Alcionium

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Complete text of entry:

Alcionium grece est spuma maris ut patet per Avicennam capitulo de spuma maris. Et per Dyascoridem capitulo de alcionio. Et per Serapionem ex verbo Dyascoridis. Plinius fit et in mari alcionium appellatum e nidis et aliqui extimant alcionium et ceicum et aliis sordibus spumarum crasescentibus alii e limo vel quadam maris lanugine. Quattuor eius genera cinereum spissum odoris asperi, alterum levius molle odore fere alge. Tertium candidioris vermiculi. Quartum pumicosius spongieve putri simile purpureum quod optimum et hoc millesium vocatur. Candidius autem hoc minus probabile est et cetera. Dyascorides vero quinque species describit una spissa solida gravis habens odorem piscium putridorum similis spongie invenitur in littoribus maris, secunda longioris figure levis foraminosa similis pterigie oculi .i. ungule, odore ut lenticule marine, tertia similis rose coloris ad rubedinem et purpureitatem tendentis, quarta similis lanis succidis levis etiam ut secunda, quinta ut superficie {tenuis?} lenis intus aspera similis fungo sine odore.

Witnesses B and e add:

In vero exemplari sic est - alcionium species sunt quinque – una spissa et gravis spongie habens facturam – Secunda vero bromo plena est odorem habens piscium que in littoribus maris habundat - Tertia ut terrigia oculorum invenitur sicut spongia levis et inanis et vermiculosa et fistulosa colorem habens purpureum quam multi melisinon dixerunt - Quarta vero lanis succidis similis est inanis et lenis - Quinta vero miceto similis est et aspera deintus ut pumex deforis lenis et viscida habundat maxime in ponto insula bethinon quam cives alosaginem dicunt.


Simon's text sectioned:

Alcionium grece est spuma maris ut patet per Avicennam capitulo de spuma maris. Et per Dyascoridem capitulo de alcionio. Et per Serapionem ex verbo Dyascoridis.


Apparatus:

The entry Alcionium is not rubricated in ms. e but is added on to the unrelated previous rubricated lemma Alcima. However the text for alcioniũ is marked as a new paragraph by an empty half-line space after spũa.

Alcionium (-niũ AB) ABC f | alcioniũ ms. e

{Serapionem} cao add. f


Translation:

Alcionium is Greek for Latin spuma maris {"meerschaum"}, as is evident from Avicenna in his chapter "On meerschaum", as well as from Dyascorides' chapter de alcionio {"On meerschaum"} and from Serapio who also quotes Dyascorides on this matter.


Commentary:

(h)alcyoneum/ (h)alcyonium {sc. medicamen} and late antique and medieval (h)alcionium are Latin adaptations of the Greek word ἀλκυόνιον /alkyónion/ or later: ἁλκυόνιον /halkyónion/, the latter variant resulting from folk-etymological association with ἅλς /háls/ "salt; brine; sea". The word is derived from ἀλκυών /alkyṓn/, later ἁλκυών /halkyṓn/, generally identified with Alcedo atthis L. the "kingfisher" bird, which was thought to deposit its nest in the sea, where it produces meerschaum [[1]]; see Pliny below.

Latin spuma maris "meerschaum", lit. "foam of the sea" – n.b. German Meer "sea" and Schaum "foam" – reflects in its name one of the many myths concerning the perceived origin of the substance, see Pliny below; also see the comment on alosagine below.

In these introductory remarks Simon presents a number of authors who all have written on alcionium {"meerschaum"} and some of whom he will quote in full. He first mentions Pliny whose description is offered in the next section.

Next he alludes to Avicenna's Canon, [Goehl] liber secundus, Capitulum 613: De spuma maris {followed by id est alcyonio (concerning spuma maris annotation: zebd albhar)}; this text is also available online in the Lyon edition (1522: 120) [[2]]. However Simon neither quotes nor comments on Avicenna's chapter.

He then mentions the Dioscorides Longobardus/ Dyascorides alphabeticus chapter: De alcionio, which is however only found in witnesses B and e at the end of this entry, see below.

Finally Simon announces and later quotes another version of the Dioscoridean text, but it is a Latin translation from Arabic that is offered in Serapio, see below.


