GREEK PALAEOGRAPHY

The course of Greek Palaeography offers to the students of “Ancient Civilisations: Literature, History and Archaeology”, "Archival and Library Science" and “History from the Middle Ages to Present” the essential training for reading Greek manuscripts and documents, and for using and analysing historical and literary sources in their original form.

By the end of the module, the students
- Will have a sound knowledge of Greek handwriting of 15th and 16th centuries both in East and West
- Will be able to distinguish different handwriting styles
- Will be able to date to date and place manuscripts in the cultural context in which they were produced.

Knowledge of classical Greek.

The course is intended primarily for students with a basic knowledge of Greek Paleography, but is also open to beginning students.
For this reason, the first part of the course consists of an introduction to Greek writing, with active seminar-type participation of students.
The second part is devoted to the Greek script of the 15th and 16th centuries, marked by the fall of Byzantium in 1453 and the spread of Greek to the West .
In this period Greek writing is characterized by the continuation of earlier styles and the increasing spread of individual scripts.
The study of personal handwritings and methods of its classification will be explored, as well as the learning of Greek in the West through imitation.
The contexts of manuscript production among lordly courts and scholarly patronage and the impact that printing had on the activity of professional writing will be also studied.

Mandatory texts:
D. Bianconi-E. Crisci-P. Degni, Paleografia greca, Roma, Carocci editore, 2021.

One text of choice:
P. Canart, Identification et différentiation de mains à l'époque de la Renaissance, in: La paléographie grecque et byzantine, Paris 1977, pp. 363-369
D. Harlfinger, Zu griechischen Kopisten und Schriftstilen des 15. und 16. Jahrhunderts, in: La paléographie grecque et byzantine, Paris 1977, pp. 327-341
P. Eleuteri- P. Canart, Scrittura greca nell'Umanesimo italiano, Milano, Il Polifilo, 1991
N. G. Wilson, Da Bisanzio all'Italia. Gli studi greci nell'Umanesimo italiano, ed. rivista e aggiornata, Alessadnria 2000.
I libri di Bessarione. Studi sui manoscritti del cardinale a Venezia e a Roma, eds. A. Rigo, N. Zorzi, Turnhout 2022.

The exam will consist of a written test consisting of a transcription paper and 10 open-ended questions that will focus on the textbook, texts and topics covered in the course. For 6 questions, a short notion-type answer is expected, and for the other 4, a medium-length answer requiring good critical thinking skills. The use of vocabulary is allowed.

Lessons will be carried out in a conventional manner.

Classroom and individual lectures and reading of manuscript reproductions are expected.

Italian

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