Western Medieval Manuscripts : On the Sublime

Western Medieval Manuscripts

This Greek manuscript contains a 16th-century copy of the treatise On the Sublime, a work of literary criticism dating back probably to the 1st century CE. The author is unknown but has conventionally been referred to as Longinus or Pseudo-Longinus. On the Sublime is both a treatise on aesthetics and a work of literary criticism. It is also known for quoting (and thus transmitting) Sappho's fragment 31 (Φαίνεταί μοι). The codex is an autograph of the Italo-Cretan Hellenist Franciscus Portus (1511-1581; see Mazzucchi 1989, p. 216), who later edited the treatise (<a target='_blank' class='externalLink' href='http://mdz-nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:12-bsb10170807-7'>Geneva 1569</a>). According to Marc-Antoine Muret (1526-1585), in his commentary on Catullus (<a target='_blank' class='externalLink' href='http://mdz-nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:12-bsb10170944-4'>1554</a>, ff. 57r-58r), Paulus Manutius (1512-1574) entrusted Portus with preparing the Greek text of On the Sublime for his <a target='_blank' class='externalLink' href='http://mdz-nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:12-bsb10150848-3'>1555 edition</a>, and the manuscript Kk.6.34 is a witness of his work. In this edition, for instance, Sappho's text presents the corrections handed down from Kk.6.34 and the same colometry arrangement as on <a href='' onclick='store.loadPage(9);return false;'>f. ii recto</a>, due to Portus.As per an hypothesis of Gerard Langbaine (1656-1692), editor of the <a target='_blank' class='externalLink' href='http://mdz-nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:bvb:12-bsb10236635-7'>Oxford 1638 edition</a>, Manutius later asked his student Andreas Dudith (1533-1589) for a Latin translation of the text and delivered him Portus' manuscript. In the margins, Franciscus Portus has added proposals for emendations, introduced by ἴσ(ως) and γρ(ραπτέον), and notes in Italian (see Rhys Roberts 1898, p. 300).Manuscript Kk.6.34 was known as Codex Eliensis (see Rhys Roberts 1898, p. 299), because it was in possession of John Moore (1646-1714), bishop of Ely. Rhys Roberts (1898, p. 301) supposed that the Codex Eliensis may be identical with that Langbaine called Dudithianus after Andreas Dudith, or Junianus after the Royal Librarian Patrick Young (1584-1652) (also known as Patricius Junius), who sent the manuscript to Langbaine. These names are no longer used in modern editions.Manuscript Kk.6.34 is is cited as k in modern editions, a copy of m (Venice, Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana, gr. Z. 522, commisioned by Cardinal Bessarion), in turn, a copy of P (Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, grec 2036), the archetype of the textual tradition.Dr Matteo Di Franco

Page: left cover, outer

On the Sublime (Cambridge, University Library, MS Kk.6.34)

This Greek manuscript contains a 16th-century copy of the treatise On the Sublime, a work of literary criticism dating back probably to the 1st century CE. The author is unknown but has conventionally been referred to as Longinus or Pseudo-Longinus. On the Sublime is both a treatise on aesthetics and a work of literary criticism. It is also known for quoting (and thus transmitting) Sappho's fragment 31 (Φαίνεταί μοι).

The codex is an autograph of the Italo-Cretan Hellenist Franciscus Portus (1511-1581; see Mazzucchi 1989, p. 216), who later edited the treatise (Geneva 1569). According to Marc-Antoine Muret (1526-1585), in his commentary on Catullus (1554, ff. 57r-58r), Paulus Manutius (1512-1574) entrusted Portus with preparing the Greek text of On the Sublime for his 1555 edition, and the manuscript Kk.6.34 is a witness of his work. In this edition, for instance, Sappho's text presents the corrections handed down from Kk.6.34 and the same colometry arrangement as on f. ii recto, due to Portus.

As per an hypothesis of Gerard Langbaine (1656-1692), editor of the Oxford 1638 edition, Manutius later asked his student Andreas Dudith (1533-1589) for a Latin translation of the text and delivered him Portus' manuscript.

