Manuscript No. 48: Grigro Tat‘ewats‘I’s Book of Sermons: Volume I, Dzmeran

Item Overview

Title

Manuscript No. 48: Grigro Tat‘ewats‘I’s Book of Sermons: Volume I, Dzmeran

Uniform title

K‘arozgirk‘, Dzmeran Hator

Date Created

1754-68

Date

1754/1768

Place of Origin

New Julfa

Language

Armenian

Collection

Armenian Manuscripts

Notes

Description

Text in minuscule bolorgir, written in two columns of 31 lines each. Titles of homilies in red bolorgir; the opening lines of texts usually in large erkat‘agir, and several succeeding lines in magenta bolorgir. Subtitles within individual homilies in red bolorgir. Abbreviations used extensively throughout the text. Fifty-one quires numbered in the letters of the Armenian alphabet, written in large notragir in magenta in the lower margin of the page. The quires have gatherings of 12 leaves each.

Colophon

None.Prayers and Inscriptions: On inside front cover; Fol. 1, Fol.2. In upper margin. Fol. 28; Fol. 108; Fol. 158v; Fol. 167v; Fol. 186v; Fol 217v; Fol. 273; Fol. 294; Fol. 320v; Fol. 373v; Fol. 394v; Fol. 321v; Fol. 445v; Fol. 476v; Fol. 615v; Fol. 616v.

Provenance

Because the principle colophon is missing, the dare of the execution and provenance of the codex are unknown. Nineteen of the homilies, however, provide information pertaining to the scribe and the sponsor of the book. From this we learn that the MS was written by the scribe/priest Margar, who mentions his name in prayers at the end of eight homilies (fols. 167v, 217v, 273, 294, 320v, 421v, 445v, and 615v). In the prayer on fol. 615v, Margar also states that he was a “servant of [the church of ] Surb T‘omay [St. Thomas].” In ten of the prayers the theologian (astuatsaban) G_org Vardapet is mentioned as having sponsored the writing of the codex (fols. 28, 108, 158v, 186v, 273, 294, 373v, 394v, 421v, and 445v). From five of these inscriptions we learn that the book was subsequently acquired by Minas Agha, son of Yakobjan and Dishkhun; in the inscription on fol. 394v the sponsor Minas is also identified by his family name Khldr_nts‘.The theologian G_org Vardapet, mentioned above, served as prelate of New Julfa in Isfahan beginning in the year of 1754. The Church of Surb T‘omay, at which the scribe/priest Margar served, can be identified with the church of the same name oat New Julfa in Isfahan, whose ruins were described in the early 1880s by Yarut‘iwn T_r Yovnaneants‘. Located near the Zanderood River, this church, which was also called “the chapel with the bell” (Zangov Zham), was built by the Khaldarianc‘ family. The earliest inscription in this sanctuary, found on the wall of the church, reads: “To Aflat‘un, Petrism T‘aguhi, and Tatik, in the year 1140” (=A.D. 1691). Whether these individuals belonged to the Khaldariants‘ family is not stated. The second oldest inscription, however, found above the altar, states specifically that the church was built as a “memorial to Khaldariants‘ Dawut‘, his father Kh_ja Oskan and his mother Badrik, and his grandfather Khaldar Margar, in the year 1145 (=A.D. 1696). (See T_r Yovnaneants‘, Patmut‘iwn, 2:154, 162-163.) It can safely be assumed that Minas Agha Khldrents‘, who acquired our codex, was a member of the Khldariants‘ family.We can conclude from the above data that our book was written at the church of Surb T‘omay at New Julfa in Isfahan. Moreover, in light of the fact that G_org Vardapet, who is mentioned in the concluding prayer of ten of the homilies, served as prelate of New Julfa beginning in the year 1754 and died in 1768 ( see T_r Yovnaneants‘, Patmut‘iwn, 2:61-63), we can be certain that the codez was written sometime between 1754 and 1768.The later history of the book is unknown until the beginning of the nineteenth century. An inscription on fol. 616, dated March 16, 1819, was written by a priest named Mkrtich‘T_r Yovhannis, and in the upper margin of fol. 1 we find the signature of the priest named Yovan_s T_r Mkrtch‘ean. Although the two inscriptions are written by different hands, and there also appears to be a discrepancy in the names, we can assume that they represent the selfsame individual, who may have owned the book. In 1935 the MS belonged to Arshaloys T_r Y. T_r Suk‘iasian, whose signature is found on the linen lining of the inside front cover and on fol. 2.There is no indication as to when and from whom the codex was acquired by Dr. Minasian.

Physical Description

Extent

1238 pages

Dimensions

21.5x16.5 cm.

Binding note

Dark red leather, probably goatskin, over thin wooden boards cut with a horizontal grain. No tooling. Spine rebacked with a piece of black leather. No evidence of flap or clasps. Red and green endbands, probably cotton, not raised but woven in a chevron pattern. Inside boards lined with white cloth under the turn-ins; however, the cloth is evident under the white one. Edges are colored burgundy. Board attachment appears to be four typical loops; however, the attachment to the wooden boards goes through the cloth doublure (rather than having the cloth doublure covering the loops, which is more common). No notches. Some conjugate pages are guarded. Probably rebound.

Condition note

Very good state of preservation. Some leaves, including the principle colophon at the end of the book, are missing. Several leaves have suffered damage from dampness.

Illustrations note

The illustrations of the codex consist of seven marginal palmettes and birds beginning on fol. 186v, and 162 tubular, bird-form and animal-form initials which mark the beginnings of individual homilies.This book evidently was illustrated in several stages. The marginalia are generally drawn in confident red lines. Mostly bird-form, the decorative initials vary in the quality of their line and their palettes. From fol. 8 to fol. 35v, it is clear that the scribe left space for letters, allowing for specific embellishments. The clumsy initials, drawn in hesitant lines of faded brown, do not fill the spaces, being usually much smaller and occasionally off-center (e.g., fol. 20 and 28). On fol. 35v, the initial is a mere jotting in black ink. On fol. 39, incised outlines are visible, defining an elegant initial made up of lively birds. Over this the initial has been drawn in sloppy black lines. From fol. 43 on, sprightly bird forms are carried out in a bewildering variety of lines – confident, shaky, traced over, black, gray, and several other shades of red. Some are bare outlines, some are shaded, some are filled in completely.The animal-form initials, while far fewer than the bird-form ones, are equally varied. The feline I on fol. 1 is drawn in soft shades of the purple used in the rubric. The S on fol. 26 is composed of two felines outlined in black and shaded in red. The Ch on fol. 167v is a dog drawn in heavy black lines and highlighted with touches of red.

Keywords

Genre

Manuscripts
Illuminations

Resource type

text