The Vatican Library Review 3.1 (June 2024).
CONTENTS INCLUDE
Risks and Rewards of Using the TLG for Editing Greek Texts: The Case of the Theophanes Continuatus Preserved in Vat. gr. 167
Juan Signes Codoñer
This contribution considers the limitations of, and the possibilities afforded by, the searching programmes of the Thesaurus Linguae Graecae for editing Greek texts and, particularly, for the establishment of the apparatus fontium. Particular attention is given to the N-grams tool. In addition to some general impressions, the tenth-century historical compilation known as the Theophanes Continuatus, preserved in the manuscript Vat. gr. 167, provides examples for discussion. Specific passages are commented upon to make the argument clear.
A Twelfth-Century Handbook of Byzantine Canon Law: John (Adrian) Komnenos’ Synthesis of the Nomocanon (c. 1130–1140) in Vat. gr. 2198
James Morton
This article examines the twelfth-century manuscript BAV Vat. gr. 2198 and its contents in light of new research in the field of Byzantine legal history. This codex is most notable for containing a canon law collection known as the Synthesis of the Nomocanon, attributed to “the monk John, the son of the Sebastokrator.” After first introducing the physical details of the manuscript and its history of ownership, the article then lays out the evidence for the identification of John with Adrian Komnenos, nephew of the emperor Alexios I. It next provides a detailed study of the structure and purpose of the Synthesis of the Nomocanon, arguing that it was an attempt to create a practical handbook of canon law that would allow readers to quickly look up canons on particular themes while also being able to check the historical context in which the canons were issued. Lastly, it also surveys the contents of the manuscript’s extensive appendix and offers some general conclusions about the significance of John’s Synthesis within the broader landscape of Komnenian canon law scholarship.
Die handschriftliche Überlieferung der zweiteiligen Abhandlung „Über das Seelenpneuma“ des spätbyzantinischen Aktuarios Johannes Zacharias (ca. 1275–1330): The Manuscript Transmission of the Twofold Treatise “On Psychic Pneuma” by John Zacharias Aktouarios (ca. 1275–1330)
Isabel Grimm-Stadelmann
The manuscript tradition of the twofold treatise “On Psychic Pneuma” by the late Byzantine Aktouarios John Zacharias is divided in two significantly different redactions (x and y) demonstrating separate levels of this treatise’s transmission and reception. Although both redactions most probably depend on one single textual witness, Parisinus gr. 2098, they visualize diverse terms of intention, literary value, and formal aspects. This paper analyses different approaches of the treatise’s contextualisation within the manifold ambience of Byzantine medicine.