Codex Sinaiticus
The Codex Sinaiticus, or ℵ (aleph), 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 makes it a less reliable witness than Vaticanus. Over the millennia, nine scribes attempted to correct it.[1]
The codex was found in 1859 by German Bible scholar Tischendorf at the Monastery of St. Catherine at the foot of Mt. Sinai. Tischendorf published a print facsimile in 1862 and presented the manuscript to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, his sponsor. A photographic facsimile edition 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), forty-three Old Testament leaves at the University of Leipzig in Germany, twelve at St. Catherine's Monastery, and six at the National Library of Russia.
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 given in the codex is a Greek translation called the Septuagint. This is the version of scripture quoted by Jesus and the apostles. Sinaiticus has several works now classified as apocryphal, including 2 Esdras, Tobit, Judith, 1 and 4 Maccabees, Wisdom, and Sirach.
In 1975, the monks of St. Catherine discovered numerous parchment fragments. Among these fragments were twelve missing leaves from the Codex Sinaiticus. The Codex Sinaiticus is the oldest complete Bible to go online.[2]
References
- ↑ "Bible (texts)," New Catholic Encyclopedia (2003)
- ↑ http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/technology/4739369.stm
See also
External links
- Codex Sinaitus. The leaves of this codex may be divided among four physical locations, but they are electronically united on this site.
- N.T. Ancient Manuscripts
- Codex Sinaiticus Catholic Encyclopedia.