234 - Manuscripts of the Greek Bible: An Introduction to Greek Palaeography

Manuscripts of the Greek Bible:
An Introduction to Greek Palaeography
By Bruce M. Metzger
New York, Oxford University, 1981. 150 pp. $17.95.

This handsome volume, 8 1/2 x 11 inches in size, contains a brief introduction to the essentials of Greek palaeography (pp. 1 - 56) and photographic reproductions of 45 biblical manuscripts, each accompanied by a description on the facing page (pp. 57 - 140). Several short chapters of a few pages each in the introductory section treat basic definitions, the Greek alphabet, Greek pronunciation, and the making of ancient books, while longer chapters are devoted to the transcribing of Greek manuscripts, including scribal activity, types of handwriting, and abbreviations and punctuation, as well as special features of biblical manuscripts, such as sacred names and lectionary apparatus, among numerous others. Two brief appendices tell how to estimate the date of a manuscript and how to collate it, and a third appendix provides helpful statistics about manuscripts of the Greek New Testament (though not of the Old Testament!).

236 - Manuscripts of the Greek Bible: An Introduction to Greek Palaeography

The specimen pages and the accompanying descriptions are arranged chronologically according to the dates assigned to the manuscripts, which range from the second century B.C. to the fifteenth century A.D. And typically they display a leaf from an important manuscript which also contains a feature of special interest, either palaeographical, textual, or historical. Old Testament manuscripts are cited according to the index of Rahlfs, and those of the New Testament according to the Gregory/Aland numbers. The entire manuscript from which the sample leaf is drawn is first described as to the material upon which it is written, its dimensions, number of leaves, biblical content, and other palaeographical and codicological features (such as the style of handwriting, different hands, accents and punctuation, abbreviations, corrections, and the like), followed by a statement on the manuscript's special aspects and importance, such as its textual character.

Each description includes a brief bibliography and footnotes where appropriate. And occasionally the Greek text contained in the illustrative leaf, or a portion of it, is given in transcription. Examples of selection for special purposes appear in Codex W (the ending of Mark known as the "Freer Logion"), Codex D (the agraphon in Luke 6 about the man working on the Sabbath), Codex L of Genesis (an illumination depicting Joseph and Potiphar's wife), and so forth. The script (though not necessarily the manuscript leaf) of each manuscript is reproduced in its original size unless that is impossible in the present format (as is the case, e.g., with the three - column Codex Vaticanus or the four - column Codex Sinaiticus, and some of the other elegant uncials).

The volume in both intention and in accomplishment is an" introduction" to palaeography. Full - scale treatments, whether Montfaucon's pioneering work of 1708 or those of two centuries later by E. M. Thompson (1912) or V. Gardthausen (1911 - 13), run to 600 pages in length.

Metzger's 56 pages of prose, therefore, are all the more remarkable, for what he offers in that severely limited space is, to be sure, elementary, and yet is both amazingly comprehensive and strikingly concise, providing both the essential technical concepts and terminology and also adequate examples from actual manuscripts to illustrate each point that he makes. If there is any imbalance, it is only that the emphasis in the volume generally and also in the particular examples in the introductory section falls upon the New Testament rather than the Old - which is natural given the author's own primary specialization. A general bibliography (pp. 141 - 43) and several indices conclude the volume.

It is a distinct pleasure to encounter a volume printed on fine quality paper, with clear print and plates, and sturdily bound for extended use, yet so reasonably priced for a work of this type that it can (and should) be used as a manual for courses in biblical manuscript studies. The plates have been reproduced so that they can (and should) be used for class discussion and for practice and homework assignments.

237 - Manuscripts of the Greek Bible: An Introduction to Greek Palaeography

This is not to suggest that this careful, concise, and elegant work is only for the biblical student in a seminary or university classroom. It will interest and serve others as well, including classicists, biblical scholars, and teachers whose training may have been insufficient in what traditionally has been called"lower [that is, more basic] criticism", namely textual criticism and manuscript studies.

Finally, in arrangement and format this volume is similar to two other Oxford publications. One appeared ten years ago: Greek Manuscripts of the Ancient World by E. G. Turner (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1971; xiv 132 pp.), which contains a somewhat briefer introduction, followed by numerous plates and accompanying descriptions, almost exclusively of fourth century B.C. to seventh century A.D. papyrus manuscripts. The other is very recent: Greek Literary Hands A.D. 400 - 1600 by Ruth Barbour (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1981; xxxvi 82 pp.), which furnishes specimen handwriting from dated or datable manuscripts. This volume will stand on its own for its stated purposes, but the use of these three volumes would provide a broad base for palaeographical study. Yet, it is distinctly to Metzger's credit to have brought all aspects of this technical subject within the reach of so many, for his work alone provides a systematic introduction that leads one easily, clearly, and firmly into basic palaeography.

Eldon Jay Epp
Case Western Reserve University
Cleveland, Ohio