Medieval Manuscripts in Cambridge Libraries

A catalogue of Western manuscripts and papyri at Cambridge University Library, the Fitzwilliam Museum and selected Cambridge colleges

Cambridge, University Library, MS Add. 3122

Diktyon no.: Diktyon 12119

Contents

Introduction: This manuscript contains the Akolouthia for the feast of St George (23 April), hymns and other liturgical texts proper to the services of the Divine Office (those other than the main liturgy) for that day. The completion of its major part is recorded by a colophon on f. 33r by the hieromonachos (priest and monk) Kosmas Parasche, who copied important headings and a portion of the main text in an ornate hand, but appears not to have been the scribe responsible for copying the bulk of the manuscript. A few folios (ff. 37-46) on different paper and in the hand of another scribe were added to the end of the manuscript, containing akolouthia for another feast-day, that of St Eirene on 5 May. These were bound into the manuscript outside of the original right-hand endleaves. These endleaves were written on by another hand, adding some additional hymns to St George and other hymns drawn from the Pentekostarion, the liturgical book covering the services between Easter and Pentecost. Since this hand also annotated the additional leaves, this appears to have been done after these were inserted. The colophon of Kosmas Parasche dates the manuscript's completion to 1642. However, the watermarks of papers in use in both the main body of the manuscript and the inserted folios would be more consistent with a date in the mid-16th century. It is therefore conceivable, albeit unlikely, that the date in the colophon is somehow erroneous. Dr Christopher Wright

Language(s): Greek

Physical Description

Form: codex
Extent: Codex: 6 + 47 leaves.
Foliation: The manuscript is foliated with the numbers i-vi + 1-33, [33a], 34-46, in pencil, in Arabic and Roman numerals, recto, upper right.

Collation

Part I consists of 5 quires, Part II of 1, Part III of 2: 1-48, 52, 66-3, 78, 82

Binding

16th- or 17-century limp vellum binding. The classmark appears on patches on the spine.

203 × 154 × 13 mm.

Accompanying Material

A bookplate inside the left cover records the presentation of the manuscript to Cambridge University Library by M.R. James on 20 November 1893.

History

Provenance and Acquisition

Presented to Cambridge University Library by the classical scholar Montague Rhodes James (1862-1936) on 20 November 1893.

Part 1 [Cambridge, University Library, MS Add. 3122, ff. 1-36]

Contents

Language(s): Greek

1. ff. 1r-33r
Akolouthia for St George (23 April)
Incipit: f. 1r Ἐσπέρας·[sic] ἐν τῷ μικρῷ ἐσπερινῷ[sic] εἰς τὸ Κύριε ἐκέκραξα
Explicit: f. 33r δόξη λατρείαν· προσφέρειν· τῷ Θεῷ
2. f. 33r
Colophon: Εἰς μνημόσυνον αἰώνιον τέλος τῆς παρούσης ἐόρτης ὑπὸ χειρὸς ἱερομονάχου Κοσμᾶ τοῦ Παράσχη:- Ἐν τῷ ͵αχμβʹ
3. f. [33a] verso
Troparia
Incipit: f. [33a] verso Τὸν καρτερικώτατον ἀθλητὴν, τὸν τροπαιόφορον
Explicit: f. 35r Γεώργιον τιμῶμεν, τὸν χριστομάρτυρα

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: ff. 1-[33a] Western paper, folded in quarto. Watermark: Anchor ( c. 45 × c. 31 mm. ) in the gutter, with a main motif similar but nor identical to Briquet 560, dated to 1573 and a different countermark.
Extent: 200 × 148 mm.

Collation

This part consists of 5 quires, of which one is a single bifolio and the rest are quaternia.

  • Quires 1-48 ff. 1-32
  • Quire 52 ff. 33-[33a] These folios are pasted together

There are quire signatures in Greek numerals, in brown ink, on the first folio of each quire, recto, lower right. Some have been lost to cropping. They survive wholly or partially on Quires 3-4 (γʹ-δʹ). There are also modern quire signatures in Arabic numerals, in pencil, on the first folio of each quire, recto, lower right. They survive on all quires of this part (1-4).

