Bibliotheca Arnamagnæana - 01.06.1943, Qupperneq 74
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(= Bishop Synesios of Kyrene, c. 400 A.D.) in his i48th letter,
see Epistolographi Graeci, ed. Hercher, 1873, p. 731.
— 438. The quotation from Crymogæa is found there at p. 21.
— 58. The figure XL is derived from Pliny N.H. IV 16.
— 59'10. This information is probably derived from the Saga
of St. Olaf Chapter 81. As to the use Bishop borlåkur made of this
saga, see below, the note to § 6.
— 513"15. The quotation from Juvenal was probably taken from
Crymogæa p. 14, where the error qvid for qvidem also occurs.
— 517. supputante Bibliandro: The reference is to the Swiss
theologian Theodor Buchmann (f 1564) and probably also to his
work De ratione temporum ... liber unus. Demonstrationum chrono-
logicarum liber alius, Basileæ 1551, where the reign of Domitian is
mentioned at p. 261.
— j22-25. The form Hoebudes for Hebrides originates from Pliny
N.H. IV 16, but also occurs in several other places in i6th century
literature.
— 525. Kings in the Hebrides are neither mentioned in St. Olaf’s
Saga nor in Olaf Tryggvason’s Saga. Probably, then, Bishop borlåkur
had his knowledge about it either from Peder Claussøn’s translation
of the Heimskringla (see below, the note to p. io9"10) or possibly
from Orkneyinga Saga, which he may have known.
— 2320. Spormannus: Peder Spormand (1608-61), Professor
in the University of Copenhagen. It is not known to me that he
ever expressed his opinion on the Thule problem in print.
§ 3. As to the situation and size of Iceland both bishops agree
with Amgrimur Jonsson’s statements, which again are based on
Bishop GuSbrandur borlåksson’s determination of its position (cf.
Introduetion, p. X), as is, indeed, pointed out in RS (p. 532).
P. 534. longitudo: probably calculated from the Azores (as in
Mercator).
— 535-63. The said measurement of the latitude of Hålar in
1644 (less accurate than that of GuSbrandur borlåksson) is not
known from any other source. The Runålfur Jonsson referred to had
studied in Copenhagen in 1640-44, was headmaster of the Holar school
in 1644-49, but then went back to Copenhagen where he took an
M.A.'degree in 1650, and later he became headmaster of a school