LIST OF MANUSCRIPTS
COLLATED FOR
ANASTASII SINAITAE IN HEXAEMERON, EDITIO MAIOR
The following list presents some catalogue information for the manuscripts used to create the editio maior of the Hexaemeron. For complete information about these and the other surviving manuscripts of the Hexaemeron, and for a stemma showing their relationship, see C. Kuehn and J. Baggarly, S.J., (eds. and trans.), Anastasius of Sinai: Hexaemeron (OCA 278) (Rome 2007), xxiv-lxiii. All book and line references are to the OCA first edition. For more on the Anastasian Hexaemeron manuscripts, visit: http://pinakes.irht.cnrs.fr
Family I
N - Codex Oxoniensis Collegii Novi 139. Paper; in folio; 307 x 225 mm.; 272 folios. The Anastasios portion of the codex: early XVIth century; IV, 149 folios, II.
Catalogue: Henricus O. Coxe, Catalogus codicum mss. qui in Collegiis Aulisque Oxoniensibus hodie adservantur. Pars I, Catalogus codicum mss. Collegii Novi (Oxford 1852), 50.
The entry by Coxe reads: “Codex chartaceus, in folio, ff. 272, sec. XV; olim ‘W.B. 1648’.” After a brief description of the included works by Clement of Alexandria, Coxe writes: “3. Anastasii Sinaitae, archiepiscopi Antiocheni, Anagogicarum Contemplationum in Hexaemeron libri duodecim ad Theophilum; praevia tabula. Fol. 124. Liber ultimus solummodo exstat Graece London 1682; reliqui Latine tantum editi sunt in variis Bibl. Patrum editionibus. Sequitur fragmentum Paedagogi lib. ii. capp. iv. et v.”
This codex is the only surviving manuscript that contains all of Book XII of the Hexaemeron (i.e. XII.489-493, 1st edition). In addition to the Hexaemeron, the codex contains texts of Clement of Alexandria’s Protrepticus and Paedagogus II and III, which were used by J. Potter in his edition of Clementis Alexandrini opera quae exstant, Volume I (Oxford, 1715). The Clement manuscripts figure in several studies by Otto Stählin, and he treats them in his edition Clemens Alexandrinus, Volume I (GCS 12), (Leipzig, 1905), xxv, xlvii-l, and lxxi. P. M. Barnard discusses them in his Clement of Alexandria, Quis dives salvetur (TSt V/2), xv‑xviii. Four blank folios separate the works of Clement from the work of Anastasios. Folio 272 is not blank, but a misplaced folio from Clement’s Paedagogus. An index of the contents of each chapter in the Hexaemeron, written in the same hand as the Hexaemeron itself, is found on f. 123r‑v, and the Hexaemeron occupies ff. 124r ‑ 271v.
Family IIa
P - Codex Vaticanus Palatinus Graecus 372. First half of the XVIth century. Paper; in 8 vo.; 143 x 208 mm. (measurements of a central leaf, f. 204); binder’s leaf, II, 399 folios, I, binder’s leaf.
Catalogue: Henricus Stevenson, Codices manuscripti Palatini Graeci Bibliothecae Vaticanae descripti praeside I. B. Cardinali Pitra (Rome 1885), 240.
This manuscript contains only the Anastasian Hexaemeron, which is complete almost to the end of Book XII, stopping at the word ἐνεργείαις (Hex. XII.489; PG 89, 1077A12). The absence of the ending of Book XII is not due to physical damage to the manuscript; probably the exemplar of P did not contain the ending.
The text of the Hexaemeron begins on f. 1r. The quires each comprise eight folios. There are 50 gatherings; the last leaf of the last gathering is missing. The numeration of the folios is slightly irregular. The numbers proceed in sequence up to f. 264. The 265th folio carries no numeral. The 266th folio is numbered 265. The numeration then proceeds in the normal fashion to f. 376, which is actually the 377th folio. There is no folio that carries the number 377, although none of the text is missing at this point (PG 89, 1056C34). The 378th folio carries the number 378, and the numeration proceeds in the usual manner to f. 399. The last two folios, ff. 398 and 399, carry these numerals on their respective recto sides, but are otherwise blank.
Family IIb
B - Codex Bononiensis Bibliothecae Communalis Archigymnasii A.5 (olim A.I.3). Middle of the XVIth century. Paper; 306 x 207 mm. (measurement of f. 1); I binder’s leaf, 177 folios, III guard leaves (called ff. 178‑180 by C. Lucchessi), I binder’s leaf.