Condition

There is pest damage to ff. 18-[33a], increasing to the right, water staining and areas of dirt.

Layout

ff. 1r-33r A single column of 19-20 lines. 134-141 × 85 mm.

Hand(s)

The main text of ff. 1r-30r, line 10, f. 31r, line 9-f. 32v was copied by Hand A, in Hodegon-style mixed minuscule script, upright or slanting slightly to the right, in brown ink, with moderate variation in letter size and some flourishing of tails into the margin.

Syllabic abbreviations and superscript word endings appear throughout the line. Breathings are round and mute iota is subscript. There is occasional decorative use of the double dot and accentuation of all nomina sacra . Accents are sometimes joined to nomina sacra strokes.

The sigma telikon is present, and there is inclusion of letters within omicron.

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

Minor headings are written in the same style in red ink.

f. 30r, line 11-f. 31r, line 9 were copied by Hand B, in mixed minuscule script, upright slanting slightly to the right, in brown ink, with moderate variation in letter size.

Syllabic abbreviations and superscript word endings appear throughout the line. Breathings are round and mute iota is absent. There is accentuation of all nomina sacra . Accents are sometimes joined to letters.

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

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

Major headings on ff. 1r-32r and the main text of f. 33r were copied by Cosmas Parasche (Hand C), in mixed minuscule script, slanting slightly to the right, in red and brown ink, with significant variation in letter size and some flourishing of tails into the margin.

Breathings are round and mute iota is absent or subscript. There is decorative use of the double dot and accentuation of all nomina sacra . Accents are sometimes joined to nomina sacra strokes.

The loop epsilon is present, and there is inclusion of letters within omicron.

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

f. [33a] verso was copied by Hand D, who also copied ff. 34r-35r and added a note on f. 46r, in mixed minuscule script, slanting to the right, in brown ink, with moderate variation in letter size.

Breathings are round and mute iota is subscript. There is accentuation of all nomina sacra . Accents are sometimes joined to abbreviations.

The modern nu and sigma telikon are present.

Punctuation used includes the middle and upper points, lower and middle commas and full stop.

Decoration

Sections and some words in liturgical notes begin with initials in red ink, whose size and degree of ornamentation varies in line with the hierarchy of sections.

Additions

Hand D has added a marginal note on f. 33r.

History

Origin:

The main body of the manuscript was probably copied in 1642, as indicated by the colophon of Kosmas Parasche , who provided major headings and part of the main text, on f. 33r. However, the watermarks would suggest production in the 16th century, which would not be inconsistent with the style of script, so it is possible that the date is erroneous, and should perhaps properly refer to 1542.

The text on f. [33a] verso, the originally blank final folio, was added later, probably in the 17th or 18th century, by the hand who also wrote on ff. 34r-35r, originally right endleaves.

Part 2 [Cambridge, University Library, MS Add. 3076, ff. 34-35]

Contents

Language(s): Greek

4. ff. 34r-35r
Pentekostarion

Excerpts

Incipit: f. 34r Ἦχος βʹ· ὅτε ἐκ τοῦ ξύλου σὲ νεκρὸν· Χαίρουσι μαθήτριαι Χριστοῦ, τοῦ ἐκ τοῦ ἀγγέλου
Explicit: f. 35r καὶ ἀνέστη τριήμερος, σώζον τὰς ψυχὰς ἡμῶν

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: ff. 34-36 Western paper, folded in quarto. Watermark: Unidentified motif ( c. 60 × c. 45 mm. ) in the gutter. The same paper was used for the endleaves i-vi.
Extent: 200 × 148 mm.

Collation

This part consists of a single quire, probably a ternion.

  • Quire 66-3 ff. 34-36 The third, fifth and sixth folios have been lost or cancelled.

Condition

There is some pest damage, water staining and areas of dirt.

Layout

ff.34r-36v A single column of 22-26 lines. 175 × 125 mm.

Hand(s)

ff. 34r-35r were copied by Hand D, who also copied f. [33a] verso and added notes on ff. 33r and 46r, in mixed minuscule script, slanting to the right, in brown and black ink, with moderate variation in letter size.

Breathings are round and mute iota is subscript. There is accentuation of all nomina sacra . Accents are sometimes joined to abbreviations.

