Minuscule 253
Encyclopedia
Minuscule 253 A123 (Soden), is a Greek
minuscule manuscript
of the New Testament
, on parchment. Paleographically
it has been assigned to the 11th century. It has marginalia
.
s on 248 parchment leaves , with lacunae
(Matthew 1:1-8). The text of Matthew 1:1-8 was supplied by a later hand. The text is written in 1 column per page, 27-30 lines per page.
The text is divided according to the Ammonian Sections
, whose numbers are given at the margin, with references to the Eusebian Canons (written below Ammonian Section numbers).
It contains Prolegomena, tables of the (tables of contents) before each Gospel, and scholia. The biblical text is surrounded by a commentary (catena
, Victor's in Mark). It has some rare readings.
Kurt Aland
the Greek text of the codex did not place in any Category
. It was not examined by the Claremont Profile Method.
, in the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov (1645-1676). The manuscript was collated by C. F. Matthaei
. It was examined by Matthaei and Treu
.
Formerly the manuscript was housed at the Russian State Library
at Moscow
.
Archbishop Nicephorus lost this manuscript.
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
minuscule manuscript
Manuscript
A manuscript or handwrite is written information that has been manually created by someone or some people, such as a hand-written letter, as opposed to being printed or reproduced some other way...
of the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
, on parchment. Paleographically
Palaeography
Palaeography, also spelt paleography is the study of ancient writing. Included in the discipline is the practice of deciphering, reading, and dating historical manuscripts, and the cultural context of writing, including the methods with which writing and books were produced, and the history of...
it has been assigned to the 11th century. It has marginalia
Marginalia
Marginalia are scribbles, comments, and illuminations in the margins of a book.- Biblical manuscripts :Biblical manuscripts have liturgical notes at the margin, for liturgical use. Numbers of texts' divisions are given at the margin...
.
Description
The codex contains the text of the four GospelGospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
s on 248 parchment leaves , with lacunae
Lacuna (manuscripts)
A lacunaPlural lacunae. From Latin lacūna , diminutive form of lacus . is a gap in a manuscript, inscription, text, painting, or a musical work...
(Matthew 1:1-8). The text of Matthew 1:1-8 was supplied by a later hand. The text is written in 1 column per page, 27-30 lines per page.
The text is divided according to the Ammonian Sections
Ammonian Sections
Eusebian canons or Eusebian sections, also known as Ammonian Sections, are the system of dividing the four Gospels used between late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. The divisions into chapters and verses used in modern texts date only from the 13th and 16th centuries, respectively...
, whose numbers are given at the margin, with references to the Eusebian Canons (written below Ammonian Section numbers).
It contains Prolegomena, tables of the (tables of contents) before each Gospel, and scholia. The biblical text is surrounded by a commentary (catena
Catena (Biblical commentary)
A catena is a form of biblical commentary, verse by verse, made up entirely of excerpts from earlier Biblical commentators, each introduced with the name of the author, and with such minor adjustments of words to allow the whole to form a continuous commentary.The texts are mainly compiled from...
, Victor's in Mark). It has some rare readings.
Kurt Aland
Kurt Aland
Kurt Aland was a German Theologian and Professor of New Testament Research and Church History. He founded the Institut für neutestamentliche Textforschung in Münster and served as its first director for many years...
the Greek text of the codex did not place in any Category
Categories of New Testament manuscripts
New Testament manuscripts in Greek are categorized into five groups, according to a scheme introduced in 1981 by Kurt and Barbara Aland in Der Text des Neuen Testaments. The categories are based on how each manuscript relates to the various text-types. Generally speaking, earlier Alexandrian...
. It was not examined by the Claremont Profile Method.
History
Formerly the manuscript was held at the monastery of St. Michael, at Jerusalem. It belonged to Nicephours archbishop of Chesron and Slabinium. It was brought to Moscow, by the monk Arsenius, on the suggestion of the Patriarch NikonPatriarch Nikon
Nikon , born Nikita Minin , was the seventh patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church...
, in the reign of Alexei Mikhailovich Romanov (1645-1676). The manuscript was collated by C. F. Matthaei
Christian Frederick Matthaei
Christian Frederick Matthaei , a Thuringian, palaeographer, classical philolog, professor first at Wittenberg and then at Moscow.- Life :...
. It was examined by Matthaei and Treu
Kurt Treu
Kurt Treu , German classical philologist, was a son of a German parson on the island Saaremaa, the largest island of Estonia. In 1940, because of World War II, the Treu family was forced to leave their homeland. Kurt Treu studied in a Gymnasium in Hohensalza. AS levels were studied by him after the...
.
Formerly the manuscript was housed at the Russian State Library
Russian State Library
The Russian State Library is the national library of Russia, located in Moscow. It is the largest in the country and the third largest in the world for its collection of books . It was named the V. I...
at Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
.
Archbishop Nicephorus lost this manuscript.
See also
- List of New Testament minuscules
- Biblical manuscriptBiblical manuscriptA biblical manuscript is any handwritten copy of a portion of the text of the Bible. The word Bible comes from the Greek biblia ; manuscript comes from Latin manu and scriptum...
- Textual criticismTextual criticismTextual criticism is a branch of literary criticism that is concerned with the identification and removal of transcription errors in the texts of manuscripts...
Further reading
- C. F. Matthei, Novum Testamentum Graece et Latine, (Riga, 1782-1788).
- Kurt TreuKurt TreuKurt Treu , German classical philologist, was a son of a German parson on the island Saaremaa, the largest island of Estonia. In 1940, because of World War II, the Treu family was forced to leave their homeland. Kurt Treu studied in a Gymnasium in Hohensalza. AS levels were studied by him after the...
, Die Griechischen Handschriften des Neuen Testaments in der UdSSR; eine systematische Auswertung des Texthandschriften in Leningrad, Moskau, Kiev, Odessa, Tbilisi und Erevan, T & U 90 (Berlin, 1966), pp. 360-367.