2011 Syriac Books & Manuscripts of the Duke University Collection A Special Exhibit Maria Doerfler, Emanuel Fiano, Lucas Van Rompay FOREWORD Hosting the Sixth North American Syriac Symposium at Duke University in the summer of 2011 offers a unique opportunity to highlight some of the hidden Syriac treasures of Duke's Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library. Even though Duke University cannot boast of a long history in the field of Near Eastern studies, Syriac has been part of the curriculum since the middle of the 20th century. Duke Divinity School Professors William F. Stinespring (Professor of Old Testament and Semitics, 1936-1971) and John Strugnell, the well-known Dead Sea Scrolls specialist, regularly included Syriac in their teaching and research. In their footsteps, James Charlesworth continued the teaching of Syriac from 1969 to 1984, when he was appointed at Princeton Theological Seminary. It was at Duke that Charlesworth became interested in the Syriac Odes of Solomon, which have continued to fascinate him throughout his scholarly career. When Charlesworth left, the teaching of Syriac and of other Near Eastern languages came into the hands of Orval Wintermute who, throughout his 42-year career at Duke (1958-2000), was instrumental in making Syriac and the study of Syriac Christianity an integral part of the teaching and research in the Department of Religion as well as of the Graduate Program in Religion. Along with the growing significance of Syriac, in both its Near Eastern and Early Christian contexts, Duke University Library and the Divinity School Library in particular have maintained a very active acquisition policy which has led to the present status of Duke's Library as an outstanding research library in our field. Both Roger Lloyd, the present librarian of the Divinity School Library, and Andrew Armacost, Head of Collection Development and Curator of Collections, should be credited for continuing this successful policy up to the present day. With the help and encouragement of Andrew Armacost, two Duke graduate students, Emanuel Fiano and Maria Doerfler, have selected a small number of precious printed books, beginning with Johann Widmanstetter's first edition of the Syriac New Testament U" ^ (Vienna, 1555). The result of their work is presented in this brochure, which accompanies the special exhibit that will be held during the days of the Symposium in the Biddle Rare Book Room (Monday through Wednesday from 12:30 to 2:00 pm). We also were able to include in the exhibit two Syriac manuscripts that are in the possession of the Special Collections Library. Ms. no. 1 was presented to Duke University in 1952 by George Brinkmann Ehlhardt, who was Librarian of Duke Divinity School from 1942 to 1950. Ms. no. 2 was purchased by Duke University in the early 1990s from the library of Professor Morton Smith (Columbia University) after his death in 1991. Provisional descriptions of both manuscripts are included in this brochure. Maria Doerfler and Emanuel Fiano should be congratulated on their work, and Andrew Armacost should be thanked for his ongoing support as well as for his creativity and inventiveness in ensuring that Duke's hidden Syriac (and other Near Eastern) treasures do not remain in the darkness of the storerooms and receive the attention they deserve. May the exhibit and the brochure be a worthy complement to the Symposium in which we celebrate the prominence of Syriac studies at Duke and in North America! Lucas Van Rompay Professor of Eastern Christianity Duke University, Department of Religion. 1. Liber sacrosancti evangelii de Jesv Christo Domino & Deo nostro. Reliqua hoc Codice comprehensa pagina proxima indicabit. Div. Ferdinandi Rom. Imperatoris designati iussu & liberaiitate, characteribus & lingua Syra, lesu Christo vernacula, Divino ipsius ore cosecrata, et a \oh. Euagelista hebraica dicta, Scriptorio Prelo diligeter Expressa. Editor: Widmanstetter, Johann Albrecht, 1506(?)-1557. Publisher & Publication Date: Viennae: M. Zymmerman, 1562 (2 nd Edition). Additional Notations: Title and text in Syriac, with the title in red and black font. The Syriac font on the title page is printed in black with vowel pointing in red. This volume, published in 1555, was the work of Johann A. Widmanstetter with the support of the king (and future emperor) Ferdinand. It consists of three Syriac types: A smaller Serto, an Estrangela for rubrics and editorial mater, and a larger Serto that appears only on the errata leaf. 1 Coakley surmises that typesetting the project occupied most of 1554. The Syriac font seems to derive from the handwriting of Mushe of Mardin, a Syriac Orthodox priest who also served as editor for the text. Guillaume Postel, an independent scholar, was also involved in its production, apparently focusing on overseeing the technical details of the character- set. In addition, the preface to the manuscript is a lengthy, 47-page dedicatory letter in Latin from Widmanstetter to Ferdinand, tells the story of the work's conception and implementation process. The subsequent entry in this brochure provides additional background on Widmanstetter and his work. This volume has been reprinted by G.A. Kiraz (Gorgias Press, 2006), with introduction (i-vi). 