In the margins, Franciscus Portus has added proposals for emendations, introduced by ἴσ(ως) and γρ(ραπτέον), and notes in Italian (see Rhys Roberts 1898, p. 300).

Manuscript Kk.6.34 was known as Codex Eliensis (see Rhys Roberts 1898, p. 299), because it was in possession of John Moore (1646-1714), bishop of Ely. Rhys Roberts (1898, p. 301) supposed that the Codex Eliensis may be identical with that Langbaine called Dudithianus after Andreas Dudith, or Junianus after the Royal Librarian Patrick Young (1584-1652) (also known as Patricius Junius), who sent the manuscript to Langbaine. These names are no longer used in modern editions.

Manuscript Kk.6.34 is is cited as k in modern editions, a copy of m (Venice, Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana, gr. Z. 522, commisioned by Cardinal Bessarion), in turn, a copy of P (Paris, Bibliothèque nationale de France, grec 2036), the archetype of the textual tradition.

Dr Matteo Di Franco

Information about this document

Physical Location: Cambridge University Library
Classmark: Cambridge, University Library, MS Kk.6.34
Alternative Identifier(s): Diktyon 12219
Subject(s): Rhetoric, Ancient; Longinus, active 1st century. On the sublime
Scribe(s): Portus, Franciscus, 1511-1581
Origin Place: Northern Italy
Date of Creation: 1530 and 1555
Language(s): Greek
Donor(s): George I, King of Great Britain, 1660-1727
Associated Name(s): Muret, Marc-Antoine, 1526-1585; Manuzio, Paolo, 1512-1574; Langbaine, Gerard, 1656-1692; Dudith, András, 1533-1589; Young, Patrick, 1584-1652; Moore, John, 1646-1714
Extent: Codex ii + viii + 52 + ii, Leaf height: 156 mm, width: 114 mm.
Collation:
The manuscript consists of seven quaternions and one bifolium:
- 2 paper flyleaves (19th century)
- Quire 1-6⁸ ff. i recto - [viii] recto and ff. 1r-40v
- Quire 7⁴ ff. 41r-44v
- Quire 8⁸ ff. [44a]r-51v
- 2 paper flyleaves (19th century)
Brown ink quire signature in Greek numerals, original to the production of the volume, from α^ον (f. 1r) to Ϛ^ον (f. 41r) in the lower right-hand corner of the first folio, recto of the quire. γ^ον presents on f. 24v, last folio of quire 4.
Material: ff. i recto-51v Western paper, folded in duodecimo. Watermark: f. 28 Crossbow ( Watermark height: 61 mm, width: 85 mm. ) near the top-edge comparable to Briquet 761 and Harlfinger 65-66. The majority of those examples are dated to 1530-1535; the watermark Briquet 761 was produced in Udine.
Format: Codex
Condition: In good condition: ink stains on ff. 24v-25r.
Binding:
Binding by Stoakley ("Bound by Stoakley, late Hawes") of Cambridge, dated 1894 on inside left board. Half-leather, millboard with marbled cloth covering, brown leather spine and corners. The title "Longinus", and classmark "Kk 6.34" are tooled in gold on the spine. Binding height: 173 mm, width: 131 mm, depth: 19 mm.
Script:
Franciscus Portus (1511-1581) (see Mazzucchi 1989, p. 216): main text and marginal notes ff. 1r-41v by the 16th-century Italo-Cretan Hellenist in a minuscule script in brown ink.
Upright or slanting slightly to the right, Portus' hand shows cursive-like ductus and variation in letter size and several majuscule letters (beta, gamma, delta, eta, lambda, pi, phi); ligatures are frequent but limited to those of epsilon, pi, rho and lambda.
He uses modern ny and sigma telikon, and both tall and minuscule gamma and tau.
Syllabic abbreviations and superscript word endings usually appear only at the end of lines, but occasionally elsewhere.
Tails are occasionally flourished into the lower margins in few cases (see f. 2v, 3v, 4r, 6v, 7r).
Breathings are curved; accents do not join to letters or breathings.
