Joannes Bassianus
Encyclopedia
Joannes Bassianus was an Italian
jurist
of the 12th century.
Little is known of his origin, but he is said by his jurist contemporary Carolus de Tocco (Carlo di Tocco) to have been a native of Cremona
. He was a professor in the law school of Bologna
, the pupil of Bulgarus
, and the master of Azo
. The most important of his writings which have been preserved in his Summary on the Authentica, which Savigny regarded as one of the most precious works of the Glossators.
Joannes, as he is generally termed, was remarkable for his talent in inventing ingenious forms for explaining his ideas with greater precision, and perhaps his most celebrated work is his "Law-Tree," which he entitled Arbor Arborum, and which has been the subject of numerous commentaries. The work presents a tree, upon the branches of which the various kinds of actions are arranged after the manner of fruit. The civil actions, or actiones stricti juris, being forty-eight in number, are arranged on one side, whilst the equitable or praetorian ' actions, in number one hundred and twenty-one, are arranged on the other side.
A further scientific division of actions was made by him under twelve heads, and by an ingenious system of notation the student was enabled to class at once each of the civil or praetor
ian actions, as the case might be, under its proper head in the scientific division. By the side of the tree a few glosses were added by Joannes to explain and justify his classification. His Lectures on the Pandects
and the Code, which were collected by his pupil Nicolaus Furiosus, have unfortunately perished.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
jurist
Jurist
A jurist or jurisconsult is a professional who studies, develops, applies, or otherwise deals with the law. The term is widely used in American English, but in the United Kingdom and many Commonwealth countries it has only historical and specialist usage...
of the 12th century.
Little is known of his origin, but he is said by his jurist contemporary Carolus de Tocco (Carlo di Tocco) to have been a native of Cremona
Cremona
Cremona is a city and comune in northern Italy, situated in Lombardy, on the left bank of the Po River in the middle of the Pianura Padana . It is the capital of the province of Cremona and the seat of the local City and Province governments...
. He was a professor in the law school of Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
, the pupil of Bulgarus
Bulgarus
Bulgarus was a twelfth century Italian jurist, born at Bologna. He is sometimes erroneously called Bulgarinus, which was properly the name of a jurist of the 15th century....
, and the master of Azo
Azo (Jurist)
Azo of Bologna or Azzo or Azolenus was an influential Italian jurist and a member of the school of the so-called glossators. Born circa 1150 in Bologna, Azo studied under Joannes Bassianus and became professor of civil law at Bologna...
. The most important of his writings which have been preserved in his Summary on the Authentica, which Savigny regarded as one of the most precious works of the Glossators.
Joannes, as he is generally termed, was remarkable for his talent in inventing ingenious forms for explaining his ideas with greater precision, and perhaps his most celebrated work is his "Law-Tree," which he entitled Arbor Arborum, and which has been the subject of numerous commentaries. The work presents a tree, upon the branches of which the various kinds of actions are arranged after the manner of fruit. The civil actions, or actiones stricti juris, being forty-eight in number, are arranged on one side, whilst the equitable or praetorian ' actions, in number one hundred and twenty-one, are arranged on the other side.
A further scientific division of actions was made by him under twelve heads, and by an ingenious system of notation the student was enabled to class at once each of the civil or praetor
Praetor
Praetor was a title granted by the government of Ancient Rome to men acting in one of two official capacities: the commander of an army, usually in the field, or the named commander before mustering the army; and an elected magistratus assigned varied duties...
ian actions, as the case might be, under its proper head in the scientific division. By the side of the tree a few glosses were added by Joannes to explain and justify his classification. His Lectures on the Pandects
Pandects
The Digest, also known as the Pandects , is a name given to a compendium or digest of Roman law compiled by order of the emperor Justinian I in the 6th century .The Digest was one part of the Corpus Juris Civilis, the body of civil law issued under Justinian I...
and the Code, which were collected by his pupil Nicolaus Furiosus, have unfortunately perished.
Further reading
- "Introduction," Francis Zulueta and Peter Stein, eds., The Teaching of Roman Law in England Around 1200 (1990)