Sources of Astrology and Secret Knowledge in Konrad Kyeser's Bellifortis

Kirjoittajat

• Antti Ijäs University of Helsinki https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0637-628X

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.54334/mirator.163035

Avainsanat:

Medieval literature, Konrad Kyeser, astrology, De mirabilibus mundi, Liber vaccae, Kyranides, Bellifortis

Abstrakti

Around the turn of the fifteenth century, Konrad Kyeser of Eichstätt (1367–after 1405) composed a work on military and other technology under the title Bellifortis. Composed in response to the embarrassing defeat of the crusader army at Nicopolis in 1396, the contents of this illustrated book range from descriptions of technical wonders and astrological exposition to alchemistical and magical recipes. In addition to the obscure hexametric captions in Latin composed by the author, Bellifortis incorporates both verse and prose passages lifted from previously existing sources. Some of the most notable examples are the excerpts from Liber ignium of Marcus Graecus included in the main manuscript, Göttingen ms. philos. 63, and the material previously considered lifted from Pseudo-Albertus Magnus’s De mirabilibus mundi but identified in the present article as excerpts from the anonymous Liber vaccae. In his prologue, Konrad explicitly states that he has collected material from Vegetius, someone called Antonius Romanus, “and other authors”. This article will discuss Konrad’s sources on astrology, recipes, and experiments, suggesting new identifications and expounding on the significance of borrowings in the composition of his work.