Catalogues: A. Olivieri and N. Festa, “Indice dei codici greci delle biblioteche Universitaria e Comunale di Bologna,” Studi Italiani di filologia classica 3 (1895): 470.
Carlo Lucchessi, Inventario dei Manoscritti della Biblioteca Comunale della Archiginnasio di Bologna (Serie A). Volume 1 (Florence, 1924), 12‑13.
This manuscript contains only the Anastasian Hexaemeron (on ff. 1r‑177v), which is complete almost to the end of Book XII, stopping at the word ἐνεργείαις (Hex. XII.489; PG 89, 1077A12).
The codex has a white leather cover, 316 x 211 mm.; the coat of arms on the inside cover probably belonged to the Cornaro family of Venice. The paper is Venetian. Olivieri dates the manuscript to the XVIth century (pg. 470). Lucchessi dates it to the XVth century (pg. 13). Both scholars noted the second hand, a more skilfull hand, that copied out ff. 9, 16, and 177. Since the script on f. 9 very strongly resembles that in Y, we are inclined to agree with Olivieri. Certain marginal corrections, e.g. on f. 2r, seem to come from a hand different from either the first or the second hand.
One of several watermarks consists of a bull’s head (f. 81) surmounted by a cross (f. 11). It is similar to Briquet no 14525, which has been attested at Brescia in 1543, with variants at Bergame in 1544 and Rispach in 1545. Another watermark is a (cardinal’s) hat surmounted by a cross (f. 180) or a star (f. 179). The former is similar to Briquet no 3486, attested at Udine in 1553; the latter is similar to no 3454, attested at Salo in 1534.
There is also a noticable change in the writing beginning at f. 2r. The hand is probably the same as f. 1, but the ductus is thinner and therefore there are more words per line and more lines per page. F. 2v returns to the original broad ductus, 3r is thin, 3v and following return to the original broad. The broad ductus is probably no more than a different pen. For example: 3r line 17 turns suddenly broad, but the rest of the text is thin. As pointed out above, there are marginal commentaries in a third hand on 2r, 3r, etc. B was carefully written and carefully reviewed. The orthography and accentuation are remarkably accurate throughout. Where a mistake had occurred, a third hand corrected it. There is no iota subscript.
The Biblioteca Comunale dell’Archiginnasio di Bologna acquired the manuscript after the death in 1811 of its last possessor, Antonio Magnani, S. J. We do not know whether the manuscript passed directly or indirectly into the hands of Fr. Magnani, or when he acquired it. Previously it had belonged to the Cornaro family of Venice, one of whose members, Catherine Cornaro (1454‑1510), had been the wife of James II, King of Cyprus. It is possible that the exemplar of the manuscript was on Cyprus; but at the moment such a proposal must remain in the realm of hypothesis. It is possible that Anastasius himself was born on the island of Cyprus.
Family III
The members of this family not only share certain characteristic readings, but also contain Books I-XI complete but not Book XII (but see F, μ,and J below). The family divides into three sub‑families. The division into the last two sub‑families may not be perfect, since contamination may have occurred. Most of the codices of Families IIIb and IIIc seem to have been copied within a short space of time, perhaps between 1540 and 1570, which was approximately the period when the Council of Trent was in session. A few later copies exist.
Family IIIa
F - Codex Parisinus Graecus Bibliothecae Nationalis 861 (olim Codex Colbertinus 2253). XVIth century. Paper; in folio; 195 x 299 mm.; 176 folios numbered as 177 (there is no f. 23).
Catalogue: Henri Omont, Inventaire sommaire des manuscrits grecs de la Bibliotèque Nationale. Première partie, Ancien fonds grec, Théologie (Paris 1886), 162.
This is the only manuscript of Family III that contains Book XII, which is almost complete, ending at ἐνεργείαις (Hex. XII.489; PG 89, 1077A12). Omont mistakenly notes that it was copied by Ioannes Rhôsos, who died in 1498. Folio 165r carries a watermark like that on Briquet no 3477, attested in 1547. The manuscript is obviously unfinished: there are frequent lacunae where capital letters should have been painted.
