The Manuscripts of the Gospels

Contents: Introduction * Table of Papyri * Table of Letter Uncials * Table of Numbered Uncials * Table of Minuscules 1-300 * Table of Minuscules 301-600 * Table of Minuscules 601-900 * Table of Minuscules 901-1200 * Table of Minuscules 1201-1500 * Table of Minuscules 1501-1800 * Table of Minuscules 1801-2100 * Table of Minuscules 2101 and up * Notes *

Introduction

Textual critics are dependent on their materials -- in this case, manuscripts. But how is a student to know which manuscripts contain which text? No one can possibly examine all the manuscripts now available.

To make matters worse, not all editors agree on the nature of the text found in the manuscripts.

This article attempts to summarize the judgments passed by previous editors. The tables below list all non-fragmentary manuscripts cited regularly in at least one of the major recent critical apparati (Merk, Nestle-Aland²⁶, Nestle-Aland²⁷, UBS³, UBS⁴, Huck-Greeven, SQE¹³, IGNTP Luke). Notes on sources and how to interpret the data follow the table. Fragmentary manuscripts are omitted as they should be dealt with on a more detailed basis.

Table of Papyri


Gregory Number	Soden Symbol	Date	Contents	Soden Desc	Merk Desc	Aland Desc	CPM Desc	Comment
𝔓⁴⁵		III	e#a#		H/C	I Free		Colwell showed that the scribe of this manuscript, or one of its ancestors, freely paraphrased the text.
𝔓⁶⁶		c. 200	John#			I Free
𝔓⁷⁵		III	Lk# Jo#			I Strict		Very close to B.

Table of Letter Uncials


Gregory Number	Soden Symbol	Date	Contents	Soden Desc	Merk Desc	Aland Desc	CPM Desc	Comment
ℵ/01	δ2	IV	eapcr	H	H	I	B (core)
A/02	δ4	V	e#ap#cr	I^κa	K^k	III (V)	Π^a (diverging)	Earliest Greek Gospels manuscript to have a substantially Byzantine text. It has some important Alexandrian readings, but these are a small minority.
B/03	δ1	IV	eap#c	H	H	I	B (core)	Very close to 𝔓⁷⁵
C/04	δ3	V	#eapcr	H	H	II	Mix	Mixed Alexandrian and Byzantine
D/05	δ5	V/VI	e#a# Gk/Lat	I^α	D	IV	B (diverging)	Primary (and only) Greek "Western" witness.
E/07	ε55	VIII	e#	Kⁱ	Kⁱ	V	K^x Cl Ω
F/09	ε86	IX	e#	Kⁱ	Kⁱ	V	K^mix
G/011	ε87	IX	e#	Kⁱ	Kⁱ	V	K^x
H/013	ε88	IX	e#	Kⁱ	Kⁱ	V	K^x
K/017	ε71	IX	e	I^κa	K^k	V	Π^a (core)
L/019	ε56	VIII	e#	H	H	II	B (core)	Late Alexandrian. Double Markan ending. Some Byzantine readings; main run of text is closer to B than ℵ.
M/021	ε72	IX	e	I^φr	C^φ	V	M27 (diverging)
N/022	ε19	VI	e#	I^π	C^π	V	Mix	Purple uncial; group with O Σ Φ
O/023	ε21	VI	Matt#	I^π	C^π	V		Purple uncial; group with N Σ Φ
P/024	ε33	VI	e#	I'	C^\|	V	Mix
Q/026	ε4	V	Lk# Jo#	I'	H/C^\|	V	Mix
R/027	ε22	VI	Luke#	I'	C^\|	V	K^x+Mix
S/028	ε1027	949	e	K¹	Kⁱ	V	K^x Cl Ω
T/029 (+0113, 0125, 0139)	ε5+ ε50+ ε99+ε1002	V	Lk# Jo# Gk/Copt	H	H	II		Close to 𝔓⁷⁵/B
U/030	ε90	IX	e	I^o	C^o	V	K^mix+K^x; close to 974 1006
V/031	ε75	IX	e#	K¹	Kⁱ	V	K^x Cl Ω
W/032	ε014	V	e#	H (LkJo) I^α (Mk)	H (MtLkJo) C^a (Mark)	III	B+K^x+Mix	Uniquely and heavily block mixed, with Byzantine text in Matthew, "Western" and "Cæsarean" in Mark (with the famous "Freer Logion"), Luke Alexandrian and Byzantine, John primarily Alexandrian with a supplement that has a mixed text.
X/033	A³	X	e# Comm	A³	C^o/K	V	Mix (Gr B Influence)	Commentary manuscript, mostly Byzantine but with some striking agreements with B
Y/034	ε073	IX	e#	I^κ	K^k	V	Π¹⁷¹
Z/035	ε26	VI	Matt#	H	H	III		Close to ℵ
Γ/036	ε70	X	e#	I'	C^\|	V	K^x	From the information in the colophon, probably dates to 979, with 844 as an alternative.
Δ/037	ε76	IX	e# Gk/Lat	H	H	III	Mix+K^x	Largely Alexandrian in Mark, especially in the early chapters; Byzantine elsewhere
Θ/038	ε050	IX	e#	I^α	C^a	II	Mix	Considered the best Cæsarean witness, but about half Byzantine.
Λ/039	ε77	IX	Lk Jo	I^r	K^r	V	Λ	Matt and Mark are the minuscule 566.
Ξ/040	A¹	VI	Luke# Comm	A¹	K	III	K^mix+B	Late Alexandrian. Contains a system of divisions found elsewhere only in B.
Π/041	ε73	IX	e#	I^κa	K^k	V	Π^a (core)
Σ/042	ε18	VI	Mt Mk	I^π	C^π	V		Purple uncial; group with N O Φ
Φ/043	ε17	VI	#Mt Mk	I^π	C^π	V		Purple uncial; group with N O Σ
Ψ/044	δ6	VIII/ IX	e#ap#c	H	H	III	B+K^mix+Mix	Strongly Alexandrian in Mark (has the double ending); mostly Byzantine in Luke; mixed Alexandrian/Byzantine in John.
Ω/045	ε61	IX	e	K¹	Kⁱ	V	K^x Cl Ω

