the tropologion sin.gr. - scripta_12-2013_anikiforova

The Tropologion Sin. gr. NE/ 565 of the Ninth Century: A New Source for Byzantine Hymnography

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12 / 2013

The Tropologion Sin. gr. NE/ 565 of the Ninth Century: A New Source

for Byzantine Hymnography*

Alexandra Nikiforova

Like unto treasure, hid in a field (Matthew 13: 44) were the ancient manu-scripts uncovered in May of 1975 at St Catherines Monastery on the Sinai by Archi-mandrite Sophronios, cleared out old debris from a part of the tower of St George. Fifty-five papyrus and 1148 parchment manuscripts (836 in Greek and the rest in Georgian, Slavonic, Syriac, Arabic), 20 printed books were found then.1 The first catalogue of Greek part of this collection was prepared by Panaghiotis Nikolopoulos and published in Athens in 1998.2 Stig R. Fryshov made the first description of the liturgical finds,3 while their preliminary research has been carried out by Roman Krivko.4

1. The general characteristics of the TropologionOne of the most sensational among the hymnographical finds on the Sinai is a

* The main positions of this article have been discussed at the conferences Actual Problems of the Investigation of Byzantine and Old Russian Music: Theory and Practice. To the 100th Anniversary of D.V. Razumovsky (on May 2009, Moscow State Conservatory named for P. I. Tchaikovsky), Third Cyrillo-Methodian Congress (on February 2013, University of Florence, Russian Academy of Scienc-es, Institute for Slavic Studies, Rome Florence).

1 For relevant bibliography on the new finds see: Khevsuriani 1984; Aleksidze 2005; Kazamias 2006; Radle 2011: 169221.

2 Nikolopoulos 1998. 3 Ghin Fryshov 2000: 167184. 4 Krivko 2008: 56102. After studying the content of the manuscripts he drew a parallel and noted

the differences between them and the ancient Slavonic liturgical texts .

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Greek Tropologion Sin. gr. NE/ 5655 (9th c.,6 240 ff.),7 a service book, which con-tained chant repertoire for all cycles of the church year and used in Palestine in 7th9th century. Till recently Tropologion was basically known due to its Georgian8 and Syr-ian9 translations, unfair Greek fragments.10 Therefore the discovery of its original in 1975 became a treasure for those who study the history of the liturgy of Byzantine rite and Byzantine hymnography. It was the Tropologion that became the corner stone on which basis the office Menaion was formed,11 the latter being the subject of the authors dissertation.12

The Tropologion Sin. gr. NE/ 565 comprises 73 services (rubrics 273) for the period from the Forefeast of the Nativity of Christ to the commemoration of St Joseph of Arimathea (12 June) with incorporated Lenten and Paschal services. The heading on the first folio (Sin. gr. NE/ 56) runs as follows: With God the Tropologion of All the Holy Feasts of the Whole Year Established by the Saint the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ ( ). Thus, the Tropologion reflects the order of services in Jerusalem. It includes the Jerusalem rites of preparing chrism and

5 According to Fryshovs identification the five-page fragment Sin. gr. 56 (9th c.) belongs to the Tropologion Sin. gr. 5 (9th c.). See: Ghin Fryshov 2000: 179.

6 Nikolopoulos dated Sin. gr. NE/ 565 to the 8th9th century, but by the wide use of breathing marks and accents it should be dated not earlier than 9th century (Canart 1980: 8182). Just so Nikol-opoulos himself dated the folia of Sin. gr. NE/ 56, belonging to Sin. gr. NE/ 565. I accept the second dating of Nikolopoulos for the whole manuscript.

7 The full description of the Tropologions hymnographical content day by day see in: Nikiforova 2012a: 195236.

8 Metreveli, ankiev, Khevsuriani 1980. Georgian translation of Tropologion, Iadgari, is saved in roughly 40 manuscripts. Most of them are dated by 10th century and written in Palestine (Khevsuriani 2009: 419424).

9 Bolotov 1893: 177210.10 Sin. gr. 591 (9th c., scroll), with the services of St Modestus, archbishop of Jerusalem (10 De-

cember), priest Melchisedek (14 December), Sts Eustratius, uxentius, Eugene, restes, Mardarius (17 December), Sts Anania, Azaria, and Misael, see below Ananias, Azariah, Mishael, p. (19 December, see: Tameion 1996: 122; 126; 129). Also V. Vasilik in 1997 deciphered the palimpsest RNB gr. 7 (6th8th c.) with its partly extant canons and stichera of the Theophany (6 January), St Antony the Great (17 January), the Meeting of our Lord in the Temple (2 February, see: Vasilik 1997: 311337). Also among the new finds on the Sinai rather substantial part of a Tropologion with the services for July and August is presented (Sin. gr. NE/ 4, 9th c.).

11 For a long time yet Menaea mechanically called Tropologia, e.g. Menaion for September (Sin. gr. 579, 10th11th century), Menaion for MarchApril (Sin. gr. 607, 9th10th century) and others. See: Husmann 1971.

12 Nikiforova 2012a, defended in the Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute for World Literature, in 2005 under the title The Historical Development of the Litugical Menaea in the 9th12th century. The structure, content and calendar of the Menaea from St Catherines Monastery on the Sinai.


