The medieval understanding of mathematics differed from the modern one. It was discussed in a distinctly theological-philosophical context and in theory encompassed four disciplines. Arithmetic, geometry, astronomy and music formed the so-called mathesis, or quadrivium, which, together with grammar, rhetoric and dialectic (trivium), belonged to the group of the seven liberal arts. Late antique scholars such as Boethius, Martianus Capella and Isidore of Seville contributed the most to the development of such a system, who, with their intellectual heritage, represented a bridge between ancient scientific wealth and the near oblivion of the early Middle Ages. In my thesis, I focus on the state of Western European mathematics towards the end of the 10th century, at the time of the scientific activity of Gerbert of Aurillac, whose intellectual breadth and political rise were crowned with pontificate at the turn of the millennium. In some way, this is a microhistorical study, as the assignment tries to paint a picture of the state of the Western European quadrivium largely on the example of his character. The thesis dedicates itself also to the mechanisms of knowledge transfer between the Andalusian and Western European Christian worlds.
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