Textmanuscripts - Les Enluminures
279 folios, lacking 2 folios between ff. 1-2 (missing second part of index and beginning of prologue), in quires of 10 (i7(8-1); ii8; iii–xxvi10; xxvii4) wide margins, written in dark brown ink in an elegant Italian humanistic bookhand (at least 2 scribes: ff. 1-43 and ff. 43-279), on up to 32 long lines (justification: 200 x 130 mm.), catchwords (vertical and horizontal), rubrics in pale red incorporated in justified text or copied in the margins, capital letters of proper names in pale red ink (ff. 150–156), annotations in pale red placed in the margins, some passages underlined, numerous small painted alternating blue or red initials, numerous highly burnished initials on parti-colored grounds opening each new epistle or change of text (blue and gray painted grounds highlighted in white tracery). Bound in seventeenth- or early eighteenth-century sprinkled calf over pasteboard, back sewn on 6 raised thongs, gilt compartments, title gilt (end papers with watermark close to Briquet, II, nos. 4153 to 4165 [all seventeenth- or early eighteenth-century paper; “cloche accompagnee d’un nom de personne”: A. Chantagu (name of papermaker]), in excellent clean condition with wide margins lightly stained in the lower margin in the opening folios only, text not affected. Dimensions: 310 x 220 mm.
Attractive unrecorded humanist copy of Cyprianus's Correspondence accompanied by at least fourteen other works, unsigned but written by an individualistic and accomplished scribe and handsomely decorated, with many variations from the editio princeps of 1471 and with marginal notes and annotations that merit further study.
1.Elegant, highly accomplished, and rounded humanistic script and style of initials all point to an Italian origin in the third quarter of the fifteenth century. Although the script has not signed his work, his style can be compared to that of a scribe signed IO.NY. who signed an Abbey manuscript made in Padua, 1476 (Alexander and De La Mare, 1969, no. 43); and to that of another scribe active in Rome, before c. 1472 (ibid, no. 38). The decoration recalls northern Italy, Padua or Venice, third quarter of the century.
2. Sixteenth- or seventeenth-century French owner: his signed ex-libris on f. 1, “A. Dengalieres.”
ff.1–1v, Table of contents (lacks second part); incipit, “Epistola Cipirani Cartaginensis ad Donatum; Item eiusdem ad Demetrium; Item ad Fortunatum de hortatione martirii …”;
ff. 2-5v, Prologue [Lacks beginning of prologue]; Text supplied by a later scribe on an independant paper bifolium, reads: “Coecilius Cyprianus Donato. Bene admones, donate charissime, nam & promisisse me… “; manuscript begins at: “ …ut ipse quam plurimis vite prioris horroribus implicatus… “; Explicit prologue, “ …Magis carissimos pasces si sit nobis spiritualis auditio prolectet aures relligiosa mulcedo”;
ff. 5v-13v, Cyprianus, Epistola ad Demetrianum; rubric, Eiusdem ad Demetrianum diu impie de authentem in Christianos quam Christiani non colerent deos reprehendendo eum de bellis fame et certis malis de peste etiam agit et vitiis et notabile. Vide infra de peste quod seu mortalitate diffusam epistolam; incipit, “Oblatrantem te et adversus dominum qui unus et vaerus est ore sacrilegio & verbis… “; explicit, “ …factus est immortalitate securus.” [Cyprianus, Ad Demetrianum, PL, IV, 544B-564B; Simonetti, CCSL, III A, pp. 33–51];
