PREFACE.

IX

888, parchment. I collated Collation is the process of comparing different manuscript copies of the same text word-for-word to identify variations. Books 1 through 7 myself in Oxford in 1882.

F — Florence codex A codex is an ancient manuscript in book form rather than a scroll., Laurentian Library XXVIII, 3, 10th century, parchment. In this manuscript as well, the ancient writing was often renewed by a 16th-century hand. This same hand repaired many leaves or parts of leaves and entirely supplied the final part of the codex. I have designated this hand with the Greek letter phi ($φ$) whenever it either corrupted the ancient writing or obscured it so much that it could not be distinguished. I collated the entire manuscript myself in Florence in 1881.

V — Vienna codex, Greek 103, 11th to 12th century, parchment. A 13th-century hand supplied the final part on silk paper Original: "charta bombycina," an early type of paper made from cotton or silk fibers rather than wood pulp.. I collated the whole manuscript myself in Copenhagen in 1880.

b — Codex of the communal library of Bologna, marked with numbers 18 and 19, 11th century, parchment. I collated Book 1 and inspected several other passages in Florence in 1881.

p — Paris codex, Greek 2466, 12th century, parchment. I collated Book 1 in Paris in 1880, and Books 2 through 7 in Copenhagen in 1882.

It remains for me to perform the pleasant duty of giving the greatest possible thanks to those men who supported my labor. First, my ability to make so many journeys to Paris and Italy was made possible by the exceptional generosity of the High Ministry that presides over our culture and schools, and by the Carlsberg Institute, which bountifully supports literature and science. Also to the directors of the libraries of Vienna...