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John Ridevall

1300 – 1340

English Franciscan friar and mythographer

MythographerFriarWriter
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About John Ridevall

Lived 1300 – 1340. John Ridevall was an English mythographer, friar, writer and monk.

John Ridewall ( 1331–1340), also known as John of Musca, was the 54th regent master of the Franciscans at Oxford. He received his doctorate in theology around 1331 and was regent in 1331–1332. He was still living in October 1340, when he was in Basel. His known writings are:

Commentarius super Fulgencium, his most popular work, a commentary on the Mitologiae of Fulgentius Lectura super Apocalypsi, a commentary on Revelation surviving only in excerpts and quotations in Robert Holcot A commentary on Augustine of Hippos' De civitate Dei, of which only books 1–3 and 6–7 survive

The Commentarius super Fulgencium, better known as Fulgentius metaforalis, has been edited at least twice, firstly by Hans Liebeschuetz in 1926 and more recently and completely by Ralph Hanna in 2023. It was designed to offer material to preachers by giving a moralizing treatment of classical mythology. It is found both as a marginal text surrounding the text of Fulgentius, a format common for commentaries, and as an independent treatise unaccompanied by Fulgentius' text. It is preserved in nine manuscripts, but nowhere complete. A majority of the manuscripts are of German origin. Some manuscripts contain an anonymous short continuation on the four virtues, De quattuor virtutibus, ascribed to a nameless "chancellor of Paris". Both texts are found in the illustrated manuscript Palatinus Latinus 1066 from southern Germany. The Liber cosmographiae of John de Foxton has been called a continuation of Fulgentius metaforalis. Ridewall's work also furnished material for two further condensations, the Ymagines Fulgencii and Prudentia depingebatur.

Two further works are sometimes attributed to Ridewall:

Ovidii Metamorphoseos fabule ccxviii moraliter exposite, a commentary on Ovid's Metamorphoses, anonymous in the manuscript, sometimes presumed to be Ridewall's, but usually attributed to Pierre Bersuire In Valerium ad Rufinum de uxore non ducenda, a commentary on Walter Map's Dissuasio Valerii ad Rufinum philosophum ne uxorem ducat, usually attributed to Ridewall, but possibly by John of Wales

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Important facts

Born
1300
Birth century
Died
1340
Occupation
Mythographer, friar, writer, monk
Nationality
Also known as
John de Ridevall, John Musca, John Ridewall, John of Musca

People in John Ridevall's life

Named in this biography and alive at the same time

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped John Ridevall's

Frequently asked questions

Who was John Ridevall?

English Franciscan friar and mythographer

When was John Ridevall born?

John Ridevall was born in 1300.

When did John Ridevall die?

John Ridevall died in 1340.

What was John Ridevall's occupation?

John Ridevall was a mythographer, friar, writer and monk.

What nationality was John Ridevall?

John Ridevall was English.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: John Ridevall

· Wikidata: Q11795492

· DBpedia: John Ridewall

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). John Ridevall. https://biography.guide/john-ridevall/

MLA: "John Ridevall." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/john-ridevall/.

Chicago: "John Ridevall." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/john-ridevall/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

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