ff. 13v-20, Cyprianus, Epistola ad Fortunatum; incipit, “Desiderasti Fortunate carissime… “; explicit, “…quam magna documenta fidei prebuerunt.”; ff. 20-23, Cyprianus, Epistola ad Fortunatum; rubric, Continuat ad precedentia & de passione Machabeorum; incipit, “Rex Antiochus infestus imo in Anthiocho… “; explicit, “…In persecutione militia in pace conscientia coronatur” [Weber, CCSL, III, pp. 183–206];
ff. 23-24, Cyprianus, Ad Moysen et Maximum Quarta [Letter 37]; incipit, “Cyprianus Moysi et Maximo presbiteris et ceteris confessoribus in domino fratribus salutem…”; explicit, “… ac beatissimi fratres bene valere;” [Diercks, CCSL, III B, pars III, 1, pp. 177–182]
ff. 24-24v, Cyprianus, Letter 38; incipit, “Ciprianus presbiteris et diaconibus et plebi universe salutem… “; explicit, “…et Christo Iesu semper bene valere” [Diercks, CCSL, III B, pars III, 1, p. 182];
ff. 25-26v, Cyprianus, Letter 10; incipit, “Cyprianus martiribus et confessoribus in Christo domino… “; explicit, “ …ob gloriam coronatur” [Diercks, CCSL, III B, pars III, 1, pp. 46–55];
ff. 26v–34v, Cyprianus, De ecclesiae catholicae unitate; incipit, “Cum moneat dominus… “; explicit, “ …servi vigiles christo donante regnabimus” [Bévenot, CCSL, III, pars I, pp. 249–268];
ff. 34v-43v, Cyprianus, De dominica oratione; incipit, “Evangelica precepta fratres dilectissimi nihil sunt… “; explicit, “…gratias agere non desinamus” [Moreschini, CCSL, III A, pars II, pp. 90-113];
ff. 44-50v, Cyprianus, De mortalitate; incipit, “Etsi apud plurimos vestrum… “; explicit, “ …ampliora premia quorum circa se fuerint desideria maiora” [Simonetti, CCSL, III A, pars II, pp. 17-32];
ff. 50v-58v, Cyprianus, De opere et elimosinis; incipit, “Multa et magna sunt fratres carissimi… “; explicit, “ …in persecutione purpuream pro passione geminabit” [Simonetti, CCSL, III A, pars II, pp. 55-72];
ff. 58v-66, Cyprianus, De pacientia; incipit, “De bono pacientie locuturus… “; explicit, “ …sed cum iustis et deum timentibus honoremur” [Moreschini, CCSL, III A, pars II, pp. 118-133]
ff. 66-71, Cyprianus, De zelo; incipit, “Zelare quod bonum videas… “; explicit, “ …si placituri semper in regno in hoc mundo ante placeamus” [Simonetti, CCSL, III A, pars II, pp. 75-86];
ff. 71-78, Cyprianus, De disciplina et de habitu virginum; incipit, “ Disciplina custos spei… “; explicit, “ …cum incipiet in vobis virginitas honorari ”. [ Hartel, CSEL, III, pp. 187-205];
ff. 78-89, Cyprianus, De lapsis; incipit, “Pax ecce dilectissimi fratres… “; explicit, “ …nec solam iam dei veniam merebitur sed coronam” [Bévenot, CCSL, III, pars I, pp. 221-242];
ff. 89-92, Cyprianus, Letter 30; ff. 92-93v, Letter 60; ff. 93v-95v, Letter 57; ff. 95v-104, Letter 59; ff. 104-109v, Letter 63; ff. 109v-118, Letter 55; ff. 118-120, Letter 6;
ff. 120-128v, Cyprianus, De laude martirum; incipit, “Etsi incongruens est fratres Karissimi… “; explicit, “ …sed hoc dominus poterit efficere quod vobis petentibus creditur non negare” [spurious; Hartel, CSEL, III, Appendix, pp. 26-52];
ff. 128v-129v, Letter 28; ff. 129v-131v, Letter 11; ff. 131v-133, Letter 39; ff. 133-137, Letter 58; ff. 137-139v, Letter 76; ff. 139v-146v, Letter 73; ff. 146v-147v, Letter 71; ff. 147v-149, Letter 70;
ff. 149-156, Cyprianus, Sententie Episcoporum octuaginta octo; incipit, “Cum in unum Cartagini convenissent… ”; explicit, “ …ut possint fieri de adversariis amici et de antichristis christiani” [Hartel, CSEL, III, pp. 435-461];
