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Walters Ms. W.850, Ethiopian Gospels

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Walters Ms. W.850, Ethiopian Gospels

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Manuscript

Ethiopian Gospels


Text title

Vernacular: ወንጌል፡ ቅዱስ።


Abstract

This large Ethiopian Gospel Book was made in the first half of the sixteenth century and is written in Gǝ‛ǝz, the traditional liturgical language of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church. Containing eleven full-page miniatures, six canon tables, and five elaborately ornamented ḥarägs, or headpieces, this manuscript represents the golden age of what has been termed the Gunda Gunde style, named after a monastery in the district of Agame. The Gunda Gunde style is characterized by bold blocks of color defined by detailed and often delicate linear motifs. Figures are highly stylized and expressive, while the accompanying canon tables and ḥarägs are filled with intricate interlace and geometric forms. The manuscript is exceptionally well preserved, and is an excellent and rare example of Ethiopian illumination from one of its important artistic centers.


Date

First half of the 16th century CE


Origin

Gunda Gunde, Tǝgray, Ethiopia




Language:

The primary language in this manuscript is Geez. The secondary language of this manuscript is Amharic.


Colophon

fol. 207v:
  2. In vernacular: በሥምረተ፡ አብ፡ ወወልድ፡ ወመንፈስ፡ ቅዱስ፡ ወጠንኩ፡ ወበትንብልናሃ፡ ለእግዝእትነ፡ ማርያም፡ ገበርኩ፡ . . . ለዝንቱ፡ መጽሐፍ፡ መጽሐፈ፡ ልደቱ፡ ለክርስቶስ፡ እምከርሥ፡ ወመጽሐፈ፡ ክስበቱ፡ እንበለ፡ ይትገሰስ፡ ወመጽሐፈ፡ ጥምቀቱ፡ በእደ፡ ዮሐንስ፡ በማየ፡ ዮርዳኖስ፡ . . . . . . ዘአጽሐፍከኒ፡ በጽሒቅ፡ ወበተአምኖ፡ አባ፡ እስ[ጢፋኖስ፡] ለመቃብረ፡ ኣቡነ፡ [effaced , possibly ኢሳይያስ፡] ለተዝካረ፡ አንስት፡ ወሮስ፡ ለዐቢይ፡ ዓዲ፡ ወለነዑስ፨
  3. Translation: I started with the good will of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, And I proceeded with the intercession of Our Lady Mary, . . . This book, the book of the nativity of Christ from the womb, And the book of his circumcision without being touched, And the book of his baptism in the hand of John with the water of Jordan, . . . That you [God?] have me copied in diligence and trust in Abba Ǝsṭifanos [effaced, decipherable], For the tomb of Abunä [effaced, possibly Isayǝyyas], For the memory of women and children, And also the big and small (i.e. the old and the young).
  4. Comment: Colophon embedded at the end of a review of the content of the Gospels and written in a rhyming composition; name of the copyist and the year the manuscript was copied not given—only the day (25 Ab = Awgusṭos = 1 Ṗagwmen)

Support material

Parchment

Heavy, thick parchment


Extent

Foliation: 211

No flyleaves; modern pencil foliation upper right corners, rectos


Collation

Formula: 1(6,-2,3,6), 2(12,-10,12), 3 (10,-2,8), 4(12,-3,9), 5(10,-1), 6(10,-4), 7(14,-1,4,5,10), 8(10,-10), 9(8), 10(8,-1), 11(12), 12(10,-10), 13(10,-5), 14(8), 15(12,-1), 16(10), 17(10), 18(10,-10), 19(10), 20(10), 21(8), 22(8,-7), 23(12,-11), 24(6,-2,4)

Catchwords: None

Signatures: None

Comments: Quires begin on fols. 1(1), 4(2), 14(3), 22(4), 32(5), 41(6), 50(7), 60(8), 69(9), 77(10), 84(11), 96(12), 105(13), 114(14), 122(15), 133(16), 143(17), 153(18), 162(19), 172(20), 182(21), 190(22), 197(23), and 208(24); Canon tables were likely moved to end from beginning of manuscript


Dimensions

25.0 cm wide by 30.2 cm high


Written surface

18.0 cm wide by 20.5 cm high


Layout

  1. Columns: 2
  2. Ruled lines: 22-30
  3. Hard-point ruling

Contents:

fols. 2r - 211v:
  1. Title: Gospel Book
  2. Text note: Incomplete; contains text of four Gospels and introduction to them, but two folios of canon tables are missing
  3. Decoration note: Eleven full-page miniatures (two or three others now missing) including Evangelist portraits before each Gospel; six framed canon tables (two other folios with canons missing); five full-page colored ḥarägs, introducing each of the Gospels and the appendix; strong palette of red, blue, green, and yellow used for illuminations; rubrics, opening lines, punctuation, and margin ornaments in red and black; text in black ink
fols. 2r - 3r:
  1. Title: Prefatory cycle
  2. Rubric: ሥዕለ፡ ሕፃናት፡ ዘዓመት፡ ወዘ፪ ዓመት፡ ወዘ፫ ዓመት፡ እለ፡ አቅተሎሙ፡ ሄሮድስ፡
  3. Text note: No text except for image captions
  4. Decoration note: Prefatory cycle with three full-page miniatures related to Christ's nativity; curtain over fol. 3r; image captions in red above and within images
fols. 4v - 195v:
  1. Title: Four Gospels
  2. Incipit: መጽሐፈ፡ ልደቱ፡ ለእግዚእነ፡ ኢየሱስ፡ ክርስቶስ፡ ወልደ፡ ዳዊት፡ ወልደ፡ አብርሃም፡ . . .
  3. Contents: Incomplete; fols. 5r-58r: Gospel of Matthew; fols. 58r-v: section headings for Mark; fol. 58v: concluding note on Matthew; fols. 61r-95r: Gospel of Mark; fol. 95r: concluding note on Mark; fols. 97r-152v: Gospel of Luke; fol. 152v: section headings for John; fol. 153r: concluding note on Luke; fols. 154r-195v: Gospel of John; fol. 195v: concluding note on John; text missing after fols. 20v (Mt. 11:2-21), 31v (Mt. 16:20-17:9), 43v (Mt.23:12-28), 51v (Mt. 26:21-48), 109v (Lk. 6:11-29), 140v (Lk. 20:17-39)
  4. Decoration note: Full-page Evangelist portraits at the beginning of each Gospel (fols. 4v, 60v, 96v, and 153v), each approximately 23 lines high; Evangelists facing elaborate decorative frames for opening of Gospel text (fols. 5r, 61r, 97r, and 154r); full-page miniature of Transfiguration (fol. 59v); opening lines of Gospels in red and black ink; explicits accented by red and black dot and penwork designs
fols. 196v - 198v:
  1. Title: Concluding image cycle
  2. Text note: No text except for some image captions
  3. Decoration note: Full-page miniatures of Mary and John (fol. 196v), the Crucifixion (fol. 197r), and the Ascension (fol. 198v); image captions in red and black
fols. 199r - 207v:
  1. Title: Introduction to Four Gospels
  2. Incipit: በስመ፡ አብ፡ . . . ንቀድም፡ በረድኤተ፡ እግዚአብሐር። ይትባረክ፡ ስሙ፡ ወይትለዐል፡ ዝክሩ፡ ዘእምኔሁ፡ ኲሉ፡ ሢመተ፡ ኀይል፡ ወቦቱ፡ ተፍጻሜተ፡ ኲሉ፡ ስእለት፨ ወኀቤሁ፡ ምብጻሓ፡ ኲሉ፡ አስተብቊዖት፡ በጽሕፈተ፡ መቅድመ፡ አርባዕቱ፡ ወንጌላት፡ ስቡሓን፡ ዐሠርቱ፡አቅማራት፡ . . .
  3. Text note: It is likely this text was moved from the front to the back of the manuscript
  4. Decoration note: Ornate columned framework around beginning of text; opening text in lines of red and black
fols. 208r - 210v:
  1. Title: Canon tables
  2. Contents: Incomplete; two folios/4 tables missing; it is likely this text was moved from the front to the back of the manuscript; fol. 211v contains list of incipit verses in the Gospels
  3. Decoration note: Eusebian numbers divided into columns ranging from four to eight per table; large framing arches enclosing smaller arches, ranging from four to seven, filled with elaborate interlace, cross patterns, and birds; arches supported by two or three unpainted pen-drawn columns; curtains on rods either tied around columns or hanging next to them; Eusebian numbers in black with occasional red numbers beside them

Decoration:

fol. 2r:

  2. Title: Mary and Joseph with the Innocents massacred by King Herod
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Text: Matthew 2:16
  5. Comment:

    Inscription reads: "ሥዕለ፡ ሕፃናት፡ ዘዓመት፡ ወዘ፪ ዓመት፡ ወዘ፫ ዓመት፡ እለ፡ አቅተሎሙ፡ ሄሮድስ፡," or "Picture of the children of a year, two years and three years that had them killed."

fol. 2v:

  2. Title: The Magi and the shepherds
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Comment:

    Inscription reads: "ሥዕለ፡ ሰብአ፡ ሰገል፡ እለ፡ መጽኡ፡ እምርሁቅ፡ ከመ፡ ይስግዱ፡ ለወልደ፡ አምላክ፡," or "Picture of the Magi who came from far to worship the Son of God."

