PREFACE

THE following facsimile A "facsimile" is an exact photographic reproduction of a manuscript, allowing scholars to study the text without handling the fragile original. of the New Testament text of the Codex Sinaiticus The Codex Sinaiticus (4th century AD) is one of the most important ancient Greek manuscripts of the Bible. is made from negatives taken at St. Petersburg by my wife and myself in the summer of 1908. In the library we were greatly helped by the courtesy of the officials, especially Dr. Bischoff and Dr. Papadopoulo Kerameus, who did everything possible to assist us, and outside we were so fortunate as to find in Ds. and Mevr. Dutch abbreviations for "Dominus" (Pastor) and "Mevrouw" (Mrs.). Pantekoek of the Dutch Church in St. Petersburg friends who were willing to take more trouble in forwarding our interests than many would have devoted to their own: the difficulty of finding an adequate dark room for the development of such large plates was considerable, and seemed likely to prove insuperable till our Dutch friends came to our rescue.

In the introductory pages I have had the benefit of consulting Dr. Kenyon and Sir George Warner in the British Museum and Dr. Hunt in Oxford, to the last of whom and to the authorities of the John Rylands Library, whose Papyri he is editing, I owe the permission to reproduce a specimen of Rylands Papyr. 28. I am also greatly indebted to the Rev. Dr. Ehrle, S.J. Society of Jesus (Jesuit order)., Prefect of the Vatican Library, for his permission to print a specimen of the Codex Vaticanus. My warmest thanks are due to my friend and former pupil Dr. J. de Zwaan, who spent much time and trouble in making lists of the various corrections in the Codex Sinaiticus. These lists have, of course, a special value for the textual criticism textual criticism: the scholarly process of comparing different manuscript versions to reconstruct the original text of the New Testament, and I hope that Dr. de Zwaan and myself will be able in the course of time to publish some of the results which are based on them, in the direction of distinguishing the types of text which the various correctors preferred.

Finally, on behalf of my wife and myself, I must express a gratitude, in which I feel sure that those who may find the facsimile useful will join, to the Trustees of the Revision Surplus, Hort Memorial, and Hibbert Funds, and to the Governing Body of Magdalen College, for the grants of money which rendered possible our journey to St. Petersburg, as well as to the authorities of the Imperial Library for their permission to photograph their famous Codex, and to the Delegates of the Oxford University Press for undertaking the publication.