Byzantine Libraries Roxanne M. Renteria LIS 612 Jaharis Lectionary, ca. 1100, Byzantine (Constantinople), Tempera, ink, and gold leaf on parchment, leather binding 14 1/2 x 11 5/8 x 4 7/8 in. (36.8 x 29.6 x 12.4 cm), Purchase, Mary and Michael Jaharis Gift and Lila Acheson Wallace Gift, 2007 (2007.286).
Overview 324-1204 AD, 1261-1453 AD 330 AD East meets West Constantine I Christianity Edict of Milan Capital = Constantinople (Istanbul, Turkey) Greek = Lingua Franca Latin = imperial edicts Great intellectualism Art & Architecture Λ alpha Examples of Byzantine art.
Map of the modern world.
Early Byzantium Period (324-867) Notable Emperors Constantine I the Great (r.306-37) Theodosius (Theodosius) I (379-95) Justinian I the Great (527-65) Middle Byzantium Period (867-1204) Late Byzantium Period (1259-1453) Portrait head of Emperor Constantine I, ca. 324 337; Constantinian; Late Antique period, Roman, Marble, H. 37 1/2 in. (95.2 cm), Bequest of Mary Clark Thompson, 1923 (26.229). Solidus of Constantius II (Sole Emperor, 350 361), 350 361, Byzantine, Gold Diam. 13/16 in. (2.1 cm),gift of Darius Ogden Mills, 1904 (04.35.18). Close up of Emperor Justinian I, 527-565; Early Byzantine Period, Mosaic, Hagia Sophia, Istanbul, Turkey.
Gospel book cover with Christ & medallions of saints. c. 1415, Gold; Precious stones; Pearls, Chased; Filigree, Byzantine (Russian), Moscow, Russia. Moscow. State Armory Museum. Kathleen Cohen, rusa6905. Religious & secular (pagan & heretical) Greco-Roman Manuscripts Codices Egyptian papyrus used until 7 th century (Arab conquest of Egypt) Large scale use of parchment 4 th century (expensive) Paper 11 th century Arabs (affordable) Codex Sinaticus Copied and/or translated Legacy 75% of known Greek works = Byzantium copies Today Italy Book Cover with Byzantine Icon of the Crucifixion, Icon carved about 1000, in Constantinople; setting made before 1085 Spanish; From the Convent of Santa Cruz de la Serós, Jaca. Gilded silver on a wood backing, inset with ivory icon, sapphire, glass, and crystal 10 1/2 x 7 1/2 in. (26 x 19.1 cm) Gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917 (17.190.134).
Gospel book cover with Christ & medallions of saints. c. 1415, Gold; Precious stones; Pearls, Chased; Filigree, Byzantine (Russian), Moscow, Russia. Moscow. State Armory Museum. Kathleen Cohen, rusa6905.
Codex Sinaiticus the Sinai Book 4th century manuscript Oldest complete copy of the Christian New Testament Uncial Greek script Parchment Codex Sinaiticus Project (http://codexsinaiticus.org/en/) Partners The British Library (347 leaves) National Library of Russia (6 leaves) St. Catherine s Monastery Leipzig University Library (43 leaves) Known as 'Codex Frederico-Augustanus' Detail: Codex Sinaiticus.
Imperial (largest libraries were imperial, state sponsored/university or academic) Monastic Barriers to Large-Scale Private Libraries Cost of production Monks asceticism
Discrepancy & Conjecture Founded by Constantine 330-336 or 337 Contained works in Greek & Latin; religious & secular 120,000 volumes (more codices than scrolls) Fire 475-477 Rebuilt under Zeno (474-491) Less accessible to the public
Photograph of St. Catherine s Monastery. Monasticism: Syria Constantinople (382 AD) Standardization (pattern/management) unknown until 10 th century Political support 5 th & 6 th centuries St. Catherine s Monastery, Mt. Sinai (6 th C) Oldest Christian Monastery still in use for original function 19 th century Codex Sinaiticus May 1975 s discovery (12 more leaves Codex Sinaiticus) The Monastery of Studious Theodore the Studite (Abbot) Late 8 th 9 th century Detail: Gospel of St. Mark, manuscript, Byzantine, 6 th century (Justinian I), discovered in St. Catherine s Monastery, 1975. "It should be known that on days when we perform no physical labor the librarian strikes a gong once, the brothers gather at the place where the books are kept, and each takes one, reading it until late. Before the bell is rung for evening service the librarian strikes again, and all come to return their books according to the list. If anyone is late with his book, he is subject to a penalty. Abbot Studite
Codex Sinaiticus Project. http://codexsinaiticus.org/en/codex/significance.aspx (accessed February 6, 2011). Charlesworth, James H. The Manuscripts of St. Catherin s Monastery. The Biblical Archaeologist 43, 1 (Winter 1980): 26-34. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3209750 (accessed February 6, 2011). Charanis, Peter. The Monk as an Element of Byzantine Society. Dumbarton Oaks Papers 25 (1971): 61-84 Collins, A. J. The Codex Sinaiticus. The British Museum Quarterly 8, 3 (February 1934): 89-92. http://www.jstor.org/stable/4421586 (accessed February 5, 2011). Department of Art History and Archaeology. Early Christian and Byzantine Architecture. Columbia University. http://www.learn.columbia.edu/ha/html/byzantine.html#home (accessed February 6, 2011). Department of Medieval Art and The Cloisters. "List of Rulers of Byzantium". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/byru/hd_byru.htm (accessed February 5, 2011).
Department of Medieval Art and The Cloisters. "Byzantium". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000. http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/byza/hd_byza.htm (accessed February 5, 2011). Harris, Michael. Chapter 6: Byzantine and Moslem Libraries. In History of Libraries in the Western World, by Michael Harris, 3-16. Landham, MD: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 1999. Lerner, Fred. The Story of Libraries.: From the Invention of Writing to the Computer Age. 2 nd ed. New York, Continuum, 2009. Merland, Donald. Memory Palaces: The Revolutionary Function of Libraries. Queen s Quarterly 108, 4 (Winter 2001): 559-572. Milliken, William M. Byzantine Manuscript Illumination. The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 34, 3 (March 1947): 50-53, 55-56. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25141353 (accessed February 5, 2011). Murray, Stuart A. P., and Nicholas A. Basbanes. The Library: An Illustrated History. New York: Skyhorse Publishing, 2009.
Skeat, T. C. The Last Chapter in the History of the Codex Sinaiticus. Novum Testamentum 42, 4 (October 2000): 313-315. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1561394 (accessed February 6, 2011). Staikos, Konstantinos Sp. The Great Libraries: From Antiquity to the Renaissance (3000 B.C. to A.D. 1600). New Castle, DE: Oak Knoll Press, 2000. Tanner, Thomas M. A History of Early Christian Libraries from Jesus to Jerome. The Journal of Library History 14, 4 (Fall 1979), 407-435. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25541013 (accessed February 5, 2011). Wedgeworth, Robert. World Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences. American Library Association, 1993. Wehmeyer, Jeffrey M. The Chartophylax: Archivist and Librarian to the Patriarch in Constantinople. Libraries & Culture, 32, 1 (Winter, 1997): 107-112. http://www.jstor.org/stable/25548491 (accessed February 5, 2011).
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