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 Ff.4.2

Diktyon no.: Diktyon 12186

Contents

Introduction: This is a composite manuscript, all of whose portions probably date to between about 1490 and 1575. Its principal components are two Late Antique commentaries on the Book of Genesis. One was the work of Prokopios of Gaza, a teacher and writer on rhetoric at the famous school of Gaza in the 5th and 6th centuries, who also wrote a number of other Biblical commentaries. The other, focusing on the Creation, was by Anastasios of Sinai, a 7th-century monk of the Monastery of St Catherine on Mount Sinai who became its abbot. The text of Prokopios was copied almost entirely by a single scribe, although with a distinct rubricator for the opening heading. However, a few lines on f. 82v were copied by a different hand, who had difficulty keeping the text in a straight line. This shakiness of technique and the brevity of the text copied suggests that this may have been practice by a trainee scribe. One of the words copied by this hand is oddly split into two portions joined by a hyphen (in the sense of a short horizontal line between letters, of the sort familiar in modern use, or resembling those sometimes used in Greek manuscripts to indicate the continuation of a word from one line to the next, rather than the long, curved hyphen beneath the line of text used in Greek manuscripts to unite separate words). This again suggests a lack of experience on the part of this copyist, who had perhaps misunderstood a word split across two lines of text. The earliest likely date for the copying of this text can only be roughly fixed to the last years of the 15th century, on the basis of the watermarks in use. Since it has been established that at least one copy was made from it by the scribe Andreas Darmarios, whose career has been extensively studied, during a period of activity in the early 1560s associated with the Council of Trent, it must have existed before the conclusion of the council in 1563. The text of Anastasios can be dated by the combination of watermarks on the papers used to the period between about 1560 and 1575, and evidently originally formed a separate book, or portion of one, from that of Prokopios. It was the work of two scribes, one with a floridly calligraphic hand, the other much plainer and more rigid in style. The work of copying was switched back and forth with extraordinary frequency between these two, to the extent that at times they were copying alternate pages, while they quite often handed over to one another in mid-line. This was clearly a close collaboration, with the two copysists constantly alternating, rather than working simultaneously or successively on separate quires. At some point these two texts were bound together with one another and with a third, much briefer portion of text, containing part of the Liturgy of St James and copied by a prolific scribe active in the mid-16th century, Konstantinos Palaiokappas, a monk of the Grand Lavra on Mount Athos who became King Henry II of France 's librarian at Fontainebleau. Although brief, this was evidently a deliberate excerpt, as it begins with a heading identifying it as part of the liturgy (f. 294r) and ends with an ornamental arrangement of text marking the end of a text or section, followed by a blank verso folio. This suggests that its presence may be deliberate rather than merely the incidental reuse of a few folios as endleaves, but it is not clear why this particular part of the liturgy should have been selected for inclusion alongside the two commentaries on Genesis. Dr Christopher Wright

Language(s): Greek

Physical Description

Form: codex
Extent: Codex: 3 + 298 + 2 leaves.
Foliation: The manuscript is foliated with the numbers [i-iii] + 1-110, 110*, 111-297 + [iv-v], in pencil, in Arabic numerals, recto, upper right.
Foliation: Every tenth folio (1, 11, 21 etc) has also been numbered in pencil, in Arabic numerals, recto, lower right. Numbers in this position have also been added to ff. 292, 294 and 297.

Collation

Part I consists of 14 quires, Part II of 23: 1-68, 76, 8-148, 15-368, 376.

Condition

The edges are worn, and there are mould deposits on the outer folios and edges.

Binding

18th-century quarter-leather binding with brown paper covering over couched-laminate boards, with plain pastedowns and a brown leather spine with gold tooling. The classmark appears on labels and the title ‘Procopius In Genesim &c.’ tooled in gold on a red leather label on the spine.

334 × 233 × 61 mm.

The inserted leaves ff. 110* and 293 bear leather tabs from leaf markers on the fore-edge.

Both boards are partly split.

History

Provenance and Acquisition

Owned by J.-B. Hautin , probably the grandson of Jean-Baptiste Hautin (ca. 1580-1640) (Easterling, 'Two Greek MSS.', p. 111, n. 1).