1 Coakley, Typography of Syriac, 31. u Li b £R Sacrosancti Evangel!! Del&sVCimsr o Domfoo&;Deono(lrov Rcllqua hoc Codice coroprchcn- la paginaproxima in Jiahiu J>ir.F*xj>i»i,iXDi %£& iatfiiCiTi *,j* dtjignaniuffu Iucteis omnibus, Chriftianac redcmptionis Euangclica:qj prardicationis tempore, Vernacular & popularis, idcoq; a NouiTeftamenti Scriptoribus quibufdam. Hebraicae dicta. PRIMA ELEMEN7A. Quibus adkcldfunt Cbrisliamt %eligionh> foknnesy qitotMiatidf, fncatioties. VlENNAt AVSTRIACAI, ANNO M. D. LV. XXI, HOVE MR. Title-Page of Widmanstetter's Syriacae lingvae lesv Christo, eivsque Matri Virgini atq; ludaeis omnibus, Christianae redemptionis Euangel. 3. Biblia sacra, Hebraice, Chaldaice, Graece et Latine: Philippi II. reg. Cathol. pietate, et studio ad sacrosanctae ecclesiae usum. Publisher & Publication Date: Antwerp; Christoph. Plantinus excud. Antuerpiae., 1569. Author: Arias Montano, Benito, 1527-1598. Additional Notations: These volumes include the text of the Complutensian Polyglot; a Chaldean paraphrase of parts of the Old Testament; a Syriac version of N. T.; and a Latin translation of Paginus, as revised by Arias Montanus. Duke Library owns volumes 1-7, of which vols. 1-5 are bound in blind-tooled pigskin, with initials I.S. on front cover and date 1635 on rear cover, ties lacking; vol. 6 quarter is bound in marbled paper boards, vol. 7 in gilt-tooled red straight- grain morocco, with a black leather spine label and marbled endpapers. Volume 6 and volume 7 contain bookplates conveying the following prior ownership information: "From the library of Arthur Haddaway" (vol. 6) and "From the library of Thomas Millington" (vol. 7). Benito Arias Montano (or Benedictus Arias Montanus) (1527-1598), a Spanish orientalist and scholar of various Semitic languages, was involved in the Antwerp Polyglot Bible (Biblia Regia) printed by Christophe Plantin (Christoffel Plantijn) between 1569 and 1572. He did not , however, prepare the Syriac NT text that is included in it (this was done by the young French scholar Guy Lefevre de la Boderie). Masius nevertheless contributed two major tools that were included in vol. 6 of the Polyglot (1571): a Syriac grammar and a Syriac glossary (Syrorum Peculium 'Private property of the Syrians'). These two works may be seen as 'the first European grammar and dictionary of Syriac', while his grammar served as a model for several subsequent grammars (Contini). 3 There are two major portions of Syriac in the Antwerp Polyglot: (1) Masius' Grammatica linguae Syricae and Syrorum Peculium, the first grammar and glossary of Syriac in Europe; (2) The Syriac NT text, which was prepared by the French scholar Guy Lefevre de la Boderie. 3 L. Van Rompay, "Andreas Masius (1514-1573)," in Gorgias Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Syriac Heritage, 275a-276a (forthcoming). <• i£*vi_. =>=*j» tvw.n ?^»i if «-.-_'.= aogu .,aor.\«\ , „No| Sm.it..1 . cLtr^l ^. ol Kjt. • . ^cnojlDo )^7uSk ^.cl ' .vO»y-bk^»ol m^.^^oI ,'-o— ; >J.O >i^> ,*_. ] v o!»i ,. .*..: ' . ,_!_. I ~,:. .- •. ^ tvAV f v.c1 vflViSm • . ovist's ' h3C\ •--•* -V 5 r-^--i— -^— 'i t«0 .£•»•£ .] ,'c]i ct'/j) ^O yfVnSaS , v .c} fMf *«T.-w» ,:^»;S ^S»o) >n'1 ' . Uilrt*^ ^o] liotk ' . Uta^. ,— .A • .]»£.! J^. ^>.c1 u-l'.u. >'i) Jbxo] >ala> ,_!-. 1 U* — ' . 1 « * o * V » ^J^.c 1 vaiol ■ i ^tas; Ua^s^p -aia*LPo .Iti^.N ^ol U-ii a* • 1 ^i=>? «-•? U<&^j±\3 .la • • joti. ' . «oii^ ^.o) ,Vi.f>n\) . Jm . o . 'VO ■ ^ol ^sl'. «*a!) ^Lo] do* .Qo?il*. £uo\ •■Vs.,'.-' cn^a^'tiT^t'Si ^.o] a oC i i ; • C A f . I. tntcrpr. Syiiitx IN VIRTVTE DOMINI DtlQVC NO ST* I If If II V* Cmim, inopimui llribert Librum f«ro6rKti tuingtlii. riimi:Rk{tw Euingciium, Mat ji prxtonmro , G v i o o x >. Fa»»icio Eiftnptorc A; Ixitctffttf. 50MIMIC* 4HII N WITIrtTltt. CAtVt I. I » i » fntrtt*mu 4fc». ,/rjtrii n»j. ' jibtfUnnml Van. , O* 2*wl >if 7"4»"»». VtrrL^mmiCvt^m, , * Of »<• rrutf , /« l»,\*»i f Amtuiti £f • •/ ,V* »;'•••, \4thf*mt jmn Stlm*m*. , ' S*bm*»9 /<»•* B*«. 4 KkU , &vt (ttmitOitiiJJiKtmii Omiii >n*tl jjikti ilhtltmnmtfXxrrt i>mrrt i t ' SthbmMt jpmit KtfkittmiXftltitm £tt*tl ,Htu , .*a*. ' /'i J cntaa Mm* "±J ),'.>«.•. ••• /»». f#».« »««» S<'txL:ixd , icULl«J fnmi l ' lM>Ui4*is+* ; ' fiiifwi rrnttfiafffi rtrmm Mtntw, ii n%t mi.i if liniin,^ fnuu UdtMd*. nV P^ffen t^s?T3 =*=9 1 " rr^ra's^-rra re" •^ l > , r 3, ~ i ^' v 7 ^,^,' tS» pntrx pfcy»^i j iay;i.i * aTi?xi.T>3TTTi.Ti3«crrT07ennrriAn {{3713 y- - ^.V^StcXi^pny^r^^KT"" * i *t** < 7 ■ TV* 1 ' i' " 1 ' JV?" JST^ GRAMMATICA LINGVO SYRICiE, INVENTORE ATQ, AVCTORE ANDREA MASIO: O p v s nouum , 8c a noftris hominibus adhuc non tra&atum : quod labo- riofa animaducrfionc atq. notationc vocalium , aliorumq. pundonim Syricorum , quibufq. dictionibus in_* opumis cmcndatiflimifq. libris appoiitorum illc nupcr compofuio. Put. L XXI. Pjau x ci v. ANTVERPIA Excudcbac Chriftophorus Plancinus Archicypographus Rcgiiis.. M. D. LXXIII. Title page of Masius' Crammatica Linguae Syricae, the first grammar of Syriac in Europe. SYRORVM PECVLIVM. HOC EST, VOCABVLA APVD SYR OS SCRIPT O- RES PASSIM VSVRPATA: TARGVMISTIS VERO AVT PRORSVS iNCOGNITA : AVT IN IPSORVM VOCABVLARIIS AOHVC NON SATIS EXPLICATA: Andreas Masivs fit, fax mtmorU istutuuU cattjft toUigtbat. ANTVERPIA, Ex officina Chriitophori Plantini, Rcgii Prototypographi. M. D. LXXIL Title page of Masius' Syrorum Pecul/um, the first glossary of Syriac in Europe. 