The modern nu and sigma telikon are present.

Punctuation used includes the middle and upper points, lower and middle commas and full stop.

Decoration

Sections begin with simple minor initials in brown ink.

History

Origin: The text on ff. 34r-35r, originally right endleaves, was apparently added at some point later than the copying of ff. 1r-33r, and that of ff. 37r-46r, by the hand who also wrote on f. [33a] verso, the originally blank final folio of the main body of the manuscript, probably in the 17th or 18th century.

Part 3 [Cambridge, University Library, MS Add. 3076, ff. 37-46]

Contents

Language(s): Greek

5. ff. 37r-46v
Akolouthia for St Eirene (5 May)
Rubric: f. 37r Τῶ αὐτῶ μηνὶ εʹ Τῆς ἁγίας μεγαλομάρτυρος Εἰρήνης· ἦχος αʹ· Πανεύφημοι μάρτυρες
Incipit: f. 37r Πορφύραν ἐξαίματος λαμπρῶς· τοῦ οἰκείου πάνσεμμνε
Explicit: f. 46v πολλοὺς πείσασα πιστεύσαι Χριστῶ· ὕστερον ἀπεκεφαλίσθη

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: ff. 37-38, 43-46 Western paper, folded in quarto. Watermark: Anchor ( c. 55 × c. 35 mm. ) in the gutter, comparable but not identical to Briquet 545. This example is dated to 1546. ff. 39-42, Western paper, folded in quarto. Watermark: Scales ( c. 55 × c. 40 mm. ) in the gutter.
Extent: 200 × 137 mm.

Collation

This part consists of 2 quires, of which one is a quaternion and the other a single bifolio.

  • Quire 78 ff. 37-44
  • Quire 82 ff. 45-46

There are modern quire signatures in Arabic numerals, in pencil, on the first folio of each quire, recto, lower right, continuing the previous sequence and accounting for the presence of one unnumbered quire after Quire 4. They survive on both quires of this part (6-7).

Condition

There is slight pest damage to ff. 37-39, water staining and areas of dirt.

Layout

ff. 37r-46r: a single column of 20 lines. 139 × 95 mm.

f. 46v: A single incomplete column of 19 lines. 81 × 95 mm.

Hand(s)

ff. 37r-46r were copied by Hand E, in brown ink, in mixed minuscule script with variable slant, influenced by the Hodegon style, with moderate variation in letter size.

Syllabic abbreviations and superscript word endings appear throughout the line. Breathings are round and mute iota is absent. There is decorative use of the double dot and accentuation of all nomina sacra . Accents are sometimes joined to nomina sacra strokes.

The sigma telikon and loop epsilon are present.

Punctuation used includes the middle and upper points, lower and middle commas and full stop.

Headings are written in the same style in red ink.

f. 46v was copied by Hand F, in mixed minuscule script with variable slant, in brown ink, with moderate variation in letter size.

Breathings are round and mute iota is absent. There is decorative use of the double dot and accentuation of all nomina sacra . The double grave accent is in use.

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

Decoration

The beginning of the text on f. 37r is preceded by a simple rectangular headpiece in red ink.

Sections begin with ornamented minor initials in red ink.

Additions

Hand D has added a marginal note on f. 46r. There are occasional marginal annotations in Greek by other hands, some of which have been partially lost to cropping.

History

Origin: These folios were not part of the original structure of the manuscript, being added outside of its original endleaves. It is unclear whether they were copied for the purpose or taken from some existing manuscript. The watermarks suggest production in the mid-16th century, but the dating and relationship between this part and the main body of the manuscript is complicated by the ambiguity of the dating of the main body.

Additional Information

Availability

Entry to read in the Library is permitted only on presentation of a valid reader's card. For information on eligibility and admissions procedures, see Joining the Library). For further enquiries, and to confirm the availability of the manuscript, please contact the Special Collections Reading Room.

Bibliography

    Hand-list of the additional Greek manuscripts in the University Library, Cambridge Scriptorium, Easterling, Patricia E. (16, 2, 302-323, 1962)

Funding of Cataloguing

The Polonsky Foundation

Digital Images

Cambridge Digital Library

Abbreviations

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