Paleography Glossary
-
Upload
tatudonois -
Category
Documents
-
view
152 -
download
0
Transcript of Paleography Glossary
Page 1 of 13
Glossary of Terms Used in Paleography
Paul Halsall
Page 2 of 13
Contents
I Discipline
II The Matter of Manuscripts
III The Creation and History of Manuscripts
IV Manuscript Types
V The Content of Manuscripts
VI The Editing of Manuscripts
Page 3 of 13
I Disciplines
Codicology derivation: "the study of the codex"
The study of manuscripts as objects rather than texts. Looks at ths creation (materials,
scriptoria, etc.) and history (commissioning, place in collections and libraries). Equivalent
German term is Buchwesen.
Diplomatics The study of documents connected with governmental and ecclesiastical
archives.
Epigraphy The study of texts inscribed on buildings, other structures, and other
physical objects. The main advantage of epigraphic texts is that they come to us directly,
without the mediation of copyists. Some fairly long texts -- entire law codes as well as
substantial chunks of religious texts -- were inscribed on objects. Where there is no physical
damage, reading such texts is usually straightforward. Epigraphic information can give quite
specific information about funeral practices, and thus demographic data, not available in any
other way.
Paleography derivation: "old writing"
The study of manuscripts in order to be able to read the texts they contain.
Papyrology The study of texts written on papyrus. Since texts written in hieroglyphic,
hieratic, and demotic Egyptian are the field of Egyptologists, "papryology" has come to mean
the study of Latin, Greek and Coptic texts from Greek, Roman and Byzantine Egypt. Such
texts were produced until the 8th century CE. The dicovery of huge amounts of papyrological
material in the 18th and 19th centuries (and discoveries continue) revolutionized classical
studies: new classical and biblical texts were found, as well as hitherto unavailable data on
everyday life and commerce.
Page 4 of 13
II The Matter of Manuscripts
Book Greek: Bibli/on, Bi/blos, De/tos
Codex Greek: de/ltos, pukti/on, teu^chos, kw^diks, swma/tion. Latin: codex (originally the
trunk of a tree)
The arranged of pages of text in single sheets bound between covers - in other words the
form of the modern book, and the most common form for Byzantine manuscripts. From the
early Christian period on a preference developed for the codex over the roll, and great
prestige accrued because of the codex's association with the New Testament. Codices
allowed easy consultation of books, and enabled the works of "codification" in law and
knowledge which marked much medieval scholarship, both east and west. Unlike rolls,
pages in codices were written on both sides. They were thus more economical.
The codex was made up a number of quires.
See the illustrated Codex (at Brown's Interpreting Ancient Manuscripts Web)
Folio Greek pl.: phy/lla, charti/a, Latin: folio
One leaf of a codex.
Inks Greek: me/lan, e'/gkayston, Latin: atramentum
Inks in antiquity were usually made of carbon, (lamp soot for instance), mixed with a binding
gum and water. After parchment became a more common writing material, (after 300 CE)
iron based inks, which fade more easily, came into us. Red Ink {Greek: ko/kkinon me/lan,
Latin: minium) was often used in headings (see lemma).
Notebook Latin: membrana
Roman business people kept accounts on wax tablet notebooks. These probably provided
the model for the papyrus and parchment codex.
Page One side of a folio.
Palimpsest Greek: pali/mpshstos, derivation "scraped again"
Page 5 of 13
A manuscript where a second or third text has been written over the original content which
has been partially erased. Parchment was a very expensive commodity, and so was
"recycled" by being scraped again. Sometimes text was written directly on top of the
scraped original, at other times at right angles to it. The earlier text can often be read, either
by sight, or by using technological aides. The study of palimpsests is useful not only in
providing texts, but also in establishing dates for texts, as well as giving data on what
material was considered not worth preserving in particular book production centers.
Paper Greek: zylocharti/on, zylo/teykton, Latin: charta Damscena, bombycina
Paper was invented in China (where it was used for printing as early as the ninth century CE)
and was taken up by the Arabs in the 8th century after they discovered its use in Samarkand.
Paper was usually made out of rags. A Greek MS on paper survives from circa 800 [Vat. Gr.
2200], but "Oriental" paper was imported from the Arab world in large amounts only from
the 11th century. Vat. Gr. 504 from 1105 is the earliest Byzantine made paper MS to survive.