4. Novum Testamentum Domini Nostri lesu Christi. Syriace, Ebraice, Greece, Latine, Germanice, Bohemice, Malice, Hispanice, Gallice, Anglice, Dcmice, Polonice. / Studio & labore Eliae Hutteri. Germani. Author: H utter, Elias, 1553-1609. Publisher & Publication Date: Noribergae: [E. Hutter?], 1599-1600. Additional Notations: These two volumes contain numerous errors in pagination. On page 1090 of vol. 2, a colophon has been inserted at the end of the Hebrew version in Hutter's Hebrew type face. It does not, however, supply either dates or names. Volume 2 contains the apocryphal Epistle of St. Paul to the Laodiceans on two leaves inserted between pages 660 and 661. The four-page-long preface to Hutter's 1599 Polyglot Bible (Darlow & Moule 1426), is bound in immediately after general title page of vol 1. Further, a folded woodcut of the head of Christ precedes the half title for Matthew in vol. 2. Elias Hutter was a German Hebraist and professor of Hebrew at Leipzig University. His Opus Quadripartitum, or Bible in Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and German, was published by David Wolter at Hamburg in 1596. The work on exhibit here was part of the so-called Nuremberg Polyglot In addition to the extant two-volume edition of the New Testament in twelve languages Syriac, Italian, Hebrew, Spanish, Greek, French, Vulgate, English, German, Danish, Bohemian, and Polish, the Polyglot comprised (a) an Old Testament in six languages (1599), carried only to the Book of Ruth; (b) a Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and German Psalter (1602); and (c) a New Testament in Hebrew, Greek, Latin, and German, taken from the preceding (1602). vm ■a Tffj wj? £qF& At iaA-a i>l4jmitfMi * /I I f (./.aA—l— SO TOM 3T< as 1 ? T^S B-N 4 ft} W3 1 ? TT;S "i t O < 7B J V3W? fVs ts; ;n-. ivsj -rztv j— v>-ira (43 : *na -cs H : ist^s-T? TvT*.- i»3 LlftKOujv :T«rns! r.-rtn-ns tw V foltal t«;<»J»t;* ThlaBU a Pfclitf f < Zirun. rn>utiu(««. Yi£ob * •^aa4f ^ j Ar »«. Afrt*h am «K,?ra-t/'i atui*. IT t£uu CCWatfO a aKob. T U tJH«a»»aA J .>».•«? «a»4a» aa>CaV «A»A- |- U«W}i^a fa* V- $«(*.« • ^»ia,>,j.. ««<•.? «... . - ll laAt a. j^s*. nam • 7j»a * TYaaau. I, rtam »(a*««M Y Ar. ».tib tatlAl.-: ■■«.k YA= Y Maifea ogn,. IJgfcj HN T?V1 ",TqV^ ? -. •- •oisr-nu ■v?in .y.3. zrrra t >&-rii$ tVp nsiyi rivm Y Sjino* r*;eajf ^ i< X • *b t fl«>M. r;>4<»4aft rV^if f.-J«a>(iiw vU CMlaHb« OM rOMTw. : npw na5ka V !ih nsfrtfi 7 * : NCSTHH T'jih nfsKi Y Salonoa e»jt* nJ/^ • KotMim. YAo^o- m m(; » Jt.'i 1 At u Y ASi a ngcaubii » Ali ♦W a awaJ.: 5 I^M a. It A'mb aa.fa*-A>a Awnaafafc fi M *><«•• fla.^j>>^<»"' •Cli a«fa> •««•' J ayUa»l •»«Mf«a. ft tatep* aaa a wari *a«f A' tU- alvak f I ha oaoaaUa Ctiad a» IM. I. Otrt-ga^Alaa. «. , h»»a» 5 iyt *» T» aUii Wf fila>'a«, A»j j a JaMWWt lahatat fa» talari U_4 |a a,^ Oaa*«'«y^. '*«-■*' ^^yWaaaaaft f a W i W MaTirmv AUa. laAMatta LtAIK Opening of Matthew's Gospel from the two-voiume NT of Hutter's Nuremberg Polyglot printed in Greek, Hebrew and Syriac in Hebrew characters. 5. Novum domini nostri Jesu Christi testamentum syriace cum versione latina. Variae lectiones ex Novi Testament! Syria manuscripto Cod/ce Colonies'] nvper a Fr. Ralph. Collectae. Impressis editionibus diiigenter collectae a Martino Trostio. Author: Trostio, Martin, 1588-1636. Publisher & Publication Date: Cothenis Anhaltinorum : [s.n.], 1621. Additional Notations: This Syriac NT was printed by Martin Trost in 1621 in Kothen (Anhalt), making use of types by Johannes Richter - or at least something very much like Richter's types. 4 The basis for the translation was the 1555 edition of the Peshito printed in Vienna by J. Widmanstetter, which Trost here reproduced. Trost himself, born in Hoxter in 1588, took an early interest in Eastern languages and eventually pursued a doctorate in theology under Laurentius Fabricius at Wittenberg. After Fabricius's death, Trost replaced his mentor, in the process offering in struction in Hebrew, Syriac, Arabic and other Near Eastern languages. 5 Trost's Syriac version includes a Latin translation. Bound with the bible is a Syriac version of 1 John in Hebrew letters, printed in double columns. An image thereof is displayed on the opposite page. 4 Coakley, Typography of Syriac, 49. 5 Heinz Kathe, Die Wittenberger Philosophische Fakultat 1502-1817 (Koln: Bohlau Verlag, 1992), i92ff. 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Catalogum Librorum tam Chaldaeorum, tam Ecclesiasticorum, quam Profanorum, auctore Hebediesu Metropolita Sobensi, Latinitate donatum, et notis illustratum ab Abrahamo Ecchellensi. Echellensis' edition of AbdishoB 's Catalogue as later replaced by the one in J.S. Assemani, Bibliotheca Ohentalis, 3.1 (Rome, 1725), 1- 362. Publisher & Year of Publication: Romae: Typis S.C. de Propagatione Fide, 1653. Additional Notations: Text in Syriac and Latin on opposite pages; prefatory matter and "Notae" (p. [i27]-27o) in Latin. The first gathering is unsigned, I is missigned H, and K-R is missigned l-Q. The last page is left blank. c Abdisho c bar Berika, was bishop of Sinjar and Beth Arbaye, before becoming metropolitan bishop of Nisibis and Armenia. He was a prolific and scholarly writer on topics ranging from biblical commentaries to natural science, although many of his writings are regrettably no longer extant. The metrical 'Catalogue of Books' on display here contains information about the authors and works of the Syriac literary heritage, including many that are no longer extant. 6 Ibrahim al-Haqilani (Latinized: Abraham Ecchellensis) was a Maronite Catholic philosopher and linguist. Born in Haquil, Ibrahim obtained a doctorate in philosophy and theology at the Maronite College in Rome. 7 The extant volume was published by the Propaganda Fide Press, utilizing a type introduced in 1627. Coakley notes as distinctive the two forms of the taw - very tall and very short respectively - as well as the looped final alaph, noticeable at the end of line five of the body text here. 8 6 J.W. Childers, in Gorgias Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Syriac Heritage, 3b-4a (forthcoming) 7 On Ibrahim al-Haqilani, or Abraham Ecchellensis/Echelensis, see L. Van Rompay, in Gorgias Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Syriac Heritage, i87b-i88a (forthcoming). 