Astrologer before his studies –

Topos Firmicus Maternus and his Mathesis – Idiot or not?

Topos Gerbert / Sylvester II – an Astrological Pope

Topos Trutina Hermetis

Topos false Tables -> false Judgements

Topos Henry Bate

Topos Sabians of Harran –

The Sabians of Harran played a significant role as a transmission culture for ancient astrology, serving as an important bridge between Mesopotamian, Hellenistic, and later Islamic intellectual traditions. – 1. Historical Background – The Sabians of Harran were a religious and intellectual community in the city of Harran (modern-day southeastern Turkey), flourishing in late antiquity and the early Islamic period (roughly 7th–10th centuries CE). – They were renowned for their astronomical and astrological knowledge, inherited from Babylonian and Hellenistic sources. – Despite being religiously distinct, they were recognized in Islamic law as a “People of the Book,” which allowed them some protection and autonomy under Muslim rule. – 2. Role in Preserving Ancient Knowledge – The Sabians preserved and transmitted Mesopotamian and Hellenistic astrological texts at a time when many classical works were lost or inaccessible elsewhere. – They maintained and practiced – Zodiacal astrology (signs, planets, and aspects) – Planetary theory and ephemerides – Predictive techniques from Babylonian horoscopy – Their scholarship included translations and commentaries, ensuring continuity of astrological techniques into the Islamic Golden Age. – 3. Interaction with Islamic Scholars – Many early Islamic astronomers and astrologers studied under Sabian teachers or accessed their manuscripts. – Notable examples include- Al-Battani (c. 858–929 CE), whose astronomical works reflect earlier Sabian influence. – Thābit ibn Qurra (c. 826–901 CE), a Sabian mathematician and astronomer, who translated Greek texts into Arabic and contributed to astrology and mathematical astronomy. – Through these scholars, Sabian knowledge was integrated into the Arabic intellectual corpus, which later became the foundation for medieval European astrology after translations into Latin in the 12th century. – 4. Transmission to Europe – The Sabians’ translations and commentaries on Hellenistic astrology, astronomy, and mathematics were later transmitted to Spain, Sicily, and the wider Latin West via Arabic-to-Latin translations. – This means that much of the classical astrological heritage that survived into medieval Europe owes its continuity indirectly to the Sabians of Harran. – Summary – The Sabians of Harran acted as a crucial intermediary, preserving, practicing, and transmitting ancient astrological knowledge from Babylonian and Hellenistic sources into the Islamic world, and eventually, through translations, to medieval Europe. They were not merely passive custodians; their community actively studied, commented upon, and enhanced these traditions.

Dr. David Juste – CV – https://ptolemaeus.badw.de/files/user_upload/auth_user.cv_link.8731e2f58988e6b9.RGF2aWQgSnVzdGUgLSBDdXJyaWN1bHVtIFZpdGFlLnBkZg==.pdf

Dr. David Juste is a distinguished historian of medieval and Renaissance astrology, with a strong academic focus on Latin astrological manuscripts. He is co-founder and research leader of the Ptolemaeus Arabus et Latinus project at the Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften in Munich and is recognized internationally for his scholarly contributions. – He works on cataloging and analyzing medieval astrological manuscripts—He has published three volumes of the Catalogus Codicum Astrologorum Latinorum (CCAL), which document Latin astrological manuscripts, including those preserved in the Bavarian State Library (Munich) and the Bibliothèque nationale de France (Paris).

Sourcetexts of the Tetrabiblos

Original composition – Language: Greek – Date: ca. 150 CE, Alexandria. – Title: Ἀποτελεσματικά (Apotelesmatika, “Effects” or “Influences”), later known in Latin as Quadripartitum (“Four Books”). – This Greek autograph does not survive. All we have are medieval manuscript copies. – Historical transmission languages – After its Greek origin, the Tetrabiblos circulated in multiple languages – A. Greek tradition – The direct line of transmission from antiquity. – Earliest surviving manuscripts: 13th century (but based on earlier exemplars). – Key centres: Byzantium (especially Constantinople). – Basis for all modern critical editions (Boll–Boer 1940; Robbins 1940; Feraboli 1985; Hübner 1998). – B. Arabic tradition – Translated from Greek into Arabic in the early Abbasid period (9th century). – Key translators: Hunayn ibn Ishaq (often credited, though debated) and/or his circle. – Arabic versions influenced Islamic astrology, e.g., Abu Maʿshar (9th c.). – These Arabic texts became an important intermediary for the Latin West. – C. Syriac (possible intermediary) – There are indications of a lost Syriac translation (8th–9th century), often a stepping-stone between Greek and Arabic, but no Syriac manuscript survives today. – D. Latin tradition – First Latin versions came via Arabic–Latin translations in Spain and Sicily, 12th century. – Example: Plato of Tivoli (Barcelona, ca. 1138) translated the Arabic version. – Later, direct Greek–Latin translations were produced – William of Moerbeke (13th c.) translated directly from Greek. – This version survives in many manuscripts and has a modern critical edition (Vuillemin-Diem & Steel 2015). – E. Hebrew tradition – A Hebrew translation was made in the medieval period (probably from Arabic, 13th century). – Survives in some manuscripts; less studied but part of the transmission chain. – 3. Summary of historical source languages – So historically, the Tetrabiblos exists in these forms – Greek (original, basis of all critical editions; extant from Byzantine manuscripts). – Arabic (9th century onward; influential in Islamic astrology; multiple manuscript traditions). – Latin via Arabic → Latin (12th century, e.g., Plato of Tivoli). – via Greek → Latin (13th century, Moerbeke). – Hebrew (from Arabic; medieval). – (Syriac, probably existed but lost). – In short – The Tetrabiblos was originally written in Greek, then spread through Arabic, Latin, and Hebrew translations (with Syriac as a probable but lost link). Today, the surviving manuscripts are Greek, Arabic, Latin, and Hebrew; the Greek tradition is the “original” base for critical editions, while the Arabic and Latin versions are crucial for understanding its medieval reception. –