From the 13th century "Occidental" paper was imported from Sicily and replaced imports
from the Arab world. Paper was marked by watermarks which helps to date MS since paper
was usually used soon after it was made.
Papyrus Greek: pa/pyros or By/blos, later Bi/blos, also cha/rths
A writing material made from the unrolled and hammered together pith of an Egyptian reed
plant (Latin: Cyperus papyrus). It was the main material used in the ancient world for texts
meant to last (wax tablets were used for many everyday purposes). The papyrus industry
was on a large scale and a monopoly of the Ptolemies and later the Roman emperors. From
the 4th century on parchment came to be used as well as papyrus, and the 7th century Arab
conquest of Egypt seems to have hastened the move to other writing materials. It no longer
grows in Egypt, apparently, but can be found in Sudan. Pliny the Elder (Nat. Hist. 12.2.2)
gives a description of its manufacture.
See the illustrated Papyrus (at Brown's Interpreting Ancient Manuscripts Web)
Parchment Greek: diphe/ra, de/rma, Latin: membrana or charta Pergamena
Animal skin (sheep, goats, donkeys, calves) prepared for writing by being made smooth on
one or both sides. Now usually sheepskin.
See the illustrated Parchment (at Brown's Interpreting Ancient Manuscripts Web)
Quires Greek: tetra/des, tetra/dia, Latin: quaterniones
Page 6 of 13
A folded set of sheets of papyrus, parchment or paper. It could vary in size from one folded
sheet to, most commonly, 4 sheets or more (hence the Greek and Latin terms). The result
was a quire of two folios or four pages for each sheet used. Quires were sewn together to
created each codex,
Recto/
Verso Recto is the "top" side of a folio or leaf, or any right-handed page. Verso is the
"bottom" side of a folio or leaf, or any left hand page.
Roll Greek: ei'lhta/rion, ky/lindros, Latin: rotulus, volumen
The main form of the book in the ancient world. Rolls were made up of 20 to 50 glued sheets
of papyrus. The horizontal fibers of the papyrus were on the inside (recto). Some rolls were
made of animal skin (e.g. the Dead Sea scrolls). The were wound around wooden stick
(Greek: o'mphalos) and often kept in parchment cover (Greek: diphe/ra) or box (Greek:
kibwto/s). A label called a syllabus (Greek: si/llybos) was attached as an identifier. The rolls
were read horizontally. From the 1st century CE on rolls tended to be replaced by the codex.
Rolls continued to be used for some liturgical functions.
See the illustrated Roll (at Brown's Interpreting Ancient Manuscripts Web)
Ruling Patterns Parchment MSS, and less frequently, paper MSS, had lines ruled on the page
before they were written on. There were a variety of ruling patterns (for instance one wide
column of text or two parallel columns) , which help in identifying dates and locations of
MSS creation.
Vellum Animal skin prepared for writing. Usually used to mean parchment of especially high
quality. Now usually calf or goat skin.
Watermarks Paper made in the west and imported to Byzantium contained watermarks
created by wire patterns attached to the paper mold. They can be seen by holding the paper
up to the light. Because watermarks had a limited life span, usually 3-5 years, they are useful
for dating MSS from the 13th century on.
See the web site devoted to an Archive of Watermarks and Papers in Greek Manuscripts
Page 7 of 13
III The Creation and History of Manuscripts
Book Binding Greek: sta/chwma, a'mphi/asma
Unlike rolls, which were stored as is, codices need to be bound. This could be done in silk or
leather, usually used to cover wooden boards. Some important books had elaborate
bejewelled covers which are art objects in themsleves.
Book Trade At many times and in many places the ancient world there was an active
book trade, and hence commercial copying of texts. This trade collapsed at the end of
antiquity and book production in Byzantium henceforth depended private commissions or
on ecclesiastical (usually monastic) institutions. Books were very expensive as the materials
were costly and they took a long time to write.
Exemplar A model specifically created for copying.
Scriptorium The place were books were copied. Monasteries of certain size might have
specific work rooms for the copying of manuscripts.
Illumination Originally meant the use of gold leaf to "lighten up" a manuscript, but now
applies to all kinds of illustration and decoration. There are many Byzantine illuminated
manuscripts -- especially ecclesiastical texts. There is, however, only one illuminated
historiographical manuscript, the so-called Madrid Skylitzes.