8 J .F. Coakley, The Typography of Syriac: a historical catalogue of printing types, 1537-1958 (Oak Knoll Books, 2006), 64-5. *OP?J_Wo Jo*-*.*-* JjJb%i l»°>mo First Syriac page from Echellensis's edition of c Abdisho c of Nisibis's Catalogue. 7. Gutbier, Aegidius, 1617-1667. Novum Domini Nostri Jesu Christi Testamentum Syriace: Cum punctis vocalibus & versione Latina Matthaei, ita adornata, ut, unico hoc Evangelista intellecto, reliqui totius open's libri, sine interprete, facile intelligi possint : In gratiam Studiosae Juventutis & Studii Linguar, Orient propagandi causa plene & emendate editum / accurante Aegidio Gutbirio. Publisher & Publ. Year: Hamburgh Typis & Impensis Autoris, 1664. Description: 604 pages; 17 centimeters in height. Additional Notations: This volume includes a second title plate with ornamental design and Syriac Script, shown on the facing page of this brochure. The additional title produced here reads: Novum Testamentum Syriacum : Punctis vocalibus animatum : Cum lexico & institutio nibus L Syriacae : Accedunt notae difficiliora N.T. loca explicantes / authore Aegidio Gutbirio. Hamburgi : s.n., 1663. This volume comes from the first printing produced by Aegidius Gutbier (1617-67), professor of oriental languages at Hamburg, through his own private printing press, using types "cut by himself." 9 Coakley interprets this curious expression to mean that Gutbier had the types cut ot his specifications and order by Bartholomeus Voskens, a Hamburg punchcutter who later referred to the type speciment as Colonel Sirisch in his Hamburg specimen. 10 Gutbier's Syriac New Testament was re-printed in the mid-eighteenth century, his Syriac lexicon - discussed on the following page -- was reprinted multiple times throughout the 18th century. 9 W. Kayer, ed., Hamburger Bucher 1491-1850 (Hamburg, 1973), 66-7. 10 J.F. Coakley, The Typography of Syriac: a historical catalogue of printing types, 1537-1958 (Oak Knoll Books, 2006), 83. I Secondary Title-Page of Gutbier's Novum Domini NostriJesu Christi Testamentum Syriace. 8. Lexicon Syriacum: continens omnes N.T. Syriaci dictiones et particulas: cum spicilegio vocum quarundam peregrinarum, & in quibusdam tantum Novi T. codicibus occurrentium & appendice, quae exhibet diversas punctationes, a pcecipuis hujus linguce doctoribus, in Europa, circa Novum T. Syr. hactenus usurpata adjecto indice Latino accuratissimo & cataiogo nominum propiorum, brevissima & discentium studiis accommodata methodo, in usum Novi T. Syr. olim ita concinnatum, ut simul Latince versionis vicem explere possit / authore cegidio Gutbiro, Gymnasii Hamburg. Author: Gutbier, Aegidius, 1617-1667. Publisher & Publication Year: Hamburgi: Typis & Impensis Authoris, 1667. Additional Notes: Title page and "Candido et erudito lectori" bound (as printed?) in first gathering of the author's Notae Criticae in Novum Testamentum Syriacum. This lexicon, originally published by Gutbier himself in 1667, enjoyed considerable popularity as reprintings in 1706 (in both Hamburg and Naumburg), 1709, 1731, 1836 and 1890 demonstrate. Originally, it was published in conjunction with Gutbier's Syriac New Testament, shown on the preceding page of this brochure. fu fob fug fed fuh ftlU fuch cria> COD Tut »^D fui .*£D fuch ful (urn yoso fun ^ /lis ~ nvp fui v\J2D fuph %2&p fu<.<. Ja) r ^ fuq ^DXD fur &> fufih -*CD futh Aco S n n nih n u n n n D n a n D n nii cru qj U ch Ji ra a 4* nfph &i niq jdj nir p mfch «aJ nith Aj me fep mcb »^^»o mc g o mch ct^d mcu o\) mech > >..No met ^^p mci ^5 mcch Ajo mcl ^_^o mem v>Vq men V/> mes ^rnv^> mea v^o meph -fbSo me^<, **so mcq ,dVq mer yV> mefch t*^o mcth Ai£ «■ 9. Syriac MS.: Gospels of a Pre-HarMensian version [with the] Acts and Epistles of the Peshitto version. Written probably between A.D. 700 and 900 by the Monk John. Presented to the Syrian Protestant College by c Abd ul-Messiah of Mar din. Author: Hall, Isaac Hollister, 1837-1896. Publisher & Publication Date: Philadelphia, 1884. The pamphlet describes a manuscript that Hall studied in Beirut. He first had written about it in 1877, and in 1883 he provided a detailed analysis in "Notes on the Beirut Syriac Codex," in Journal of the Society of Biblical Literature and Exegesis 2 (1883), 3-26. The manuscript later came into the possession of Union Theological Seminary in New York (see A. Baumstark, Geschichte dersyrischen Literatur [Bonn, 1922], 144-145), where F.C. Burkitt studied it in 1931 (see "Dr. I. Hall's 'Philoxenian' Codex," The Journal of Theological Studies 33 [1931-32], 255-262). It is not listed, however, in J.T.S. demons, "A Checklist of Syriac manuscripts in the United States and Canada," Orientalia Christiana Periodica 32 (1966), 495-498 (on UTS). The manuscript, which originated from Tur c Abdin, was dated by Hall between 700 and 900, but Burkitt proposed a date "a little before 1200". Hall's claim that the manuscript contained the text of the Philoxenian version (which was later supplanted by the Harqlean version) was rejected by Burkitt, who argued instead that the manuscript represents one of the revisional stages of the Harqlean version. On this manuscript, see further A. Desreumaux and F. Briquel-Chatonnet, Repertoire des bibliotheques etdes catalogues de manuscrits syriaques (Paris : Editions du CNRS, 1991), 202-203 (nos. 627-632). The pamphlet exhibited here contains an introduction by Hall