thumb|upright=1.5|Reims gospel [[codex (book)]]

Codicology (; from French codicologie; from Latin , genitive , "notebook, book" and Greek , -logia) or manuscriptology (Indian English) is the study of codices or manuscript books. It is often referred to as "the archaeology of the book," a term coined by François Masai. It concerns itself with the materials, tools and techniques used to make codices, along with their features.

The demarcation of codicology is not clear-cut. Some view codicology as a discipline complete in itself, while others see it as auxiliary to textual criticism analysis and transmission, which is studied by philology. The quality, size, and choice of support determine the status of a codex. Papyrus is found only in late antiquity and the early Middle Ages. Codices intended for display were bound with more durable materials than vellum. Parchment varied widely due to animal species and finish, and identification of animals used to make it has only begun to be studied in the 21st century. How manufacturing influenced the final products, technique, and style, is little understood. However, changes in style are underpinned more by variation in technique. Before the 14th and 15th century, paper was expensive, and its use may mark off the deluxe copy.), sewing, bookbinding and rebinding. A quire consisted of a number of folded sheets inserting into one another- at least three, but most commonly four bifolia, Ownership markings, decorations and illumination are also studied. Completed quires or books of quires might constitute independent book units- booklets, which could be returned to the stationer, or combined with other texts to make anthologies or miscellanies. Exemplars were sometimes divided into quires for simultaneous copying and loaned out to students for study. To facilitate this, catchwords were used- a word at the end of a page providing the next page's first word.

History

Origins

The study of manuscripts has a long tradition, but codicology has a short history. In the fifteenth century, two works published under the title De laude scriptorium, praised manuscripts and the works of copyists. One was written by Jean Gerson, a Parisian theologian, and the other by Johann Trithemius, the abbot of the Benedictine monastery of Sponheim. In the 16th and 17th centuries, as the study of manuscripts advanced, disputes between philologists and theologians occurred. In the 17th century, the Bollandists collected hagiographes and critically examined their contents and origins. In 1819, Heinrich Stein established the Gesellschaft für ältere deutsche Geschichtskunde, which published Monumenta Germaniae Historica and studies on medieval codices.

In 1825, the librarian Adolph Ebert published a monograph on diplomatics, epigraphy and what he called Bücherhandschrifftenkunde - "the science of internal and external features of manuscripts". In 1909, the philologist Ludwig Traube makes a distinction between paleography and Handschrifftenkunde. To Traube, paleography deals with deciphering writing, interpreting abbreviations and finding textual errors, as well as dating and locating the manuscript. Handschrifftenkunde studies the material elements of the codex, its preparation, and writings not part of the text itself, like annotations.

However, the general tradition up until the 20th century viewed palaeography as not only encompassing the script, but everything used to date the manuscript. Up to the early 1930s, the study of manuscripts had also been linked to literary history and philology.

See also

  • – collections similar to the British Library.
  • . Several huge collections, e.g. Harleian Collection (also via Catalogue of medieval and Renaissance manuscripts). The known Anglo-Saxon works include Beowulf and the Lindisfarne Gospel (Book of Lindisfarne).
  • – Washington D.C., huge catalogue of manuscript collections.

References

Further reading

General

Reference works

Historical

Western European codices

Byzantine codices

Slavic codices

Hebrew codices

Arabic codices

Ethiopian codices

Asian codices

Specific codex texts

Parchment

Ink

Illustration

Bookbinding

  • Encyclopedia of the History of Ukraine article on codicology in Ukrainian
  • Scriptorium - journal of codicology
  • in Spanish
  • Auxiliary science of history codicology in German
  • 'Ktiv' - The International Collection of Digitized Hebrew Manuscripts, A catalog of about 400,000 Hebrew manuscripts, of which about 100,000 are digitized.
  • 'Marburger Repertorium of German manuscripts in the 13th and 14th century, Philipps-Universität Marburg (descriptive catalog) (not included are solitary documents and minimal inscriptions in Latin Manuscripts).
  • Department for Special Collections, University Library of Graz, Online-Catalogue with over 2.000 registered manuscripts partially already (2011) with detailed palaeografic descriptions and digitally complete versions.
  • Hill Museum & Manuscript Library in Collegeville, Minnesota, 90,000 manuscripts from Austria and Spain.
  • The Digital Walters, The Walters Art Museum in Baltimore, Maryland. Over 900 illuminated manuscripts and 1250 incunables.
  • Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts, 12th–17th centuries, Center for Digital Initiatives, University of Vermont Libraries