58 THE LIFE AND LEGEND OF MICHAEL SCOT 



This Imperial original would seem to be more 

 nearly represented by the Vatican copy 1 than by 

 any other which remains in the libraries of Europe. 

 From it we discover that the Arabic names with 

 which the Abbreviatio abounds were given in Latin 

 in the margin of the original manuscript, which 

 Scot sent to the Emperor. 2 These hard words and 

 their explanations were afterwards gathered in a 

 glossary, and inscribed at the end of the treatise ; an 

 improvement which was probably due to Henry of 

 Colonia. The glossary has, however, been quite 

 neglected by later copyists, nor does it appear in 

 the printed edition of the Abbreviatio Avicennae. 

 The completeness with which it is found in the 

 Vatican manuscript shows the close relation which 

 that copy holds to the one first made by the 

 Emperor's permission. The Chigi manuscript 3 

 seems to be the only other in which the glossary is 

 to be found. It therefore ranks beside that of the 

 Vatican, but is inferior to it as it presents the 

 glossary in a less complete form. 



The originality of the Vatican text perhaps 

 appears also in the curious triplet with which it 

 closes : ' Liber iste inceptus est et expletus cum 

 adiutorio Jesu Christi qui vivit, etc. 



Frenata penna, finite nunc Avicenna 

 Libro Caesario, gloria summa Deo 

 Dextera scriptoris careat gravitate doloris.' 4 



Several other copies of the Abbreviatio have the 

 first two lines, but this alone contains the third. 



1 Fondo Vaticano 4428. 



2 The words are : ' Ex libro animalium Aristotelis Domini Impera- 

 toris in margine' (p. 158 recto) : see facsimile at p. 55. 



3 Bibl. Chisiana E viii. 251, at p. 41 bottom margin. 



4 P. 158, recto col. 1. 