John Moore (1646-1714) , bishop of Ely: no. 975 in the handwritten supplementary list of Moore's manuscripts, now MS Oo.7.50(2), compiled by Thomas Tanner after the publication of Bernard, Catalogi librorum manuscriptorum Angliæ et Hiberniæ (1697).

Presented to the University Library in 1715 by George I : donation bookplate engraved by John Pine (1690-1756) in 1736 on f. 1r.

Part 1: endleaves [Cambridge, University Library, MS Ff.4.2, ff. [i-iii], 293, [iv-v]]

Contents

Language(s): Latin

Endleaves

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: ff. [i-iii], 110*, 293, [iv-v] Western paper, folded in folio, with 12 chainlines per leaf. Watermark: Armorial (letter N on crowned shield, with the name Nicolas Lebe) ( 69 × 58 mm. ) in the centre of the folio.
Extent: 311 × 206 mm.

Additions

There is a note recording the contents on f. [iii] verso, in the hand of J.B. Hautin. The title of the following text has been added on f. 293r: ‘Ἐκ τῆς λειτοργίας τοῦ ἁγίου Ἰακώβου.’ ‘MS.’.

History

Origin: These endleaves and inserts separating the different sections of the manuscript were added by 1640, the year of the death of J.-B. Hautin, as indicated by the presence of a note in his hand.

Part 2 [Cambridge, University Library, MS Ff.4.2, ff. 1-110]

Contents

1. ff. 1r-110v
Procopius, of Gaza, approximately 475-approximately 528, Commentary on Genesis
Language(s): Greek

Chapters 1-18:1

Filiation: Metzler identifies this text as having been copied from London, British Library, MS Add. 18232, as the exemplar for Vienna, Österreichische Nationalbibliothek, MS theol. gr. 47, and as the exemplar via a lost intermediate copy for Vienna, Österreichische Nationalbibliothek, MS theol. gr. 68 and Munich, Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, MS gr. 51.
Rubric: f. 2r Ἀρχὴ σῦν Θεῷ, τῆς εἰς τὴν Γένεσιν τῶν ἐκλογῶν ἐπιτομῆς Προκοπίου Χριστιανοῦ σοφιστοῦ
Incipit: f. 2r Ἤδη μὲν καὶ πρότερον Θεοῦ τὸ δύνασθαι
Explicit: f. 110v ὅθεν φιλίως ὁ πρεσβύτης προσδραμὼν μεταφόβου καὶ χαρᾶς προσεκύνησεν ὧ καὶ τὴν δοξολογίαν εὐχαρίστω καρδία, ἀνέπεμψεν ὅτι αὐτῶ πρέπει τιμῆ καὶ προσκύνησις εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας ἀμὴν
Final rubric: f. 110v Τέλος

TLG 2598.020

f. 1r-1v is blank except for the author's name, ‘Προκοπίου σοφιστοῦ’

A substantial portion of the text of the prooimion, section 1, has been accidently repeated by the scribe and then crossed through, on ff. 5v-6r.

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: Western paper, folded in folio. Watermark: Anchor ( 60 × 37 mm. ) in the centre of the folio, similar to Briquet 478, 480, 484-486, 490, 496. These examples are dated to 1502-1565.
Extent: 311 × 210 mm.

Collation

The first part of the manuscript consists of 14 quires, of which one is a ternion, and the rest are quaternia.

  • Quires 1-68 ff. 1-48
  • Quire 76 ff. 49-54
  • Quires 8-148 ff. 55-110

There are early quire signatures in Greek numerals at the beginning of each quire, in brown ink, recto, lower right, on Quires 2 (βʹ) and 4-14 (δʹ-ιδʹ), probably original to the production of the manuscript. A later hand has added a signature to Quire 3 (γʹ) in red ink. There are also modern quire signatures in Arabic numerals at the beginning of each quire, in pencil, recto, lower right, on Quires 1 and 3-4.

Condition

There are brown stains on f. 110v.

Layout

A single column of 30 lines. 220 × 125 mm.

Hand(s)

ff. 2r-82v, line 20, ff. 83r-110v were copied by Hand A in a mixed minuscule script, slanting to the right, in brown or black ink, with modest variation in letter size. The slant grows increasingly pronounced in the course of the manuscript. There are deletions by strikethrough.

