A Greek NT Reunited (GA 699)

Interesting blog post over at the British Library on GA 699 and the separate histories of its two parts (with nice pictures).

This is a notable NT manuscript partly on the grounds that it was (unusually) a manuscript of the whole New Testament - one of only around 60 extant that ever contained what we regard as the whole New Testament.

Ancient Greek Lexica

We know that modern lexica are important for providing information on how modern scholars understand the meaning of words. And we know that ancient lexica are even more useful for providing information on how ancient scholars understood the meaning of words. So it is interesting to read through Roger Pearse's useful list and discussion:Lexicon: an introduction to the dictionaries of ancient Greek that survive from antiquity.

PS. We also know that such lexica may preserve interesting text-critical information - on one of which see Dirk Jongkind, "Some Observations on the Relevance of the 'Early Byzantine Glossary' of Paul for the Textual Criticism of the Corpus Paulinum", Novum Testamentum 53 (2011): 358-75.

Stephen Emmel on The Fake Harvard John Fragment

Building on Christian Askeland's argument that the Harvard Coptic John Fragment was textually dependent on Thompson's 1924 publication of the Qau codex (see The forgery of the Lycopolitan gospel of John) Stephen Emmel has recently done a great job on assessing "The Codicology of the New Coptic (Lycopolitan) Gospel of John Fragment"

I was interested to read it because in a comment to Christian's post I had suggested that "It may be worth trying to reconstruct the page (as a reductio ad absurdum)." Emmel has now done that in massive detail and shows how extremely implausible are the results, concluding that "No Codicological Reconstruction of H Is Entirely Credible". Emmel also agrees that if the Coptic John fragment is fake, then the Gospel of Jesus Wife fragment is also fake.

I would say that the end is nigh.

Fighting over Recto and Verso

Over the recent weeks I have been twice in a skirmish on the correct use of the terms recto and verso, and I blame the dark days of early papyrology for this (there are articles on this topic; I leave it to commentators to share that wisdom). Before the dawn of papyrology everyone knew what the recto and verso of a manuscript page were: the recto is the front, the verso the back, identified on the basis of the direction of the text. On paper the physical aspects of either side of the page are (virtually?) indistinguishable; on parchment there is a hair and flesh side, though with well prepared parchment there is not that much of a striking difference. However, on papyrus there is the writing either along the direction of the strips of papyrus or across these. But still, recto and verso are terms based on the direction of the text, not on any physical aspect of the material.

Then there were papyrologists. And they described rolls, where the primary writing is on the 'along side' (normally the inner side of the roll), and where there is possibly secondary writing on the 'across side' (normally the outer side of the roll). Or other reused sheets of papyrus, where, again, the first text is along, and the secondary text across (normally). And the terms recto and verso were used so that they became often identical with along and across the direction of the fibres.
I think that this explains the odd labelling on the actual frames of P45, where the folio number is followed by a 'r' or 'v' which indicates not the direction of the text, but the direction of the fibres. In the transcription on the INTF website the same terms are used, but there correctly. This results in regular mismatches between the labelling on the frame and on the transcription. E.g. folio 16:

Label on frame '16v'; content John 10:7-25; transcription '16r'

Label on frame '16r'; content John 10:29 - 11:10; transcription '16v'

These days papyrologists tend to avoid the terms recto and verso (and rightly so, at least in their world), but within book studies (codicology proper) the terms have a rightful place as describing the direction of the text.

Physical description Parchment: Hair - Flesh. Papyrus: Along (→) - Across (↓)
Text direction (not related to the physical description!) Parchment: Recto - Verso. Papyrus: Recto - Verso (only really useful in papyrus codices)

It is only now with electronic texts and webpages that recto and verso have lost their relevance.

Online Images of NT manuscripts in Oxford

Oxford Bodl., Barocci 3 (G-A 314):

Oxford Bodl., Barocci 28 (G-A 2101): (XIII; Gospels with Comm.; on paper)

Oxford Bodl., Barocci 29 (G-A 46):(c. 1300; Gospels)

Oxford Bodl., Barocci 31 (G-A 45): (XIII; Gospels)

Oxford Bodl., Barocci 48 (G-A 2408 = fol. 18 [XIV; Rev 5.1-5]; G-A 2015 = fol. 51-74 [XV; Apocalypse]):

[HT: Paleografia Greca]

I am running a promotional on my novels featuring the principles and practice of New Testament Textual Criticism this week. The Kindle edition of THE SCRIBES, Vol. 1 is free. The Kindle edition of THE SIGN OF THE DOLPHIN, Vol 2 is $0.99. Already over 700 people have taken advantage of this offer  on the first day.