The oldest surviving Latin document of Ptolemy’s Tetrabiblos is a manuscript translation from Arabic, produced in the 12th century, most likely in Spain or Sicily, where Arabic science entered Western Europe. – Manuscript – Language: Latin (from Arabic) – Approximate Date: ca. 1130–1140 CE – Translator: Often attributed to Plato of Tivoli (or a contemporary translator working in Spain), although precise attribution is sometimes debated. – Content: Books I–IV of the Tetrabiblos, translated from Arabic versions that themselves derived from Greek originals. – Manuscript Example / Shelfmark: Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, Vat. lat. 3971 – one of the oldest extant complete Latin versions. – Another example: Bibliothèque nationale de France, lat. 7342 (partial). – Notes – This is a medieval Latin translation (Arabic → Latin), not a direct Greek → Latin version. – It predates William of Moerbeke’s 13th-century translation, which was directly from Greek and widely copied. – These 12th-century manuscripts are usually codices written on parchment, often in Gothic or early Caroline minuscule scripts. – Many of these manuscripts are held in major European libraries, such as: Vatican Library (Rome) – Bibliothèque nationale de France (Paris) – British Library (London) – Summary – Important for the study of medieval reception of Ptolemy in Western Europe. – Oldest Latin Tetrabiblos: 12th century, via Arabic translation, Spain/Sicily. – Earliest surviving codices: Vat. lat. 3971 (Vatican), among others.

The Ptolemaeus Arabus et Latinus Project (PAL)

is a large-scale international research project dedicated to the study, critical edition, and analysis of texts attributed to Claudius Ptolemy (the 2nd-century Alexandrian scholar) and the transmission of his works in the Arabic and Latin worlds from late antiquity through the Renaissance. – Overall Aim – The project investigates how Ptolemy’s writings—above all the Almagest (astronomy), the Tetrabiblos (astrology), the Geography, and various smaller works—were transmitted, translated, commented upon, and transformed in the medieval period. – It looks at the Arabic tradition (translations, adaptations, commentaries produced in the Islamic world from the 8th century onwards) and the Latin tradition (translations from Arabic and Greek into Latin, as well as Latin commentaries, especially between the 12th and 16th centuries). – Thus, PAL reconstructs the “biography” of Ptolemaic texts across languages, cultures, and centuries. – Main Components – Corpus and Cataloguing – Identification of all extant Arabic and Latin manuscripts of Ptolemaic works. – Detailed catalogues of translations, paraphrases, epitomes, commentaries, and scholia. – Reconstruction of textual traditions and transmission lines. – Critical Editions and Translations – Production of critical editions of Arabic and Latin texts that had never been edited before. – Parallel translations into English or other modern languages. – Attention to variant readings and philological precision. – Digital Humanities – An online database (the PAL database) that allows researchers to access information about manuscripts, works, translations, authors, and textual relationships. – Integration of metadata, textual witnesses, and cross-references. – Aim: to serve as the central research hub for anyone studying Ptolemy’s reception in Arabic and Latin traditions. – Philological and Historical Research – Study of how Ptolemaic science (astronomy, astrology, geography, harmonics) was interpreted in different intellectual and religious contexts. – Analysis of how terminology was translated, adapted, or misunderstood. – Investigation of Ptolemy’s impact on medieval Islamic science, scholastic philosophy, and Renaissance humanism. – Scholarly Output – Critical editions, monographs, and articles. – Tools for the history of science, especially in astronomy and astrology. – A bridge between classical philology, Arabist studies, and medieval/renaissance Latin scholarship. – Detailed Research Questions –

How were Ptolemaic texts translated from Greek into Arabic (e.g., by Hunayn ibn Ishaq, Ishaq ibn Hunayn, Thabit ibn Qurra) and what translation strategies were used? –

Which texts reached medieval Europe via Arabic-to-Latin transmission (especially through Spain and Sicily)? –

What role did figures like Gerard of Cremona, Plato of Tivoli, and William of Moerbeke play in the Latin transmission?

How did Ptolemy’s Tetrabiblos shape Islamic astrology and later scholastic debates on determinism, fate, and free will?

How did scholastic and Renaissance thinkers integrate Ptolemaic astronomy and astrology into Christian frameworks?

To what extent did Arabic commentaries and adaptations transform Ptolemy’s original meaning?

How did the Arabic and Latin worlds influence each other in shaping the Ptolemaic tradition? –

Institutional Framework – Hosted at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities (Munich). – Directed by scholars in classics, Arab studies, history of science, and medieval studies. – Long-term project . – In short:
The Ptolemaeus Arabus et Latinus Project is the central research effort to map, edit, and interpret the Arabic and Latin transmission of Ptolemy’s works, providing both a digital platform and critical scholarship to understand how Greek science shaped medieval Islamic and European intellectual history.

