Codex Sinaiticus
The Codex Sinaiticus, or ℵ (alph), is a fourth century Greek manuscript of the Bible. It is second only to Codex Vaticanus as a manuscript witness for the text of the New Testament. Despite the age of the codex, the numerous mistakes found in the original text make it a less reliable witness than Vaticanus. Over the millenia, nine scribes attempted to correct it.
The codex was found in 1859 by Tischendorf at the Monastery of St. Catherine at the foot of Mt. Sinai. Tischendorf published the text in 1862 and presented the manuscript to Russian government, his sponsor. A facsimile was published by Oxford University Press in 1911. In 1933, the Soviet government sold the manuscript to the British Museum. There are 347 leaves in the British Library in London (199 of the Old Testament, 148 of the New Testament), 43 Old Testament leaves at the University of Leipzig in Germany, and smaller portions in St. Petersburg and at St. Catherine's Monastary.
In addition to the now standard 27 books of the New Testament, Sinaiticus includes the Letter of Barnabas and most of the Shepherd of Hermas. The Old Testament is a Greek translation called the Septuagint. This is the version of scripture quoted by Jesus and the apostles.
The Codex Sinaiticus is the oldest complete Bible to go online.[1] In 1975, the monks of St. Catherine discovered many parchment fragments. Among these fragments were twelve missing leaves from the Codex Sinaiticus.
References
See also
External links
- Codex Sinaitus. The leaves of this ancient book, divided among four physical locations, are electronically united on this site.
- N.T. Ancient Manuscripts
- Codex Sinaiticus Catholic Encyclopedia.