Manuscript No. 32: Calendar of Feasts

Item Overview

Title

Manuscript No. 32: Calendar of Feasts

Uniform title

Tonatsʻuytsʻ

Date Created

14th/15th Century

Date

1301/1500

Language

Armenian

Collection

Armenian Manuscripts

Notes

Description

Text in minuscule bolorgir, written in one column of 18 lines. The nine calendrical tables at the beginning of the codex are in black and red bolorgir, and the initials of the titles in each column are in red or blue erkat’agir. Subtitles throughout the text are in red bolorgir, with the initials of the subtitles in red erkat’agir. Seven quires with gatherings of 10 or 12 leaves; all except the last two quires are numbered with the letters of the Armenian alphabet, written in bolorgir in the lower margin of the page.

Provenance

There are no colophons in the codex; hence its date of execution and provenance are unknown. The paleography suggests that the book was probably written in the 14th or 15th century.The later history of the MS is also unknown, and there is no information as to when and from whom it was acquired by Dr. Minasian.

Physical Description

Extent

71 folios

Dimensions

9.5x6.5 cm.

Binding note

Traditional Armenian binding of worn dark brown leather over wooden boards cut with a vertical grain. No tooling discernible. A vertical section of upper right corner of upper board is missing. No flap. Two holes on each board are evidence of fastening system, now wanting. Fragmentary raised endbands. Fragments of paper pastedowns. Edges darkened. Traditional board attachment using three loops. Sewn with red silk thread, no notches. Some sewing holes apparently no longer used; must have been rebound. Beige cloth spine lining.

Condition note

Fairly good state of preservation. There are leaves missing at the beginning and end of the book. In the likelihood, fols. 65-71 did not originally belong to the codex.

Illustrations note

The only surviving illumination is a very badly-damaged palmette and corresponding bird-form initial (fol. 60v). The gold which outlined the traditional leaf and bird forms survives, along with smudged patches of blue, purple, green, and orange pigment.

Keywords

Genre

Manuscripts
Illuminations

Resource type

text