Collection (Gospel Readings and other texts).
Greek Language in Cyrillic alphabet. Late 80s - early 90s. 15th cent. Scribe Timothy Veniaminov (?)

Q (136 x 100). II+250 leaves.
Paper. Ink, cinnabar.

It is written in semi-uncial by two hans. The manuscript is a collection of extracts, mainly, from Gospel texts, compiled in the surroundings of Archbishop of Novgorod Gennadi (died in 1505). Members of the literary society, organized by Gennadi, copied these extracts in the Cyrillic alphabet in Greek, very likely, as a result of the study of this language. In addition to Gospel texts, the colletion includes extracts from the Old Testament, works of the Church Fathers, the Holy Mountain's Typikon - the book of regulations for monastic life, lives of saints, the Book of Enoch. It contains also Russian texts, for instance, a note on the histiry of Polotsk, records, written in the Perm alphabet. The probable scribe who copied the main part of the codex (leaves 2-246) was Timofey Venjaminov. The assumption is that he took the name "Venjaminov" (Benjamin's) as an associate of the well-known translator Dominican Benjamin. Timofey wrote also in Latin, but in the Cyrillic alphabet (fol. 12r) that proves that he did not know Latin. The codex is an interesting example of textbook, intended not for general use, but copied by the scribe for his own learning.

In 1560 the manuscript was send to the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery by Anfimy, the son of Priest Silvester from Blagoveshchensk. In 1878 the manuscript came into the St Petersburg Theological Academy along with the other materials from the library of the Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery, and was transferred to the State Public Library in 1918.

Shelfmark: ÐÍÁ. Êèð.-Áåë. 36/41.