Simon's text sectioned - Pliny:

Plinius fit et in mari alcionium appellatum e nidis et aliqui extimant alcionium et ceicum et aliis sordibus spumarum crasescentibus alii e limo vel quadam maris lanugine. Quattuor eius genera cinereum spissum odoris asperi, alterum levius molle odore fere alge. Tertium candidioris vermiculi. Quartum pumicosius spongieve putri simile purpureum quod optimum et hoc millesium vocatur. Candidius autem hoc minus probabile est et cetera.


Apparatus:

{fit} et om. B

alcionium (-niũ AB) ABC | alcioneuʒ (-neũ e) ef | alcyoneum Pliny

appellatum (-tũ A e; -tum f) AC ef | appelatum B

enidis f | euidis AC | erudis B | eradix ms. e | e nidis scripsi e Plinio

extimant (-mãt ef) ABC ef | existumant Pliny

alcionium B | alcionuʒ (-nũ e) ef | altionum (-nũ A) AC

ceicuʒ (-cũ AB) ABC e | cericuʒ f

et aliis ABC ef | ut alii Pliny

crasescentibus f | crassescentibus Pliny | crescentibus (-us e) B e | arescẽtibus AC

elimo ABC e?f | e limo ms. e? Pliny

maris ABC | mari ef

lanugine (-gĩe A) ABC e | lanugieʒ f

Quattuor AC | Quatuor ms. e | .iiii. B | et eor f {the shape of the Hindu- Arabic number sign for 4 in early medieval texts did at times resemble a lower case "e". Cf. [[3]]

asperi (-peri e) ABC e | asperm? f

leuius AC e | lenius (-us f) B f Pliny

molle AC ef | mole B

Tertiuʒ (-tiũ A) AC | terciuʒ ms. e | terciũ B | 3m f

candidioris (cã- B) ABC e Pliny | candidioreʒ f

pumicosius (-us e) ABC e | pumicossius f

spõgieue AC | spongie (sponge f) ue B ef

putri AC e Pliny | putri de B | pulch'?? f

sim'le ms. e | silem C | sil'e AB | si͞l͞e f

& hoc AC | hoc & B | h' et ef

millesium (-siũ A) AC | milesiuʒ (-siũ B) B ef

Candidius AC Pliny | candidius B f | Candius ms. e

au͞͞t ABC e | hʒ f

et cetera om. ef


Translation:

A substance is produced in the sea called alcionium, which some people think comes from the nests of the alcion and ceyx birds, and some from other thickened dirt of sea-foams {but Pliny: others think it is from thickened dirt of sea-foams}, and others again think it comes from slime or some kind of downy substance of the sea. There are four kinds of it, {first} ash-coloured, compact and of a pungent odour, the second is milder, soft and of an almost seaweedy smell. The third is like a very white grub. The fourth is porous like pumice stone and like rotten sponge. The purple kind is the best and it is called 'Milesian'. But the whiter kind is less recommendable, etc.


Commentary:

For the etymology of alcionium see above.

Ceyx, Greek Κήϋξ /Kḗÿx/, is the male kingfisher [[4]], the female bird –see above - is (h)alcyon.

The quote is from Pliny, Natural History, 32, 27, 86-7, ed. Rackham (1938-63: VIII.516). In the course of transmission some errors have crept in, e.g.: all witnesses have a nonsensical evidis for e nidis {"from the nests"}; also the relatively rare word crassescentibus {"thickening, thickened"}, which only occurs in Pliny, has undergone corruption except perhaps in witness f.


Simon's text sectioned - Dyascorides in Serapio:

Dyascorides vero quinque species describit una spissa solida gravis habens odorem piscium putridorum similis spongie invenitur in littoribus maris, secunda longioris figure levis foraminosa similis pterigie oculi .i. ungule, odore ut lenticule marine, tertia similis rose coloris ad rubedinem et purpureitatem tendentis, quarta similis lanis succidis levis etiam ut secunda, quinta ut superficie {tenuis?} lenis intus aspera similis fungo sine odore.


