OF UNCERTAIN DATE.
MELETIUS THE MONK. NOTICE.
(FABRIC. Biblioth. Græca, edit. Harl., t. IX, p. 305.)
Meletius, a monk, whose book A *On the Nature of Man* is inscribed as follows in the Seguierian codex (a) and another Imperial one (b): *"A work in summary on the nature of man, compiled and composed by Meletius, a monk of the Theme of Opsikion, of the Band of Areskos (c), of the village of Tiberiopolis (in Greater Phrygia), of the monastery called 'The Three,' that is, of the Holy Trinity; a collection from the illustrious B of the Church (d) and from the learned..."*
(a) S. Coislin. 384, fol. 162. See Montfauc. Bibl. Coisl. p. 588. HARL.
(b) No. 20, n. 1, where, according to Lambecius, *Comment.* VI, part. 11, p. 246, the inscription is: *"A work in summary on the nature of man, by a monk, from the illustrious of the Church and from the outside learned philosophers."* There follows an anonymous Preface, which in the Venetian Latin edition of Petreius is wrongly attributed to Meletius himself, and lacks its beginning there; yet in this beginning in the codex the words cited by Fabricius are read, as if proceeding from Meletius: ... *a monk of the Theme ... Trinity*. And Lambecius and Kollar, in a note, explain what *Theme of Opsikion* is, namely, a part of Asia Minor, the capital of which is Nicaea. Since the city of Tiberiopolis in Phrygia was also in this province, Kollar concludes therefrom that our Meletius was born from the town of Erocos, situated in the *comitatus* or province of Asia Minor of the *comes Anteambulus*, and belonging to the bishopric of Tiberiopolis, and lived his monastic life in the monastery of the Most Holy Trinity. Then he conjectures whether *bandou akrokou* might be read: *of the village of Tiberiopolis*, etc. Cotelerius, however, notes in *Monument. Eccl. Gr.* tom. II, p. 580, that it seems it should be read: *bandou a' krokou* or *krokiou*, i.e., "of the first yellow (*croceus*) band." The genuine Preface of Meletius follows that anonymous Preface. However, the work of Meletius is not complete in that codex. Besides these, in the same library and in the same volume of Lambecius there exist, p. 231 seq. in cod. 14, n. 1, an anonymous author's work, *Graeco-barbarum* on the *Structure of Man*, collected from Galen, Hippocrates, and the philosopher Meletius; n. 4, an anonymous author's *Graeco-barbara Ecloga* from the *Iatrosophion* of Meletius, divided into 217 chapters; it begins: *The beginning of the Iatrosophion of Meletius*. P. 237, in cod. 19, a more complete book of Meletius, indicated by Fabricius himself a little later. Page 278, in cod. 27, n. 9, an anonymous author's *Epitome* of the book of Meletius *On the Nature and Structure of Man*; it begins from a special dissertation *On the Head*. In Munich in cod. 135, *Compendium of Meletius the monk On the Nature of Man*, collected from various sacred and profane authors: some medical observations are added, especially from Galen. See *Cat. codd. Gr. Bavar.* p. 55. In Oxford in the Bodleian library according to Cat. n. 27, *Iambic verses of Meletius to the Studite*; n. 131, 260, *Mel. On the Construction of Man, a summary*; and n. 261 is indicated thus in the cat.: *Meletius the monk (is it Nemesius?) On the Nature of Man*. Ibid. in Jesus College, n. 2126, *Meletius the monk, On music and ecclesiastical chants*, in Greek, with perpetual music notes. In Venice in the library of St. Mark, cod. 297, where the inscription is also almost the same as in the Coislin or Vienna codex, *"A work in summary on the nature of man... of the illustrious of the Church, and of the outside learned and philosophers"* in cod. 521, *On the Nature of Man*: it begins, *Things concerning the constitution of man*. See *Cat. codd. Gr. Marc.* p. 139 and 280. Florence, in cod. Laurent. 19, 1, there is the *Iatrosophion*, etc., of which the tenth chapter is inscribed *Of Meletius the monk on the nature of man*. See Bandini, *Cat. codd. Gr. Laur.* III, p. 167. Ibid. p. 283 seqq., he discusses, or repeats, what our Fabricius noted in the same place, concerning Meletius and whether he is different from others of the same name, while he lists cod. 1, in which n. 2, plut. 86, *A work of Meletius in summary on the nature of man*, etc. (as is read in other previously mentioned codices), the work is complete: which also, indeed for the most part complete, yet in the order and division of chapters and other matters differing from that which survives in the previous codex, exists in cod. 20, n. 1, plut. 86, according to Bandini III, p. 364. C In cod. Coislin. 335, among the works and fragments of various physicians are, fol. 75, *Excerpts on diseases from Hippocrates, Galen, and Meletius*. In Paris in seven codices of the public library, there is the *Book on the nature of man* of Meletius, philosopher and physician. And indeed in codex 2224, three books of Meletius on medicine are cited; and by the author of the *Cat. codd. Paris.* II, p. 464, that work in that codex is designated thus: *Three books of Meletius the monk, of which the first is on the nature and structure of man, the remaining two on matters pertaining to medicine*. The first book has XIV chapters; the second XXVI, the third LIV. D An index of the chapters of the first and second books is prefixed to the codex; but the index of the chapters of the third book is subscribed to the very third book. If this is one work of one author, it is probable that Meletius the monk was not different from Meletius the physician (concerning whom see below, in Vol. XIII, p. 328 seq. in the *Elenchus of ancient physicians*); nor is it an unheard-of thing that learned men should have devoted commendable effort to both sacred and medical doctrines and arts. At least, it is inferred therefrom that Meletius the monk, if another Meletius—one occupied solely with the healing art—also lived, was not entirely unskilled in the medical art, and therefore those two could easily have been confused by scribes and others, even more learned men. Then it is known from this that the book *On the nature of man* was the first part of a larger work: in cod. 2299 there are three parts of Meletius the monk, the author of the *Cat.* II, p. 478, declares in this order: I. *Treatise On the nature of man*; II. *Book On the Soul*; III. *An unpublished short work On the four elements*. To the same Meletius, philosopher and physician, in cod. 2212 and the following, is attributed a *Commentary on the Aphorisms of Hippocrates*; and in codices 2240 and 2315, *Political verses on urines and their difference*. HARL.
(c) Al. [as in the cited cod. Caesar. 20], *Akrokou*. What *Opsikion* or *Theme of Opsikion* denotes, I said above (note b).
(d) In cod. Coisl. *Eccl.* is missing, then is read: *of the illustrious, and of the outside learned philosophers.* HARL.