himself, concerning the manuscripts and their discovery. V t MSC < -ot? -sua Auaac^ JXt, 9** Wai» .u»»» *t*A -i i i^Y I u *«[» lto*<* ^jf One of the manuscript plates included in Hall's Syriac manuscript: Gospels of a pre-Harklensian version. Ms. Duke, Special Collections Library, Syriac 1: The Four Gospels (Incomplete: Matt. 18:4 - Luke 6:32), with lection titles Parchment, 87 folios, uncovered. There is Syriac pagination in the left bottom corner of each recto folio; the first number is on the first nearly completely preserved folio (\^ = 39). This pagination is not by the original hand. It will be adopted in the present description. Dimensions: 17.5 x 13.3 cm Area of writing: 12 x 8.5/9 cm J 1 column Lines per page: 20-22 lines Quires: The original quire numbers were written in the middle of the bottom margin of the first (recto) and last (verso) folio of each quire. In many cases the quire numbers have been lost or become illegible. On the basis of the quire numbers that have been preserved, the following quire composition can be reconstructed: First three quires lost. Qu Qu Qu Qu vis Qu Qu Qu Qu Qu Qu re no. 4: 3 folios preserved (f. 39-41) re no. 5: 10 folios (f. 42-51) - m visible on f. 51V re no. 6: 10 folios (f. 52-61) re no. 7: 10 folios (f. 62-70 [no. 63 is used twice] - \ ble on f. 70V re no. 8: 10 folios (f. 71-80) - *. visible on f. 7ir and 8ov re no. 9: 10 folios (f. 81-90) - ^ visible on f. 8ir re no. 10: 10 folios (f. 91-100) re no. 11: 10 folios (f. 101-110) re no. 12: 10 folios re no. 13: 4 incomplete folios preserved X quires lost. Script: Date: Rubrics: Decoration: Headers: The script has both Estrangela and Serto elements. Clearly Estrangela are alaph (r^), gamal (^), teth (\), mim (?>), shin (a), and taw (*\). Serto are dalath and resh (* and \), he (m), and waw (o). An occasional Serto alaph (re) is used at the end of a line. This type of script, in a more angular form, is attested in the East-Syriac tradition (e.g. Hatch, Plate CLXII, 719-720 A.D.), but a more fluid form, closer to the one found in our manuscript, is not uncommon in the West-Syriac tradition, e.g. W.H.P. Hatch, An Album of Dated Syriac Manuscripts (Boston, 1946; Gorgias Press reprint, 2002), Plate LXVI (ad 837, written near Antioch) and Plate LXXI (ad 913, probably from the Harran area). Variations of this script (mixed Estrangela/Serto) continue to exist well into the 12th and 13th centuries (e.g. Hatch, Plate LXXXIV, ad 1191, written in Edessa, and Plate LXXXIX, ad 1217- 1218, written near Mardin). Diacritical points are used throughout; they are quite heavy. In addition, there is a sporadic use of West-Syriac vowels, most likely by a later hand. 10th or 11th cent.; most likely Syriac-Orthodox tradition Red is used for the headers at the beginning and the end of each quire, for the lection titles within the text, and for the accompanying number in the margin. Throughout the text, at the end of a verse ♦ is often in red. There are decorative borders between the Gospels of Matthew and Mark (f. 64V - see Fig. 3) and between the Gospels of Mark and Luke (f. io8r). Headers are found in the upper margin of the last and first folio of each quire. They are divided over the verso and recto of the two consecutive folios, reading as follows: f. 5lV-52r (,i&»>:\ rc'iunafv*] r&L*\a ^cui ^JOT^) f. 6lV-62r(,Jft»)S K'ixGlGVi c£t»:io [ ]) f. 70V"71^ (<»CVJ3T59S K'iftVaflO it^OQ ^\.\ s^nc^J f. 80V-8lT (a>cvnV39S nfiftVafla rtjcon «^e\Ai < jare') f. 90V~9^ (ooCVQVWS rC'J(\OtOVi roflT»)s r^iUu*] [rS'ljuat-o] ^cuU < j[ok']) f. iiov: some red ink left in top margin Marginal notes: Occasional one- or two-word author's corrections or notes; numbers for lections (in red) as well as for the division in shake (not in red). State of preservation: The manuscript is heavily damaged, partly due to fire. Several folios are lost at the beginning, and the first four preserved folios are incomplete. F. 43 is the first more or less complete folio. At the end, f. 110 is the last more or less complete folio; the final folios are incomplete and very heavily damaged. Contents: The Four Gospels Preserved: Matt. 18:4 - Luke 6:32 Matthew (until f. 64V) Only a small portion of the first preserved folio exists; it shows words and letters from Matt. 18:4-5: [i=]x«s ^>o k'gctu am ... v>^as>s. The second folio is nearly complete (first line at the top is missing); the first legible words are: ^.i^ ok 1 om v>^. \=a [ . ]o vyxMrf *ni^. [ ... (= Matt. 18:15-16). Between f. 41 and 42 the following text is missing: Matt. 19:28 - 20:17. The end of Matthew is on f. 64V and is followed by the concluding sentence (in red): v.^w., JJ^ S rfmW. ,l*=*>^ rc^ov^ fc^sA*. "Completed is the preaching of Matthew, who spoke in Hebrew". This is followed by a decorative border. Mark (f. 65r - io8r) Title (in red): a>an«s re^oo ^aA^ore' "Holy Gospel of Mark" The end of Mark is on f. io8r (largely illegible) and is followed by decorative border. Luke (from f. io8r) Title (in red): regain re^rm ^cuL^jorc'"Holy Gospel of Luke" The last legible words are: ^mi ^ooA ^[-u^ ^Lr^X] r<\* \±^ j±r? (= Luke 6:32). The manuscript has a great number of lection titles within the text. These are written in red (probably by the original scribe, even though he may have carried out this work separately from the main text). The titles are numbered in red, in the margin, with letters of the alphabet within each Gospel, but the original number has often become illegible or even invisible. The lection titles provide the feast day and often the time of the day at which the following text should be read. Within