Author: active 13th century Bartholomaeus Anglicus

Bartholomaeus Anglicus, active during the 13th century, is best known for his encyclopedic work “De proprietatibus rerum” (On the Properties of Things), an early forerunner to the modern encyclopedia which gained considerable fame for its scope and detail on various topics. This scholastic scholar often referred to as Bartholomew the Englishman, was a Franciscan monk whose breadth of knowledge spanned across theology, natural history, psychology, alchemy, and medicine. His seminal work, translated into English as “Mediaeval Lore from Bartholomew Anglicus”, offered a compendium of the universal knowledge of his time. It became an invaluable resource for medieval scholars because it compiled classical and contemporary learning into a single accessible volume. His writing style strongly reflects the didactic and allegorical prose preferred during the Middle Ages, aimed at both instructing and moralizing. Bartholomaeus”s work significantly influenced later medieval writers and was used as a textbook well into the Renaissance. Although the specific details of his life are scant, his contribution to the natural sciences and the dissemination of knowledge during the 13th century positions him as a pivotal figure in the intellectual history of the Middle Ages. His work not only exemplifies the scholastic efforts of his era but also serves as a vital link in the continuum of Western learning, bridging the gap between classical antiquity and the emerging modern world.