Scholarly critical editions of Ptolemy’s Tetrabiblos

Greek critical editions (the core four)

Franz Boll & Emilie Boer (eds.)
Claudii Ptolemaei opera quae exstant omnia, vol. III, 1: ΑΠΟΤΕΛΕΣΜΑΤΙΚΑ (Tetrabiblos).
Leipzig: B.G. Teubner, 1940.
– First modern critical Greek edition with full apparatus; based on a collation of principal Greek witnesses prepared by Boll and completed by Boer. Often cited as the Boll–Boer Teubner. Wikipedia
F. E. Robbins (ed. & trans.)
Ptolemy: Tetrabiblos (Loeb Classical Library 435).
Cambridge, MA / London: Harvard University Press / Heinemann, 1940.
– Greek text with facing English translation; scholarly but with a lighter apparatus than Teubner. Robbins himself notes he could not use the then-unreleased Boll–Boer text. Standard library edition for text + English. loebclassics.com Penelope
Simonetta Feraboli (ed.)
Claudio Tolomeo: Le previsioni astrologiche (Tetrabiblos) (Scrittori greci e latini / Fondazione Lorenzo Valla – Mondadori), 1985; multiple reprints.
– Critical Greek text with facing Italian translation and extensive commentary; a full-scale philological edition within the Valla series. Google Bücher Fondazione Lorenzo Valla Scribd
Wolfgang Hübner (ed.)
Claudii Ptolemaei opera quae exstant omnia, vol. III, 1: ΑΠΟΤΕΛΕΣΜΑΤΙΚΑ (Tetrabiblos).
Stuttgart–Leipzig: Teubner, 1998; reprint De Gruyter 1999 (ISBN 3-519-01746-6 / 3519017466).
– Most authoritative modern edition. Based on 33 complete and 14 partial manuscripts; incorporates Boer’s unpublished notes and evaluates Boll–Boer and Robbins. Widely regarded as the current standard. Wikipedia jstor.org WorldCat Google Bücher

The first printed Greek text (not a modern critical edition) was by Joachim Camerarius, Nürnberg 1535. ptolemaeus.badw.de

Critical editions of historical translations

• William of Moerbeke’s Latin translation
Ptolemy’s “Tetrabiblos” in the Translation of William of Moerbeke: Claudii Ptolemaei Liber Iudicialium, ed. Gudrun Vuillemin-Diem, Carlos G. Steel, with Pieter De Leemans.
Leuven: Leuven University Press, 2015.
– First critical edition of Moerbeke’s medieval Latin; substantial introduction on translation method and the Greek tradition. (Note: PAL records that—apart from Moerbeke—Arabic and Latin versions remain largely unpublished in critical form.)

Les Alchandreana primitifs.

Étude sur les plus anciens traités astrologiques latins d’origine arabe (Xe siècle)
Leiden–Boston: Brill, 2007, xvi + 727 pp. – A detailed study of the earliest Latin astrological treatises of Arabic origin, dating from the 10th century. – https://journals.openedition.org/ccm/12391 – The revival of Latin science through the Greco-Latin and Arabo-Latin translations at the end of the 11th century and in the 12th century is a major historical phenomenon that has given rise to numerous studies. The period preceding this great transfer remains more obscure and difficult to grasp, despite the renewed interest it has aroused among specialists, as evidenced, among others, by the recent volume edited by B. Obrist (Abbon de Fleury: Philosophie, science et comput autour de l’an Mil [= Oriens-Occidens, 6, 2004], corrected reprint 2006). The very first infiltrations of Arabic science into the Latin West, before the 11th century, have long been identified in mathematics (Arabic numerals) and astronomy (the astrolabe). D. Juste focuses on another, very little known, aspect of this pioneering transmission: astrology, as it appears particularly in the manuscript Paris, BnF, lat. 17868, which preserves anonymous treatises or treatises attributed to a certain Alchandreus. From this figure he takes the name he gives to the corpus, the Alchandreana. This corpus had already been mentioned and studied by scholars such as N. Bubnov, E. Wickersheimer, F. Cumont, L. Thorndike, J. M. Vallicrosa, and A. Van de Vyver. D. Juste offers for the first time a systematic study and a critical edition of the “primitive corpus,” that is, the texts of this corpus dating from before the 11th century, since this tradition extends down to the 17th century and even beyond.

In a dense introduction (pp. 1–26), he presents this corpus and retraces, in just a few precise pages, the history of astrology in the early Middle Ages. This discipline then suffered from the general weakness of scientific sources during this period, a weakness aggravated by patristic condemnations that weighed heavily upon it. Access to astrology was possible only indirectly and in very allusive ways through encyclopedic and astronomical works, or, somewhat more explicitly, in the few horoscopic texts, and more abundantly in prognostica (lunaria, zodiologia, spheres of life and death, critical days, planetary days, and comets). Toward the end of the 10th century, a revival of interest in astrology became evident through the rediscovery of ancient sources (Manilius, Firmicus Maternus) within the framework of a renewal of the quadrivium, associated with the names of Gerbert of Aurillac and Abbo of Fleury. The emergence of the Alchandreana took place in such a context.

D. Juste devotes the first part (pp. 27–294) to a precise and erudite presentation of the content of this corpus. He studies no fewer than seventy-two manuscripts dating from the 10th to the 17th century. For the primitive corpus four manuscripts are given priority: in addition to the Paris manuscript already mentioned, three 11th-century codices (Munich, BSB, Clm 560; London, BL, Addit. 17808; and Leiden, Rijksuniv., Voss. lat. O.15). He thus analyzes the Liber Alchandrei, in which Arabic names (for the lunar mansions) are placed alongside Jewish elements (for the numerical values of the letters of a person’s name), while showing knowledge of Latin astronomy (Martianus Capella and the Excerpta Plinii). Two further works of the corpus are attached to this text: the Epistola Argafalau ad Alexandrum and the Breviarum Alhandrei summi astrologi, which introduces into the West a magic based on the combinations of alphabetic letters. These three texts are linked to the name Alchandreus, which was sometimes regarded as a corruption of “Alexander” or of al-Kindī, the famous Arab philosopher. D. Juste presents arguments in favor of the latter identification, not in the sense that he believes al-Kindī was the actual author of these texts, but rather that it seems plausible they were attributed to him.