the Gospel of Matthew the numbering goes from ca. 51 (first legible number is 53) to 74; within the Gospel of Mark from 1 to 39 (last legible number is 38); for Luke there are 10 lection titles, of which only the first one can be read (1). In addition to the numbering of lection titles, there is in the margins a second numbering system (not in red), which is related to the division in shake. The first number is <^ (26 - perhaps 16 should be read) on f. 44r (near Matt. 21:23); n0 - 1 7 (u) is on f. 44r (near Matt. 22:23); n °- 1 9 (V) on f - 53 r (near Matt. 24:45). These numbers seem to be in agreement with the ones adopted in the critical edition by P.E. Pusey and G.H. Gwilliam (Tetraeuange/i'um Sanctum, 1901; Gorgias Press reprint 2003). On f. 74r the expected number 4 (»), near Mark 5:14, is accompanied by <^ (26), and the same double numbering may be seen on f. 77 (5 and 27), f. 83V (7 and 29), f. 87r (8 and 30), and f. 9ir (11 and 33). Most of the lection titles in the Duke ms. can be identified in the Syriac-Orthodox liturgical calendar. For a general introduction, see A. Baumstark, Festbrevier und Kirchenjahr der syr/schen Jakobiten (Paderborn, 1910) and 5. Brock, The Bible in theSyriac Tradition, 2nd revised ed. (Gorgias Handbooks 7; Piscataway, NJ. 2006), 134-137. The titles are as follows: (Matthew) f. 40r: k'L^A.J* rCsr^ [„-]s rf-yr-,*** rCia-* - followed by Matt. 19:1 . 40v: ,(7doh[_=mso..] ^o^k' rctDpe's (Feast of Antony) - followed by Matt. 19:13 . 42V: rde.[...] ™ rCkax. [..]* - followed by Matt. 20:29 (right margin: _^) . 43r: ce^x.one' [....] (Palm Sunday) - followed by Matt. 21:1 (left margin: u) . 43v: rc^oo^s m .=[..] rciai»» [71013] -followed by Matt. 21:18 . 44v: r£x*>^ ^.hJ(\s r^^^ m rc^oia - followed by Matt. 21:28 (left margin: cu) . 45V: [ ] - followed by Matt. 22:1 . 46v: r&u>^ K'JiASfx cn^ja - followed by Matt. 22:15 (right margin: ojj) . 47r: n^i***.* (Commemoration of the Dead) - followed by Matt. 22: 23 (left margin: V) 47v: rim* r^Jaa rCia^a - followed by Matt. 22:34 (right margin: ») 48v: reiuj* k'^Jixs rdAls - followed by Matt. 23:15 (right margin: cei») 50r: [....] * [...] (Feast of Stephen) -followed by Matt. 23:34 (left margin: .=*») . 50v: rciail^ r^arc^ cn^s (Feast of the Cross) - followed by Matt. 24:3 right margin: ^x») . 52r: [...]- followed by Matt. 24:36 (right margin: :u») . 53r: r&cn^* tSo*»s r^u^j - followed by Matt. 24:45 . 53r: r^r^s-A* cm^c* (Arrival at the Harbor, see Baumstark, 235)- followed by Matt. 25:1 . 54r: cdi^s (Of the priests) - followed by Matt. 25:14 (left margin: u») . 55r: k'icu.s [...] n&i*na rdiress- followed by Matt. 25:31 (left margin: jjj») . 56r: kVs'vi rcfca*. cn^s- followed by Matt. 26:1 . 57r: rev^vi rc^^i ^^j - followed by Matt. 26:17 . 58r: cviau ^okj <\ r£ax=:ui:i rctoavi - followed by Matt. 28:1 (right margin: a.) (Mark) f. 65r: ^p»s mxn±.-\ rtirsis rti*\a (Baptism of Our Lord) - followed by Mark 1:1 (left margin: r«r) f. 65V: re^iLn -\k= »xm cn^ - followed by Mark 1:14 (right margin: .=) f. 67r: r^sso^a ^iiu ^mn re'v^s - followed by Mark 1:35 (left margin: j^J f. 67V: re^ao^.* K'JiAJftA iSuia .=ic\ii:\ - followed by Mark 2:1 (right margin: *) f. 68v: rc'^iir. ik= ^\ VSttia rCia^s - followed by Mark 2:18 (right margin: m) f. 69r: rc^o^s aa Jtv=*.s ^cun -followed by Mark 2:23 (left margin: o) f. 7or: "£Z\>s> i^a [...] wun - followed by Mark 3:13 (left margin: ») f. 7m [ ] - followed by Mark 3:31 (left margin: *>) f. 72v: ri1>]*x±» n?)*=3x.* (Sabbath of Rest, i.e. of Easter week)- followed by Mark 4:24 (left margin: \) . 73r: rcf^a^s ^m '^£^ r«iox» oo^j - followed by Mark 4:33 (left margin: _.) . 73V: rdrao^s ots ^m ^.iiaa r^v^* - followed by Mark 5:1 (left margin: rt*) . 74V: rs'^ii^.s - followed by Mark 5:21 (left margin: .^) .75V: [...] oil iSwjs rc[..]5- followed by Mark 6:1 . 76r: uam^ i*\= r^s -it.:\ j£uh -followed by Mark 6:6 .76V: [ ] k^* - followed by Mark 6:14 (left margin: en"** "*) . 77V: [ ] - followed by Mark 6:30 . 78v: rd=oo^:i o!\ ^o^ cti^ - followed by Mark 6:47 (right margin: u) . 79V: rewo^s 0x54* .*aW ct^js - followed by Mark 7:1 (right margin: ^.) . 8m re^ao^s m rc^-iTi^^ rCia,-* - followed by Mark 7:24 (left margin: \^) . 8iv: :dcu Ah rt^Hcun - followed by Mark 8:1 (right margin: ^) . 82r: n?ia*>x k'JivI^ -p^ (Tuesday of Easter week) - followed by Mark 8:11 (left margin: r£>) 83r: re'fcu^ jutooa region* (Consecration of the Church)- followed by Mark 8:27 (left margin: ^) 83V: r?*ma>x (Of the martyrs)- followed by Mark 8:34 (right margin: js^) 84r: rdJS^saa r?^r&^.^ relievos (Liturgy of the Feast of booths, see Baumstark, 260-261) - followed by Mark 9:2 (left margin: ^) . 85r: rs^o^i xl ^Lm ^.hSr ^cui - followed by Mark 9:14 (left margin: mi) 86r: ao[..] \1*=> ^ ^3 - followed by Mark 9:35 (left margin: <^) 87r: rdi^vii v^foas (Blessing of spouses) -followed by Mark 10:1 (left margin: v*) . 88r: r^xl^ M*=, ™ j«u» ox^s - followed by Mark 10:17 (left margin: ***.) . 89r: woi^s- followed by Mark 10:28 (left margin: \^) . 89V: r^ao^a K'kts sSun r^Sam - followed by Mark 10:35 (right margin: A) . gov: rc'isT.oK'A rc^j - followed by Mark 11:1 (right margin: r^l) . 92r: rdsao^a ^K [..]_*, ^c^s - followed by Mark 11:19 . 93r (erroneously 92): r&L»^ ^\^ k'-u^s - followed by Mark 12:1 (right margin: ^4) . 94r: ^^ji^.^ - followed by Mark 12:18 . 95r: rciiw i*v= ™ iSa*>s rcv^s - followed by Mark 12:28 (left margin: aA) . 96r: r^A^ - followed by Mark 12:41 (left margin: cA) . 