Medieval Manuscripts in Cambridge Libraries: Cambridge, Trinity College, MS O.1.73

Diktyon no.: Diktyon 11969

Introduction: This manuscript, probably copied in the mid-16th century, contains ten of Pindar's Olympic Odes and Lykophron's Alexandra. The Odes present here are the first ten of the set of fourteen surviving poems composed by the Theban poet in the 5th century BCE to celebrate victors at the Olympic games. The Alexandra is a long poem framed as a prophecy of Cassandra, relating the deeds of heroes of the Trojan War, traditionally attributed to the 4th-3rd-century BCE tragedian Lykophron of Chalkis. These two items of content were copied by different scribes and separated by a long run of blank folios. Both were written on widely spaced lines in order to accommodate interlinear and marginal scholia, which clarify and comment on the text. The scholia accompanying the Alexandra belong to the collection organised by the 12th-century Byzantine scholar John Tzetzes. The presence in a Greek note on f. i verso of a name apparently containing the Venetian honorific Miser suggests that the manuscript may have spent time in a Greek population under Venetian rule. Dr Christopher Wright

Language(s): Greek

1. ff. 1r-70r

Pindar, Olympia

Odes 1-10

The text of Odes 1-5 (ff. 1r-31v) is accompanied by interlinear scholia in red ink and marginal scholia in black ink; interlinear scholia in black ink have been added by a different hand to parts of Odes 7 and 8 (ff. 50r-50v, 55v)

Rubric: f. 1r Πινδάρου Ὀλυμπινίκα Ἱέρωνι Συρακουσίῳ κέλητι

Incipit: f. 1r Ἄριστον μὲν ὕδωρ· ὁ δὲ χρυσὸς, αἰθώμενον πῦρ

Explicit: f. 70r Γανυμήδει θάνατον ἄλαλκε σὺν Κυπρογενεῖ

TLG 0033.001

2. fff. 70v-106v

Blank folios

There are later notes on ff. 70v and 106v.

3. ff. 107r-194r

Lykophron, Alexandra

Incipit: f. 107r Λέξω τὰ πάντα νητρεκῶς ἁ[sic] μ’ἱστορεῖς

Explicit: f. 194r σώζων παλαιὰν Βεβρύκων παγκληρίαν

TLG 0033.001

4. ff. 107r-194r

Scholia in Lycophronem (scholia vetera et recentiora partim Isaac et Joannis Tzetzae)

Rubric: f. 107r Βίβλος μὲν τελέθουσα Λυκόφρονος ἀσματακόμπου ἦν ἀλαὸς προπάροιθεν ἀδερκέα δεγρμ'ἀτ'ἐχουσα[sic] νῦν δέ με δορκαλέην Ἑρμείῃ θήκατο τέχνῃ, Τζέτζης Ἰσαάκιος ἐΰστροφα πείσματα λύσας

Scholia appear between the lines in red ink and in the margins in black ink

TLG 5030.001

5. ff. 194v-222v

Blank folios

There are later notes on ff. 219v-222r.

Physical Description

Form: codex

Support: ff. 1-8 Western paper, folded in duodecimo. Watermark: Unidentified motif ( c. 45 × 45 mm. ) in the gutter. ff. 17-24 Western paper, folded in duodecimo. Watermark: Bird ( c. 65 × c. 50 mm. ) in the gutter. ff. 25-48 Western paper, folded in duodecimo. Watermark: Bird ( c. 60 × c. 45 mm. ) in the gutter. ff. ff. 49-64, 144-195 Western paper, folded in duodecimo. Watermark: Hat ( 53 × 43 mm. ) in the gutter, similar to Briquet 3407. This example is dated to 1523-1553. ff. 65-118, 196-222 Western paper, folded in duodecimo. Watermark: Anchor ( c. 62 × 40 mm. ) in the gutter, similar to Mošin 1138-1139, 1142-1143, 1150-1152. These examples are dated to 1550-1565.

Extent: Codex: iii + 2 + 222 + i leaves. 180 × 110 mm.

Foliation: The manuscript is foliated with the numbers [a-c] + I-II + 1-222 + [d], in Arabic and Roman numerals, in pencil, recto, upper right.

Collation

The manuscript consists of 27 quires, of which one is of fourteen folios, two are quinia, one is a binion and the rest are quaternia.