The corpus also includes the Quicumque nosse desiderat legem astrorum and the Proportiones competentes in astrorum industria. Then follows the In principio fecit Deus caelum et terram, a text unearthed by B. Bischoff in 1984 from the manual of Adhémar of Chabannes preserved in the Leiden manuscript; it seems to be a translation or adaptation of an Arabic text into Latin — in poor Latin influenced by a Romance dialect. Finally, the Benedictum nomen Domini, probably also translated or adapted from Arabic and linguistically close to the preceding text, closes this primitive corpus, to which some other fragments may be added.

The second chapter is devoted to a very rich and precise analysis of all the astrological techniques at work in the Alchandreana. Some elements appear characteristic of Arabic astrology, such as the lunar mansions and the importance given to the lunar nodes. But without recourse to astronomical observation and in the absence of astronomical tables, the Alchandreana recommend numerological methods for calculating planetary longitudes (a method based on the “years of the world”) and for determining nativities, which are carried out without horoscopes and instead rest on onomatomancy, that is, the “numerical values of a person’s name,” hence the importance of numerical alphabets.

The third chapter traces the history of the Alchandreana. Their content, which contrasts with the early medieval Latin knowledge of the science of the stars, makes it possible to identify traits characteristic of the “Arabic synthesis of astrology” (8th–9th centuries). Several indications point toward sources elaborated in al-Andalus. Yet the Arabic sources remain unknown — D. Juste suggests parallels with a few. The presence of Hebrew elements — particularly evident in the Liber Alchandrei and the Quicumque — is explained, except in a few cases, not by the existence of Jewish sources but rather by the Hebraization of techniques by a Jewish scholar. As for the Latin translation, it was probably carried out by Mozarabs or Spanish Jews.

The texts of the corpus are interrelated in multiple ways that D. Juste carefully untangles. The monastery of Ripoll in Catalonia (well known as a place of the first infiltrations of Arabic science) must have played an important role in the history of the Alchandreana: the author of the Proportiones seems to have used the glossaries of Ripoll, and D. Juste hypothesizes that he may have been the Catalan Miró Bonfill, correspondent of Gerbert, because of the shared inclination to search for rare words in the same glossaries, the precious style, and the interest in mathematics. Since Miró died in 984, this would allow most of the Alchandreana to be dated before that year. They would thus be earlier than the corpus on the astrolabe, and even earlier than the introduction of the instrument into Catalonia.

From this follows the interesting hypothesis that the liber de astrologia requested by Gerbert of Aurillac from Lupitus was not a treatise on the astrolabe — as most historians have until now assumed — but the Liber Alchandrei, which could therefore be attributed to this Lupitus. Such a hypothesis would cast new light both on the “fascination” felt by men of power for Gerbert and on the later reputation that made him into an astrologer or mage. To these signs, D. Juste adds indications of an interest in astrology in Gerbert’s own works.

He concludes his inquiry with a careful study of the diffusion of the Alchandreana from the late 10th to the early 12th century. From Catalonia, the corpus is thought to have reached Saint-Martial of Limoges — importantly, before Fleury-sur-Loire. It is subsequently attested at Saint-Germain-des-Prés and Angers. There are also other routes of diffusion into Lotharingia, Germany, and England. Far from disappearing with the arrival of Arabo-Latin translations of high-level astrological texts, the Alchandreana were, from the 12th–13th centuries onward, incorporated into manuscripts that preserved precisely these texts, which is an indication of the great esteem in which they continued to be held.

This study introduces the imposing and remarkable critical edition of the corpus (pp. 294–652), accompanied by indexes (Arabic and Hebrew names, numerical alphabets, subject tables). It is, without a doubt, a major contribution to the history of astrology in the West, to the history of the very earliest infiltrations of Arabic science, and, more broadly, to the intellectual and cultural history of the 10th and 11th centuries — valuable both for the study of knowledge itself and for the study of scholarly and vernacular languages. A book that demonstrates, if proof were needed, how erudition in seemingly unexpected domains can advance historical knowledge by a great leap.

34 Judgements in Latin from 1135 till 1450 – The problem of rectification – therefore more Horary Astrology – only 1 following Firmicus Maternus – the problem of tables – > all judgements based on tables till Kepler were wrong? – Solar Return with the birthplace as problem – Profections? – Sticking to the wording of the textbooks and therefore reducing reality as problem – even today – Astrology and Paracelsus – Historians and Astrology before and after Otto Neugebauer – In contrast to Wilhelm Gundel and his Astrologumena – and Ben Dykes and his translations? – Morinus and Lilly – CCAG (Catalogus Codicum Astrologorum Graecorum) – Theory of the old books and the real practice of the Astrologer who wrote the old books?

AstroBibl – History of Western Astrology – Bibliography

(updated July 2025) – by David Juste – https://ptolemaeus.badw.de/astrobibl/start

Franz Boll

Franz Boll (1867–1924) was a German classical philologist and historian of ancient astronomy and astrology. He is remembered as one of the pioneers who combined philological precision with a deep interest in the cosmological and astrological traditions of antiquity, particularly their transmission from Greek into late antique and medieval contexts.