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washing the feet observed in the Church of the Resurrection during Holy Week, hymnography for Good Friday of Cyrill, Patriarch of Jerusalem.

The manuscript is written in ogivale inclinata. It is in good state, the text is miss-ing in some parts, pages are not in order. There are hand-written notes in the margins of the Lenten cycle made by another person. The manuscript is divided into rubrics, the pages are not numbered. Diacritics are used arbitrarily in the text: irregular accents and breathing marks, acute and grave accents, and circumflex, rough and smooth breathing are confused. Vowels are characterized by the following: 1) itacism instead of throughout the manuscript, instead of (ru-bric 2. 3), instead of (rubric 2. 3), instead of (rubric 3. 1), instead of (rubric 3. 4), instead of (rubric 5. 2); 2) the overlapping of , and instead of (rubric 2. 2), instead of (rubric 8. 1), instead of (rubric 5. 1) instead of (rubric 11. 3); 3) the overlapping of the diphthong and the vowel instead of (rubric 2. 1), instead of (rubric 2. 2), instead of (rubric 2. 3). Consonants are characterized by: 1) the use of the final in the third person singular of aorist before a consonant (rubric 2. 3); 2) the use of double consonants instead of one consonant: instead of (rubric 2. 3), instead of (rubric 5. 1); 3) the dissimilation of in the combinations , , , , , , , , , : instead of (rubric 5. 1).

2. The Tropologion Calendar The first rubric of Sin. gr. NE/ 56 contains

, an iambic canon of the Forefeast of the Nativity of Christ (tone 1, heir-mos , , beginning , author John the monk). Then the text is missing. Sin. gr. MG 5 opens with the ending of the cycle of stichera on Lord, I call for the Forefeast of the Nativity of Christ. In the Nativity service, put under rubric 3, the stichera on Lord, I call, on Glory, aposticha and the canon (tone 1, heirmos , , beginning , author Cosmas the monk) are extant. The content of the Tropologion Sin. gr. MG 565 can be reconstructed as follows: . ..[lacuna].[lacuna]

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. . . . . [folia are mixed up, text is destroyed]. . . A. . . .. . . . IE. . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . < >. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . .. . .

. . . . .


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. . . . .

. . .

. . . . . .

. . . . .

[lacuna] [lacuna]

. . . .

. .

[lacuna].. . . . . .. . . . . .. .

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. .. .. .. .. . . ME. . . .MZ. . MH. . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . H. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. .. .. . . . , , .. . .


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. . . . .. . .

1. The iambic canon of the Forefeast of the Nativity of Christ..3. December 25. The Nativity of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. [lacuna].[lacuna]8. The iambic canon of the Forefeast of the Holy Theophany.9. January 5. The Eve of the Holy Theophany.[folia are mixed up, text is destroyed]10. January 6. The canon of the Holy Theophany.11. The second day (Afterfeast) of the Holy Theophany.12. The third day (Afterfeast) of the Holy Theophany.13. The fourth day (Afterfeast) of the Holy Theophany.14. The fifth (Afterfeast) of the Holy Theophany.15. The sixth day (Afterfeast) of the Holy Theophany. The commemoration of our venerable father Theodosius, archimandrite.16. The seventh day (Afterfeast) of the Holy Theophany. The commemoration of saint Philotheus.17. The eighth day of the Holy Theophany. Apodosis of the feast and the commemo-ration of the Holy Fathers slain at Holy Mountain Sinai and Raithu.18. January 15. The commemoration of saint glorious hieromartyr Babylas.19. January 16. The consecration of the Holy Monastery of Virgin Mary, named Khozeva.20. January 17. The commemoration of our venerable father Antony, ascetic and hermit.. The other canon on killed in earthquake.22. January 20. The commemoration of our venerable father Euthymius.23. January 22. The commemoration of saint and glorious Maximus the Confessor.24. January 25. The commemoration of our saint father Gregory the Theologian, bishop of Nazianzus.25. January 27. The commemoration of our saint father John the Chrysostom.26. January 31. The commemoration of saint glorious Cyrus and John.27. February 1. The commemoration of our venerable father Ephrem the Syrian, as-cetic.28. January February 2. The Meeting of Our Lord, Jesus Christ. Troparia, chanted on Meatfare Sunday and during all the week

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On the second day On the third day On the fourth day On the fifth day On the sixth day

First Sunday of Great Lent On the second day On the third day On the fourth day On the fifth day On the sixth day

29. On Saturday of the Great Lent. The commemoration of saint glorious martyr Theodore the Stratelates. Second Sunday of Great Lent

In the same evening On the second day On the third day On the fourth day On the fifth day On the sixth day

Third Sunday of Great Lent On the second day < On the third day> On the fourth day On the fifth day On the sixth day

[lacuna]Fifth Sunday of Great Lent [lacuna]

On the third day On the fourth day On the fifth day

Sixth Sunday of Great Lent In the same evening On the second day

[lacuna]