Libraries Collections of books, obviously. In Byzantium, because of the huge cost of
books, private libraries were small, not usually larger than 25 to 30 books. Institutions would
have larger libraries. Since libraries were so small, collectors seem to have gone for classic
works. This meant that throughout Byzantine history there was a rather select canon of a
small number of classical and patristic authors who tended to be read repeatedly by scholars
(and cited by them): for example Plato, Homer, Gregory Nazianzos, John Chrysostom. More
minor and later authors seem to have been much less read.
Page 8 of 13
IV Manuscript Types
Literary inscriptions Epigrams and other literature preserved on stone.
Literary papyri Literary texts written on papyri. Copies of Greek texts survive from the 4th
century BCE to the 8th century CE. They use both unicial and, later, cursive letter forms.
Uncial Codices
2-12th C. From the 2nd century CE, the codex replaces the roll as the main form of
book. Until the late 8th century all codices are written in uncial script. Very few MS of any
kind survive from the 7th to early 9th centuries, and when Uncial MSS reappear they are
soon displaced by minuscule MSS although they are produced for some purposes until the
12th century.
Codices vetusissimi
9th to mid-10th C. Minuscule MSS - from the origins to mid-10th-century
The oldest minuscule MSS dates from 835 (the Uspenksy Gospels written in Jerusalem). The
vetusissimi preserve pure minuscule letter forms.
Codices Vetusti
mid-10th to mid-13th C. Minuscule MSS - from the mid-10th to middle 13th-
centuries
Uncial letter forms are now mixed in with the pure minuscule forms. The oldest MS of
authors such as Thucydides and Theognis are among these MSS. The best MS of
Aristophanes, and oldest MS of Arrian, Lysias are among these.
Codices recentiores
mid-13th to mid-15th C Minuscule MSS from the mid-13th to mid-5th centuries and the
invention of printing in the West.
With the introduction of paper, books became cheaper to produce and a large number of
MSS survive from this period.
Codices novelli
after mid-15th C. Minuscule MSS written in the century after printing was invented.
Printing did not immediately displace writing, and some important witnesses to texts were
written after 1450.
Page 9 of 13
Printed Books In some cases the earliest printed books are the only or best witnesses to a
text.
Page 10 of 13
V The Content of Manuscripts
Abbreviations/
Contractions Abbreviations were commonly used in Greek MSS for common words,
frequently repeated words and some names. Abbreviation could be done by giving the first
letter or first few letters of a word, or by omitting word endings. Other abbreviations were
more complex, did not look at all like usual letters and derived from shorthand usages.
When the word-shortening was done by omitting all the middle letters, it is a contraction.
Book hands Types of writing used for literary texts meant to last. The aim was clarity and
regularity. In the antiquity, when a book trade existed this copying might be done to
dictation. In the Byzantine period, copying seems to have been the work of individual
scribes. The major division is between the uncial book hands used until the 9th century and
the minuscule book hands used thereafter.
Catena A Scholia-type commentary on patristic texts.
Compendia another term for abbreviations.
Cursive A writing style derived from the running action of the pen. It was used throughout
antiquity, for private and public documents, and its letter forms were used as the basis of
the more formal minuscule. A fundamental school taught alphabet of 24 letters remained
behind all the letter forms.
Documentary Hands Types of writing used to write official documents. Often written
rapidly without lifting the pen.
Foliation The numbering of folios within MSS.
Glosses Synonyms of words added by scribes or commentators.
Lemma The title of a work or chapter within a work. Commonly in later MSS it was written in
Uncial letters, and often in red ink.
Ligatures Two or three letters which are joined together, but where the form of each
letter is preserved. They were uncommon in uncial MSS, but very common in minuscule
MSS. Since they make reading harder, although writing faster, it is unfortunate that many
were taken over an preserved in early Greek printer's fonts.
Literary hands see book hands.
Majascule An alternative term for Uncial script.
Miniscule The form of letters used in Greek changed from about 800 CE. The letter
forms are quite distinct from the older uncial forms. Sometimes this change is traced to the
Stoudion monastery, but in fact the letter-forms derive from previous cursive usage,
although the scriptorium of the Stoudion monastery may have propagated the script. It was
much faster to write than the older uncial script and the vast majority of Byzantine MSS are
Page 11 of 13
in minuscule. Minuscule MSS do not separate words, but do add breathings and accents,
increasing legibility. The use of ligatures and abbreviations, , however, counters ease of
legibility. At first only the pure minuscule forms were used, but within a century, uncial
letter forms began to be used alongside the pure minuscule (modern type fonts reflect both
sources). To begin with, minuscule was written on the ruled lines of parchment, but later the
fashion was to have the letters "hanging" from the line. Another later development was the
use of a variety of different sizes for various letters. Although MSS dating is not perfect,
distinct fashions in minuscule script do enable some dating of otherwise undated MSS.