Apparatus:

spe͡s describit (d'- A) AC ef | describit spe͡s B

odorem (-rẽ A) AC ef | hodorẽ B

pisciuʒ (-ciũ ABC) ABC e | piscis f

putridorum (-oruʒ A;-orum B) ABC | putridoruʒ ms. e | putridis f

littoribus ABC | litoribus ef

maris AB ef | mare C

longioris (lõgi- AB, -ris e) ABC e | longiorem f

leuis ABC e | lenis f

foraminosa (-rãiosa B; -mĩosa A e) ABC e | foraminossa f

pterigie A | iterigie C | t'rigie B f | terigie ms. e

{ungule} odore AC | odoris B e | odo͡r f

tertia AC | tercia B | 3a ef

rubedinem et om. f

quarta C e | q͊ta A | .iiii. B | ea f

succidis (-is f) AC ef | sucidis B

etiã C e | et̄ AB | eciaʒ f

Quinta ms. e | quinta AC | .v. B | ɥa f f {the shape of the Hindu- Arabic number sign for 5 in early medieval texts did at times resemble a lower case "y". Cf. [[5]]

superficietenus (-us e) AC e | superficietenus f | superfitie tẽuis B | superficie scripsi e Serapione


Translation:

But Dyascorides describes five species; the first is compact, firm and heavy and has the smell of rotten fish similar to sponge. It is found by the sea-shore. The second is of a longer shape, light, full of holes and similar to pterygium {a membrane found at the inner corner of the eye [[6]], i.e. ungula {lit. "nail"} a Latin equivalent anatomical term for pterygium, or like a sponge and with a smell like lenticule marine {a certain "sea weed"}. The third is similar to rosa {"rose"} in colour tending towards reddish or purplish hues. The fourth is similar to unwashed greasy wool and also as light as the second kind. The fifth is on the surface tender and soft but inside it is rough and similar to mushrooms/fungus. It is odourless.


Commentary:

This is the same Dioscoridean text but translated back into Latin from an Arabic translation, cf. Serapio, Strasbourg edition (1531: 247): [[7]]

Lenticula marina, lit. "sea lentil" here translates ultimately Greek φυκώδης /phykṓdēs/ "full of seaweed; of seaweed; like seaweed" (LSJ) < φῦκος /phŷkos/ "seaweed". The term here stands simply for "seaweed", cf. Pliny's "alge", but lenticula marina was later used to denote Sargassum seaweed.

Most witnesses have a nonsensical superficietenus lenis which is not part of the original text, e.g. [Goehl} Liber aggregatus: Spuma maris. 370. (380.). Nor can it be found in the Insignium Medicorum ... De Simplicibus Medicinis print of 1531. Both witnesses simply say: superficie lenis.


Simon's text sectioned Dioscorides Longobardus:

In vero exemplari sic est - alcionium species sunt quinque – una spissa et gravis spongie habens facturam – Secunda vero bromo plena est odorem habens piscium que in littoribus maris habundat - Tertia ut terrigia oculorum invenitur sicut spongia levis et inanis et vermiculosa et fistulosa colorem habens purpureum quam multi melismon dixerunt - Quarta vero lanis succidis similis est inanis et lenis - Quinta vero miceto similis est et aspera deintus ut pumex deforis lenis et viscida habundat maxime in ponto insula bethinon quam cives alosaginem dicunt.


Apparatus:

terrigia B | t'rigia f

melismõ B | meli si nõ f

succidis f | sucidis B

miceto f | micoto B

uiscida B | viscosa f

bethinõ B | bethi nõ f


Translation:

In the original text {of Dioscorides Longobardus} alcionium is described like this: there are five species: the first is compact and heavy, and it has the appearance of a sponge. The second is full of stench and it has the smell of fish; and it grows abundantly by the sea-shore. The third kind resembles pterygium in the eye [[8]] and it is like a sponge. It is light and porous and appearing wormy and full of holes. It has a purple colour, and many people call it the "Milesian". The fourth kind is similar to unwashed greasy sheep's wool, porous and light. But the fifth resembles a mushroom and it is rough on the inside like pumice stone, but on the outside it is smooth and pungent. It grows abundantly and at its best in Pontos, on the island called Bethinon, and the islanders call it alosagine.


Commentary:

This section, as said before, only occurs in B and e. The question arises whether it was added on by B and e or omitted by AC and f. It is a near verbatim quote from Dioscorides Longobardus, 5, 131, ed. Stadler (1902). De alquionio, or from Dyascorides alphabeticus, [f 16r] [[9]], which is virtually the same text. The Greek original can be found in 5, 118, ed. Wellmann (1906-14: III.87-8) [[10]].

Pontos [[11]] is Προποντίς /Propontís/ [[12]] in the original Greek.

