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164 C5.t5.lina Yelculescu, V. Guruianu 12

The affirmation in the Romanian Physiologus referring to the gripsor (griphon) living in pamantul liii Ioan (Ioan’s Land) near Marea Oclteanului (Ocean’s Sea) ³⁵ can be connected with the above-mentioned informations.

We would like to reiterate the fact that the fragment on Arabia Felix from the Romanian versions of Botero's book retains the narrative on the Phoenix in accordance with old traditions illustrated by Isidor of Sevilla. This part is also present in an abridged form even in the table of contents (which exists in Appendix III of this paper in the unpublished form of ms. 3391).³⁰

The special interest shown for this bird must be connected with other references to such a mythical crcature existing in the Romanian early cul-ture ³⁷.

Botero’s book that was translated into Romanian was changed in the fragment conceming our country too. We refer to an entire chapter dedicated to Moldayia, where besides correct information there is also a mediaeval flow of belief which considered the Dacians as part of the Scythians famous for their savage traditions³⁸.

The manuscript of the bishopric of Ramnicu Yalcea (ms. 1267) contained Constantin Cantacuzino’s Istoria integrated in the translation of Botero’s geography and Hronica written by Gheorghe Brancovici added to its end. It is a proof of the attempt madę by Romanian scholars to make up for the lack and to amend the errors referring to the South East of Europę.

By the end of the 17th century the readers’ attention is attracted main-ly by the wonders of Asia and thus by Laus Asiae. In the second half of the 18th century, another importance is given to the news on the South East of Europę and in the school founded by Chesarie Ramniceanu the fragment on Laus Europae (co-existing with Laus Asiae in the Romanian version) en-joyed a special treatment.

The arrangement of texts in various miscellaneous works indicates that the type of cosmography reflected by the §chei manuscript (ms. 1436) pre-serves until late in time the connection with symbolic narratives originating from a so-called imago mundi where the earth was one of the four basie ele-ments, besides water, air and fire. Botero’s geography on the other hand, achieves a correlation with historical texts as well as with Dimitrie Cantemir’s Divanul or Athanasius Kircher’s Mundus subierraneus.

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A short description of the world originating from a similar source with Pomponius Mela's De Situ Orbis (lst century B.C.) can be found at the begin-ning of a Istoria slovenilor (History of the Slovens) — in fact a translation

³⁸ "Manuscriptum”, 1991, no. 2—4, p. 29, notę 17.

³⁸ For the form existing in ms, 1556, see ‘‘Manuscriptum’’, 1991, no. 2—4, p. 31.

³⁷    Ibidem.

³⁸    Ms. 3515, f. 84^v, 86 and 88 — 89. For the fragments referring to the Romanians, see also, Cildfori słrdini despte farile romane, vol. IV, under the care of M. Holban, M. M. Ale-sandrescu-Dersca Bulgaru, P. Cernovodeanu, Bucharest, 1972, pp. 571 — 577.

In the Appendices II and III of the present paper we quote some fragments from rass, 3515 and 3391 referring to Moldavia (including Bessarabia).