Here is an overview of his most important works relating to astrology and ancient cosmology:

Major Works

1. Sphaera: Neue griechische Texte und Untersuchungen zur Geschichte der Sternbilder

Leipzig: Teubner, 1903.
A seminal study of ancient constellations and their mythological/astrological backgrounds.
Presents critical editions of Greek texts on star-lore and investigates the transmission of constellation traditions from Mesopotamia through Greece and Rome.

2. Studien über Claudius Ptolemäus

Leipzig: Teubner, 1894.
A detailed philological and historical investigation of Ptolemy, especially the Tetrabiblos and Almagest.
Boll analyzed Ptolemy’s position within the broader Hellenistic astrological tradition.

3. Sternglaube und Sterndeutung: Die Geschichte und das Wesen der Astrologie

Leipzig: Teubner, 1918 (several later reprints).
Perhaps Boll’s most famous work for a general readership.
Surveys the development of astrology from Mesopotamia and Egypt through Greece, Rome, and late antiquity.
Shows the philosophical, religious, and cultural contexts of astrology.
Still cited as a classic introduction to the intellectual history of astrology.

4. Aus der Offenbarung Johannis. Hellenistische Studien zum Weltbild der Apokalypse

Leipzig: Teubner, 1914.
Examines the Book of Revelation in light of Hellenistic cosmology and astrological symbolism.
Boll argues that many of its images and visions are rooted in astral religion and star-lore.

Related Essays and Smaller Studies

Boll wrote numerous shorter papers on astrological fragments, Greek horoscopes, and the cultural transmission of astrology.
For example, his studies on Vettius Valens and on the astrological background of late antique religious thought helped establish academic approaches to astrology as part of classical studies.

Legacy

Boll was a mentor to Wilhelm Gundel and Carl Bezold, who continued his line of research.
His works—especially Sternglaube und Sterndeutung—shaped the 20th-century academic understanding of astrology not as “superstition,” but as an integral component of ancient science and religion.
In modern scholarship, he is regarded as a foundational figure in the history of astrology, astronomy, and astral religion.

Ptolemy’s Science of the Stars in the Middle Ages – 2015 – Warburg

https://www.brepols.net/products/IS-9782503586397-1 – https://ptolemaeus.badw.de/filter?text=Ptolemy’s+Science+of+the+Stars+in+the+Middle+Ages#~-0a.1a-

PdF – https://www.brepolsonline.net/doi/epdf/10.1484/M.PALS-EB.5.120189 – https://talk.vonabisw.de/Juste/Juste1.pdf

Self-Fashioning and the Image of Astrologers in the Thirteenth and Fourteenth Centuries – https://mittelalter.hypotheses.org/35318 – Volltext – https://hss-opus.ub.ruhr-uni-bochum.de/opus4/frontdoor/deliver/index/docId/12799/file/diss.pdf

Astrotalk Dr. David Juste Playlist

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLCKPz4q3EX-tw7485NNgTt-zauwiwRzRq

Henry Bate

Shlomo Sela Henry Bate, Translator of Abraham Ibn Ezra’s Astrological Writings – https://www.academia.edu/49358845/ALE_20_Sela?utm_source=chatgpt.com – https://talk.vonabisw.de/Juste/Juste2.pdf

Sela – The Ibn Ezra–Henry Bate Astrological Connection and the Three Abraham – https://journals.uco.es/mediterranea/article/view/6719/6310

A Discussion on Ptolemy’s Authority – Henry Bate’s Prologue to His Translation of
Ibn Ezra’s Book of the World – https://www.brepolsonline.net/doi/pdf/10.1484/M.PALS-EB.5.120182

https://talk.vonabisw.de/Sitter/Bate.pdf – https://talk.vonabisw.de/Sitter/Bate1.pdf – Henry Bate of Mechelen (also known as Henricus Bate, Henricus Batenus Mechliniensis) organized the translation into Latin of Ibn Ezra’s astrological writings – 1273 – Commissioning French Translations – 1281 – First Latin Translation – 1292 – Further Latin Translations in Orvieto – Before Bate’s intervention, Ibn Ezra’s name was not even mentioned among the authorities in established Latin astrological literature such as the Speculum astronomiae (circa mid-13th century) or Guido Bonatti’s Liber astronomicus (circa 1270) – Bate’s translations contributed to what scholars describe as an Ibn Ezra Renaissance in the Latin West during the late 13th century, enabling his ideas to be received and circulated among Christian scientists and astrologers – According to Shlomo Sela, Bate was the first to bring Ibn Ezra’s astrological corpus to Latin audiences—he commissioned, produced, and disseminated translations that allowed Christian scholars to engage with these works – In essence, Bate acted as a cultural bridge—first translating via Old French to make them accessible to himself and contemporaries, and later translating directly into Latin to broaden reach.

Dr. phil. Helena Avelar de Carvalho – An Astrologer at Work in Late Medieval France – The Notebooks of S. Belle – https://www.degruyterbrill.com/document/isbn/9789004463387/html?lang=de&srsltid=AfmBOoqgoi1lLFnBlDAOwGeeF5oArUY42XBc8IAFakZgGr4mS3aMEZVp

Astrologers and their Clients

2015 – Wiebke Deimann (Hg.), David Juste (Hg.) – Astrologers and their Clients in Medieval and Early Modern Europe – Beihefte zum Archiv für Kulturgeschichte – Band 073 – https://www.vandenhoeck-ruprecht-verlage.com/themen-entdecken/theologie-und-religion/religionswissenschaft/42005/astrologers-and-their-clients-in-medieval-and-early-modern-europe?srsltid=AfmBOorPgNsIcEYJrlSK2Hmnspx_eOGfTSV66t0A3WEINHuLQnRWsL7g – The contributions in this volume focus on a previously neglected aspect of the history of astrology in the Middle Ages and early modern period: the concrete practice of astrological consultation. What social and academic backgrounds did astrologers have? According to which techniques and methods did they work, and how did they understand their own role? On the other hand, what expectations can be discerned among their clients, and how did these clients deal with astrological advice? Recipients of astrological works can be identified across very different segments of the population. From the relationships between astrologers, astrological practice, and their recipients, implicit insights into the societal significance of astrology can therefore be drawn. All contributions are in English. – Böhlau Verlag Köln, 1st edition 2015