Foliation:
[a-b] + i-ii, [iii-viii] + 1-44, [44a], 45-51 + [ix-x]. Leaves foliated by the copyist from 1r to 41r in brown ink in Arabic numerals in the top right-hand corner, recto.
Additional foliation of ff. 42r-51r, in pencil in Arabic numerals in the top right-hand corner, recto. Unnumbered leaves from ff. [iii] to [viii], [44a] between ff. 44 and 45, and ff. [ix-x].
Layout: ff. 1r-41r: Written height: 116 mm, width: 87 mm. ; f. 41v: Written height: 71 mm, width: 70 mm.
Decoration: A large tau decorated with floral motifs in brown ink marks the start of the text on f. 1r; this is the sole decorated initial.
Additions:
As part of the original production of the manuscript, Franciscus Portus has added marginal notes with variant readings. Some notes have been added in dark or light brown ink throughout the manuscript.
Proposals for emendations are often introduced by ἴσ(ως) and γρ(ραπτέον), and notes in Italian are added in ff. 28r: "tutto questo è confusamente preso da Platone" (referring to xxxii 5); 31v: "tutto questo dubito che sia / stato trasportato dal mar/gine nel testo, et che sia / giudicio di qualch'uno / che biasima Longino, perché / da tante lodi a / Hyperide" (referring to xxxiv 3); 37v: "in Herodoto non si leggono cosi queste / parole" (referring to xliii 1); 40v: "qui manca perauentu/ra qualche uoce signfi/ficante altro uitio che / seguita le gran ricchez/ze, et poi uien dietro / καὶ ἄλλα" (referring to xliv 7).
A bibliographic note is added on inside left board, with CUL classmark in brackets.
Provenance: Owned by John Moore (1646-1714), bishop of Ely: number 213 (classmark noted on f. ii recto) of Bernard, Catalogi librorum manuscriptorum Angliæ et Hiberniæ (1697).
Origin:
The codex is an autograph of Franciscus Portus (1511-1581), who was active in the middle of the 16th century in Northern Italy. In all likelihood the main text of the manuscript was written between 1530 and 1555, before Portus moved to Geneva.
Acquisition: Presented to the University Library in 1715 by George I. The royal bookplate engraved by John Pine (1690-1756) in 1736 remains on f. 51r.
Funding: The Polonsky Foundation
Data Source(s): Description (2019) draws on A catalogue of the Manuscripts preserved in the Library of the University of Cambridge, vol. 3, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1858, p. 729.
Author(s) of the Record: Matteo Di Franco
Bibliography:
Roberts, W. Rhys, "Note on a Cambridge Manuscript of the 'De Sublimitate'", The Classical Review 12 6 299-301 (1898).
Costil, Pierre, André Dudith, humaniste hongrois, 1533-1589 (Paris: Les Belles lettres, 1935).
A catalogue of the manuscripts preserved in the Library of the University of Cambridge (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1858) 3.
Mund-Dopchie, Monique, La survie d'Eschyle à la Renaissance : éditions, traductions, commentaires et imitations (Leuven: Lovanii Aedibus Peeters, 1984).
Mazzucchi, Carlo Maria, "La tradizione manoscritta del Περὶ ὕψους", Italia medioevale e umanistica. 32 205-2226 (1989).
Longinus and Carlo Maria Mazzucchi, Del sublime / Dionisio Longino, ed. Carlo Maria Mazzucchi (Milano: Vita e Pensiero, 1992).
Papanicolaou, Maria, "Identificazione del dotto copista anonimo di un manipolo di manoscritti greci databili al decennio 1526-1535: Francesco Porto", Atti della Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei. Rendiconti. Classe di scienze morali, storiche e filologiche. s. 9 v. 21 427-489 (2010).

Want to know more?

Under the 'More' menu you can find metadata about the item, and information about sharing this image.

