Chapter
V.— .
the
13 Books Against Eunomius, the text of F. Oehler (S. Greg. Nyss. Opera. Tom. I. Halis, 1865) has in the following translations been almost entirely followed.
The 1st Book was not in the 1st
Paris Edition in two volumes (1615); but it was published three years
afterwards from the ‘Bavarian Codex,’ i.e. that of Munich, by J. Gretser in an Appendix, along with the Summaries (these headings of the sections of the entire work are by some admirer of Gregory’s) and the two introductory Letters. Both the Summaries and the letters, and also nearly three-quarters of the 1st Book were obtained from J. Livineius’ transcript of the Vatican made at Rome, 1579. This Appendix was added to the 2nd Paris Edition, in three volumes (1638).
In correcting these Paris
Editions (for of which see below), Oehler
had access, in addition to the identical Munich (paper, 16th century) which Gretser had used, to the following :—
1. Venice (Library of S. Mark; cotton, 13 Cent., No. 69). This he says ‘wonderfully agrees’ with the Munich (both, for instance, supply the lacunæ of the Paris Edition of Book I: he concludes, therefore, that these are not due to Gretser’s negligence, who gives the Latin for these passages, but to that of the printers).
2. Turin (Royal Library; cotton, 14 Cent., No. 71).
3. Milan (Library of S. Ambrose; cotton, 13 Cent., No. 225, Plut. 1; its inscription says that it was brought from Thessaly).
4. Florence (Library Medic. Laurent.; the oldest of all; parchment, 11 Cent., No. 17, Plut. vi. It contains the Summaries).
These, and the Munich , which he chiefly used, are “all of the
same family:” and from them he has been able to supply more than
50 lacunæ in the Books against Eunomius. This family is the first
of the two separated by G. H. Forbes (see below). The Munich (No. 47, on paper, 16 Cent.), already used by Sifanus for his Latin version (1562), and by Gretser for his Appendix, has the corrections of the former in its margin. These passed into the two Paris Editions; which, however, took no notice of his critical notes. When lent to Sifanus this was in the Library of J. J. Fugger. Albert V. Duke of Bavaria purchased the treasures of Greek literature in this library, to found that in Munich.
For the treatise On the Soul and the Resurrection, the Great Catechetical Oration, and the Funeral Oration on Meletius, John George Krabinger’s text has been adopted. He had ‘old and of a better stamp’ (Oehler) than were accessible to the Paris editors. Krabinger’s own account of them is this:—
On the Soul. 5 of 16th, 14th, and 11th
Cent. All at Munich. In one of them there are scholia, some imported
into the text by J. Naupliensis Murmureus the copyist; and
Sifanus’ corrections.
The ‘Hasselman,’
14th Cent. J. Christopher Wolf, who annotated this treatise
(Aneedota Græca, Hamburgh, 1722), says of this “very carefully written.” It was lent by Zach. Hasselman, Minister of Oldenburgh.
The ‘Uffenbach,’
14th Cent., with var. lect. in margin. Lent to Wolf by the Polish
ambassador at Frankfort on Main, at the request of Zach. Uffenbach.
Catechetical Oration. 4 of 16th Cent., 1 of 13th Cent., ‘much mutilated.’ All
at Munich.
On Meletius. 2 of 16th Cent., 1 of 10th
Cent. All at Munich.
His edition of the former
appeared, at Leipzic, 1837; of the two latter, at Munich, 1838; all
with valuable notes.
For the treatise Against Macedonius, the only text
available is that of Cardinal Angelo Mai (Script. Vet. Nova Collectio, Rome, 1833). It is taken from the Vatican ‘on silk.’ The end of this treatise is not found in Mai. Perhaps it is in the of Florence.
For fourteen of the
Letters, Zacagni (Præfect of the Vatican Library, 1698–1713) is the only editor. His text from the Vatican , No. 424, is printed in his Collectan. Monument. ret. (pp. 354–400), Rome, 1698.
He had not the use of the
Medicean which Caraccioli (see below) testifies to be much superior to the Vatican; there are lacunæ in the latter, however, which Zacagni occasionally fills by a happy guess with the very words supplied by the Medicean.
For the Letter to Adelphius, and that (on Church Architecture) to Amphilochius, J. B. Caraccioli (Professor of Philosophy at Pisa) furnishes a text (Florence, 1731) from the Medicean The Letters in this collection are seven in all. Of the last of these (including that to Amphilochius) Bandinus says non sincerâ fide ex Codice descriptas, and that a fresh collation is necessary.