Conference: From Egypt to Manchester: Unravelling the John Rylands Papyrus Collection

Roberta Mazza, Lecturer in Classics and Ancient History and John Rylands Research Institute Research Fellow, is organizing a conference on 4-6 September at John Rylands Library in Manchester which looks very interesting:

 "From Egypt to Manchester: Unravelling the John Rylands Papyrus Collection"

Admittance is free, but registration (here) is necessary.

The programme for friday afternoon (5 September) will be of particular interest for readers of this blog:

5 September, Friday afternoon (venue: Historic Reading Room)

• 2:00-2:30
  AnneMarie Luijendijk (Princeton):
  Unravelling the Oldest Septuagint Manuscript (P.Ryl. III 458)
  
• 2:30-3:00
  Brent Nongbri (Sidney):
  Palaeography, Precision, and Publicity: Some Further Thoughts on P52
  
• 3:00-3:30
  Coffee Break
  
• 3:30-4:00
  Thomas Kraus (Neumarkt):
  Small in Size, but Fabulous Artefacts: P.Ryl. III 463, P.Ryl. I 28 and Late Antique Miniature Books
  
• 4:00-4:30
  Todd Hickey (Berkeley):
  Grenfell, Kelsey, and the Dealers
  
• 4:30-5:00
  Elizabeth Gow (Manchester):
  Enriqueta Rylands: Private Collector of a Public Library
  
• 5.00- 5.30
  Discussion
  
• 5.30
  Close

Manuel de critique textuelle du Nouveau Testament (ed. Amphoux)

A new French introduction to New Testament textual criticism, edited by Christian-Bernard Amphoux, has just been published by Éditions Safran, Manuel de critique textuelle du Nouveau Testament. Introduction générale. Contributors include C.-B. Amphoux, J.C. Haelewyck, D. Gonnet, A. Boud’Hours, G. Dorival, D. Pastorelli, J. K. Elliott, D. Lafleur and J. Reynard.

Publisher’s description:

La critique textuelle est l’étude des documents à partir desquels on établit le texte d’une œuvre transmise par des manuscrits.

Le Nouveau Testament nous est parvenu à travers de nombreux manuscrits entre lesquels il existe d’innombrables variantes. Certaines, les plus nombreuses, sont de simples fautes de copie ; mais des milliers d’autres sont les indices de l’évolution du texte des évangiles et des autres écrits du recueil. Le texte du Nouveau Testament a donc une histoire et, par cette histoire, une diversité dans sa transmission.

Le premier volume de ce manuel propose une introduction générale qui rassemble les informations principales concernant le matériau dont nous disposons (manuscrits grecs, versions anciennes et citations patristiques), la méthode de traitement de ce matériau et ce que nous savons de l’histoire du texte du Nouveau Testament, d’abord manuscrit, puis imprimé à partir du XVIe siècle.

A second volume treating textual variants is in preparation.

More details including table of contents here.

Heracleon on John: Bibliography

Heracleon wrote the earliest surviving commentary on any portion of the New Testament, and is an important witness to the state of the text of John in the second century. Here is some bibliography to get you started:

A. E. Brooke, The Fragments of Heracleon: Newly Edited from the MSS. With an Introduction and Notes (T&S vol. 1, No. 4; Cambridge: CUP, 1891).

C. Blanc, Origène: Commentaire sur S. Jean: Introduction, Text Critique, Traduction et Notes (5 vols.; SC 120, 15, 222, 290, 385; Paris: Cerf, 1966–1992)

ET: W. Foerster, Gnosis: A Selection of Gnostic Texts (trans. R. McL. Wilson; 2 vols.; Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1972-1974), 1:162-83.

R.E. Heine, Origen, Commentary on the Gospel of John (Fathers of the Church 80 & 89; Washington: Catholic University of America Press, 1989, 1993).

J. A. McGuckin, ‘Structural Design and Apologetic Intent in Origen’s Commentary on John’ in Origeniana Sexta (ed. G. Dorival et al.; BETL 118; Louvain: Peeters, 1995), 441–457.

R. P. C. Hanson, Allegory and Event: A Study of the Sources and Significance of Origen's Interpretation of Scripture (Richmond VA: John Knox, 1959)

B. Aland, ‘Erwählungstheologie und Menschenklassenlehre: Die Theologie des Herakleon als Schlüssel zum Verständnis der christlichen Gnosis?’ in Gnosis and Gnosticism (ed. Martin Krause; NHS 8; Leiden: E.J. Brill, 1977), 148-81.

