The presence of the undertext, first discovered in the 19th century and critical to establishing the transmission of St Luke’s Gospel, places Codex Zacynthius among the top flight of Biblical manuscripts.
— Lord Williams of Oystermouth
Cambridge University Library, renowned throughout the world for its faith collections, has announced that it is raising funds to acquire a remarkable manuscript known as Codex Zacynthius.
Codex Zacynthius was deposited at Cambridge University Library in 1984 by the British and Foreign Bible Society, which has owned it for almost 200 years. At first glance the Codex is a text compiled in the 13th century from passages taken from the New Testament, but its true origins are much earlier.
The Bible Society wishes to sell Codex Zacynthius as part of an exceptional exercise to release funds to establish a new visitor centre in Wales. Conscious of the interest in the manuscript, the Bible Society has given the UL first refusal to purchase. The acquisition of Codex Zacynthius by the UL would allow scholars and public audiences to discover more about the history of one of the world’s most important manuscripts, by using science to unlock its ancient secrets.
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Image: Codex Zacynthius: at the end of a chapter of the Evangeliarium, the undertext is clearly legible.
Credit: Cambridge University Library
Reproduced courtesy of the University of Cambridge
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