34. The canon of Holy Tuesday.35. On the canon acrostichis is the following: , ode 2, tone 2.


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36. The canon of Holy Wednesday.37. The canon of Maundy Thursday.38. The canon of Good Friday.39. The canon of Holy Saturday.40. The canon of the Sunday of Pascha.41. The canon of the Thomas (New) Sunday.42. In the same evening of the Thomas (New) Sunday.43. On the third day after the Thomas (New) Sunday of the Myrrhbearers.44. April 23. saint glorious great martyr George.45. One should know, that from the Thomas (New) Sunday till Pentecost the Holy Church is chanting to the Apostles instead of penitential chants and chants to the Martyrs.46. The other canon of the Apostles.47. The other canon of the Apostles.48. The other canon of the Apostles.49. April 25. our father saint Mark, apostle and evangelist.50. The canon of the Mid-Pentecost.51. April 27. The commemoration of saint glorious martyr Christopher.52. May 2. The commemoration of our saint father Athanasius.53. May 5. The commemoration of righteous Job.54. May 6. The commemoration of the Apparition in the sky.55. May 7. The commemoration of our venerable father Arsenius, ascetic.56. May 8. The commemoration of John the Theologian.57. May 9. The commemoration of saint Epimachus, martyr of Pelusium.58. May 12. The commemoration of our saint father Epiphanius.59. May 14. The commemoration of saint glorious martyr Isidor.60. May 18. The commemoration of saint glorious martyr Julian.61. May 22. The commemoration of pious Constantine the Great, emperor.63. The canon of the Ascension.64. The other canon of the Ascension.65. The canon of the Holy Pentecost.66. The other canon of the Holy Pentecost.67. The other canon of the Holy Pentecost.68. The other canon, iambic, of the Holy Pentecost.69. June 1. three saint virgins Faith, Hope and Love.70. June 6. Patronal festival (panegyris) of the Archangel.71. The other canon of the Archangel.72. June 10. The commemoration of our venerable father Onuphrius, ascetic.73. June 12. The commemoration of the righteous Joseph of Arimathea.

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So, this calendar explicitly is of the Palestinian type with some Coptic peculiarities and comprises the commemorations of the main Gospel events and of the saints that were most worshipped in Jerusalem and in Egypt.13 These feasts are local Palestinian: the consecration of the Holy Monastery of Virgin Mary, named Khozeva (now St George Monastery,14 16 January, rubric 19),15 the commemoration of the perished in the earthquake in Palestine (17 January16). Coptic influence is traced in the patronal festival of the Archangel (6 June),17 St Arsenius the Great (7 May, not 8 May), St Epimachus of Pelusium (9 May). The date of the feast of Sts Faith, Hope and Love (1 June) for the present seems to me inexplicable. Compared to the Udzvelesi Iadgari,18 the calendar of this redaction of the Tropologion was enlarged and modified: the number of individual commemorations of saints increased and on the contrary decreased the number of common commemorations (there are only a few occasions, discussed below, in 4.1.2).

3. Structure of servicesHymnographic texts in the Tropologion were arranged according to the order

of the service: stichera on Lord, I call for the esperinos, canon and stichera of the Lauds for the orthros.19 The number of chants depended on the significance of the feast.

Type of service Structure of service Number Rubrics

Ordinary

201, 8, 14, 16, 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, 27, 54, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 69, 71, 72, 73(?)

13 Chronz, Nikiforova (in print).14 This monastery in the Khozeva Desert between Jerusalem and Jericho was founded in the late

5th early 6th century by John, who later became metropolitan of Caesarea Palaestinae, on the place where, according to the tradition, after a forty-day Lent Joachim received a message from the Angel about the forthcoming birth of Mary. In the 6th8th century the monastery flourished and was renowned for the austerity of its ascetic life. The consecration of the Monastery of Khozeva is mentioned in the Jerusalem Lectionary (18 January), in the Udzvelesi Iadgari (16 January), in certain Georgian Menaea (Kekelidze 1912: 171, 172, 380).

15 Kekelidze 1912: 174175. 16 On a hunch of T. Chronz, that is the earthquake, took place on January 17, 749 (Tsafrir, Foerster

1992: 231235).17 Garitte 1958: 244, Zanetti 1994: 323349.18 Metreveli, ankiev, Khevsuriani 1980.19 For more detailed description of the services structrure of the Tropologion see: Nikiforova

2012b: 4047.


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Ordinary with additional sticheron on Glory and/or apostixon

+ and/or

192, 5(?), 9(?),11, 12, 13, 15, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 44, 49, 51, 52, 53, 55, 56

Festal+ , , ..

4 3, 10, 28, 70

An ordinary service included a cycle of stichera on Lord, I call a canon a cycle of the Lauds, e.g. the services of St Cyrus and John (31 January, rubric 26), St Epiphanius (12 May, rubric 58) etc. If the same stichera were to be chanted of the Lauds and Lord, I call, they were written out once, at the beginning of the service. In a more solemn service appeared a doxastikon and/or aposticha either on Lord, I call or of the Lauds, or in both cases, e.g. services of St Babylas (15 January, ru-bric 18), St Mark (25 April, rubric 49) etc. On great feasts the Nativity of Christ (25 December, rubric 3), the Theophany (6 January, rubric 10) special chants ( , , etc.) were added to the above scheme. If several services fell on one day (either of one feast or of different feasts), they followed one another under different rubrics, e.g. on January 17 first comes the service of St Anthony the Great (rubric 20), then the service of the perished in the earthquake (rubric 21), on June 6 two separate services of the Archangel (rubrics 70, 71) also follow one another. But more common was a mixed combination, when hymnography of different feasts was united in one service, e.g. the chants of the Fore-feast of the Theophany and St Theodosius the Great (rubric 15), of the Afterfeast of the Theophany and St Philotheus (rubric 16), of the Forefeast of the Theophany and the Holy Fathers slain at Holy Mountain Sinai and Raithu (rubric 17), etc.