H. W Attridge, ‘Heracleon and John: Reassessment of an Early Christian Hermeneutical Debate’ in Biblical Interpretation: History, Context, Reality (ed. C. Helmer; Atlanta, Ga.: Society of Biblical Literature, 2005), 57–72; reprinted in  Essays on John and Hebrews (WUNT 264; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2010), 193-207.

H.W. Attridge, ‘Invention, Rewriting, Usurpation: The Case of the Johannine Gospel in the Second Century’ Invention, Rewriting, Usurpation: discursive fights over religious traditions in Antiquity (eds. J. Ulrich, A.-C. Jacobsen, D. Brakke; ECCA 11; Frankfurt am Main: Peter Lang, 2012), 1-17.

C.P. Bammel, ‘Herakleon’, TRE XV (1986) 54-57 = ‘Herakleon’ in Tradition and Exegesis in Early Christian Writers (Ashgate, Hampshire: Variorum, 1995), 1-8.

A. Bastit, ‘Form et méthode du Commentaire sur Jean d’Héracléon’ Adamantius 15 (2009), 150-176.

P.F. Beatrice, ‘Greek Philosophy and Gnostic Soteriology in Heracleon’s “Hypomnemata”’ Early Christianity 3 (2012), 188-214.

D. Domenico, ‘Remarques sur l’anthropologie d’Héracléon: les psychiques’ Studia Patristica XVI (ed. E.A. Livingstone; Berlin: Akademie-Verlag, 1985), 143-151.

B.D. Ehrman, ‘Heracleon and the “Western” Textual Tradition’ NTS 40 (1994), 161-179.

B.D. Ehrman, ‘Heracleon, Origen, and the Text of the Fourth Gospel’ Vig. Chr. 47 (1993), 105-118.

C. E. Hill, The Johannine Corpus in the Early Church (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004), 207-211.

Y. Janssens, ‘Héracléon: Commentaire sur l’Évangile selon S. Jean’ Le Muséon 72 (1959), 101-151; 277-299.

Y. Janssens, ‘L’Épisode de la Samaritaine chez Héracléon’ Sacra Pagina: Miscellanea Biblica Congressus Internationalis Catholici de Re Biblica (ed. J. Coppens; BETL 17-18; Paris: J. Gabalda, 1959) 77-85.

K. Keefer, The Branches of the Gospel of John: The Reception of the Fourth Gospel in the Early Church (LNTS 332; London: Continuum, 2006), 32-43.

J. Mouson, ‘Jean-Baptiste dans les fragments d’ Héracléon’ ETL 30 (1954), 301-322.

E. Mühlenberg, ‘Wieviel Erlösungen kennt der Gnostiker Herakleon’ ZNW 66 (1975), 170-93.

T. Nagel, Die Rezeption des Johannesevangeliums im 2. Jahrhundert: Studien zur vorirenäischen Aneignung und Auslegung des vierten Evangeliums in christlicher und christlich-gnostischer Literatur (ABG 2; Leipzig: Evangelische Verlagsanstalt, 2000), 315-341.

E. Pagels, The Johannine Gospel in Gnostic Exegesis: Heracleon's commentary on John (SBLMS 17; Nashville, Tenn: Abingdon, 1973).

S.R. Pickering, ‘Recovering Second-Century Readings of the Gospel of John: Heracleon’s Text as Quoted by Origen’ New Testament Textual Research Update 2 (1994), 52-56.

Jean-Michel Poffet, La méthode exégétique d’Héracléon et d’Origène, Commentateurs de Jn 4: Jésus, la Samaritaine et les Samaritains (Fribourg: Universitaites Fribourge Suisse, 1985).

M. Simonetti, ‘Eracleone e Origene’ Vetera Christianorum 3 (1966), 111-141 & 4 (1967), 23-64.

E. Thomassen, ‘Heracleon’ in The Legacy of John: Second-Century Reception of the Fourth Gospel (ed. Tuomas Rasimus; NovTSup 132; Leiden: Brill, 2009), 173-210.

J.A. Trumbower, ‘Origen’s Exegesis of John 8:19-53: The Struggle with Heracleon over the idea of Fixed Natures’ Vig. Chr. 43 (1989), 138-154.

A. Wucherpfennig, Heracleon Philologus: Gnostische Johannesexegese im zweiten Jahrhundert (WUNT 142; Tübingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2002).

Congratulations to Maurice Robinson

Our very warm congratulations to Maurice who has been promoted to Research Professor of New Testament Studies at SEBTS (see here).

Bruce Ashford, provost of Southeastern, said, “We are happy to allow him the opportunity to increase his research and writing in upcoming years.”
 ...
 In his new role, Robinson will be producing a critical edition and textual commentary for the Byzantine text.