Неаполитанский Диоскорид: Иллюминированная рукопись VII века

7th century illuminated manuscript Greek herbal
The Naples Dioscurides, in the Biblioteca Nazionale, Naples (MS Suppl. gr. 28), is an early 7th century secular illuminated manuscript Greek herbal. The book has 172 folios and a page size of 29.7 x 14 cm (11 11/16 x 5 1/2 inches) and the text is a redaction of De Materia Medica by the 1st century Greek military physician Dioscorides, with descriptions of plants and their medicinal uses. from the same model as the Vienna Dioscurides, which was created ca. 512 for a Byzantine princess, but differs from it significantly. Additionally, in the Naples manuscript, the illustrations occupy the top half of each folio, rather than being full page miniatures as in the Vienna Dioscurides. The script is somewhat rough and uneven, and the painting style of the miniatures less precise and naturalistic than the Vienna manuscript, indicating a certain falling off in standards.

The Naples Dioscurides is derived from the first century manuscript De Materia Medica, written by Pedanius Dioscorides, a Greek physician in the Roman army. De Materia Medica was an encyclopedia focused on medicines that could be derived from herbs, plants, minerals, and animals. It was widely distributed throughout the ancient Mediterranean, and remained in use for centuries. Despite the fall of the Western Roman Empire, its Eastern counterpart remained strong, keeping the traditions of Rome alive. By the time of the writing of the Naples Dioscurides, the manuscript had remained popular amongst the Byzantines and the newly powerful Islamic Empires. The secular subject of De Materia Medica kept the overall Christianization of Europe from significantly affecting the manuscript. Art historians can study the original De Materia Medica through medieval manuscripts (though the Naples Dioscurides is not an exact copy). De Materia Medica was still a highly influential manuscript, and by the seventh century, was still being widely read by the Byzantine Empire and their satellite states. One of these states, the Duchy of Naples, retained a Greek influenced culture. The population spoke and wrote in Greek, a reference to Naples's roots as an Ancient Greek colony.

The scribe and the illuminator behind the Naples Dioscurides are lost to history. What is known is quite limited, though this is common with many manuscripts. Art historians believe the manuscript was manufactured in Italy,

For several centuries, the Naples Dioscurides was held at the Augustine monastery, San Giovanni a Carbonara in the Kingdom of Naples. Marginal notes indicate that the manuscript had contact with the medical school at Salerno in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. The manuscript was taken to Vienna in 1718 by the Holy Roman Empire, which controlled the Kingdom of Naples following the Treaty of Rastatt of 1714. The Naples Dioscurides was then housed in the Viennese Court Library, owned by the ruling Habsburg Dynasty. The Naples Dioscurides was preserved at the Viennese Court Library for 200 years, and was returned to Naples in 1919. The manuscript was returned to the Kingdom of Italy by the Austro Hungarian monarch following the peace talks of World War I. It was returned to the Biblioteca Nazionale, where it is kept today. The Naples Dioscurides was exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in a show entitled, "Byzantium and Islam: Age of Transition," from March 12, 2012 July 8, 2012. A competing explanation for the manuscript states that it was intended as a manual rather than a gift or as part of a royal collection. With this in mind, it would appear that the Naples Dioscurides most likely served a practical purpose as a book to be read and used, rather than as a gift for royalty.