4. Hymnographical genres The hymnographical, liturgical and music terminology is elaborated in detail.

In the Tropologion one can meet (canon), (ode), , , , (stichera on Lord, I call, on Glo-ry, of the Laud, apostichon), , , , , (roparia on the dismissal, on the assembly, on the entrance of the Holy , on the great blessing of waters, on the kneeling), (theotokion), (triadikon), (penitential), (for the Apostles), (for the Martyrs), (for the Venerables), (in Byzantine manner), (au-thentikos), (on the model of), (tone), (similar).

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At this stage one cannot always define sticheron from troparion (as a rule, a sticheron is connected with verses of psalm), e.g. under the rubric first is inserted , . , , . Therefore Georgian scholars introduced a general term for different kinds of chants monostrophe. The term canon is used in two meanings: (the service of the Apostles) and (on the canon the first ode).

For cycles of stichera and canons the tone () and model () are indi-cated. The method of similarity, i.e. that is a composition of new hymns, , on the base of an existing melodic and metrical model, one of the fundamental me-thods of Byzantine hymnography, already witnessed in the Tropologion.20 The early texts, which were, most likely pre-authors yet, followed a pattern very precisely, e.g. the Resurrection sticheron, tone pl. 4, , (, Sin. gr. 864, 9th c.21) and the other one chanted according to its model on the Apodosis of the Theophany (Sin. gr. NE/ 565, rubric 17. 1):

. , , , , .

. 17. 1. . . . . , . , , , , .

. , , , : , , .

. 17. 1. , . . . 4. : , . , , , , : , , .

Later appeared chants that repeated the metric and melodic pat-tern, but the texts were rather different. Two Christmas stichera (of the Forefeast of the Nativity of Christ, rubric 2) and (of the Nativity of Christ, rubric 3) may serve as an example:

2.2. . . . . ,

20 Nikiforova (in print).21 Ajjoub 2004: 392.


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, , , , , . .22

3.2. . . , , , , , , , , , , . .

2.2. . . . 2. , , , , , , , , . : .

3.2. . : . , , , , , , , , , . : .

The authors of the Tropologion made up a list of the patterns for composing and chanting stichera and heirmoi.23 According to these models hymnographers wrote their monostrophes. Sometimes monostrophes were original and chanted by their own model. Other canticles of the cycle then, called (similar), used it as a pattern, e.g. the cycle of stichera of the Lauds of the Theophany, written by John the monk (January 6, rubric 10, tone 2): . . . . .

As for musica references, the term (authentikos) is used as opposed to (plagios) in tones definition, e.g. in the service of the Nativity of Christ is prescribed to chant . . . . (25 December, rubric 2. 3), as well as in the service of the Theophany . . . . (5 January, rubric 10. 1). The remark (in Byzantine manner) one can meet in the service of St John Chrysostom (27 January), preceded the cycles of stichera of the Lauds (rubric 25. 3). That is most likely that it shows the connection with the Constantinopolian tradition and not the Palestinian one (which chants are usually referred to as , in oriental manner).

22 Deuteronom 28, 4. This hymn was a part of eight-stichera cycle in Udzvelesi Iadgari (Keke-lidze 1907: 375). In printed Menaion: , , , , , , , (20 December, St Ignatios Theophoros, sticheron of the Lauds, attributed to Romanos the Melode). Greek office, cf. p. Menaion is accessible on-line: http://analogion.gr Also see: Romanos le Mlode 1965: 138.

23 The catalog of the patterns see: Momina 1998: 165185; Nikiforova (in print).

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4.1.1. Stichera on assembly, on the Great EntranceStichera on assembly ( ) is an ancient genre found in the

Udzvelesi Iadgari, in the liturgies of the Apostles James and Mark,24 in the manuscrits RNB gr. 44 (9th c.)25 and Sin. gr. NE/ 565. In early liturgical sources synaxis meant the dismissal of catechumens (dimissio catechumenorum).26 Stichera of this kind were chanted after the reading of the Gospel and before deacons called upon cat-echumen to leave the assembly. In the Tropologion one can find them in the services of the Theophany (rubrics 10. 3, 10. 10), the Ascension (rubric 63. 6), the Pentecost (rubric 65. 8), the Archangel (rubric 70. 7), the Easter (rubrics 40. 5, 40. 6), St Thom-as Sunday (rubric 41. 6), Great Lent (rubrics are not indicated). They do not differ at all from ordinary stichera. Later these stichera were incorporated in the cycles of stichera of the Lauds, as, e.g. the stichera of the Theophany (January 6, rubric 10. 3):

10.3. . . . . 27 ,28 , , , ,29 , .30

10.3. . . 1. . , , , , , , .

