31 Medieval Manuscripts from the Czech National Library Now Available Online

Thirty-one medieval manuscripts from the National Library of the Czech Republic are now available online, offering a new look at medieval medicine, religion, law and science. Among them is a medical manuscript containing a previously unknown copy of advice written for Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund.

The manuscripts can now be viewed through Manuscriptorium, the digital library operated by the National Library of the Czech Republic. Most date from the 15th century, although the oldest goes back to the second half of the 12th century. This manuscript, MS XXIII.D.134, contains Ambrose of Milan’s commentary on Psalm 118.

Another early work is the Teplá Antiphonary (Teplá MS D 20). Its oldest sections date from around the end of the 13th or beginning of the 14th century.

A medieval medical discovery

Some of the most interesting material comes from MS XVII.J.28, a collection of medical texts, recipes and practical advice. The manuscript contains the only surviving Czech translation of De viribus herbarum, a medieval work attributed to Odo of Meung. Also known as Macer Floridus, the work deals with plants and their medicinal properties.

But another text in the manuscript has proven particularly noteworthy. Researchers identified a previously unknown copy of medical advice written by Zikmund Albík of Uničov for Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund. According to Manuscriptorium, this advice had previously been known from only one other manuscript.

Medicine is well represented among the newly available manuscripts. Five contain medical material, including MS XVI.F.2, which preserves the Prager Wundarznei, and MS XVII.G.9, a medical compendium.

Another manuscript, MS VI.F.7, combines astronomical, astrological and medical texts, showing how closely these subjects could be connected in medieval learning.

Prayer books, Bibles and medieval languages

Religious works make up a substantial part of the collection. They range from theological writings and sermons to books intended for worship and private devotion.

Among them is a Czech Marian Book of Hours (MS XVII.J.9), containing prayers and devotional texts organised around the canonical hours. There is also a Czech New Testament (MS XVII.E.13), a Psalter (MS XVII.H.14), and collections of sermons and prayers.

Several manuscripts were produced for or associated with religious communities. Teplá MS E 1 is the winter portion of a missal made for the Cistercian nuns of Rosendaël, while the Teplá Antiphonary contains music used in the medieval liturgy.

The collection also highlights the linguistic diversity of medieval manuscripts. Alongside Latin are texts in Czech, German and Middle Dutch.

One particularly interesting example is MS XVI.F.23, which contains a Middle Dutch translation of a Life of Christ attributed to Michael de Massa.

Medieval law and learning

Legal texts are also represented. MS XXIII.D.164 contains the Meissen Law Book, while MS XVI.F.5 preserves the municipal law book of Opava. Another manuscript, MS XVI.E.21, combines a work on German law with 15th-century administrative records from the monastery of Segeberg.

Taken together, the 31 manuscripts offer an unusually broad selection of medieval written culture. Medicine and astrology sit alongside law, biblical texts, sermons, liturgical music and private devotional works.

The latest additions are part of a larger effort to digitize manuscripts held by the National Library of the Czech Republic. Other groups of medieval manuscripts have been added to Manuscriptorium in recent years, making material that once required a visit to the library accessible to readers and researchers around the world.

The 31 manuscripts can be viewed online through Manuscriptorium.