Researcher at the Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften, Munich –

Expertise medieval and Renaissance astrology, and manuscript studies

Ptolemaeus Arabus et Latinus project at the Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften in Munich – –https://ptolemaeus.badw.de/start – The Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften (Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities) in Munich is one of Germany’s major learned societies, founded in 1759 by the Elector Maximilian III Joseph. – is not a university, but an independent research institution and scholarly academy whose members are leading scientists, scholars, and cultural figures. Its main functions are:

Fostering basic research in the sciences and humanities, often in long-term projects (some lasting decades).
Publishing critical editions, dictionaries, and scholarly series (e.g., historical, philological, and philosophical works).
Hosting interdisciplinary discussions and lectures to promote exchange across fields.
Serving as an umbrella organization for certain research institutes and commissions, including large-scale editions of historical documents, linguistic corpora, and astronomical catalogues. –
The Academy is divided into two main classes:
Mathematisch-naturwissenschaftliche Klasse (Mathematics and Natural Sciences)
Philosophisch-historische Klasse (Philosophy and History, including humanities and social sciences) –
It is also known for housing the Kommission für Alte Geschichte und Epigraphik and several major long-term historical and philological research projects supported by the German Academies Programme. –
Its headquarters are in a historic building on Alfons-Goppel-Straße in central Munich, near the Ludwigstraße. – a fairly comprehensive overview of the research institutes, commissions, and major long-term projects associated with the Bayerische Akademie der Wissenschaften (Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities) in Munich:

Philosophisch-Historische Klasse (Humanities & Social Sciences)
1. Historische Kommission (Historical Commission)
Founded in 1858 on the initiative of Leopold von Ranke under King Maximilian II
Conducts foundational research on German history, issuing critical source editions (e.g., Reichstag proceedings, Bavarian ministerial council protocols) and biographical works like Deutsche Biographie and Repertorium Academicum Germanicum
Active in over a dozen subdivisions spanning from the late Middle Ages to contemporary history; also develops digital humanities initiatives
2. Kommission für bayerische Landesgeschichte (Commission for Bavarian Regional History) with the Institute for Folklore
Established in 1927, it focuses on Bavaria’s regional history across all epochs
Key projects:
Historischer Atlas von Bayern (Historical Atlas of Bavaria)
Historisches Ortsnamenbuch von Bayern (Historical Gazetteer of Bavaria)
Publishes flagship periodicals, including Zeitschrift für bayerische Landesgeschichte, Bayerisches Jahrbuch für Volkskunde, and Bayerische Vorgeschichtsblätter; contributes to digital platforms like Bayerische Landesbibliothek Online, Historisches Lexikon Bayerns, and bavarikon
3. Other Humanities-Oriented Commissions
As listed on de-Academic, these include:
Thesaurus Linguae Latinae
Mittellateinisches Wörterbuch (Medieval Latin Dictionary)
Mundartforschung (Dialect Research), including Bayerisches Wörterbuch and Ostfränkisches Wörterbuch
Zentral- und ostasiatische Studien (Central and East Asian Studies)
Musikhistorische Kommission (Music History)
Corpus Vasorum Antiquorum
Altokzitanisches Wörterbuch (Old Occitan Dictionary)
Erforschung des antiken Städtewesens
Vergleichende Archäologie römischer Alpen- und Donauländer
Deutsche Inschriften (German Inscriptions of Middle Ages and Early Modern Period)
Deutsche Literatur des Mittelalters
Fichte-Nachlass (Fichte’s Estate)
Briefwechsel Friedrich Heinrich Jacobi
Gräzistische und byzantinistische Studien
Ungedruckte Texte aus der mittelalterlichen Geisteswelt
Urkunden Kaiser Friedrichs II.

University of Sydney

From 2006 to 2013, Dr. Juste was a researcher and lecturer at the Centre for Medieval Studies at the University of Sydney.

Dr. Juste’s academic credentials:

BA (History) – Université Libre de Bruxelles, completed in 1993
Agrégation (History) – Université Libre de Bruxelles, completed in 1995. In the French-speaking academic system, an agrégation is a competitive teaching qualification, often required for teaching at high levels
MA (History of Science) – Harvard University, completed in 1996
PhD (History) – Université Libre de Bruxelles, completed in 2000

He has subsequently held fellowships and research positions at institutions including the Warburg Institute (London), LMU Munich, and others—but his academic training is firmly anchored in Belgium and the USA, before his long-term academic placement in Australia.

