Jandun on Elements. A Critical Survey with Text Edition

Abstract

This article presents the critical edition of John of Jandun’s question on the mixture of elements, drawn from his Quaestiones super Metaphysicam. The text has been established through a careful assessment of the manuscript tradition, which reveals the existence of two distinct redactions. Jandun’s discussion of the elements is particularly significant for two main reasons. First, it situates him within the Parisian debate on the nature and interaction of elements, a discussion initiated by Pierre Auriol in the Faculty of Theology and soon taken up within the Faculty of Arts. Second, and as a consequence, this question provides important evidence for dating the composition of Jandun’s Quaestiones super Metaphysicam. By clarifying both the textual tradition and the intellectual context, this edition contributes to a better understanding of Jandun’s role in early 14th-century scholastic hylomorphic debates.