Quires 1-13⁸ ff. 1-104
Quire 14¹⁴ ff. 105-118
Quire 15^10-1 ff. 119-127 The fifth folio has been cancelled, without loss of text
Quires 16-21⁸ ff. 128-175
Quires 22-23¹⁰ ff. 176-195
Quires 24-26⁸ ff. 196-219
Quire 27^4-1 ff. 220-222 The last folio has been lost, without loss of text

1-13⁸ 14¹⁴ 15^10-1 (5th leaf excised) 16-21⁸ 22-23¹⁰ 24-26⁸ There are quire signatures in Greek on the first recto and last verso of each quire, in the middle of the lower margin. Some have been partially cropped when the manuscript was bound and others lost entirely.

Condition

In good condition. Some areas of dirt, typically in the lower outer corners of the leaves where the volume was held. Water damage on ff. 127v-128r (not affecting the text), ff. 105v-106r (blanks), 107v-108r. Some leaves remain uncut or partially uncut along the upper edge: for example, ff. 73-74, 79-80, 99-100. The same is true of the endleaves ff. [b-c].

Layout

ff. 1r-70r A single column of 6-12 lines. 50-90 × 50 mm. Ruled in hardpoint, frame only, though this is not always visible.

ff. 107r-194r A single column of 5-9 lines. 46-71 × 45 mm.

Hand(s)

ff. 1r-70r were copied by Hand A in mixed minuscule script with variable slant, in black ink, with moderate variation in letter size.

Syllabic abbreviations and superscript word endings appear throughout the line. Breathings are round and mute iota is subscript. Accents are sometimes joined to breathings and abbreviations.

The modern nu and sigma telikon are present.

Punctuation used includes the middle point, lower comma and full stop.

Interlinear scholia are written in the same style in red ink.

ff. 107r-194r were copied by Hand B in mixed minuscule script, slanting to the right, in black ink, with moderate variation in letter size.

Syllabic abbreviations and superscript word endings appear throughout the line. Breathings are round and mute iota is subscript. Accents are sometimes joined to breathings, letters and abbreviations.

The modern eta, modern nu, loop epsilon and sigma telikon are present.

Punctuation used includes the middle point, lower and middle commas, question mark and full stop.

Interlinear scholia are written in the same style in red ink.

Decoration

The beginning of each of the Odes of Pindar is preceded by a simple plaited headpiece in black ink (ff. 1r, 10r, 21r, 26r, 28v).

The Odes on ff. 10r, 21r, 26r and 28v begin with ornamented minor initials in red ink. That on f. 107r begins with a small and simple minor initial in coloured ink, now faded.

The Ode on f. 1r begins with an ornamented minor initial in black ink.

Additions

There are notes in Greek by various hands on ff. i verso-ii recto and 219v-222r, including on f. i verso the names Miser Gianni Alivizi, Evrantzo and Antoni Kokini: ‘Μυρσερ Τζάνι Ἀλιβίζη’, ‘Ευράντζω’, ‘Ἀντώνι Κοκίνη’.

The former classmarks L.1 and 392 are written on f. i verso.

Binding

18th-century binding with grey paper covering over couched-laminate boards, with a white parchment spine and plain pastedowns. The classmark appears on the spine on patches.

116 × 85 × 45 mm.

History

Origin: The manuscript was probably copied in the mid-16th century, as suggested by the watermarks. This is consistent with the style of script.

Provenance and Acquisition

Donated by the antiquary Roger Gale (1672-1744) , in 1738.

Additional Information

Availability

Visitors to Trinity College who wish to consult Special Collections material are required to apply to the Library in advance of their visit. For information on eligibility and admission procedures see: Trinity College: Information for Readers.

Bibliography

The western manuscripts in the library of Trinity College: a descriptive catalogue, James, M.R. (Cambridge, 3, Cambridge University Press, 1902)

Histoire du texte de Pindare, Irigoin, Jean (Paris, C. Klincksieck, 1952)

Funding of Cataloguing

The Polonsky Foundation

Digital Images

Cambridge Digital Library

Abbreviations

View list of abbreviations and editorial conventions.

Medieval Manuscripts in Cambridge Libraries

Cambridge, Trinity College, MS O.1.73

Contents