3r, curtain closed:

  2. Title: Virgin and Child flanked by the Archangels Michael and Gabriel, curtain closed
  3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 3r:

  2. Title: Virgin and Child flanked by the Archangels Michael and Gabriel
  3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 4v:

  2. Title: Portrait of the Evangelist Matthew
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Text: Opening of Matthew's Gospel
  5. Label: The Evangelist is depicted as having already copied Mt 1:1-2.

fol. 59v:

  2. Title: Transfiguration
  3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 60v:

  2. Title: Portrait of the Evangelist Mark
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Text: Opening of Mark's Gospel
  5. Label: The Evangelist is depicted as having already copied Mk. 1:1-2.

fol. 96v:

  2. Title: Portrait of the Evangelist Luke
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Text: Opening of Luke's Gospel
  5. Label: The Evangelist is depicted as having already copied Lk. 1:1-2.

fol. 153v:

  2. Title: Portrait of the Evangelist John
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Text: Opening of John's Gospel
  5. Label: The Evangelist is depicted as having already copied Jn 1:1-2.

fol. 196v:

  2. Title: Mary, Mother of Jesus and John the beloved disciple
  3. Form: Full-page miniature

fol. 197r:

  2. Title: Crucifixion
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Comment:

    Inscriptions read: "ሥዕለ፡ ስቅለቱ፡ ለእግዚእነ፡ ኢየሱስ፡ ክርስቶስ።," or "Picture of the Crucifixion of Our Lord Jesus Christ," with the Gǝ‛ǝz translation of the label, "ኢየሱስ፡ ናዝራዊ፡ ንጉሦሙ፡ ለአይሁ[ድ፡]," "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews" (Cf. Mt 27:37), posted at the top of the cross.

fol. 198v:

  2. Title: Ascension
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Comment:

    Inscription reads: "ሥዕለ፡ ዕርገቱ፡ ለኢየሱስ፡ ክርስቶስ፡ ሰማያተ፡ በደመና፡ ወዘከመ፡ ርእይዎ፡ አርዳኢሁ።," or "Picture of the Ascension of Jesus Christ into heaven with the cloud, and how the disciples watched him."

fol. 208r:

  2. Title: Canon table
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Text: Eusebian Canon I

fol. 208v:

  2. Title: Canon table
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Text: Eusebian Canon II

fol. 209r:

  2. Title: Canon table
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Text: Eusebian Canon III

fol. 209v:

  2. Title: Canon table
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Text: Eusebian Canon IV

fol. 210r:

  2. Title: Canon table
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Text: Eusebian Canon V

fol. 210v:

  2. Title: Canon table
  3. Form: Full-page miniature
  4. Text: Eusebian Canon VI

Binding

The binding is original.

Plain wooden boards, broken and stitched, front and back, with remains of leather on the upper board; chain stitching at six stations


Provenance

Monastery at Gunda Gunde, northeastern Ethiopia, early- to mid-sixteenth century, based on painting style and palaeography

Church of Madhane Alam in Majate, 1892-3, known from the endnote on fol. 95r, which gives a record in Amharic of a land grant to the church of Mǝğäte Mädḫane ‛Aläm, enacted in the Year of Matthew, 7385 Anno Mundi (=1885 EC=1892-3 CE)

Private collection, France, prior to 1973

Sam Fogg Rare Books and Manuscripts, London


Acquisition

Museum purchase, the W. Alton Jones Foundation Acquisition Fund, 1998


Bibliography

von Soden, H. Die Schriften des Neuen Testaments, vol. I. I. Berlin, 1902, pp. 405-411. Edition used for Mark section headings.

Novum Testamentum Aethiopice: The Synoptic Gospels. General Introduction. Edition of the Gospel of Mark. Edited by Rochus Zuurmond. Franz Steiner Verlag, Wiesbaden, 1989. Edition used for Mark text.

Novum Testamentum Aethiopice Part III. Edited by Rochus Zuurmond. Harrasowitz Verlag, Wiesbaden, 2001. Edition used for Matthew text.

Ethiopian Art: The Walters Art Museum. Third Millennium Publishing, 2001, pp. 95, 104, 114; cat. no. 14 (fols. 153v-154r, 59v, 196v-197r); fig. 30 (fol. 60v).

Mann, C. Griffith. "'May their prayers protect us:' Illuminating the Gospels in Sixteenth Century Ethiopia (W.850)." 62. Journal of the Walters Art Museum, 2004, pp. 195, 197; fig. 1 (fols. 60v-61r), fig. 3 (fols. 196v-197r).

Mercier, Jacques. Vierges D'Éthiopie. Montpellier: L'Archange Minotaure, 2004, p. 122 (fols. 2r, 3r).


Contributors

Principal cataloger: Getatchew Haile, .

Cataloger: Herbert, Lynley

Conservators: Owen, Linda; Quandt, Abigail

Contributors: Bockrath, Diane; Emery, Doug; Isaac, Ephraim; Noel, William; Pizzinato, Riccardo; Tabritha, Ariel; Toth, Michael B.


Publisher

The Walters Art Museum


License

Licensed for use under Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported Access Rights, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/legalcode. It is requested that copies of any published articles based on the information in this data set be sent to the curator of manuscripts, The Walters Art Museum, 600 North Charles Street, Baltimore MD 21201.


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