ff. 156-160, Cyprianus, Letter 74; ff. 160-160v, Letter 40; ff. 160v-161v, Letter 49; ff. 161v-163, Letter 52; f. 163, Letter 47; ff. 163-164v, Letter 45; ff. 164v-165, Letter 44; ff. 165-165v, Letter, 51; ff. 165v-167, Letter 13; ff. 167-169v, 43; ff. 169v-171, Letter 65; ff. 171-172, Letter 1; ff. 172-173, Letter 61; ff. 173-173v, Letter 46; ff. 173v-176, Letter 66; ff. 176-177, Letter 54; ff. 177-180v and ff. 180v-182v, Letter 69 [copied in two parts]; ff. 182v-186, Letter 67; ff. 186-187, Letter 64; ff. 187-188, Letter 2; f. 188, Letter 32; ff. 188-189, Letter 20; ff. 189-190, Letter 12; ff. 190-190v, Letter 78; f. 190v, Letter 79; ff. 190v-191v, Letter 77; ff. 191v-194, Letter 31; ff. 194-195, Letter 70; ff. 195-195v, Letter 7; ff. 195v-196, Letter 5; ff. 196-197, Letter 14; ff. 197-199, Letter 4; ff. 199-199v, Letter 56; ff. 199v-201, Letter 3; ff. 201-202, Letter 72; ff. 202-203, Letter 12; ff. 203-204, Letter 16; ff. 204-205, Letter 15; ff. 205-205v, Letter 17; ff. 205v-206, Letter 18; ff. 206-206v, Letter 19; ff. 206v-207, Letter 26; ff. 207-207v, Letter 24; ff. 207v-208, Letter 25; F. 208, Letter 9; ff. 208-208v, Letter 29; ff. 208v-209v, Letter 27; ff. 209v-210, Letter 23; ff. 210-211, Letter 36; ff. 211-211v, Letter 33; ff. 211v-212v, Letter 34; ff. 212-213, Letter 80;
ff. 213-216v, Cyprianus, Adversus Judeos qui insecuti sunt…; incipit, “Attendite sensum et intelligentiam vestram spiritu sancto… ”; explicit, “ …videtis quemadmodum vos christus dilexit” [spurious; Hartel, CSEL, III, Appendix, pp. 133–144];
ff. 216v-220, Cyprianus, De aleatore…; incipit, “Magna nobis ob universam fraternitatem cura… ”; explicit, “ …Aleam noli respicere Amen” [spurious; Hartel, CSEL, III, Appendix, pp. 92–104];
ff. 220-224v, Cyprianus, De duobus montibus; incipit, “Probatio capitulorum que inscripturis deificis continentur… ”; explicit, “ …et in nomine eius gentes credant ” [spurious; Hartel, CSEL, III, Appendix, pp. 104–119];
ff. 225-232 Cyprianus, Testimonia ad Quirinum – Book I [Bévenot, CCSL, III, pars I, pp. 3–26]; rubric, Explicit sequuntur opuscula et aliae epistolae eiusdem Cipriani prout subsequenter apparet; Incipit epistola ad Quirinum id est primus & primo et prohemium ejusdem Cipriani; incipit, “ Ciprianus Quirino filio salutem. Obtemperandum fuit fili carissime… ”; explicit, “ …et non me audientis gladius vos comedet os eium Domini locutum est ista ”; rubric, Cecilii Cipriani ad Quirinum explicit liber primus. Incipiunt capitula libri secundi .
ff . 232-244v, Testimonia ad Quirinum--Book II [Bévenot, CCSL, III, pars I, pp. 27–72]; rubric, Incipit liber secundus de sacramento Christi. Christum primogenitum et esse et ipsum esse sapientiam dei per quem omnia facta sunt; incipit (fol. 232v), “Apud Salomonem in prohemiis. Dominus condidit me initium… ”; explicit, “ … combustionem aeternam justi autem in vitam aeternam”;
ff. 244v-264v, Testimonia ad Quirinum, Book III [Breviarium] [Bevenot, CCSL, III, pars I, pp. 73–179]; rubric, Ad Quirinum liber secundus de sacramento Christi explicit; Incipit eiusdem Cipriani ad eundem Quirinum liber id est Breviarium de capitulis et mandatorum dei ad christiane religionis disciplinam pertinentibus. Incipit epistola que est prohemium; incipit, “Ciprianus Quirino filio salutem. Pro fide ac devotione tua… ”; rubric, Explicit epistula. Incipit liber id est Breviarium eiusdem sancti Cipirani. Cap[itula] de bono operis misericordiae.
