auellanarum A | auelãarum B | auellarum e

magnitudine et his C | magnitudĩe & his A | magnitudine et hiis e | nigredine & hiis B

ceu (seu B e) pirorum ABC e

arsem C | arseʒ A | arsen B e {= Greek ἄρσην /ársēn/ "male"}

morion ABC Pliny | maiori e {whole word was misread} | Greek μώριον /mṓrion/ {i.e. {"dulling the senses"}

ypoplomũ AC | yponomon e | yponomõ ul' ypoplomõ B | hippophlomon Pliny {ἱππόφλομος /hippóphlomos/ is glossed in LSJ as "giant φλόμος /phlómos/, i.e. belladonna, Atropa belladonna"}

huius (huius A) folia AC | eius folia e | hec folia B

lapati ABC | lapatij e | lapathi Pliny

cauent (cauẽt AB ) & fossuri ABC | cauent et fosuri e

succus (sucus e) fit e (ex B) malis ABC e

caule ABC | caulo e


Translation:

Pliny: Some people call madragora {"mandrake"} circelon {i.e. "the sorceress Circe's plant"}. There are two kinds, the white one, which is male and the black one, which is considered female. It has narrower leaves than lactuca {"lettuce"} with hairy stalks and two or three roots, with leaves {Simon's foliis, meaning "with leaves", is a misreading of Pliny's rufulis, i.e. "reddish (sc. roots)"} white inside and fleshy and tender on the outside, almost a cubit long.

They bear apple-like fruit the size of an avellana {"hazel-nut"}, and in them there is seed like that of pirus {"pear"}. The white seed they also call arsen {see Apparatus}, others call the plant morion {see Apparatus}, and others ypoplomum {see Apparatus}. Its leaves are white, but those of the female one are broader, like those of the edible lapatum {"sorrel"}. Those who intend to dig up the plant must take care not to be against the wind. Juice is also made out of the fruit and out of the stalk after the top has been cut off, and also from the root, etc.


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