Family IIIb
S - Codex Scorialensis 372 vel X.II.12 (olim III.I.16 et III.B.2; 20us e MSS. Graecis Antonii Augustini). Middle of XVIth century. Paper; 289 x 201 mm. (measurements of f. 155); II, 330 folios (there are two folios numbered 154).
Catalogues: E. Miller, Catalogue des manuscrits grecs de la Bibliothèque de l’Escurial (Paris 1848), 390-1.
Gregorio de Andrés, Catálogo de los Códices Griegos de la Real Biblioteca de El Escorial. II, Códices 179-420 (Madrid 1965), 281-2.
The codex has a light tan leather cover, blind tooled and decorated with the escutcheon of the Escorial. The Hexaemeron is the last work in the codex, and covers Books I through XI; it begins on the recto of the second folio numbered 154 and ends on folio 329r. At the beginning of f.159r the hand changes from a clear, experienced hand (S1) with fine, distinct letters, including iota subscript and accurate accents, to a less refined hand (S2) with thicker strokes and frequent mistakes (though some of the accents are corrected). A third hand (S3), more refined than the second, is evident at the first three lines of f. 160. A fourth hand (S4) begins at folio 162r line 1: less rectangular than S1, more refined than S2, and not as cursive as S3. S4 writes quickly but authoritatively, and reveals correct orthography and accents. There is a mixture of wide letters (especially initial alpha and epsilon) and narrow letters (especially omicron and theta). The manuscript here also includes ocassional marginal corrections by the same hand, S4. Within the manuscript, the anchor occurs as a watermark. There are, however, two kinds of anchors surmounted by a star. The simple line drawing, found on f. 162, is similar to Briquet no 558, which is a Venetian paper and has been attested at Verona in 1573. De Andrés says (pg. 282) that the codex seems to have come from the scriptorium of Andreas Darmarios.
Family IIIc
The manuscripts μ and J form a distinguishable sub-group of Family IIIc. The relationship between μ and J is especially close because of several lacunae unique to these two manuscripts (see the remarks about J below).
Q - Codex Vaticanus Graecus Reginae Pii II 12. XVIth century. Paper; 315 x 311 mm.; binder’s leaf, I, 169 folios, III, binder’s leaf.
Catalogue: Henricus Stevenson, Codices Manuscripti Graeci Reginae Svecorum et Pii PP. II Bibliothecae Vaticanae (Rome, 1888), 139-40.
This codex contains only the Hexaemeron, up to the end of Book XI. Stevenson dated the codex in the XVth century (pg. 139). Otto Kreston, however, viewed the manuscript and informed us that the title and first two lines of the text on f. 1r come from the hand of the unknown teacher of Andreas Darmarios. We also found that the watermarks on ff. 161-172 are almost identical with the anchor in the circle and the star, together with the countermark, as set out in Briquet no 518, which is attested at Verona in 1545. After the title and first two lines, the ductus becomes thick and clumsy. There are some iota subscripts and diaereses.
The codex entered the Vatican Library under Clement XI (Pope 1700-1721) from the Monastery of San Silvestro in Quirinale (cf. Stevenson, pg. x, and the seals on f. 1r).
m - Codex Matritensis Bibliothecae Nationalis 4773. 1566. Paper; 317 x 216 mm. (measurements of f. 50); II, 469 folios, I.
The Hexaemeron begins on f. 278r and continues to 466v. It is preceded by Nicephorus on the Psalms. F. 467 is blank; ff. 468 and 469 contain two fragments of the Hexaemeron by the same hand. The watermark on the front and rear guard leaves and f. 2 is a hand with a star. It is similar to Briquet no 11209, which has been attested at Madrid in 1547. It seems that the part of the codex containing the Hexaemeron was executed for Martín Pérez de Ayala, Archbishop of Valencia (see f. Ir and the colophon on f. 466v18). Martín was installed as Archbishop on 23 April 1565 and died on 5 August 1566. His library, including this manuscript and 4775 (see μ below), was then given to the Real Casa de Santiago de Uclés. The notice on f. Ir calls attention to the Anastasian works in 4775, which was already in the same library, and adds: hoc volui te lector admovere, ut si opus foret, comparatione exemplarium veriorem lectionem posses comprobare. It is, however, a poor copy with many orthographical errors and other irregularities. It seems that the copyist was listening to his exemplar and not reading it, which might account for the frequent exchange of η, οι, and ει, and the addition and deletion of final ν. It is possible that Hervet’s Latin translation came from a manuscript similar to m (see Hv below), but it contains readings that m does not have (see, for example, Hex. I.442). Perhaps Hv was a collation of m and μ?