ff. 265-267v, Cyprianus, Liber de idolarum vanitate; rubric, Cipriani ad idolorum cultures quod idola dii non sint; incipit, “Quod idola dii non sint …” [That Idols are not Gods]; explicit, “… si Christum fuerimus imitati” [PL, IV, col. 563-582A];
ff. 267v-268, Cyprianus, Letter 53; ff. 268-269, Letter 21; ff. 269-270, Letter 22; ff. 270-271, Letter 8; f. 271, Letter 35; ff. 271-272, Letter 41; f. 272, Letter 42;
ff. 272-279v, Cyprianus, Vita; rubric, Brevis descriptio vitae beatissimi & doctissimi Cipriani episcopi & martiris; incipit, “Ciprianus religiosus antistes ac testis dei gloriosus… “; explicit, “Multum de gloria eius exulto. Plus tamen doleo quod remansi. Finis”; Colophon, Divus Cyprianus vixit anno ducentesimo sexagesimo salutis nostrae fuit episcopus Carthaginensis.
Bishop and martyr, Caecilius Cyprianus (born c. 200-died. 258) was an African by birth from an affluent pagan family who educated him to be a public speaker. He converted to Christianity only after middle life. He became Bishop of Carthage in 1248, and his episcopate witnessed many tumultuous events, including the consecutive persecutions of Decius (250-51), Gallus (252), and then Valerian (257-58). An outbreak of plague in 252 is also mentioned in his writings as is the prolonged dispute over the recognition of baptism of the same year. He spent his last year in exile from Carthage due to the persecution of Valerian, but he returned and was martyred there in 14 September 258.
Considered the "first great Latin writer among the Christians," Cyprian left a significant corpus of writing, of which the most important is his correspondence. From a corpus of eighty-one letters, sixty-two are by him, while the rest are either edited by him or closely connected to him. This corpus constitutes a veritable mine of information on the early history of the church, its constitution, its discipline, and its liturgy in the third century. Much of the old Latin Bible can be reconstructed from his letters, which deal mainly with difficulties within the Christian community resulting from the persecution, especially the terms and proper authority for restoration of apostates and the avoidance of a split between the rival advocates of laxity and rigor. Cyprian's prose is that of a high Roman official, who speaks with an authority that finds many analogies in Roman law.
The best edition of the correspondence remains that of the Vienna Academy (CSEL, vol. III, in 3 parts, Vienna, 1868-1871), edited from the manuscripts by Hartel. Hartel identified 431 manuscripts, of which he used only 40 for his edition. Then, 157 were known to survive of the complete correspondence; now 184 manuscripts of the correspondence exist in public collections (see Dierks and Clarke, "Prologomena,"1999). Since the time of Hartel much work has been done on the history of the text, especially on the ordering of the letters that took place over time. However, a new projected edition, taking into account the extensive scholarship since Hartel, will be welcome and is gradually underway in the Corpus Christianorum (see Dierks and Clarke, 1999). Humanist interest in Cyprian is attested to in the early printing of the editio princeps of his Opera dedicated to Pope Paul II (Rome, Seynheym and Pannartz, 1471), reprinted in Italy twice before the end of the century. For a humanist manuscript of about the same date, but written in Rome and with a different selection of texts, see Huntington Library, San Marino, California, MS HM 1040. Continuing in circulation, his writings became important during the Reformation, when they were freely drawn upon for proof texts.
Among many other treatises, the present codex also contains an early work by Cyprian, the Testimonia ad Quirinum in three books. They are texts compiled for a layman, one of his friends named Quirinus, as a demonstration from Scripture of the truth of Christianity. The first two books consist of passages of Scripture arranged under headings to illustrate the passing away of the Old Law and its fulfillment in Christ: the first book shows that the Jews were rejected by God; the second explains how Christianity realized the prophecies. A third book, added later, the Breviarium, contains texts dealing with Christian ethics. This work is of the greatest value for the history of the Old Latin version of the Bible. Its aim, like most of Cyprian's writings, was to enable people to be changed, converted, into Christians. Although Hartel's edition is taken from a text of the revised version, what Cyprian wrote can be restored from Hartel's MS L (for the more recent edition, see Weber, Corpus Christianorum, 1972). The manuscript transmission of Quirinum and a related text, Ad Fortunatum, is relatively restricted compared to that of the Letters.
