Colophons, the “Era of the Martyrs” and the codicology of Coptic manuscripts in the ninth and tenth centuries

A selection of Coptic codices from the Hamuli group, in particular those in the Pierpont Morgan library, New York, are revisited. This choice can be justified: the collection is self-contained and serves as model to provide a consistent thematic overview, while at the same time introducing the reader to some codicological aspects. After a brief analysis of the codicological characteristics during the ninth and tenth centuries, the modes of dating along with a number of significant colophons are discussed.

La codicologie d’un certain nombre de manuscrits littéraires coptes de la collection Hamuli, caractéristique des neuvième et dixième siècles, conservée majoritairement à la Pierpont Morgan Library de New York est réexaminée. Cette présentation sera suivie d’une analyse des colophons des manuscrits de la même période et d’une discussion approfondie des systèmes de datation.