The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-01-17
the S1RMaZICHY GOSPELS.
Czar Niehoias's Present 60 the 81. Peters-
burG Library.
from the London Sfnndarl.

from the London Sfnndari.
The other day the Emperor Nicholas II. made
the Public Imperial Library at ~. Petersburg a
very valuable present, viz. tho Sarmazachy
Gospel, written on purple parchment. n Greek
manuscript Gospel OF the sixth century. not n
whit Inferior in scientific value to the Sinai
Bible Of the fourth century. which is one of the
older treasures OF the library. or TO the Ostromir
Gospel of the year 1857. 1t has been In the pos
session Of the settlement o. Sa,mazacha. near
the Cappadocian CRsarea, in Anatolia.
In 1898 the Russian archpologist Smirnow
travelled in Anatolia, saw the Gospel. and re-
ported on 1t at once to the Russian Archaeology.
cal Institute in Constantlnople. Haste was
necessary. for Englishmen and Americans had
intended for four years past TO buy the rare
manuscript, and had already offered the above
mentioned community 81 200 for It. The latter
wished, however, that the precious manuscript
should not pass into any but Orthodox hands.
The Archaeological institute In informed the Pub
lie Imperial Library at st. Petersburg OF tho
precious discovery, but its means were too lin
tied TO permit its keepers TO entertain the
thought OF buying the treasure. Then the Rus
sian Ambassador. NJ. de Nelidof. applied to the
Grand Duke Constantine Constantinov!ch,
President Of the Imperial Academy of Sciences.
with the request that he would draw the atten.
ton OF the Czar to the rare manuscript. and i'm
media'ely after orders were given to buy it for
MS Majesty.
II is an interesting fact that there was talk for
some time In the spring OF presenting the SIR
mhzachy Gospel to the Emperor as a coronation
gift. IL Is written, in letters of silver, In two
columns Of sixteen lines. on finely wrought red
parchment of q slightly violet tinge. Only the
words God " and Jesus Chris" and the titles
Of the various sections are written in letters OF
gold. Unfortunately. In the course of centuries
more than half OF the precious Leaves have been
lost. 1t is written on 1872 leaves, which now
rest In a book cover made in 1920. The Rus
sian Archaeological Institute in Constantinople
examined it., and found that Il forms an i'm
portant part OF that famous Purple Gospel
which Tischentorf designated as Purple Codex
y. and OF which only forty-hve leaves have
hitherto been known. Six Of them are In the
Vatican Library. two in Vienna. four in Lon
don. and thirty-three in the library OF the Con-
vent OF John the Divine, in the island OF Patmos.
were wanting even so long aRo as the twelfth
and fourteenth centuries, The above mentioned
leaves found their way 10 tho Vatican and TO
Vienna in the seventeenth century.
The pl~te manuscript must have consisted
OF ;orty-nine stitched parts OF ten sheets each.
Very few manuscripts on purple parchment
have come down to our time. II Is therefore
easy to understand how highly they are valued,
and the Sarmazachy Gospel is also specially i'm
The very high Importance attached to the
Purple COdex in Europe Is clear from the fact
III from no other that the Vatican Library pre-
sented Leo XIII. with six splsndidly mounted
leaves OF IL on his Jubilee day. The Sarmasa-
chy Gospel Is venerated by the population of
Anatolia as a sacred thing. and before IL was
sent to tho Russian Embassy at Constantinople
large numbers OF the inhabitants went TO show
their reverence fbr IL for tho last time.