Codex Einsidlensis 277

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Codex Einsidlensis 277
Repository Einsiedeln Abbey Library
origin Basel
material parchment
Page number 442
format 193 × 144 mm
Time of origin 1350-1375
language Middle High German

The Codex Einsidlensis 277 occupies a special position, since only in it the complete text of the work of the mystic Mechthild von Magdeburg , the flowing light of the deity , is handed down. The Middle High German manuscript was written in the region around Basel in the years after 1350 and consists of two parts. One contains the Flowing Light of the Godhead , divided into seven books, the other contains various short treatises with similar mystical topics by various unknown authors. Today the manuscript is in the monastery library of Einsiedeln Abbey .

Sample page with red initials and headings as well as marginal glosses, F. 7v

Description of the codex

The manuscript in a format of 193 × 144 mm is presented on 442 parchment pages . The binding consists of two leather-covered, simply decorated wooden covers and, apart from the spine, is probably still the original from the time it was made. The text itself is written in Gothic minuscule with brownish-black ink and is arranged in two columns each except for the first fifty pages; the lines made with a stylus are still clearly visible. The Flowing Light of the Deity was written down by a single copyist; In contrast, five different writers can be identified in the various short texts in the second part. Both parts hardly differ from one another in terms of the number of lines and the font space, which shows that they were created with the intention of joining them together later.

The Codex has only sparsely decorated with books ; the writing is always executed very carefully, but has no special calligraphic features. There are also no illustrations or specially decorated initials . Headings, initials and central sentences were designed with red ink, the beginning of a new sentence was highlighted with a red outline of the initial letter.

content

Poem about St. Niklaus von Flüe, F. 221v

The flowing light of the deity makes up almost three quarters of the entire codex. Both at the very beginning of the manuscript and in the margins there are notes and glosses from a later period. A summary introduction in Latin has been added to the first page. The seven books by Mechthild von Magdeburg are followed by two short texts about the self-examination of the believing Christian, which also belong to the first part, which ends with a few blank pages. The second unit of the Codex brings together thirty different short texts on a hundred pages, mostly excerpts from larger works or sermons. It is characteristic that all of these treatises are based on mysticism , which thus becomes the central thematic guide of the entire manuscript. For example, the virtuous life, God as the first cause and the angry soul are treated. By far not all authors are known; six of these texts come from the sermons of Meister Eckhart . The chapter that concludes the Codex stands out both in terms of time and the way it is presented; It consists of a clumsy script over the entire page in the form of an Abecedarius in honor of St. Niklaus von Flüe and was added in the 16th century. Each sentence begins with a different letter in the order of the alphabet.

History of the Codex

A loose sheet of paper in the handwriting of the Basel priest Heinrich von Rumersheim is attached to the manuscript . He explains that on behalf of the late Margaretha zum Golden Ring , whose confessor he was, he was giving this book to the Beguines in the Vorderen Au near Einsiedeln. There were four beguinages in the Einsiedeln valley; the Codex should circulate between these. The reasons for this gift are not given. Margaretha died shortly after 1400; Whether she commissioned the manuscript or whether it was first written for someone else and later came into her possession can no longer be determined with certainty. There is also the possibility that she added the second part to the handwriting, which may previously only consisted of the Flowing Light of the Godhead . Margaretha belonged to the pious circle around the Basel preacher Heinrich von Nördlingen , who dealt extensively with the writings of Mechthild of Magdeburg in the middle of the 14th century and made a decisive contribution to their dissemination. It is not clear how the manuscript finally came to the Einsiedeln Abbey Library; A property entry dates from the 16th century, stating that the codex was still kept in the Vorderen Au. Another note, where Einsiedeln is mentioned, probably comes from the 18th or early 19th century. The last possible point in time at which the manuscript could have reached the Einsiedeln monastery is likely to be in 1798. The sisters in the Vorderen Au fled from the invading French and the Codex will have been brought to Einsiedeln with other possessions.

literature

  • H. Neumann (ed.): Mechthild von Magdeburg. "The flowing light of the Godhead". 2 volumes, Munich 1990–1993.
  • M. Schmidt: The flowing light of the godhead. Stuttgart 1995.
  • U. Federer: Mystical experience in literary dialogue. Heinrich von Nördlingen's letters to Margaretha Ebner. Berlin 2011, 335–352. (Detailed discussion of the genesis of Codex 277)

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ http://www.e-codices.unifr.ch/de/description/sbe/0277 (January 13, 2014); H. Neumann (ed.): Mechthild von Magdeburg. "The flowing light of the Godhead". Vol. II, Munich 1993, 175-179.
  2. ^ H. Neumann (ed.): Mechthild von Magdeburg. "The flowing light of the Godhead". Vol. II, Munich 1993, 178.
  3. ^ H. Neumann (ed.): Mechthild von Magdeburg. "The flowing light of the Godhead". Vol. II, Munich 1993, 178 and 206ff.
  4. ^ H. Neumann (ed.): Mechthild von Magdeburg. "The flowing light of the Godhead". Vol. II, Munich 1993, 178-184.
  5. ^ H. Neumann (ed.): Mechthild von Magdeburg. "The flowing light of the Godhead". Vol. II, Munich 1993, 176f .; http://www.e-codices.unifr.ch/de/description/sbe/0277 (January 13, 2014)
  6. ↑ http://www.e-codices.unifr.ch/de/description/sbe/0277 (January 13, 2014); H. Neumann (ed.): Mechthild von Magdeburg. "The flowing light of the Godhead". Vol. II, Munich 1993, 176 and 184f .; U. Federer: Mystical experience in literary dialogue. Heinrich von Nördlingen's letters to Margaretha Ebner. Berlin 2011, 335; M. Schmidt: The flowing light of the godhead. Stuttgart 1995, IXf.
  7. ↑ M. Schmidt: The flowing light of the godhead. Stuttgart 1995, IX; U. Federer: Mystical experience in literary dialogue. Heinrich von Nördlingen's letters to Margaretha Ebner. Berlin 2011, 335-352; H. Neumann (ed.): Mechthild von Magdeburg. "The flowing light of the Godhead". Vol. II, Munich 1993, 184f.
  8. ^ H. Neumann (ed.): Mechthild von Magdeburg. "The flowing light of the Godhead". Bd. II, München 1993, 186. On page X of M. Schmidt there is the remark that the codex contains an entry in the ownership of the St. Peter on the Bach Monastery in Schwyz. This is flawed; the corresponding entry comes from Codex Einsidlensis 278, which was also given by Margarethe for the golden ring to the beguines in the Einsiedler Valley. There is therefore a mix-up here.