Category Archives: Codices

The Oldest Codex?

Posted on June 22, 2023 by Brent Nongbri

News reports coming out of Graz today suggest that a papyrus in the collection of the University of Graz may be the earliest surviving specimen of a bound book with pages, possibly as early as the third century BCE. It … Continue reading →

Posted in Codices, Codicology, P.Hib. 113 | 7 Comments

A Book of Psalms and a Missing Page Number

Posted on May 19, 2023 by Brent Nongbri

As part of the EthiCodex project, our team has been revisiting the often fragmentary remains of early codices. Thankfully, many collections have made digital images of their materials widely available. But sometimes it is also necessary to see things in … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiquities Market, Bernard Grenfell, Codices, Codicology, Michigan Papyri | 3 Comments

Buying Papyrus in Roman Antiquity

Posted on January 28, 2023 by Brent Nongbri

I recently came across the reference in Theodor Birt that reminded me of an old problem. After a description of the production of papyrus sheets, Birt states that “the resulting sheets were sold individually (Die so entstandenen Blätter kamen einzeln … Continue reading →

Posted in Ancient letters, Book Trade in Antiquity, Codices | 4 Comments

First Fragments at the Chester Beatty

Posted on October 30, 2022 by Brent Nongbri

A great new exhibition has just opened at the Chester Beatty Library (or, as the institution now calls itself “The Chester Beatty“) in Dublin. It’s called “First Fragments: Biblical Papyrus from Roman Egypt.” It opened on 28 October and runs … Continue reading →

Posted in Book binding, Chester Beatty Papyri, Codices | 7 Comments

The Pagination of the Crosby-Schøyen Codex and the Problem of the Contents of P46

Posted on September 3, 2022 by Brent Nongbri

In an article I published earlier this year, I suggested that surviving examples of single quire codices provide evidence for thinking that the Beatty-Michigan codex of the Pauline epistles (P46) may have contained more leaves than is usually supposed. The … Continue reading →

Posted in Chester Beatty Papyri, Codices, Codicology, Crosby-Schøyen Codex, Schøyen Collection | 4 Comments

A New Article on the Date of Codex Sinaiticus

Posted on August 3, 2022 by Brent Nongbri

The October 2022 issue of Journal of Theological Studies will contain an article I wrote on the dating of Codex Sinaiticus. It’s out now in pre-print format, and thanks to my institution–MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion, and Society–the article … Continue reading →

Posted in Codex Sinaiticus, Codices, Palaeography, Radiocarbon analysis | 3 Comments

A Model of P46

Posted on July 15, 2022 by Brent Nongbri

Over on the blog for my current research project (The Early History of the Codex), I have written a series of posts about making a model of the Beatty-Michigan Pauline epistles codex (P46). Making models is always a useful exercise, … Continue reading →

Posted in Book binding, Book covers, Chester Beatty Papyri, Chester Beatty Pauline Epistles, Codices, Codicology, Michigan Papyri | 2 Comments

A New Article on the Contents of P46

Posted on June 19, 2022 by Brent Nongbri

The latest issue of Novum Testamentum is out (64.3), and among the new articles is one by me: “The Construction and Contents of the Beatty-Michigan Pauline Epistles Codex (𝔓⁴⁶).” Here is the abstract: The surviving portion of the papyrus codex … Continue reading →

Posted in Book binding, Chester Beatty Papyri, Chester Beatty Pauline Epistles, Codices, Codicology, Michigan Papyri | 4 Comments

Radiocarbon Dating of the Cologne Mani Codex

Posted on March 14, 2022 by Brent Nongbri

In volume 220 of Zeitschrift für Papyrologie und Epigraphik (2021), there is a short article by Cornelia Römer: “Die Datierung des Kölner Mani-Kodex” (pp. 94-96). The article reports the results of AMS radiocarbon analysis of the Cologne Mani codex. For … Continue reading →

Posted in Anton Fackelmann, Codices, Codicology, Cologne Mani Codex, Radiocarbon analysis | 5 Comments

The New Facsimiles of the Beatty Biblical Papyri

Posted on January 23, 2022 by Brent Nongbri

My first post of 2021 was a notice that new facsimiles of some of the Chester Beatty Biblical Papyri had appeared. At the time, I had not seen the books in person, and all I could do was note their … Continue reading →

Posted in Chester Beatty Papyri, Codices, Codicology, Frederic Kenyon | 5 Comments