Syllabic abbreviations appear throughout the line, but superscript word endings only at the end of lines. Breathings are round and mute iota is absent. There is decorative use of the double dot, and accentuation of all nomina sacra . Horizontal strokes appear over proper names. Accents are sometimes joined to letters, breathings, abbreviations and nomina sacra strokes. There are frequent corrections to erroneous accents.

The modern eta, modern nu, sigma telikon and loop epsilon are present, and there are inclusions of letters within omicron. Majuscule gamma appears with a leftward turn at the foot and an upward-slanting horizontal. The abbreviation of περί appears in a distinctive form, with a long downward curve from the central stroke of the epsilon, and the abbreviation of καί also takes an unusual form.

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

The heading on f. 2r was added by Hand B in mixed minuscule script, slanting to the right, in red ink.

f. 82v, lines 20-30 were copied by Hand C in a mixed minuscule script, upright or slanting slightly to the right, in brown ink, with modest variation in letter size. The line discipline of this hand is uneven.

Syllabic abbreviations appear throughout the line. Breathings are round and mute iota is absent. There is decorative use of the double dot. Accents are sometimes joined to letters and breathings, and are sometimes erroneous.

The loop epsilon is present.

Punctuation used includes the middle and upper points and lower comma. A word is inappropriately hyphenated (‘ἀπολαμ-βανόμενα’).

Decoration

A plaited band in red ink precedes the beginning of the text (f. 2r).

The text begins with a slightly ornamented initial in red ink (f. 2r).

The end of the text is arranged in multiple tapering forms accompanied by simple cul-de-lampe ornament in red ink (110v).

Additions

There are marginal corrections and annotations in Greek by another hand.

History

Origin: This portion of the manuscript was copied between about 1490 and 1563, on the basis of the watermarks and style of script, and the dating of manuscripts derived from it.

Provenance

Metzler places the production of copies from this manuscript in the environs of the Council of Trent and in the workshop of Andreas Darmarios , which would place it in that area in about 1560-1563.

Part 3 [Cambridge, University Library, MS Ff.4.2, ff. 111-292]

Contents

2. ff. 111r-292v
Anastasios of Sinai (fl. 640-700), Ἑξαημέρον (Hexaemeron)
Language(s): Greek

Books 1-11

Filiation: Kuehn and Baggarly have placed this manuscript in family IIIc of this text. This family also contains Madrid, Biblioteca Nacional, MS 4773 , Turin, Biblioteca Nazionale, MS C.IV.26, Rome, Biblioteca Vallicelliana, MS F.58 (99) and (more distantly related) Madrid, Biblioteca Nacional, MS 4775 and Escorial, Real Biblioteca, MS Ψ.I.4.
Rubric: f. 111r Τοῦ θειοτάτου Ἀναστασίου τοῦ Σιναΐτου, ἀναγωγὴν ὡραίαν εἰς τὴν ἐξαημέραν κτίσ⟨εως⟩:- Τοῦ ἐν ἁγίοις πατρὸς ἡμῶν Ἀναστασίου τοῦ Σινὰ ὅρους· μοναχὸς, καὶ πρεσβυτέρου εἰς τὴν πνευματικὴν ἀναγωγὴν τῆς ἐξαημέρου κτίσεως, προοίμιον
Incipit: f. 111r Φωνὴ Θεοῦ ἱερὰ, ἀρ'ῥύεσθαι ὕδωρ ἐκ σωτηρίων πηγῶν
Explicit: f. 292r δόξαν ἀναπέμψωμεν νῦν καὶ ἀεὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων ἀμήν
Final rubric: f. 292v Σὺν Θεῶ τέρμα εἴληφε ἡ τοιαύτη βίβλος:- Τέλος

TLG 2896.008

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: ff. 111-182 Western paper, folded in folio, with 7 chainlines per leaf. Watermark: Anchor ( 60 × 37 mm. ) in the centre of the folio, similar to Briquet 478, 480, 484-486, 490, 496. These examples are dated to 1502-1565. ff. 183-254 Western paper, folded in folio, with 7 chainlines per leaf. Watermark: Angel ( 70 × 24 mm. ) in the centre of the folio, similar but not identical to Briquet 649, 672. These examples are dated to 1562-1572. ff. 255-292 Western paper, folded in folio, with 7 chainlines per leaf. Watermark: Anchor ( 65 × 41 mm. ) in the centre of the folio, similar to Mošin 1712. These examples are dated to 1570-1585.
Extent: 317 × 213 mm.