In earlier manuscripts the terms , , 31 were used as synonyms of stichera on synaxis. In the Tropologion there are two stichera on Maundy Thursday (rubric 37. 12) , tone pl. 4, and on the Theophany (rubric 10. 4) , tone pl. 1, which you may read below:

10.4. . . . . , , 32 , , , , , , {...} ,33 , .

24 Leeb 1970: 101102. 25 Thibaut 1913: 311.26 Taft 1975: 7175, 97, 99102, 113114; Taft 2010.27 In printed Menaion: . 28 In printed Menaion: .29 In printed Menaion: , .30 = Printed Menaion (of the Lauds, by Patriarch German). 31 Taft 2000: 675692; Thibaut 1913: 74.32 In printed Menaion: .33 In printed Menaion: .


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10.4. . . . 1. , , , , . {...} : , .

4.1.2. Common chantsCommon chants, characteristic of the Palestinian worship, were found in the

manuscripts Sin. gr. NE/ 24 (9th10th c.), RNB gr. 44,34 hymnographical Udzvelesi Iadgari. In the Tropologion Sin. gr. NE/ 565, which reflects further development of the rite (in comparison with the Udzvelesi Iadgari), common stichera are to be chanted only a few times: (to the Martyrs) to St Julian of Tarsus (18 May, rubric 60. 1) and St Theodore (First Saturday of Great Lent, rubric 29. 1), (to the Venerables) to Venerable Onuphrius (June 10, rubric 72. 1). Also in the ser-vice of the Afterfeast of the Theophany and St Philotheus (rubric 16) the Theophany chants alternated with common chants to the Martyrs four stichera from the cycle on Lord, I call are dedicated to the Theophany, and two stichera to the Martyrs:

16.1. . . . , ,

, .. , ,

.. , ,

.. , ,

.. , , ,

, .. , ,

, .16.1. , . . . 3. : ,

.. , ,

, , .. , :

, .. ,

, , .

34 Thibaut 1913: 38.

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. , , , , .

. , : .

And here is an example of the common sticheron of the Lauds and common troparia to the Martyrs inserted in the canon dedicated to the Holy Theophany:

16.3. . . . , , ,

, .16.3. . . 3. : , , , -

.16.2. . . . . , , ,

. . , ,

, , .16.2. 3. . . 3. : :

. 5. : , , -

.

4.1.3. and , hymns to the Holy Trinity and to the Virgin Mary

Theotokia () and triadika () originated in the services of the feasts dedicated to the Virgin Mary (Annunciation, Dormition etc.) and to the Holy Trinity (Theophany, Pentecost). Only one chant called triadikon is found in the Tropologion Sin. gr. NE/ 565, in the service of the Theophany: , ,35 . In printed books this hymn to the Holy Trinity is chanted as a doxastikon on Lord, I call at the vesper of Pentecost and is assigned to the emperor Leo VI the Wise (866912), the author of the Gospel stichera. In the Tropologion the hymn is found in the service of the Theophany and prescribed to be chanted on all the eight days of the Afterfeast ( ). In the service of Pentecost there is a remark to take the chant from the Theophanys service (rubric 65. 7). Thus, it is questionable whether the hymn was written by the emperor Leo VI or not.

35 In printed Menaion: .


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Besides that hymns to the Holy Trinity appear in the seventh ode (of Azariah: Daniel 3, 2645) and in the eighth ode (of three youths Ananias, Azariah, Mishael: Daniel 3, 5288) of the canons. In the seventh ode of the fourode canon of the Ascension (rubric 64. 1) the author directly connects the image of three youths with the Holy Trinity: , , , , ( , , : ). The Holy Trinity is sung by Sts Faith, Hope and Love (1 June, rubric 69. 2, by Andrew the Crete): , , , , , ( : ). Similar triadika are included in the eighth ode of the canons of St Isidore (14 May, rubric 59. 2), St Chistopher (27 April, rubric 51. 3), the Archangel (6 June, rubric 71. 1), the Easter (rubric 40. 1) etc.

Theotokia are also seldom found in the Tropologion Sin. gr. NE/ 565. There is a theotokion after the stichera of the Lauds, tone 4, in the service of the Archangel (6 June, rubric 71. 3) , . When only the incipit is indicated (e.g. , , on Gloryof the stichera on Lord, I call, tone 3, the commemoration of St Athanasius, 2 May, rubric 52. 2), the theotokion itself must be looked for in a corresponding book of texts.36 The full texts of theotokia are written down only a few times, e.g. in the service of St George (23 April) (rubric 44. 2, tone 1), (rubric 44. 4, tone 1), , (rubric 44. 7, tone 2), the theotokia from the first, third, fifth and ninght odes of the canon (rubric 44. 5).

4.1.4. The CanonThere is a vast number of complete and incomplete, archaic and newly written

canons in the Tropologion Sin. gr. NE/ 565. Archaic canons are, in fact, the sets of troparia chanted on the biblical canticles, the tone might changed from ode to ode. Below is an archaic canon of the Forefeast of the Nativity of Christ (rubric 2. 3),37 compilled in such a way:

2.3. . . . . . , , ,

, , , . , , ,

36 Lourie 1995: 184; Metreveli, Quitter 1975: 331359. 37 Another redaction see in: Sin. gr. 578 (f. 61v63, with the second ode, Tameion 1996: 132).

