This volume contains the first complete publication of the collection of Coptic literary manuscripts now in the A.S. Pushkin Fine Arts Museum, Moscow. The collection formed in 1870-1908 by Vladimir Golenischev is of great value since it covers almost the entire field of early Christian literature in Egypt and substantially aids to fill up serious lacunae in many well-known literary works, to say nothing of the texts hitherto unknown. Important is also the fact that Coptica Golenischeviana largely derives from the library of St. Shenoute's monastery at Sohag, this virtual National Library of Christian Egypt, the source of the riches of the museums and libraries of Paris, Vienna, Berlin etc.

The volume contains a critical review of data, results and open problems concerning the principal Greek and Coptic majuscule bookhands, based on previous research of the author, revised and updated to offer an overview of the different graphic phenomena. Although the various chapters address the history of different types of scripts (i.e. biblical majuscule, sloping poitend majuscule, liturgical majuscule, epigraphic and monumental scripts), their juxtaposition allows us to identify common issues of the comparative method of palaeography. From an overall critical assessment of these aspects the impossibility of applying a unique historical paradigm to interpret the formal expressions and the history of the different bookhands comes up, due to the fact that each script follows different paths. Particular attention is also devoted to the use of Greek majuscules in the writing of ancient Christian books. A modern and critical awareness of palaeographic method may help to place the individual witnesses in the context of the main graphic trends, in the social and cultural environments in which they developed, and in a more accurate chronological framework.

During a lifetime of scholarship and teaching, Hans-Martin Schenke produced a large number of publications in the fields of New Testament, Gnosticism, and Coptology. This collection of his essays and book reviews bears witness to his love for the linguistic aspects of Coptology and illustrates his wide-ranging interest in the development of early Christianity. His insights and deep understanding of Gnostic beliefs and systems as a background for interpreting the New Testament make his contributions to this discipline very rewarding and indispensable reading. Im Laufe seines langen wissenschaftlichen Lebens hat Hans-Martin Schenke eine Fülle von Veröffentlichungen in den Bereichen Neues Testament, Gnosisforschung und Koptologie hervorgebracht. Die hier vorliegende Sammlung seiner Aufsätze und Rezensionen bekundet den Reichtum seines Schaffens. Sie zeugt von seiner Liebe zur koptischen Linguistik und veranschaulicht die Spannweite seines Interesses an der Entwicklung des frühen Christentums. Seine tiefe Kenntnis gnostischer Vorstellungen und Systeme als Hintergrund für das Verständnis des Neuen Testaments lässt seine Beiträge zu einer unentbehrlichen Fundgrube und seine Einsichten zu einem lohnenden Lesevergnügen werden.

Shenoute of Atripe: stern abbot, loquacious preacher, patron of the poor and scourge of pagans in fifth-century Egypt. This book studies his numerous Coptic writings and finds them to be the most important literary source for the study of society, economy and religion in late antique Egypt. The issues and concerns Shenoute grappled with on a daily basis, Ariel Lopez argues, were not local problems, unique to one small corner of the ancient world. Rather, they are crucial to interpreting late antiquity as a historical period—rural patronage, religious intolerance, the Christian care of the poor and the local impact of the late Roman state. His little known writings provide us not only with a rare opportunity to see the life of a holy man as he himself saw it, but also with a privileged window into his world. Lopez brings Shenoute to prominence as witness of and participant in the major transformations of his time.

This is a comprehensive directory and bibliographic guide to Russian archives and manuscript repositories in the capital cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg. It is an essential resource for any researcher interested in Russian sources for topics in diplomatic, military, and church history; art; dance; film; literature; science; ethnolography; and geography. The first part lists general bibliographies of relevant reference literature, directories, bibliographic works, and specialized subject-related sources. In the following sections of the directory, archival listings are grouped in institutional categories. Coverage includes federal, ministerial, agency, presidential, local, university, Academy of Sciences, organizational, library, and museum holdings. Individual entries include the name of the repository (in Russian and English), basic information on location, staffing, institutional history, holdings, access, and finding aids. More comprehensive and up-to-date than the 1997 Russian Version, this edition includes Web-site information, dozens of additional repositories, several hundred more bibliographical entries, coverage of reorganization issues, four indexes, and a glossary.

Never before has there appeared in English such a collection of essays concerning Alexander the Great's legacy in world literature. From Greek and Latin works of the Classical Period through Medieval texts in Syriac, Persian, Coptic, Arabic, Ethiopic and Hebrew, as well the European languages, the fourteen chapters cover the gamut of Alexander literary studies as compiled by some of the foremost scholars in each field, bringing the reader up-to-date on everything Alexander. These experts share their results after years of investigation in the field, and, in doing so, point the reader toward the essence of each of the myriad of Alexander romances, while at the same time including copious notes and bibliography to prepare the reader for his or her own Alexander journey. Contributors include: Richard Stoneman, Saskia Dönitz, Daniel Selden, Josef Wiesehöfer, David Ashurst, Laurence Harf-Lancner, Danielle Buschinger, Juan Pedro Monferrer Sala, Roberta Morosini, Maura Lafferty, Peter Kotar, David Zuwiyya