Collation

The second part of the manuscript consists of 23 quires, of which one is a ternion, and the rest are quaternia.

  • Quires 15-368 ff. 111-286
  • Quire 376 ff. 287-292

There are early quire signatures in Greek numerals at the beginning of each quire, in brown or black ink, recto, lower right or lower centre. These appear on all quires of this part, in a new sequence beginning from 1 (αʹ-κγʹ), original to the production of the manuscript. These have apparently been added by the copyists, and the script and colour of ink correspond to those in the main text of the folios on which they appear. A later hand has added a signature to Quire 3 (γʹ) in red ink.

Condition

There are occasional tears to the edge of folios and a significant lateral tear to f. 222. Slight insect damage appears at the edge of some folios. There is slight water staining to the upper outer corner in the early folios of this part, and more extensive water staining to the upper inner corner in the later folios. There are brown stains on f. 111r and slight discoloration to the first few folios of this part.

Layout

A single column of 25-27 lines. 227 × 130 mm.

Hand(s)

ff. 111r-118r, 120v-126r, line 12, f. 126v, line 6-f. 157r, f. 158r, line 2-f. 161r, f. 162r, f. 163r, line 7-f. 167v, ff. 174r-174v, 175v-182v, 204r-204v, line 3, ff. 206v-209v, 211r-213v, 214v , 215v, 216v-217v, 218v-225v, 226v, 227v-231r, 232r-232v, line 9, ff. 233r-234v, 236v, 241r, 243v-244r, 245v-247v, line 11, f. 248r, line 4-f. 249v, ff. 250v-253r, 254r, line 5-f. 255r, ff. 256v-257v, 258v-259v, line 11, f. 261v, line 2-f. 262v, ff. 264r-264v, 268r, 272v, f. 279v, line 7-f. 280v, f. 282v, line 13-f. 289v, f. 290r, line 10-f. 292r were copied by Hand D in a flamboyant mixed minuscule script, slanting to the right, in brown or black ink, with significant variation in letter size and frequent flourishing of tails and accents into the margin. The same hand has added headings in red ink.

Syllabic abbreviations and superscript word endings appear throughout the line. Breathings are round and mute iota is subscript. There is decorative use of the double dot, and accentuation of all nomina sacra . Accents are sometimes joined to letters, breathings, abbreviations and nomina sacra strokes. The hyphen is used to merge words. Marginal quotation marks are in use.

The modern eta, modern nu, sigma telikon and loop epsilon are present. Xi and chi frequently appear with extravagant downward flourishes.

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

ff. 118v-120r, f. 126r, line 12-f. 126v, line 6, ff. 157v-158r, line 1, ff. 161v, 162v-163r, line 7, ff. 168r-173v, 175r, 183r-203v, 204v, line 3-f. 206r, ff. 210r-210v, 214r, 215r, 216r, 218r, 226r, 227r, 231v, 232v, lines 9-25, ff. 235r-236r, 237r-240v, 241v-243r, 244v-245r, 247v, line 11-f. 284, line 4, ff. 250r, 263v-254r, line 5, ff. 255v-256r, 258r, 259v, line 11-f. 261v, line 2, ff. 263r-263v, 265r-267v, 268v-272r, 273r-279r, line 7, ff. 281r-282v, line 13, f. 290r, lines 1-10 were copied by Hand E in a blocky mixed minuscule script with variable slant, in brown or black ink, with modest variation in letter size. The same hand has added headings in red ink.

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 abbreviations and nomina sacra strokes. Marginal quotation marks are in use.

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

Punctuation used includes the middle and upper points, lower comma and question mark.

Decoration

The beginning of the text is preceded by a rectangular headpiece in brown and red ink, containing the title (f. 111r).

Bands of decoration in red ink, some very simple and others more elaborate, precede the beginning of some sections:- ff. 115r, 128v, 134r, 146v, 168r, 176r, 202r, 221r, 232v, 251r, f. 267v. One of these is in a combination of brown and red ink, now discoloured (f. 267v).