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, , , .

, , , , , , .

2.3. 1. . 2. , -

. , .

, .

, .Heirmoi of archaic canons were connected at the same time with the feast and

the biblical canticle by their subject, e.g. the heirmos of the fourth ode of the canon of the Apodosis of the Theophany (rubric 17. 4): , , , , , , , , ( , , , , ). Such heirmoi were an integral part of a con-crete canon. Therefore one needed to compose general-purpose heirmoi that could be used in a canon for any feast. So heirmoi that are paraphrases of the biblical canti-cles appeared, e.g. the heirmos of the first ode, composed by John the monk (rubric 18. 2).: , , , , ( , , , , ). Hymnographers of the 7th8th century made up a whole collection of such models, that was arfterwards used as heirmoi by the 9th century hymnographers.

4.2. Interpolation of second ode. There is no precise answer to the question about the second ode omission.38 Two ways of composing a complete ca non already existed in the 7th8th century: the old one, with second ode (canons of the Udzvelesi Iadgari,39 canons of Andrew and German the Patriarch) and the new one, without the second ode (canons of John and Cosmas40), which led to duality in the 9th century. The same hymnographers then wrote canons with the second ode and without it. Finally,

38 The oldest testimony on the withdrawal from the liturgical use of the second ode belongs to John the Zonaras, which believes the reason was in its menacing charcter: Schir 1963: 132.

39 In Udzvelesi Iadgari second ode was presented in all nine-ode canons: Krivko 2008: 6073.40 Ribakov 2002: 496572; Detorakes 1979: 126128.


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the new practice of writing eight-ode canons completely replaced the old one. But the importance of this Tropologion is that it contains an evidence for the transition from nine-ode canon to eight-ode canon: then as all nine-ode canons in the Udzvel-esi Iadgari had the second ode, the canons of the Tropologion ignored it. That was a reform, carried out by John and Cosmas, which transfigured nine-ode canons into eight-ode canons (they preserved nine-ode composition and omitted the second ode, most likely, not to change the sacred structure).

In Sin. gr. NE/ 565 the second ode is interpolated into four canons. R. Krivko was the first who noticed this fact and demonstrated the interpolation of the second ode into the canons of John and Cosmas.41 These are the interpolations: 1) into Cosmass canon of the Nativity of Christ (tone 1, heirmos , , beginning: , rubric 3. 4) etc.;42 2) into the jambic canon of John the monk on the Theopha-ny (tone 2, heirmos , , beginning: , rubric 8. 1) , , , , etc.;43 3) into the canon of Cosmas on the Theophany (tone 2, heirmos , beginning , rubric 10. 7): etc.44 Also, the second ode was interpolated into the diodion of Holy Tuesday (rubric 35. 1, heirmos , beginning ).

4.3. The structure of the ninth ode. Troparia of the ninth ode that in an-cient times were intimately connected with the Virgin Mary have been chanted on (e.g. see the papyrus of John Rylands Library 466, 6th7th c.)45 and ended with the words We magnify you (). In

41 Publication of interpolated second odes with the translation into Church-Slavonic see: Krivko 2008: 6566.

42 In Sin. gr. NE/ 565 and printed Menaea this canon was placed on Christmas (December 25), in the Udzvelesi Iadgari on Christmas Eve. This interpolation see also in the office Menaea of 11th century Sin. gr. 578 (f. 6767v), Sin. gr. 583 (f. 204v).

43 In Sin. gr. NE/ 565 this canon was placed on the Theophanys Eve, in printed Menaea on Theophany.

44 In Sin. gr. NE/ 565 and printed Menaea this canon was placed on the Theophany (January 6), in Iadgari 425 (10th c.) on the Theophanys Eve (Kekelidze 1907: 379).

45 Lourie 1995: 170198.

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many canons of the Tropologion Sin. gr. NE/ 565 for the Nativity of Christ (25 December, rubric 2. 3), the second day after the Theophany (rubric 11. 3), St Anthony (17 January, rubric 20. 3), St George (23 April, rubric 44. 5), the Apostles (rubric 45. 2), St Christopher (27 April, rubric 51. 3), St and Righteous Job (5 May, rubric 53. 3), Venerable Arsenius (7 May, rubric 55. 4) the above structural characteristic, the refrains , , were preserved. In some of the canons several troparia of the ninth ode referred to the Virgin Mary, while some others to a feast. The ending of troparia could alternate , e.g. in the canon, chanted on the third day after the Theophany (tone 3, heirmos , beggining , rubric 12. 2):

, ,

. , ,

. , , . , ,

. 9, , . . . , .