J - Codex Scorialensis C.I.4. Paper; in folio; 233 x 344 mm. (measurements of f. 57); 370 folios.
Catalogue: E. Miller, Catalogue des manuscrits grecs de la Bibliothèque de l’Escurial (Paris, 1848), 411.
The Hexaemeron portion of the codex occupies f. 56r - f. 226r. According to a colophon on f. 226r7-9, the manuscript was completed in 1573 by Nicolas de la Torre (cf. Miller, pg. 411).
J and μ are not complete and form a distinct sub-group of Family IIIc. Both manuscripts skip from Hex. I.352 to I.752. The omission occurs in midsentence and in the middle of a line, and neither scribe gives an indication that anything is missing. They both continue from I.752 to I.772 and in midsentence again skip, but this time the omission is several books. Both scribes begin again at V.284, in the middle of a word. Both scribes now realize that something is amiss: J leaves the top half of a new page blank before beginning V.284 midway down the page; μ leaves 3 lines blank at the bottom of the page, then begins V.284 at the top of a new page. One therefore understands why m was added to the same library as μ: despite the many scribal errors in m, it does offer a more complete text.
Family IV
M - Codex Graecus Bibliothecae Statalis (olim Regiae) Bavaricae 145. Possibly the middle of the XVth century or the early XVIth century. Paper; in folio; 438 folios (f. 438 blank).
Catalogue: Io. Christoph. L. Baro de Aretin, Catalogus codicum manuscriptorum Bibliothecae Regiae Bavaricae. Voluminis Primi, Codices Graecos ab Ign. Hardt … recensitos complexi Tom.II (Munich 1806), 142.
This codex contains the Hexaemeron on ff. 246r-437v6. The text is complete almost to the end of Book XII, stopping with the word ἐνεργείαις (Hex. XII.489; PG 89, 1077A12). There is no indication of physical damage to the manuscript at this point.
The codex also contains other works in at least one other hand. On f. 200r, there is a colophon indicating that a portion of the codex was completed in April 1445. We believe, however, that the Hexaemeron might have been copied at a later date, since the watermark on ff. 431, 435, and 438, a tall crown, is very similar to Briquet no 4906, which is attested in Memmingen in 1506. But it must be noted that Briquet no 4906 has four circles in the band, while the watermark in our codex has three circles and no M-shaped line on top of the cross.
First Printed Edition
Hv - As far as we know, the Anastasian Hexaemeron first appeared in printed form in 1579, in Gentian Hervet’s Latin translation of Books I - XI. The volume in which it was published appears to be quite scarce. It’s title page reads:
APPENDIX BIBLIOTHECAE SANCTORUM PATRUM, VARIA DE DEO ET REBUS DIVINIS COMPLECTENS OPUSCULA ET Fragmenta ; omnia nunc primum vel ex M. S. exscripta Codicibus, vel meliori forma, edita ; & multis quam hactenus unquam partibus auctiora … PER MARGUARINUM DE LA BIGNE, SACRAE THEOLOGIAE DOCTOREM. PARISIIS, APUD MICHAELEM SONNIUM, VIA IACOBEA, SUB SCUTO BASILIENSI. M. D. LXXIX. CUM PRIVILEGIO REGIS.
Running across cc. 1367-1368 B (lines 21-24) is the following title:
ANASTASII SINAITAE MONACHI ET PRESBYTERI, IN SPIRITUALEM ANAGOGEN SEX DIERUM CREATIONIS, GENTIANO HERVETO, RHEMENSI CANONICAE, INTERPRETE.
The text then begins immediately at c. 1367 C (25) with the words “SACRA Dei vox”. No title of a division is prefixed, such as “Liber Primus” or “Praefatio”. The text continues to the end of Hex. XI at c. 1538 C (29). We find a clue to the exemplar Hervet used in the fact that in his edition, the title of Hex. VIIb occurs at its end rather than after VIIa. Of all the codices we have seen, only Codex Matritensis Bibliothecae Nationalis 4773 (m) shows this phenomenon. And in the lemma on Hex. I.87-88, Hervet has the same reading as m and the manuscripts of Family IIIc. His translation, however, reveals variants independent of m and the other manuscripts used in this edition.