Each section begins with an ornamented initial in red ink: 111r, 115r, 117v, 129r, 134r, 146v, 168r, 176r, 190v, 202r, 221r, 232v, 251r, f. 267v

Minor initials in red ink appear very occasionally in the middle of the text (e.g. f. 238v).

The end of one section is accompanied by a line-filler in red ink (f. 190v).

The text at the end of a section on f. 175v is arranged in multiple tapering forms accompanied by simple cul-de-lampe ornament in red ink.

Additions

There are occasional marginal annotations in Greek, in a different hand from that appearing in the previous part.

History

Origin: This portion of the manuscript appears to have been copied in the second half of the 16th century, on the basis of its combination of watermarks. This would be consistent with the style of script. The presence of a separate sequence of quire signatures and the presence of water staining at the beginning of the part which is absent from the end of the previous one indicates that these were originally two separate manuscripts which were bound together. The note of contents by J.-B. Hautin on f. [iii] verso indicates that this had occurred by 1640, the year of his death.

Part 4 [Cambridge, University Library, MS Ff.4.2, ff. 294-297]

Contents

3. ff. 294r-297r
Liturgy of St James
Language(s): Greek

Extract (ed. B. Charles Mercier, La liturgie de saint Jacques: édition critique du texte grec avec traduction latine (Paris 1946), Patrologia Orientalis 26.2, pp. 200-206)

Rubric: f. 294r Εκ τῆς λειτουργίας τοῦ ἁγίου Ἰακώβου τοῦ ἀποστόλου
Incipit: f. 294r Ἅγιος εἶ βασιλεῦ τῶν αἰώνων
Explicit: f. 297r διαφυλάττων αὐτὴν μέχρι τῆς συντελείας τοῦ αἰῶνος

f. 297v is blank.

Physical Description

Form: codex
Support: ff. 294-297 Western paper, folded in folio, with 9 chainlines per leaf. Watermark: Pitcher ( 57 × 17 mm. ) in the centre of the folio, similar to Briquet 12732. This example is dated to 1550-1555.
Extent: 311 × 200 mm.

Layout

A single column of 21 lines. 190 × 105 mm. Single vertical lines defining the left and right margins, ruled in hardpoint.

Hand(s)

ff. 294r-297r were copied by Konstantinos Palaiokappas (Hand F) in a mixed minuscule script, slanting to the right, in black ink, with modest variation in letter size.

Syllabic abbreviations appear throughout the line, while there is no superscription of word endings. Breathings are round and mute iota is subscript or in a transitional position, below and the right of the letter. The use of the double dot is functional only, and nomina sacra are uncontracted.

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

Punctuation used includes the middle and upper points and the lower and middle commas.

History

Origin: This part of the manuscript was copied by Konstantinos Palaiokappas (RGK I 225; II 316; III 364). The watermark suggest a date of production between about 1540 and 1565, which would conform with the known period of activity of this scribe, whose dated manucripts range from 1539 to 1554. The note of contents by J.-B. Hautin on f. [iii] verso indicates that it had been added by 1640, the year of his death.

Additional Information

Record Sources

Description draws on A catalogue of the Manuscripts preserved in the Library of the University of Cambridge, vol. 2, (Cambridge, 1861), pp. 432-433 and unpublished notes by Patricia E. Easterling.

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

    Specimen eines Repertoriums der griechischen Kopisten. Jahrbuch der österreichischen Byzantinistik, Gamillscheg, ErnstHarlfinger, Dieter (27, 293-322, 1978) Repertorium der griechischen Kopisten, 800-1600. I. Grossbritannien Veröffentlichungen der Kommission für Byzantinistik, Gamillscheg, ErnstHarlfinger, Dieter (Wien, Verlag der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, 1981) Cambridge University Library : a history [2], The eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, McKitterick, David (Cambridge, vol. 2, Cambridge University Press, 1986) A catalogue of the manuscripts preserved in the library of the University of Cambridge, (Cambridge, 2, Cambridge University Press, 1861) Eclogarum in libros historicos Veteris Testamenti epitome. Teil 1, Der Genesiskommentar Genesiskommentar, , (Berlin, De Gruyter, 2015) Hexaemeron, , (Rome, Pontificio istituto orientale, 2007) The Greek Manuscripts of John Moore and Etienne Baluze Codices Manuscripti, , (56/57, 29-42, 2006)

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The Polonsky Foundation

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