A Most Sovereign Herb: Pseudo-Antonius Musa on Betony

Abstract

This essay studies various important aspects of the history of text of the treatise De herba Vettonica, ultimaty attributed to Antonius Musa, Augustus' physician and the brother of King Juba II. The possible existence of an original Greek text, the relationship between the treatise and the writings of Pliny, and the translation of the treatise into Old English are discussed, among other topics. With respect to this translation, the author insists on its importance for the establishment of the Latin text of the treatise, because it dates certainly before the turn of the millennium, and the majority of Latin manuscripts is from a later period.