Folio 72v - worms, continued. Incipit de piscibus; Here begins the account of fish.
consumes everything.
The Greeks call the wood worm teredon because they eat by gnawing their way into wood. We call them termites, for in Latin that is the name given to wood worms, which are hatched from trees felled at the wrong season.
The worm found in clothes is called tinea because it gnaws at fabrics, and burrows into them until they are eaten away. For this reason, it is called pertinacious, pertinax, because it works away all the time at the same thing.
Worms of the body are the emigramus, the stomach-worm, the ascaride, the coste, the louse, the flea, the lendex, the tarmus, the tick, the usia, the bug.
The emigramus is a worm of the head.
The stomach-worm, lumbricus, creeps into or lives in the loins, lumbus.
Lice, pediculi, are worms of the body which get their name from their feet, pedes; people on whose bodies lice swarm are called lousy, pediculosi.
Fleas, pulices, however, are so called because they live mainly on dust, pulvis.
The tarmus is a worm found in pork fat.
The tick, ricinus, is a worm associated with dogs, so called because it sticks to their ears, aures; for cenos is the Greek for 'dog'.
The usia is a worm found in pigs, so called because it burns, urere. For when it bites, the place burns so much that blisters form.
The bug, cimex, gets its name from its resemblance to a plant which has the same stench; properly speaking, this worm originates in putrid meat.
To repeat, you find the moth in clothes, the caterpillar in vegetables, the termite in wood and the tarmus in pork fat.
The worm does not crawl like a snake with visible steps or by the pressure of its scales, because it lacks the firm spine which you find in snakes; but, moving in a straight line, by expanding the contracted parts and contracting the expanded parts of its little body, it unfolds in motion and, impelled in this way, creeps forwards.
Here begins the account of fish
Fish, pisces, get their name, like cattle, pecus, from the word for grazing, namely, pascere. They are called reptiles because, when they swim, they have the appearance and manner of crawling. Although they can dive deep, nevertheless they crawl as they swim. On this subject David says: 'So is this great and wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable' (Psalms, 104: 25)
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Commentary
Text
Lice, fleas, ticks. Fish are reptiles because they crawl as they swim.
Comment
Major initial 'P', type 3, marks the start of fish. 'V' in margin is colour indicator for dark pink. A page is missing after f.72v which should contain the end of fish and the start of whale. The Ashmole Bestiary has a fine picture of a whale in this location (f. 86v).
Folio Attributes
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Transcription
universa consumit. Teredonas Greci vocant lignorum\ vermes quod terendo edant. Hos nos tarmites dicimus ita\ enim apud Latinos ligni vermes vocantur, quos tempore\ importuno cese arbores gignunt. Tinea vestimentorum\ vermis dicta quod terat, et eo usque insideat, quo erodat.\ Unde et pertinax, quod in eandem rem idemtidem urgeat.\ Vermes carnium emigramus, lumbricus, ascaride, coste, pediculi,\ pulices, lendex, tarmus, ricinus, usia, cimex. Emigramus\ vermis capitis vocatus, lumbricus vermis intestinarum, dictus\ quasi lumbicus, qui labitur, vel quod in lumbis sit. Pediculi ver\mes carnis a pedibus dicti, unde et pediculosi dicuntur, quibus\ pediculi in corpore efervescunt, pulices vero vocati sunt, quod\ ex pulvere magis nutriantur. Tarmus vermis est lardi. Ricinus\ vermis est canis vocatus eo quod hereat in auribus canum. Ce\nos enim Grece canis est. Usia est vermis porci appellata, quia\ urit. Nam ubi momorderit adeo locus ardet, ut ibi vesice\ fiant. Cimex de similitudine cuiusdam herbe vocatur, cuius\ fetorem habet, proprie autem vermis in carne putrida nascitur. Ti\nea in vestimentis, eruca in olere, teredo in ligno, tarmus in\ lardo. Vermis non ut serpens apertis passibus vel squamarum\ nisibus repit, quia non est illis spine rigor ut colubri, sed in\directum corpusculi sui partes gradatim porigendo con\tractas, contrahendo porrectas, motus explicat, sicque\ agitatus prolabitur. \ Incipit de piscibus \ Pisces dicti unde et pecus, a pascendo scilicet.\ Reptilia ideo dicuntur hec que natant, eo\ quod reptandi habeant speciem et naturam.\ Quamvis se in profundum mergant, tamen\ in natando repunt. Unde et David ait: Hoc mare magnum et spaciosum manibus illic reptilia quorum\Translation
consumes everything. The Greeks call the wood worm teredon because they eat by gnawing their way into wood. We call them termites, for in Latin that is the name given to wood worms, which are hatched from trees felled at the wrong season. The worm found in clothes is called tinea because it gnaws at fabrics, and burrows into them until they are eaten away. For this reason, it is called pertinacious, pertinax, because it works away all the time at the same thing. Worms of the body are the emigramus, the stomach-worm, the ascaride, the coste, the louse, the flea, the lendex, the tarmus, the tick, the usia, the bug. The emigramus is a worm of the head. The stomach-worm, lumbricus, creeps into or lives in the loins, lumbus. Lice, pediculi, are worms of the body which get their name from their feet, pedes; people on whose bodies lice swarm are called lousy, pediculosi. Fleas, pulices, however, are so called because they live mainly on dust, pulvis. The tarmus is a worm found in pork fat. The tick, ricinus, is a worm associated with dogs, so called because it sticks to their ears, aures; for cenos is the Greek for 'dog'. The usia is a worm found in pigs, so called because it burns, urere. For when it bites, the place burns so much that blisters form. The bug, cimex, gets its name from its resemblance to a plant which has the same stench; properly speaking, this worm originates in putrid meat. To repeat, you find the moth in clothes, the caterpillar in vegetables, the termite in wood and the tarmus in pork fat. The worm does not crawl like a snake with visible steps or by the pressure of its scales, because it lacks the firm spine which you find in snakes; but, moving in a straight line, by expanding the contracted parts and contracting the expanded parts of its little body, it unfolds in motion and, impelled in this way, creeps forwards. Here begins the account of fish Fish, pisces, get their name, like cattle, pecus, from the word for grazing, namely, pascere. They are called reptiles because, when they swim, they have the appearance and manner of crawling. Although they can dive deep, nevertheless they crawl as they swim. On this subject David says: 'So is this great and wide sea, wherein are things creeping innumerable' (Psalms, 104: 25)