4.4. Incomplete canons. Incomplete canons for feasts were a distinctive feature of the Udzvelesi Iadgari (for St Stephen, 27 December, for the Apodosis of the The-ophany etc.46). There are many incomplete canons in the Tropologion Sin. gr. NE/ 565, and all of them refer to the Lenten cycle. These are incomplete canons for Holy Monday (rubric 33. 5), Holy Tuesday (rubric 35. 1), Holy Wednesday (rubric 36. 5), Good Friday (rubric 38. 1), Holy Saturday (39. 147), the Ascension (rubric 64. 1), the Apostles (rubric 45. 2, 46. 2, 47. 2). What follows is an example of four-ode canons to the Apostles. The theme of Apostolate runs through the early hymnography. In Sin. gr. NE/ 5 the instruction: One has to know that from the New Week to Pentecost the Holy Church chants hymns to the Apostles instead of penitential hymns and hymns to the Martyrs (rubric 45) is followed by three four-ode canons and one eight-ode canon in honour of the Apostles. Below is the four-ode canon, tone 1 (rubric 45. 2):

46 Kekelidze 1907: 352, 35835947 Five odes (1, 6, 7, 8, 9). In printed Triodion this is the complete canon.


177

. . . ,

, , . , ,

, . , ,

, , . . , , ,

. , , , . , , , {...} . . . , ,

, , . , ,

, . . . , , ,

, , . , ,

, , . ,

, , .

1. . 1. 6.

.

. , , ,

. 7. , , , . , , . {...} . 8. : .

: . :

. 9. : .

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, , , , , .

, , - , .

, , , .

5. The authorsThe authors of the Tropologion Sin. gr. NE/ 565 are Cyril, John, Cosmas, An

drew of Jerusalem. Twelve troparia for Good Friday are assigned to Cyril of Jerusalem (rubrics 38. 438. 15). The canon of Sts Faith, Hope and Love (1 June, rubric 69. 2) and the troparia to the Holy Cross chanted every Wednesday and Friday during Great Lent (without rubrication) are signed by the name Andrew. John the monk is mentioned as the author of 8 canons for the Forefeast of the Nativity of Christ (rubric 1), the Forefeast of the Theophany (rubric 8), St Babylas (15 January, rubric 18. 2), St Euthymius the Great (20 January, rubric 22. 2), the Easter (rubric 40. 1), St Thomas Sunday (rubric 41. 4), the Apparition of the Holy Cross over Jerusalem (6 May, rubric 54. 2), the Pentecost (rubric 68). Cosmas is the author of 6 canons for the Nativity of Christ (25 December, rubric 3. 4), the Theophany (6 January, rubric 10. 7), St Gregory the Theologian (24 January, rubric 24. 2), the Meeting of our Lord in the Temple (2 February, rubric 28. 3), Holy Thursday (rubric 37. 3), the Pentecost (rubric 65. 5). They are most likely the authors of many stichera and heirmoi, as well as other canons transferred anonymously. Based on the stable manuscript tradition it is possible to determine the authors of some unsigned hymns. Thus, the canon to St Basil the Great (1 January, rubric 5. 1) belongs to John, the canon to St George (23 April, rubric 44. 5) to Cosmas etc.

6. The characteristics of the early Palestinian hymnographyThe main features of the Tropologion chants are refrains, direct speech, dia

logues, quotations from the Holy Scripture and homiletical texts.6.1. Calque. Thus, in Sin. gr. NE/ 565 the stichera for the Forefeast of the

Theophany (5 January, rubric 9. 1) repeat the pattern almost word-by-word the Resurrection stichera (rubric 41. 1):48

. 41. . 41.1. . . . , , , .

48 The chants are very close to each other textologically and by their structure one can find in the kernel for Byzantine hymnography services of Holy Week, akolouthies of the Easter, the Christmas, the Theophany (Chopko 2005: 7, Janeras 1988: 252255).


179

. 9. . 9. . 9. 1. . . . , , .49

. 41. . 41. 1. , . . 1. , , , .

. 9. . 9. 1. , . . 1. , , , .

6.2. The Refrain. The frequent use of refrains in the early hymnography can basically be put down to the need to engage people in the worhip. Besides, refrains had a structure forming function: they linked heirmoi and troparia of an ode as well as cycles of stichera. The most common refrains were of petitioning nature save our souls, pray for our souls etc. Other refrains contained doxologies, e.g. in the cycle of stichera of the Forefeast of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ (rubric 2. 4) in Sin. gr. NE/ 565:

2.4. . . . . , ,

, .. , ,

, .. , ,

, .2.4. . . . 3. : :

.. ,

: , .. :

, .There was a special set of refrains for different odes of canons, such as

, , , (rubric 19. 3). This ancient method was already known from the 6th7th century papyrus of John Rylands Library 466. In 1938 Colin H. Roberts published the two-ode canon from it:

49 = Udzvelesi Iadgari. Renoux 2000: 9798.

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, , , .

, , , .

, , , .

, , - . , : .

, . , : .

, . , : .50

Such kind of opening refrains repeatedly occur and in Sin. gr. NE/ 565, e.g. in the canon of the Apostles (tone 4, heirmos , , rubric 48. 2):

, , , , .

, , , , .

, , , , .

48.2. 1. . 4. : , , , ,

. , , , ,

. , , , ,

.Quotations. Many pre-authors hymns contained quotations from the Holy

Scripture, especially from the Psalter. Here is the stichera, tone 3, chanted on the third day after the Theophany (rubric 12. 4):

12.4. . . . , , (Ps. 35: 10), , , , .

