Universal History

The original title of Asoghik’s book is missing in all manuscripts, and there is a disruption at the beginning of the list of the first volume.1

In terms of content, the beginning of the first volume is also missing. A passage starting from line 14 of page 98 of the first volume (T2) is also missing.2 In all manuscripts, an extensive passage starting from page 113, line 6 of Tj is missing. This omission is not noted by the scribes in the ABEN manuscripts, while in the other manuscripts, either empty pages are left, or a separate note is made besides that. For example, D left 3.5 pages blank and added: "In the exemplar, page 9 was left out." O left a space and wrote: "Page 2 is missing in the exemplar; do not blame the ignorant scribe." St. Malkhasyants filled this omission on pages 360–362 of T2 from Sebeos (note 87).

In other cases, the AGO manuscripts are complete. The CE manuscripts form a separate group, which are missing more than the AGO manuscripts but relatively less than the others. Those manuscripts contain the passages T2 1325, 1348, but do not contain the exposition of pages 144 v. 10 — 145.

The other manuscripts (BDFH, B-129, P) are more defective.

Manuscript N 2865 has been described several times.3 It is a collection of the History of Armenians, containing: Movses Khorenatsi, History of Armenians (4a–132a); Stepanos Taronetsi, History (137a–242a); Aristakes Lastivertsi, History (242b–342b)...

Manuscript A is currently described in the manuscript catalog as follows: 13th century, 312 folios, size 33.5×25, material: paper, binding: leather-covered stamped board, writing: two-column, 28–30 lines, scribe: Yohan, script: bolorgir round hand. There are several colophons. The name of the scribe of the prototype was not preserved; in the 13th century, this manuscript was copied by the scribe Yohan (242a). The names of the renovators and binders of the manuscript from different periods have been preserved.

The actual colophon of the scribe of manuscript N 2865, Yohan, is found at the end of Asoghik’s book, at the beginning of Lastivertsi’s work. That colophon is present in five manuscripts belonging to that group, with the exception of the register N 4584, which, however, is similar to manuscript 1482, which contains this colophon. Manuscripts N 1482 and 4584 belong to the same group because they share common readings. The beginning of the colophon was in the master manuscript from which manuscript N 2865 was copied. Scribe Yohan conscientiously drew lines under the colophon of the prototype and wrote his own:

"Along with him, I too, the lowest of all and the most sinful of all, burdened with countless sins, and worthy of many deaths and no life, dark-minded..."

1 In manuscript N 1883 (1639) of the Mashtots Matenadaran, there is only Khorenatsi’s History of Armenians and the Geography. At the end of the History, there is a small portion of Stepanos Asoghik’s table of contents, just as in manuscript A. The scribe wrote: "Woe to me, a thousand mouths, for failing, as the exemplar did not have the list, and this was all there was; do not be judgmental."
2 St. Malkhasyants noticed it, but that "omission" is not noted in any manuscript.
3 Movses Khorenatsi, History of Armenians, Tiflis, 1913, pp. ZT-IA; History of Aristakes Lastivertsi, Yerevan, 1963, pp. 8–10; Catalog of Manuscripts of the Mashtots Matenadaran, Yerevan, 1965, pp. 891–892.