Sinope Gospels
Encyclopedia
The Sinope Gospels, designated by O or 023 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering), ε 21 (Soden), also known as the Codex Sinopensis, is a fragment of a 6th century illuminated
Greek
Gospel Book
. Along with the Rossano Gospels
, the Sinope Gospels has been dated, on the basis of the style of the miniatures, to the mid-6th century. The Rossano Gospels, however are considered to be earlier. Like Rossanensis and the Vienna Genesis
, the Sinope Gospels are written on purple dyed vellum
.
Contents
It contains five illuminated miniatures
(hence its name), by a French officer. Its text was published by Henri Omont
in 1901.
43 leaves (all but one) of the codex now are located at the Bibliothèque Nationale
of the Manuscrits occidentaux (Supplement Grec. 1286) at Paris.
According to B. H. Streeter
it is a tertiary witness of the Caesarean text-type
. This opinion was supported by Bruce Metzger
. Aland
placed it in Category V, which means the Byzantine text-type
.
Illuminated manuscript
An illuminated manuscript is a manuscript in which the text is supplemented by the addition of decoration, such as decorated initials, borders and miniature illustrations...
Greek
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;...
Gospel Book
Gospel Book
The Gospel Book, Evangelion, or Book of the Gospels is a codex or bound volume containing one or more of the four Gospels of the Christian New Testament...
. Along with the Rossano Gospels
Rossano Gospels
The Rossano Gospels, designated by 042 or Σ , ε 18 , at the Cathedral of Rossano in Italy, is a 6th century illuminated manuscript Gospel Book written following the reconquest of the Italian peninsula by the Byzantine Empire...
, the Sinope Gospels has been dated, on the basis of the style of the miniatures, to the mid-6th century. The Rossano Gospels, however are considered to be earlier. Like Rossanensis and the Vienna Genesis
Vienna Genesis
The Vienna Genesis , designated by siglum L , is an illuminated manuscript, probably produced in Syria in the first half of the 6th Century. It is the oldest well-preserved, surviving, illustrated biblical codex.- Description :The text is a fragment of the Book of Genesis in the Greek Septuagint...
, the Sinope Gospels are written on purple dyed vellum
Vellum
Vellum is mammal skin prepared for writing or printing on, to produce single pages, scrolls, codices or books. It is generally smooth and durable, although there are great variations depending on preparation, the quality of the skin and the type of animal used...
.
Description
There are only 44 extant folios in the Sinope Gospels. These folios carry unframed miniatures at the bottom of the page which are similar in style to the miniatures in the Rossano Gospels. The folios measure approximately 30 cm by 25 cm. It is written in one column per page, 15 lines per column, in silver writing and gold. It is written in very large uncial letters. The manuscript is very lacunose.Contents
- Matthew 7:7-22; 11:5-12; 13:7-47; 13:54-14:4.13-20; 15:11-16:18; 17:2-24; 18:4-30; 19:3-10.17-25; 20:9-21:5; 21:12-22:7.15-14; 22:32-23:35; 24:3-12.
It contains five illuminated miniatures
- the festival of Herod and death of John the Baptist (folio 10 verso)
- five thousand fed (folio 11 recto)
- four thousand fed (folio 15 recto)
- the healing of a blind man from Jericho (folio 29 recto)
- the cursing of the fig tree (folio 30 verso).
History
It was written in the 6th century. The style of illustrations suggests Syria or Palestine (even Mesopotamia) as the place of its origin. The codex was discovered in 1899 at SinopeSinop, Turkey
Sinop is a city with a population of 36,734 on İnce Burun , by its Cape Sinop which is situated on the most northern edge of the Turkish side of Black Sea coast, in the ancient region of Paphlagonia, in modern-day northern Turkey, historically known as Sinope...
(hence its name), by a French officer. Its text was published by Henri Omont
Henri Omont
Henri Auguste Omont, was a librarian, philologist and French historian, born on September 15, 1857, died December 9, 1940.- Life :In 1881 he wrote a thesis De la ponctuation and was employed in the École Nationale des Chartes as an archivist. He became general inspector in the Bibliothèque...
in 1901.
43 leaves (all but one) of the codex now are located at the Bibliothèque Nationale
Bibliothèque nationale de France
The is the National Library of France, located in Paris. It is intended to be the repository of all that is published in France. The current president of the library is Bruno Racine.-History:...
of the Manuscrits occidentaux (Supplement Grec. 1286) at Paris.
According to B. H. Streeter
Burnett Hillman Streeter
Burnett Hillman Streeter was a British biblical scholar and textual critic.-Life:He was educated at Queen's College, Oxford. Streeter was ordained in 1899 and was a member of the Archbishop’s Commission on Doctrine in the Church of England...
it is a tertiary witness of the Caesarean text-type
Caesarean text-type
Caesarean text-type is the term proposed by certain scholars to denote a consistent pattern of variant readings that is claimed to be apparent in certain Greek manuscripts of the four Gospels, but which is not found in any of the other commonly recognized New Testament text-types; the Byzantine...
. This opinion was supported by Bruce Metzger
Bruce Metzger
Bruce Manning Metzger was a professor at Princeton Theological Seminary and Bible editor who served on the board of the American Bible Society. He was a scholar of Greek, New Testament and Old Testament, and wrote prolifically on these subjects.- Biography :Metzger was born in Middletown,...
. 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...
placed it in Category V, which means the Byzantine text-type
Byzantine text-type
The Byzantine text-type is one of several text-types used in textual criticism to describe the textual character of Greek New Testament manuscripts. It is the form found in the largest number of surviving manuscripts, though not in the oldest...
.
Further reading
- H. OmontHenri OmontHenri Auguste Omont, was a librarian, philologist and French historian, born on September 15, 1857, died December 9, 1940.- Life :In 1881 he wrote a thesis De la ponctuation and was employed in the École Nationale des Chartes as an archivist. He became general inspector in the Bibliothèque...
, Notice sur un très ancien manuscrit grec de l'évangile de saint Matthieu..., Notices et extraits des manuscrits de la bibliothèque nationale..., vol. 36 (Paris, 1901), pp. 599–676. - H. S. Cronin, Codex Chrysopurpureus Sinopensis, JTS II (1901), pp. 590-600.
- A. Munoz, Il codice purpureo di Rossano e il frammento sinopense (Rome 1907)
- C. R. Gregory, Textkritik des Neuen Testaments (J.C. Hinrichs’sche Buchhandlung: Leipzig 1909), vol. 3, pp. 1022–1023.
- Petra Sevrugian, Der Rossano-Codex und die Sinope-Fragmente: Miniaturen und Theologie (Worms 1990)