50 Vasilik 2006: 136138.


181

12.4. . . 3. (. 35: 10), , , : .

Besides the Holy Scripture hymnographical texts were deeply rooted in the homi-listic legacy, e.g. heirmos of the Christmas canon of Cosmas, rubric 3. 4: , . . , . , , , ( , . , . , . , , ). Cosmas accurately quotes the homily of St Gregory the Theologian on the Nativity of Christ: , , . , ( , ! , ! , ! , , , , : !).51

6.3. Direct speech. Among the favourite devices of the Udzvelesi Iadgaris hymnographers were direct speech and dialogue. These devices enlivened the text, made its narration more dynamic. The monologues of John the Baptist are included into many Theophany chants, e.g. the stichera on the great blessing of waters in Sin. gr. NE/ 565:

10.5 . . . .52 , , , , , , , ; , ; , ,54 , .55

10.5. . . . 4. , , , , , . , , : ? ? , , , .

51 PG 36. Col. 313 B; Vasilik 2006: 2938.52 = Udzvelesi Iadgari (Schneider 2004: 26; Janeras 1988: 255; Kekelidze 1907: 356).53 In printed Menaion: .54 In printed Menaion: .55 In printed Menaion: .

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The ancient two-ode canon of Annunciation, assigned to Cosmas (Sin. gr. 607, 9th10th c., f. 97; Par. gr. 1563, 12th century, f. 102v)56 and later became a part of eight-ode canon (tone 4, heirmos , beginning ) is written in the form of a conversation between the Virgin Mary and the archangel Gabriel.57 All these devices quotations, refrains, direct speech, dialogues became an indispensible part of ninth-century Byzantine poets arsenal.

ConclusionsAn extremely important source for Byzantine hymnography, the Tropologion

Sin. gr. NE/ 565 was found in 1975 on the Sinai and till now remained unex-plored. It contains the most complete as of today collection of the early Palestine Greek liturgical poetry. It is also the only preserved in Greek full copy of such kind of a service-book. It represents a recension of Tropologion, which replaced the oldest one, basically known due to its Georgian translation, Udzvelesi Iadgari. As distinct from the Udzvelesi Iadgari, new Tropologion opens with the Forefeast of the Nativity of Christ, not the Annunciation. There are more individual, not common, services. Hymnographical canon performed at orthros was reduced to eight odes.

It contains absolutely unique for Greek liturgical manuscripts services as the commemoration of the perished in the earthquake on January 17 in 749 in Palestine, as Coptic festival of the Archangel on June 6, the feast of Sts Faith, Hope and Love on June 1. The contents of the newly found Tropologion are substantially different from the Udzvelesi Iadgari, in which scholars managed to find only five per cent of the chants also found in later sources. A full statistical analysis of the text of the Tro-pologion has not been conducted by me as yet, but it is obvious that over fifty per cent of the chants are known from later books.

However, a continuity between old and new redactions of Tropologion is obvious to me. The new Tropologion preserved the same genre system, adapted to esperinos and orthros, with stichera on Lord, I call, canon and stichera of the Lauds. Also new Tropologion keeps archaic incomplete canons inherent to the Udzvelesi Iadgari, an-cient second odes, interpolated into eight-ode canons of the Nativity and the Theopha-ny, Palestinian liturgical poetry, which represented very early hymnographical strata.

It is this redaction of the Tropologion that had the greatest influence on the for-mation of the office Byzantine Menaea and Triodia, inherited genres and structures, artistic and technical principles from the ninth-century Tropologion.

56 Detorakes did not know the testimony of Sin. gr. 607 (9th10th c.) and excluded Cosmas to be the author of these odes (Detorakes 1979: 118).

57 In later tradition the author of this canon considered to be John the monk (printed Menaion) or Theophan (Sin. gr. 608, 10th c.; Sin. gr. 609, 12th c.; Sin. gr. 610, 10th11th c.). Or also they put this canon in manuscripts without any authors indication (RNB gr. 553, 11th c.; Sin. gr. 606, 11th c.).


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Abbreviations

- ,

About the author

Alexandra Nikiforova, Ph.D., Senior Research Assistant at the Russian Academy of Sciences, Institute for World Literature. She studied Greek liturgical manuscripts on the Sinai, in Rome, Grotta-ferrata, Moscow, Saint-Petersburg, Vienna, Sofia, Thessaloniki and Athens. During different periods taught in Moscow State Conserva-tory named for P. I. Tchaikovsky (ssociate Professor) and Saint Ti-khons Orthodox University (ssistant Professor). Member of the International Societas Orientalium Liturgiarum (SOL). Member of the Association of Art Historians. Laureate of the Makarievskaja Award for the Contribution to Russian Historical Science from the Russian Academy of Sciences, City Hall of Moscow and Russian Orthodox Church. Spheres of interests: Early-Palestinian and Byzan-tine liturgical poetry, Office Menaion, Tropologion. Current research project: Tropologion (Sin. gr. NE/ 565, 9th c.) and Early Pales-tinian Hym no graphy.

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the tropologion sin.gr. - scripta_12-2013_anikiforova

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