Recent Comments
Author Archives: Brent Nongbri
An Early Latin Codex with a Clear Date of Production
One of the frustrating things about working with the earliest codices and codex fragments is the lack of securely dated examples. Palaeography can give a general range, and archaeological context or reuse can sometimes give us a decent terminus ante … Continue reading
Posted in B-R Uncial, Codicology, Oxyrhynchus Papyri, Palaeography
Tagged Codicology, oxyrhynchus, Palaeography, papyri
2 Comments
Reusing Pages of Books
Parts of ancient books were recycled in a variety of different ways, but I don’t recall having seen anything quite like this before. It’s a portion of a parchment folium from a codex that contained some works of Demosthenes (P.Amh. … Continue reading
Posted in Biblical Majuscule, Reuse of manuscripts
3 Comments
The Reuse of a Sarcophagus with a Menorah
Another very interesting item in the epigraphic collection at the Baths of Diocletian in Rome is a portion of a sarcophagus that contains a nice depiction of a menorah. It is typically assigned to the third or fourth century CE, … Continue reading
Posted in Judaism, Kircheriano, Museums, Raffaele Garrucci
Tagged ancient-judaism, jewish-art, Judaism, menorah, Rome
1 Comment
Inscriptions of a Doctor and Historian
During a recent visit to the Museo Nazionale at the Baths of Diocletian in Rome, my attention was caught by a funerary urn made from a type of stone with very interesting patterns [[Update 27 Feb. 2026: I am informed … Continue reading
Posted in Baths of Diocletian, Inscriptions
Tagged Sideropogon, Tiberius Claudius Herma, Tiberius Claudius Melito
2 Comments
The Recette de Saint-Remi and the Layout of an Early Greek Parchment Codex
As 2025 comes to a close, one last article is coming out: “Mise-en-page Between Roman Egypt and Medieval Europe: The Recette de Saint-Remi and the Layout of an Early Greek Parchment Codex (P.Ant. 1 27),” Fragmentology 8 (2025), 155-169. This … Continue reading
Augustine in the Cairo Genizah
Thinking about the letters of Augustine reminds me of one of the more interesting manuscripts I encountered this year. Among the many remarkable manuscripts in the Cairo Genizah is Cambridge University Library ADD.4320. It’s a collection of fragments of a … Continue reading
Posted in Cairo Genizah, Palimpsests, Reuse of manuscripts
Tagged Augustine, Cairo Genizah, Palimpsests
1 Comment
Practicalities of Letter Delivery in Antiquity
When I teach about ancient letter writing, one of the things I emphasize is the precariousness of sending letters any great distance in the Roman world. Without an organized postal service, the delivery of letters could be quite haphazard. I … Continue reading
A Late Example of the Biblical Majuscule
When I think of the Biblical Majuscule, what usually comes to mind is the script of the famous Greek Bible, Codex Sinaiticus, which is usually assigned to the fourth century (though the early fifth is not out of the question). … Continue reading
Posted in Biblical Majuscule, Palaeography, Scripts
Tagged Bible, Biblical Majuscule, colophons, Palaeography
3 Comments
Callimachus on the Walls
At the Capitoline Museum in Rome, there are a series of rooms dedicated to finds from the various garden areas uncovered in the area of the Esquiline hill in the late nineteenth century. Tucked away in a corner of one … Continue reading
A Walk in the Imperial Fora
For the first time since it opened, I took the walk on the new pathway through the imperial fora in Rome. From the Roman Forum you can go past the curia (where, at the moment, a portion of the Magna … Continue reading
Variant Readings 