98v: ^vwos (Of the myron) - followed by Mark 14:1 (right margin: A) .ioov: ow rxfAXs r^^-xa rs^oo - followed by Mark 14:27 (right margin: *A) .io6v:>ios n£=i rciatDlun ^^cvos - followed by Mark 16:2 (Luke) f. io8r: r<^u cdt=cu»s (Annunciation of Zacharias) - followed by Luke 1:1 (left margin: nf) f. iiov: .shtiW iu^ [...] :i (Mary's visit to Elisabeth) -followed by Luke 1:39 f. 1131-: rCaLs r^ia^so rC[_A]_l3 (Nativity) - followed by Luke 2:1 f. H4r: [ ] - followed by Luke 2:21 f. n6v: <«:i ouxm rc^jiaos (Epiphany) -followed by Luke 3:1 f. n8v: rejjLis i^= ^.iiru rd=x=XM cn^js- followed by Luke 3:23 Following f. n8v Luke 3:28 - 4:23 is missing. (Folios without number:) rd=oo_«j.[ ] oki nicwis- followed by Luke 4:31 -^UQ iir^j ^.iiu lSiM* i^ia^sto] r&xA*.*- followed by Luke 5:1 rtoa^-s ^m ^m [ ] - followed by Luke 5:12 -Suo ik= [...] ^Srmn- followed by Luke 5:27 The manuscript belonged to the library of George Brinkmann Ehlhardt, who was Librarian of Duke Divinity School from 1942 to 1950. Ehlhardt presented it as a gift to Duke University in 1952. A brief description of the manuscript is provided in J.T. demons, "A Checklist of Syriac Manuscripts in the United States and Canada," Orientalia Christiana Periodica 32 (1966), 481-82, no. 203. demons proposed a 10th-century date. Fig. 1: Last folio (Photograph: Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library) Fig. 2: Folio 8ov-8ir (Photograph: Rare Book, Manuscript, and Special Collections Library) Fig. 3: Folio 64V. End of the Gospel of Matthew (Photograph: L Van Rompay) Ms. Duke, Special Collections Library, Syriac 2: Shehimto: Maronite prayers for the Divine Office for all the days of the week Paper, 268 folios (numbered in pencil from 2 to 269), dark brown leather binding. Dimensions: ca. 15.5x10.5 cm Area of writing: ca. 11.5 x 7 cm; ca. 12 x 8 cm in the latter part of the ms.;i column Lines per page: Until f. 157 there are ca. 16 lines per page. From f. 158 onwards the script is smaller (but probably by the same hand) and the number of lines increases to ca. 26 (even 29 lines on f. 159), to drop back, after a few folios, to an average of ca. 23 lines per page. Quires: The quires are not numbered. The first two quires have 16 folios each, i.e. 8 bifolios (2-17 and 18-33). Between f. 34 and 113 all quires have 8 folios. The next quire has 16 folios (114-129). From then onwards the composition of the quires alternates between 24 (130-153, 162-185, 194-217, 226-248 [1 folio lost]) and 8 folios (154-161, 186-193, 218- 225). The last quire is incomplete (249-266) and is followed by three loose folios (267-269). The uneven thickness of the quires along with the tight binding seems to have caused deformation in the spine (see Fig. 3). Script: Late Serto, mostly quite regular (see Fig. 1), occasionally written more hastily and less carefully. No vowels are written except in a few passages to which full West-Syriac vocalization has been added, e.g. f. 23v-25r. Date: ca. i6th-i8th cent, (primarily based on the script) Rubrics: The titles of the sections, the names of the days, and the titles of the prayers are in red. Markings of further divisions within the sections (e.g. qawmo qadmoyo "first station", and successive qawmo numberings, normally followed by a specific dedication, e.g., "to the Mother of God", "to the Martyrs", and "to the deceased") are also in red, as well as some individual words within the prayers. Decoration: Until f. 214 there is no special marking of the transition between sections. In the following part decorative borders are often found between sections, esp. on f. 214V, 225V, 233V, 238r, 24or, 244r, 247r, 258r, 265r, and 267r. Headers: The headers provide the shortened title of the section. They are divided over the verso and recto side, and are written in black, e.g. lilyo \ da-tren "//7yo | of Monday". Marginal notes: Occasional author's corrections; occasional readers' notes; two-line note in Arabic on f. I5ir; occasional scribbles. State of preservation: The ms. shows traces of heavy use. The spine and sewing stations are out of form and have been rudely repaired with leather. The red ink has often faded. On some folios the black ink shows bleeding, resulting in occasional illegibility (see, e.g., f. 224V). Losses: A few folios are lost both at the beginning and at the end. As a result, no general titles, colophons, or other notes are available. Contents: Office prayers for the days of the week Sunday (first words on f. 2), incomplete at the beginning Monday (f . 5iv) Tuesday (f . 98r) Wednesday (f. 1441-) Thursday (f. 177^ Friday (f. 207V) Saturday (f. 24or), incomplete at the end The prayers for each day are divided in the following seven sections: nogah (also called rarrtsho, which is the beginning of the day in the late afternoon), suttoro (evening), lilyo (night), sapro (morning), the third hour, midday (also called sixth hour), and ninth hour. Each of these sections is introduced with its own title; the title also appears in the header of each folio (mostly divided over verso-recto, e.g., lilyo | of Monday). Since lilyo of Sunday begins on f. <=,r, the entire section of nogah of Sunday and the first part of suttoro of Sunday must have been lost. The loss must have consisted of one complete quire. Similarly at the end, most of the section of the ninth hour of Saturday (which probably begins on f. 269r) must have been lost. Several of the prayers are bo c woto ("supplications") specifically attributed to either Ephrem or Ya c qub (i.e. Jacob of Serug); bo c woto of Mor Ya c qub often come at the end of a section. Most sections include a proemium (^cu^o-va). Many prayers are introduced with the general term s/uto "prayer"; others are marked as belonging to the genre of sedro, qolo, c etro, qubbolo, pyosto, mawrbo. A number of sugyoto ("hymns") are included as well; their incipits are as follows: 18) f. i8v (Sunday, lilyo): r^c^o rei*=n r <^=^c*. ^ ,»»i\A ^\*.s r?n\\ ,soi\ ''Thanks be to the Good One who has liberated our race from the slavery of the Evil One and of Death" 1 9) f- 39 r (Sunday, Sapro): ^.Si&a - W- r gaarK UJ -pc^A ^\arcu» :u=>:i ^-\v rtyxnc*. refill "Praise to the Good One who through his love has revealed his glory to human beings" 5) f. 85r (Monday, sapro): ^h^.