IKGF Universität Erlangen Nürnberg

–https://www.ikgf.fau.de/people/index.shtml/david-juste.shtml?utm_source=chatgpt.com – IKGF hosted several lectures by Dr Juste during his visiting year – “Fate and Prediction in Chinese and European Traditions” (June 2011) – „Astrology and the Rise of Science in Medieval Europe“, delivered in November 2010 – He also presented at events like – “Astrologers and their Clients in Medieval and Early Modern Europe” (September 2011)

Dr. Juste authored Les Alchandreana primitifs (Brill, 2007), a study of some of the earliest Latin astrological treatises of Arabic origin from the 10th century – https://brill.com/display/title/14218?format=HC&language=de&srsltid=AfmBOopzZcStwDOpffBgNCC8scwNWWxlo_zEs7OVBw-fn9bFrfH_CYpZ

Dr. Just contributed to numerous scholarly articles, exploring topics like onomancy = Onomancy is a form of divination that interprets a person’s name—usually their full given name—to reveal information about their personality, destiny, or future. – The word comes from the Greek ónoma (ὄνομα, “name”) + -mancy (μαντεία, “divination”). – Different traditions use different methods – Numerical onomancy (often linked with numerology) – Each letter is assigned a number, the values are summed, and the resulting number is interpreted. – Alphabetic symbolism: The sound, initial letter, or etymology of the name is seen as significant. – Gematria / isopsephy (in Hebrew or Greek contexts): Names are converted to numbers based on the alphabet’s numeric values, and matches to other words or names are interpreted as meaningful. – Cultural omens: In some folk traditions, the number of letters, repetition of vowels/consonants, or even anagrams of a name can be “read” for signs. – Historically, onomancy was practiced in ancient Greece, Rome, China, and parts of the Middle East. It often overlapped with astrology, where a birth chart might be compared to the symbolic properties of the name. –

translations, Kepler’s astrological foundations, medieval divinatory techniques, and astronomical instruments

Dr. Juste featured in The Astra Project podcast – “Sources and Skills for the History of Astrology” – discussing his research methodologies and catalog work – “Horoscopes and their Judgements” – exploring medieval astrological charts (horoscopes) and their interpretive judgments

He participated as a speaker in conferences focused on traditional astrology and historical astrological practices, especially within German and European contexts

1. Monographs (sole authorship)

Les Alchandreana primitifs. Étude sur les plus anciens traités astrologiques latins d’origine arabe (Xe siècle)
Leiden–Boston: Brill, 2007, xvi + 727 pp. – A detailed study of the earliest Latin astrological treatises of Arabic origin, dating from the 10th century.
Catalogus Codicum Astrologorum Latinorum, Vol. I: Les manuscrits astrologiques latins conservés à la Bayerische Staatsbibliothek de Munich
Paris: CNRS Éditions (Documents, Études et Répertoires), 2011, xii + 236 pp. – First volume of a critical catalogue of Latin astrological manuscripts.
Catalogus Codicum Astrologorum Latinorum, Vol. II: Les manuscrits astrologiques latins conservés à la Bibliothèque nationale de France à Paris
Paris, 2015, xii + 338 pp. – Second volume of the same series, covering the Paris collection.

2. Co-authorships and edited works

(with Gerd Brinkhus & Helga Lengenfelder) Iatromathematisches Kalenderbuch / Die Kunst der Astronomie und Geomantie. Farbmikrofiche-Edition der Handschrift Tübingen, Universitätsbibliothek, Md 2 (Codices Illuminati Medii Aevi, 63), Munich, 2005. 123 pp. + colour microfiche set.

3. Selected articles, chapters & papers

“Neither Observation nor Astronomical Tables: An Alternative Way of Computing the Planetary Longitudes in the Early Western Middle Ages”, in Studies in the History of the Exact Sciences in Honour of David Pingree, 2004, pp. 181–222.
“Introduction to the Astrological-Divinatory Manuscript Tübingen, Universitätsbibliothek, Md 2”, in Iatromathematisches Kalenderbuch / Die Kunst der Astronomie und Geomantie, 2005, pp. 11–20.
“Non-transferable Knowledge: Arabic and Hebrew Onomancy into Latin”, Annals of Science 68/4 (2011), pp. 517–529.
“Les textes astrologiques latins attribués à Aristote”, Micrologus 21 (2013), pp. 145–164.
“The Impact of Arabic Sources on European Astrology: Some Facts and Numbers”, Micrologus 24 (2016), pp. 173–194.
“A Medieval Treatise of Onomancy: The Spera sancti Donati”, in Geomancy and Other Forms of Divination, ed. A. Palazzo & I. Zavattero, Florence, 2017, pp. 291–329.
“Abraham Ibn Ezra in Latin”, Journal for the History of Astronomy 51 (2020), pp. 126–128.
“Horoscopic Astrology in Early Medieval Europe (500-1100)”, in Settimane di Studio… La conoscenza scientifica nell’alto medioevo, Spoleto, 2019 (published 2020), pp. 311–330.
“Reading Birth Horoscopes in the Middle Ages. Latin Judgements on Nativities 1100-1450”, in Le Moyen Âge et les sciences, ed. D. Jacquart & A. Paravicini Bagliani, Florence, 2021, pp. 549–593.
(with H. Chiu) “The De tonitruis Attributed to Bede: An Early Medieval Treatise on Divination by Thunder Translated from Irish”, Traditio 68 (2013), pp. 97–124.
“A Sixteenth-Century Astrological Consultation”, in Astrologers and Their Clients in Medieval and Early Modern Europe, ed. W. Deimann & D. Juste, Cologne–Weimar–Vienna, 2015, pp. 151–204.
“La bibliothèque astrologique de Franz Cumont à l’Academia Belgica (Rome). Catalogue des livres précieux”, Bruniana & Campanelliana 11 (2005), pp. 647–657.

4. Editorial roles & series projects

Dr David Juste is a co-editor of the Ptolemaeus Arabus et Latinus series at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences, dedicated to critical editions and studies on the transmission of Ptolemaic works in Arabic and Latin. The series is divided into “Texts” and “Studies & Tools.”

