SUMMA. Repositorio Institucional

Some remarks regarding Nicholas of Cusa and his manuscripts Jan Bernd Elpert, ofmcap Philosophisch-Theologische Hochschule Münster 1. Introduction A few years before Nicholas of Cusa’s death he wrote a book entitled On the Pursuit of Wisdom (De venatione sapientiae). Here he compared the philosopher –i. e. also himself with a hunter for wisdom1–. But Cusanus was not only a pursuer of wisdom but also a pursuer in libraries searching for old manuscripts and handwritings, as we know. When in 1434 Cusanus finished his book on Catholic Concordance we can read in the preface that to complete this book he was searching in archives and libraries for old original documents that were lost in order to study the originals rather than from collected handbooks. “Other Nations should not be surprised to read in the documents quoted below things that they have not heard before. For I have collected many original sources that have long been lost in the armouries of ancient cloisters. Those who read these 1  Cf. De ven. sap., h XII, c. 1, N. 5, Z 11-13: “Nihil enim sunt philosophi nisi venatores sapientiae, quam quisque in lumine logicae sibi conatae suo modo investigat”. The works of Cusanus are quoted out of Nicolai de Cusa, Opera omnia iussu et auctoritate Academiae Litterarum Heidelbergensis ad codicum fidem edita, Leipzig-Hamburg (Felix Meiner) 1932 ff [= h Vol.]; N. = numerus; Z. = linea. Here I want to express my gratitude to Fr. Michael Duffy for his assistance to correct my English text.

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