* chisL ,-*-?■ ore "Oh my beloved ones, children of the Church" 6) f. I02r (Tuesday, nogah): ^>da !=> ^*> k'^cv^le.^ v^ rcfzsn ^oo ilL^a rCT\<\->\ "On all evenings glory be to you from all mouths of human beings" 7) f. 122V (Tuesday, ///yo): ^*r»ix.i\ ^rc ^ *\<\^ ^*> .Lac "Receive, O our Lord, the supplication of us all as well as our service" 8) f. I32r (Tuesday, sapro): ^joa 1^ ^> rc*u>azix.*\ v^ p/u.-it. r^h^^ "Glorious Being, to you be glory from all mouths" 9) f. I48r (Wednesday, nogah): m*sx= ce^u reruns r£j^> ^ai, ^ps rdioii^ «'k\cv=oX "Our Lord Jesus, King that is worshipped, who conquered by his passion death the tyrant" 10) f. 164V (Wednesday, lilyo): <<\c^=> 2tu*=*m rc^i ^ ore "Alas for you, O soul, who has fallen asleep in iniquity" 11) f. 17-ir (Wednesday, sapro): )s^=> oi=> :nm->fru:i ctAoLhA ^in rctn rc^cncu ri'^c^A^ "A Great Light has called us to its wedding feast so that we may rejoice in it in the Kingdom" 12) f. i8or (Thursday, nogah): rdW^ kn^s rc^M ^ ore "Alas for you, O soul, who has grown old in iniquity" 13) f. 192V (Thursday, lilyo): reicn^p* rescue ^o rc^s ^ ^o\ rf\» OK 1 "O sinner, tremble before the judgment and before the torture of Gehenna" 14) f. 20or (Thursday, sapro): rc\nW i=> ^\m rc^tm ^y^lmtX rc^ao*. "Praise to your mercy, O Christ our King, Son of God" 15) f. 21 or (Friday, nogah): n£i»x. r/u.T^ ^rdX v^ojAts r^^nl re^a*. k'^cvu.su "Praise to the Mercy which has sent you to our earth, O Christ, the sun of righteousness" 16) f. 222r (Friday, lilyo): r^^an x*< JlA rdio r&~h*a r&t*x^"With suffering and tears it is befitting for everyone to weep" 17) f. 242r (Saturday, nogah): A^ ^arc va^s re^iox. ^ cc&\a=*> v^arC rdimoa "Death has come to reign from the beginning when Adam transgressed the commandment" 1) f. 255r (Saturday, //7y0): r^=\ ri'w v^ ,A,in rCk^uxao rsfvJzuo ix'tvn "With suffering and tears and groaning we call to you, good Lord" 2) f. 263r (Saturday, sapro): r?-\\ sa^mo k^cu r^ia^ ^omL^ "On all mornings let us give thanks and worship the Good One" All these sugyoto, without an exception, are found in other manuscripts and in the printed editions of the Maronite Shehimto, in the same place in which they are in our manuscript. This concurrence, which is not shared by the Syriac-Orthodox manuscripts of the Bet Gazzo, allows the identification of our manuscript as Maronite. The Duke Shehimto, however, is not entirely identical with the printed edition of the Maronite Shehimto (first printed in Rome in 1624/25, and later in Beirut in 1876 and 1937), as some soundings have indicated. It is likely, therefore, that it represents some separate branch within the Maronite tradition. Several sugyoto found in the Maronite Shehimto and in the Duke manuscript (and absent from the Syriac-Orthodox tradition) have their equivalent in the liturgy of the Church of the East (mostly identified there as teshbhata "songs of praise"). The survival of these poems at the two extremes of the Syriac geographical area points to their great antiquity. Among the sugyoto shared by the East-Syriac and Maronite tradition and present in the Duke manuscript, the following have received attention in a recent study by S.P. Brock, "Some early witnesses to the East Syriac liturgical tradition" Journal of Assyrian Academic Studies 18.1 (2004), 9-45 (esp. section 4: "East Syriac teshbhatha borrowed by the Maronite rite"): no. 1: p. 24 (no. 15); full translation p. 41-42 no. 4: p. 23 (no. 12); full translation p. 36-38 no. 7: p. 23 (no. 11); full translation p. 35-36 no. 9: p. 22 (no. 9); full translation p. 33-34 no. 10: p. 20 (no. 2); full translation p. 25-26 no. 12: p. 20 (no. 3); full translation p. 27-28 jno. 14: p. 23 (no. 14); full translation p. 39-41 no. 15: p. 23 (no. 13); full translation p. 38-39 no. 16: p. 21 (no. 5); full translation p. 29-30 no. 18: p. 20-21 (no. 4); full translation p. 28-29 no. 19: p. 21 (no. 6) The Duke manuscript is briefly mentioned in James T. demons, "Some additional information on Syriac manuscripts in the United States", in Symposium Syriacum 1972 (Orientalia Christiana Analecta 197; Rome: Pont. Institutum Orientalium Studiorum, 1974), 506-507. At that time, the ms. was in the possession of Prof. Morton Smith (Columbia University). After Prof. Smith's death (1991), the ms. was sold to Duke University, demons reports that the manuscript was "believed to have come to the United States from Egypt about ten years ago", which would be in the early 1960s. He suggested a late 18th-century date. For an analysis and study of some parts of the Maronite Shehimto, see Jean Tabet, L'office commun maronite. Etude du Lilyo et du Safro (Kaslik: Universite Saint-Esprit, 1972). The earliest known manuscript is Vat. Syr. 316 (1435/46), described in Tabet, o.c, 10-11. Tabet also discusses various revisions of the Shehimto that took place between the 18th and 20th centuries (8-9). •AJ *•> f»1!» Ap'Ji, 7 i^. ^ 1 i'':j» i -. r ^ t - a *? ,&> ^ Fig. 1: Folio 46v-47r (Photograph: L Van Rompay) Fig. 2 (Photograph: L. Van Rompay) Fig. 3 (Photograph: L Van Rompay)