Alexander, J. J. G. and A. C. De La Mare. The Italian Manuscripts in the Library of Major J. R. Abbey, London, 1969.
Bayard, Saint Cyprien, Correspondance. Texte établi et traduit par le chanoine Bayard, 2 vols., Paris, Collection des Universités de France, 1925.
Benson, Edward. Cyprian. His Life. His Times. His Work. London,1897.
Bevenot, M. The Tradition of Manuscripts. A Study in the Transmission of St. Cyprian’s Treatises, Oxford, Clarendon Press, 1961.
Clarke, G. W., tr. The Letters of St. Cyprian of Carthage (Ancient Christian Writers, 43, 44, 46, 48), New York, Newman, 1984, 1986, 1988.
Diercks, G. F., Sancti Cypriani episcopi Epistolarum, Turnhout, Brepols, 1994 (Corpus Christianorum Series Latina, III D, Pars III, 1) [CCSL, III D, Pars III, 1].
Diercks, G. F., Sancti Cypriani episcopi Epistolarum, Turnhout, Brepols, 1996 (Corpus Christianorum Series Latina, III D, Pars III, 2) [CCSL, III D, Pars III, 2].
Diercks G.F. and G. W. Clarke, Sancti Cypriani episcopi Epistolarum. Prolegomena, Turnhout, Brepols, 1999 (Corpus Christianorum Series Latina, III D, Pars III, 3) [CCSL, III D, Pars III, 3].
Duquenne, Luc. Chronologie des lettres de S. Cyprien: le dossier de la persécution de Dèce, (Subsidia Hagiographica, no. 54), Brussels, Société des Bollandistes 1972.
Hartel, G. S. Thasci Caecili Cypriani Opera omnia, Vienna, vol. III, 1871 (Corpus Scriptorum Ecclesiasticorum Latinorum, III) [CSEL, III].
Migne J. Patrologiae cursus completus omnium SS. Patrum, doctorum scriptorumque ecclesiasticorum sive Latinorm, sive Graecorum. Patrologia Latina, volume IV, “Opera omnia S. Cypriani”, Turnhout, Brepols, 1978.
O’Loughlin, Thomas. "The Text of Cyprian, Ad Quirinum III, LVIII: An Emendation," in Manuscripta, 40 (1996), pp. 49-53.
Simonetti M. and C. Moreschini, Sancti Cypriani episcopi Opera. Ad Donatum. De mortalitate. Ad Demetrianum. De opere et eleemosynis. De zelo et livore. Edidit M. Simonetti. De Dominica oratione. De bono patientiae. Edidit C. Moreschini, Turnhout, Brepols, 1976 (Corpus Christianorum Series Latina, III A, Pars II) [CCSL, III A, Pars II].
Soden, H. von, Die Cyprianische Briefsammlung, Geschichte ihrer Entstehung un Uberlieferung, Leipzig, Texte und Untersuchungen, vol. 25, III, Leipzig, 1904.
Weber R. and M. Bévenot. Sancti Cypriani episcopi Opera. Ad Quirinum. Ad Fortunatum. Edidit R. Weber. De Lapsis. De Ecclesiae catholicae unitate. Edidit M. Bévenot, Turnhout, Brepols, 1972(Corpus Christianorum Series Latina, III, Pars I) [CCSL, III, Pars I].
Saint Cyprian Letters vol. 2, 54-81
http://apostlesrec.com/wilderness/cyprian/proofs/LettersVol2.htm
Alan Kreider, The Change of Conversion and the Origins of Christendom (Harrisburg, PA, Trinity Press International, 2000, (for a version see)
http://libro.do-bunkyodai.ac.jp/ronshu/Ronsyu_No3/
Saint Cyprian Letters vol. 1, 1-53
http://apostlesrec.com/wilderness/cyprian/proofs/LettersVol1.htm
Saint Cyprian Letters (based on CCEL translation)
http://www.ccel.org/fathers2/ANF-05/anf05-26.htm
Internet Resource for Early Church History (Saint Cyprian)
http://www.earlychurch.org.uk/cyprian.html
Saint Cyprian of Carthage Works (links to e-texts)
http://dmoz.org/Society/Religion_and_Spirituality/Christianity/People/
