TABLE OF CONTENTS. PAGE iii PREFACE 10 De Septem Mundi Miraculis.-The Seven Wonders of the World. Latin and English..... 174 Vita Sancti Cuthberti.-The Life of Saint Cuthbert. In Latin and English 202 Vita Abbatum Wiremuthensium et Girvensium.-The Lives of 444 a PREFACE. THIS Volume contains all the other Historical Works, besides the Ecclesiastical History, written by the Venerable Bede. They are as follows: 1. DE SEPTEM MUNDI MIRACULIS. OF THE SEVEN WONDERS OF THE WORLD. This short tract is found in the folio editions of the works [Bas. i. 474. Col. i. 401-7], from which it has been reprinted. Manuscripts of it are either not in existence,or are scarce. It may well be doubted whether it is a genuine work of Bede; indeed, the contrary is by far the most probable. It is retained in this edition, on account of the curious information which it contains. II. MARTYROLOGIUM DE NATALITIIS SANCTORUM. This work was first discovered by Henschenius, and published in the Acta Sanctorum [Præf. tom. i. Jan. p. 40. et Proleg. ad Mens. Mart. tom. ii. § 5 seqq.] from six MSS. Henschenius was aware that the Martyrology which occurs in the folio editions is spurious, because Ado and Usuardus both say that Bede's genuine work was left incomplete to a considerable extent. He was consequently better prepared to recognize a fragment of Bede's real production in Queen Christina's library at Rome; and afterwards he found at Dijon the whole work, with additions by a later hand inserted in the parts which Bede was known not to have filled up. Henschenius at first attributed it to Florus, but afterwards to Bede. Smith published it cum Auctario Flori, in his folio edition, and Eckarthus published a continuation to it from a Wirceburg MS. in Comm. de Rebus Franciæ Orientalis et Episcopis Wirceburg. tom. i. p. 829, 830. Wirceb. 1729. See Mabillon, Act. Ben. sec. iii. pt. i. p. 560. and Oudin. Comment. tom. i. p. 1692. The Martyrology published in the folio editions, [Bas. iii. 380-487. Col. iii. 277-360.] and separately Antwerpiæ, 1565, is, as has been before stated, spurious, and is taken from Ado. Bede's second Martyrology, in hexameter verse, found in D'Achery's Spicilegium, tom. x. p. 126, ed. nov. ii. 23. [see also Mabillon, Acta Bened. sec. iii. i. p. 560. and sec. iv. ii. p. 85.] will be found among Bede's poetical works in the first volume of this series. Another Martyrology, forming a sort of almanac, and entitled Ephemeris sive Computus Vulgaris, found in the folio editions [Bas. i. 242-266. Col. i. 191-213] was written by Wandelbertus Prumiensis. See Oudin. Comment. tom. i. p. 1683. |