Summary contents of the treatise On the Sublime (image 8, page i verso) Sappho's fragment 31 Lobel-Page (image 9, page ii recto) Blank folios (image 11, page [iii] recto) On the Sublime (image 23, page 1r) Blank folios (image 105, page 42r)

10r

10v

Information about this document

Physical Location: Cambridge University Library
Classmark: Cambridge, University Library, MS Kk.6.34
Alternative Identifier(s): Diktyon 12219
Subject(s): Rhetoric, Ancient; Longinus, active 1st century. On the sublime
Scribe(s): Portus, Franciscus, 1511-1581
Origin Place: Northern Italy
Date of Creation: 1530 and 1555
Language(s): Greek
Donor(s): George I, King of Great Britain, 1660-1727
Associated Name(s): Muret, Marc-Antoine, 1526-1585; Manuzio, Paolo, 1512-1574; Langbaine, Gerard, 1656-1692; Dudith, András, 1533-1589; Young, Patrick, 1584-1652; Moore, John, 1646-1714
Extent: Codex ii + viii + 52 + ii, Leaf height: 156 mm, width: 114 mm.
Collation:
The manuscript consists of seven quaternions and one bifolium:
- 2 paper flyleaves (19th century)
- Quire 1-6⁸ ff. i recto - [viii] recto and ff. 1r-40v
- Quire 7⁴ ff. 41r-44v
- Quire 8⁸ ff. [44a]r-51v
- 2 paper flyleaves (19th century)
Brown ink quire signature in Greek numerals, original to the production of the volume, from α^ον (f. 1r) to Ϛ^ον (f. 41r) in the lower right-hand corner of the first folio, recto of the quire. γ^ον presents on f. 24v, last folio of quire 4.
Material: ff. i recto-51v Western paper, folded in duodecimo. Watermark: f. 28 Crossbow ( Watermark height: 61 mm, width: 85 mm. ) near the top-edge comparable to Briquet 761 and Harlfinger 65-66. The majority of those examples are dated to 1530-1535; the watermark Briquet 761 was produced in Udine.
Format: Codex
Condition: In good condition: ink stains on ff. 24v-25r.
Binding:
Binding by Stoakley ("Bound by Stoakley, late Hawes") of Cambridge, dated 1894 on inside left board. Half-leather, millboard with marbled cloth covering, brown leather spine and corners. The title "Longinus", and classmark "Kk 6.34" are tooled in gold on the spine. Binding height: 173 mm, width: 131 mm, depth: 19 mm.
Script:
Franciscus Portus (1511-1581) (see Mazzucchi 1989, p. 216): main text and marginal notes ff. 1r-41v by the 16th-century Italo-Cretan Hellenist in a minuscule script in brown ink.
Upright or slanting slightly to the right, Portus' hand shows cursive-like ductus and variation in letter size and several majuscule letters (beta, gamma, delta, eta, lambda, pi, phi); ligatures are frequent but limited to those of epsilon, pi, rho and lambda.
He uses modern ny and sigma telikon, and both tall and minuscule gamma and tau.
Syllabic abbreviations and superscript word endings usually appear only at the end of lines, but occasionally elsewhere.
Tails are occasionally flourished into the lower margins in few cases (see f. 2v, 3v, 4r, 6v, 7r).
Breathings are curved; accents do not join to letters or breathings.
Foliation:
[a-b] + i-ii, [iii-viii] + 1-44, [44a], 45-51 + [ix-x]. Leaves foliated by the copyist from 1r to 41r in brown ink in Arabic numerals in the top right-hand corner, recto.
Additional foliation of ff. 42r-51r, in pencil in Arabic numerals in the top right-hand corner, recto. Unnumbered leaves from ff. [iii] to [viii], [44a] between ff. 44 and 45, and ff. [ix-x].
Layout: ff. 1r-41r: Written height: 116 mm, width: 87 mm. ; f. 41v: Written height: 71 mm, width: 70 mm.
Decoration: A large tau decorated with floral motifs in brown ink marks the start of the text on f. 1r; this is the sole decorated initial.
Additions:
As part of the original production of the manuscript, Franciscus Portus has added marginal notes with variant readings. Some notes have been added in dark or light brown ink throughout the manuscript.
Proposals for emendations are often introduced by ἴσ(ως) and γρ(ραπτέον), and notes in Italian are added in ff. 28r: "tutto questo è confusamente preso da Platone" (referring to xxxii 5); 31v: "tutto questo dubito che sia / stato trasportato dal mar/gine nel testo, et che sia / giudicio di qualch'uno / che biasima Longino, perché / da tante lodi a / Hyperide" (referring to xxxiv 3); 37v: "in Herodoto non si leggono cosi queste / parole" (referring to xliii 1); 40v: "qui manca perauentu/ra qualche uoce signfi/ficante altro uitio che / seguita le gran ricchez/ze, et poi uien dietro / καὶ ἄλλα" (referring to xliv 7).
A bibliographic note is added on inside left board, with CUL classmark in brackets.
Provenance: Owned by John Moore (1646-1714), bishop of Ely: number 213 (classmark noted on f. ii recto) of Bernard, Catalogi librorum manuscriptorum Angliæ et Hiberniæ (1697).
Origin:
The codex is an autograph of Franciscus Portus (1511-1581), who was active in the middle of the 16th century in Northern Italy. In all likelihood the main text of the manuscript was written between 1530 and 1555, before Portus moved to Geneva.
Acquisition: Presented to the University Library in 1715 by George I. The royal bookplate engraved by John Pine (1690-1756) in 1736 remains on f. 51r.
Funding: The Polonsky Foundation
Data Source(s): Description (2019) draws on A catalogue of the Manuscripts preserved in the Library of the University of Cambridge, vol. 3, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 1858, p. 729.
Author(s) of the Record: Matteo Di Franco
Bibliography:
Roberts, W. Rhys, "Note on a Cambridge Manuscript of the 'De Sublimitate'", The Classical Review 12 6 299-301 (1898).
Costil, Pierre, André Dudith, humaniste hongrois, 1533-1589 (Paris: Les Belles lettres, 1935).
A catalogue of the manuscripts preserved in the Library of the University of Cambridge (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1858) 3.
Mund-Dopchie, Monique, La survie d'Eschyle à la Renaissance : éditions, traductions, commentaires et imitations (Leuven: Lovanii Aedibus Peeters, 1984).
Mazzucchi, Carlo Maria, "La tradizione manoscritta del Περὶ ὕψους", Italia medioevale e umanistica. 32 205-2226 (1989).
Longinus and Carlo Maria Mazzucchi, Del sublime / Dionisio Longino, ed. Carlo Maria Mazzucchi (Milano: Vita e Pensiero, 1992).
Papanicolaou, Maria, "Identificazione del dotto copista anonimo di un manipolo di manoscritti greci databili al decennio 1526-1535: Francesco Porto", Atti della Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei. Rendiconti. Classe di scienze morali, storiche e filologiche. s. 9 v. 21 427-489 (2010).