Monocondyle A word or sentence written without lifting pen from paper.
Monogram A symbol in which a number of letters, usually of a name or title, are
arranged together without any consideration for order. The common "Chi-Rho" symbol for
Christ [a P (rho) imposed on a X (Chi)] is one example. In Byzantine MSS, they were used on
monuments, coinss, ivories, etc. to indicate the owner.
Nomina Sacra Latin for "Sacred Names"
A limited number of names of sacred persons were often reduced by contraction - for
instance "IC" for Jesus, "KS" for "Kyrios". Often the name is marked by a line over the letters
used.
Pagination The numbering of pages. This was a fairly late development and is feature of
printed books not MSS.
Punctuation Greek punctuation is a relatively modern invention. It consists of the comma
(,), the semi-colon (·), the period (.) and the interrogation mark (;).
Many MSS lack punctuationl in others the main punctuation mark is a high dot, which may
indicate a complete sentence or merely a pause.
Scholia Commentaries and annotations on a text.
Byzantine scholars loved to comment on older texts. A common way to do this was by
making line-by-line marginal notes to a base manuscript. Such comments were often not
original but compiled from earlier commentaries. They were common in Byzantium in 9th-
and 10th-century MSS.
Tachygraphy Greek: tachygraphi/a ("speedy writing")
A form of shorthand used in antiquity and by some Byzantine scribes. A number of the signs
were used as abbreviations in non-tachygraphical MSS.
Uncial The script deriving from the common letter forms of antiquity, used in most Greek
books until the 9th century, when it was largely replaced by minuscule. It was used after that
in headings (lemmata) within minuscule MSS and in liturgical MSS. The letters were
Page 12 of 13
unconnected, and all of the same hight. No word division was used. There are only few
Uncial MSS which survive from the Byzantine period.
Page 13 of 13
VI The Editing of Manuscripts
Facsimile A reproduction of an original document. Sometimes this is photographic,
other times only the shape of the letters is reproduced.
Recension An important classical or patristic text underwent various editions at the
hands of later ancient and Byzantine scholars. Each version is called a "recension".
Stemma The "family tree" of a text's manuscript tradition.
An editor of text with many MS witnesses aims to establish the "original text". In order to
establish this, the relationships of the various MSS needs to be established, for, while a
majority of texts might give one reading, a smaller MS tradition might be closer to the
original. Such a stemma is established by comparing MSS and establishing clusters based,
often, on common mistakes. Perhaps the most famous modern effects of such study has
been the displacement of the "majority text" of the New Testament (as used the Authorized
Version/King James Version) with a much leaner text. Establishing a stemma is not necessary
when an author's original autograph survives, or when various versions of an oral work are
written down. For many Byzantine period texts, only a few MS, sometimes only one, survive
for many texts (for instance of Michael Psellos' Chronographia).
Textual Criticism The complex process of editing a MS for a printed edition involves a
number of facets. The first concern is to establish the text. Where only one MS is the witness
to a text, or the author's own original is available, this is a straightforward matter; but where
there are multiple MS witnesses, it is the goal of the editor to establish a stemma in order to
determine the best MS to use as a base. Even then, later readings may be more accurate for
some parts, lines or words. Variant readings are indicated in notes. Once the text is
established, it is usual to correct spellings and add or, if necessary, correct accents. Critics
also usually recognize and indicate the source of quotations or parallel passages in other
texts. Common with longer texts is the addition of chapter divisions (rarely to never seen in
the originals) and line numbering.
Transcribing The process of writing out in modern standard Greek script the text of a
document. With some documents -- for instance, uncial mss -- this is fairly straightforward,
with minuscule documents, the process involves much more deciphering (and expansion) of
ligatures and abbreviations. Word division is usually done at this stage, but not addition of
accents or correction of grammar and spelling.
Part of the Byzantium: Byzantine Studies on the Internet
© Paul Halsall 1996. Non-commercial reproduction permitted.