The Astra Project – https://www.youtube.com/@TheAstraProject/videos – https://theastraproject.org/project – https://theastraproject.org/team

Projekt Ptolemaeus Arabus et Latinus (PAL)

an der Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften (BAdW), München:

Was ist PAL?

PAL ist ein langfristiges Editions- und Forschungsprojekt zur arabischen und lateinischen Überlieferung der ptolemäischen Astronomie und Astrologie (Originalwerke, Pseudepigrapha, Kommentare) bis ca. 1700. Träger ist die BAdW; das Projekt läuft 25 Jahre (Start 2013 → 2038) unter der Union der deutschen Akademien. Direktor ist Prof. Dag Nikolaus Hasse (Würzburg); Forschungsleiter sind Dr. David Juste und Dr. Benno van Dalen.

Ziele & Arbeitsprogramm

Korpus (“Corpus Ptolemaicum”) in drei Klassen:
A) authentische Werke (u. a. Almagest, Tetrabiblos, Handy Tables, Analemma, Planisphaerium),
B) Pseudepigrapha (vor allem Centiloquium),
C) Kommentare, Bearbeitungen, Paraphrasen.
Dreistufige Edition: (1) Online-Digitalisate ausgewählter Handschriften/Frühdrucke mit Inhaltsverzeichnissen; (2) standardisierte Online-Transkriptionen; (3) kritische Editionen (Druck in der PAL-Buchreihe, reiner Text zusätzlich online).
Manuskript-Katalog: systematische Erfassung aller arabischen und lateinischen Handschriften (und Frühdrucke) – Zielumfang mind. ~100 arabische und ~500 lateinische Codices.
Spezialmodule: Tabellen, Almanache, Horoskope (inkl. Software zur Edition/Analyse), sowie ein griechisch-arabisch-lateinisches Glossar astronomisch-astrologischer Fachbegriffe.
Kooperationen: u. a. Warburg Institute; Workshops/Konferenzen; Gast- und Forschungsstipendien in München.

Online-Datenbank (PAL-Website)

Bereiche: Works, Manuscripts, Early Prints, Images (HD-Reproduktionen), Texts (durchsuchbare Transkriptionen), Glossary; dazu Ressourcen wie AstroBibl und die Jordanus-Datenbank. Erstveröffentlichung der Datenbank: Dezember 2016; laufende Pflege.

Publikationen (Auswahl der PAL-Reihen bei Brepols; Open-Access auf der PAL-Seite)

Texts 1: Henry Zepeda, The Almagesti minor (2018).
Studies 1: Ptolemy’s Science of the Stars in the Middle Ages (2020).
Texts 2: Benno van Dalen, Kūshyār ibn Labbān – Astronomical Tables (2021).
Texts 3: Flora Vafea, Risāla Dhāt al-kursī (2024).
Texts 4: Paul Hullmeine, Ptolemy’s Cosmology in Greek and Arabic (2024).
Alle Titel sind auf der PAL-Seite mit Download gelistet; die PAL-Buchreihen (“Texts”, “Studies”) erscheinen bei Brepols.

Team & aktuelle Hinweise

Die Teamseite führt Direktion, Forschungsleitung, wissenschaftliche Mitarbeitende, Doktorand:innen, Fellows/Gäste (u. a. 2025), Partner und Associates mit Affiliationen.
Der News-Bereich dokumentiert neue Online-Texte, Bände und Aktivitäten (z. B. 2024 neue Online-Transkriptionen; 2024 zwei neue PAL-Bände).
Die Jobs-Seite informiert über Stipendienfenster (z. B. Ankündigung für Fellowships 2027).

Zeitrahmen

Offiziell 2013–2038 (25 Jahre).

Latin – the language of scholarship

in Europe due to a combination of historical, cultural, and practical reasons. – Historical Context – After the fall of the Western Roman Empire (5th century CE), the political landscape of Europe became fragmented into multiple kingdoms. Latin, however, remained as the administrative and cultural language of the Church, monasteries, and early universities. – The Role of the Church:
The Catholic Church preserved Latin as its liturgical and administrative language. Monks and clerics copied manuscripts in Latin, keeping knowledge of classical texts alive. Since the Church was a central institution across Europe, Latin became a common medium for educated people across different regions. – Universities and Education – From the 12th century onward, the rise of universities in Europe (e.g., Bologna, Paris, Oxford) formalized education. Latin was chosen as the language of instruction because students came from various regions speaking different vernacular languages. Using Latin allowed communication and the exchange of knowledge across national boundaries. – Classical Prestige:
Latin had the authority of antiquity. Scholars admired Roman writers like Cicero, Virgil, and Augustine. Writing in Latin lent credibility, continuity, and prestige to intellectual work. – Practicality for Scholarship – Latin’s grammar and vocabulary were relatively stable compared to vernacular languages, which varied widely and were evolving. This stability made it a precise language for philosophy, theology, law, and science. – Where and When – Where: Throughout Europe, especially in Italy, France, England, Germany, and the Low Countries. – When: Latin dominated scholarly communication roughly from the early Middle Ages (6th–7th century) and reached its peak in universities between the 12th and 17th centuries. It gradually declined as vernacular languages became acceptable for scholarly work by the 17th–18th centuries. – Summary: Latin became the international language of scholarship because of its association with the Church, the preservation of classical knowledge, the practical need for a common language among educated Europeans, and the prestige of Roman culture.

Copyright

Volker H. Schendel only has the right to publish the respective conversation uncut and unedited on freely accessible video platforms (i.e. no paywalls) and on his homepages. – My guest has the right to shorten, edit or add to the mp4 file as he wishes and to publish it on his websites and video-platforms according to his liking.