Section shown in images 8 to 8

Title: Summary contents of the treatise On the Sublime

Section shown in images 9 to 9

Title: Sappho's fragment 31 Lobel-Page
Author(s): Sappho
Note(s): TLG 0009.001
Excerpts:
Incipit: f. ii recto φαίνεταί μοι κεῖνος ἴσος θέοισιν
Explicit: f. ii recto ἀλλὰ πὰν τόλματον ἐπεὶ καὶ πένητα

Section shown in images 11 to 22

Title: Blank folios
Descriptive Title(s): Blank folios
Note(s): Brief note on f. [viii] verso

Section shown in images 23 to 104

Title: On the Sublime
Alternative Title(s): De sublimitate
Author(s): Longinus, active 1st century
Note(s): Notes with references to chapters on ff. 44v-[44a]v and 51r; TLG 0560.001
Excerpts:
Incipit: f. 1r Τὸ μὲν τοῦ Κεκιλίου συγγραμμάτιον ὃ περὶ ὕψους συνετάξατο ἀνασκοπουμένοις ἡμῖν ὡς οἶσθα κοινῇ
Explicit: f. 41v ὑπεσχόμεθα γράψειν ὑπομνήματι, τήν τε τοῦ ἄλλου λόγου καὶ αὐτοῦ τοῦ ὕψους μοῖραν ἐπεχόντων ὡς ἡμῖν