On a Marginal Note in Homilies of John Chrysostom on Matthew
On f. clxx v of Homilies of John Chrysostom on Matthew, in a hand we have come to recognise as Br. Cyril's, the following marginal note appears in cinnabar-orange: an aside both characteristic of the working scriptorium and useful for our purposes. we transcribe it here for the wider record
The present marginalium is unusual chiefly for its self-awareness; the scribe knows that what is written here will be read by another scribe, who is the chief audience for such asides. The reader at home is at best a third party.
A first-pass reading was offered by Br. Photios, between two stacks; on review the desk concurs. The hand shows characteristic alpha-loop, with occasional tau crossbar; the ink is a faint metallic sheen, consistent with ferrous additives.
Notes
- An earlier draft of this dispatch contained a stronger claim, since softened.
- Br. Photios's stack collapsed during preparation; no folios were lost.
Other Hands
Annotations by other scribes, in the order in which they were entered into the margins.