Bethionon is a corruption of the original Βέσβικος /Bésbikos/, Latinised Besbicus [[13]].

Alosagine, the expected transcription would be *(h)alosachne/ *alosachni, is Greek ἁλὸς ἄχνη /halòs ákhnē/, composed of ἄχνη /ákhnē/ "anything that comes off the surface", i.a. "foam, froth" and ἁλός /halós/ the genitive of ἅλς /háls/ "salt; brine; sea". ἁλὸς ἄχνη /halòs ákhnē/, already occurs in the Odyssey, 5, 403, but there in the plain meaning of "foam/froth on the sea". This is obviously the source on which Latin spuma maris is calqued, and from Latin a large number of European languages calqued again, cf. German "Meerschaum", also adopted into English, Italian schiuma di mare, French écume de mer, Catalan escuma de mar, Spanish espuma de mar, all meaning literally "foam/froth of the sea". Cf. also Arabic: ﺯﺑﺩ ﺍﻟﺒﺤﺭ /zabad al-baḥr/ "meerschaum" {lit. "foam of the sea"}. < ﺯﺑﺩ /zabad/ "foam, froth, dross". ﺑﺣﺭ /baḥr/ "sea, large river".


Identification:

Meerschaum or Sepiolite is a white mineral [[14]] that is sometimes found floating like foam on the sea. The ancients came to associate it with the bird ἀλκυών /alkyṓn/ or ἁλκυών /halkyṓn/, Latin alcedo, a bird often identified with Alcedo atthis L. "the [Eurasian] kingfisher" [[15]].

The association of this substance with the bird came about because "Over much of Greece the [Eurasian] Kingfisher is only a winter visitor, and then seen almost exclusively at the seaside, but up to a thousand pairs breed in central and northern Greece and the islands of Corfu and Cephallenia; these breeders belong to the Mediterranean subspecies A .a. atthis, but the winter visitors include also the more northern A. a. ispida." Arnott (2007: 12), s.v. Alkyōn. The bird's sparse distribution and its closeness to the sea prompted the myth that it nests in the sea. Soon other substances floating on the sea were also interpreted as alcyoneum "from the alcyon bird". These were mainly residues from species of the aquatic and marine families Alcyoniidae {"soft corals"} [[16]] and Spongiidae [[17]] {"horny sponges"}. Species of these two families are difficult to distinguish and consequently most of them have a chaotic taxonomic history.

Dioscorides distinguished five kinds of alcyonium and Pliny only four.

C. Sprengel (1829: 651-2) in his Commentarius ad Dioscoridem, comments on the pertinent book V, chapter CXXXV [[18]], and his identifications are repeated in Berendes (1902: 541) [[19]].

Sprengel sees the first kind - una spissa et gravis spongie habens facturam - "compact and heavy, having the appearance of a spunge"- as Alcyoneum cotoneum Pall. - n.b. Berendes has cortoneum {sic!}. This species is difficult to identify, it is probably Linné's Alcyonium cydonium L., but some later authors think it is more likely a spongia. [[20]], [[21]].

The second kind - bromo plena est odorem habens piscium que in littoribus maris habundat - "full of stench and it has the smell of fish; and it grows abundantly by the sea-shore" - is Alcyonium papillosum Pall., syn. of Halichondria panicea Pall. [[22]], see also below.

The third kind - ut terrigia oculorum invenitur sicut spongia levis et inanis et vermiculosa et fistulosa colorem habens purpureum quam multi milesion dixerunt - "resembles pterygium in the eye and is like a spunge, light, porous, appearing wormy and full of holes. It has a purple colour, and many people call it the "Milesian"- is Alcyonium palmatum Pall. [[23]]; images: [[24]].

The fourth kind - lanis succidis similis est inanis et lenis - "similar to unwashed greasy wool, porous and light" - is Spongia panicea Pall., syn for Halichondria panicea Pall. [[25]], [[26]]; images [[27]]

And the firth kind – miceto similis est et aspera deintus ut pumex deforis lenis et viscida - "resembles a mushroom and it is rough on the inside like pumice stone, but on the outside it is smooth and pungent" - is Alcyonium Ficus Pall., syn. for Suberites ficus Johnston [[28]], [[29]]; images [[30]].

Or possibly Alcyonium aurantium Pall. > Tethya aurantium Pall. [[31]] [[32]], [[33]]; images [[34]].


See also: Zebet albahar


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