Table of Numbered Uncials


Gregory Number	Soden Symbol	Date	Contents	Soden Desc	Merk Desc	Aland Desc	CPM Desc	Comment
047	ε95	VIII	e#	I'	C^\|	V	K^x
070 (+0110, 0124, 0178, 0179, 0180 0190, 0191, 0193, 0202)	ε6+ε017+ ε78	VI	Lk# Jo# Gk/Copt	H	H	III
0141	C^ι13	X	John Comm	C^ι13	K	III
0211	ε051	IX	e		K¹	V	K^x+K^mix+Mix
0233		VIII	e#			III
0250		VIII	e#			III		Palimpsest. Text is primarily Byzantine, but with an assortment of early readings of no clear type.

Table of Minuscules 1-300


Gregory Number	Soden Symbol	Date	Contents	Soden Desc	Merk Desc	Aland Desc	CPM Desc	Comment
1^eap	δ254	XII	eapc	I^ηa	C^η	III	1 (core)
2^e	ε1214	XII	e	K^x		V	K^mix+K^x
5	δ453	XIV	eapc	A^k	C^a	V?	Mix+K^mix+1519
6	δ356	XIII	eapc	I^κ		V	Π⁶
7	ε287	XII	e	I^φb	C^φ		Cl 7
13	ε368	XIII	e#	I^ιc	C^ι	III	13 (core)
16	ε449	XIV	e Gk/Lat	I^βb	C^β		16 (with 1163)
21	ε286	XII	e#	I^α	C^a	V	K^x
22	ε288	XII	e#	I^ηb	C^η		22b (core)
27	ε1023	X	e#	I^φr	C^φ	V	M27 (core)
28	ε168	XI	e#	I^α	C^a	III (Mark) V (others)	Mix+K^x	Considered one of the primary Cæsarean witnesses, but almost purely Byzantine outside Mark.
33	δ48	IX	#eapc	H	H	II	B	Alexandrian with heavy Byzantine (and perhaps minor "Western") influence. Probably the best minuscule of the gospels other than 892.
60	ε1321	1297	er	K^x	(K^c)	V	Cl 1685
66	ε519	XIV	e	K^r		V	K^r
69	δ505	XV	#eapcr	I^ιb	C^ι	V (?)	13
71	ε253	XII	e	I^φr	C^φ		M27 (core)
83	ε1218	XI	e	K^r	C^\|	V	K^r
115	ε1096	X	e#	I^φb	C^φ		K^mix+K^x
118	ε346	XIII	e#	I^ηb	C^η		1 (core)
123	ε174	XI	e	K^x		V	K^x Cl Ω
124	ε1211	XI	e#	I^ιb	C^ι		13 (weak)
131	δ467	XIV	eapc	I^η	C^η		1
138	A²⁰¹	XII	e# Comm	A^c	K	V	K^x
157	ε207	XII	e	I^σ	C^σ	III	K^x+Mix+B
158	ε108	XI	e	K^x			K^x+Π^a
160	ε213	1123	e	I^φc			Mix+K^x
161	ε1005	X	e#	I^r			L
162	ε214	1153	e	I	C^\|	V	K^x+K^mix
174	ε109	1052	e#	I^ιb	C^ι		L
179	ε211	X	e#	I^φb	C^φ		Mix+K^x
180	ε1498	XII	eapcr	K^x		V	K^x Cl 180
185	ε410	XIV	e	I^φb	C^φ	V	Cl 1531
205	δ501	XV	eapcr +OT	I^η		III	1 (with 209)	Descendant or close cousin of 209
209	δ457	XIV	eapcr	I^ηb	C^η	III	1 (with 205)
213	ε129	XI	e#	I^o	C^o		Mix
229	ε1206	1140	e#	I^κc	K^k		Π^a+K^x
230	ε173	1013	e	I^ιc	C^ι		L
235	ε456	1314	e	I^σ	C^σ	V	K^mix+K^x
245	ε1226	1199	e	I^σ	C^σ	V	K^mix+1167
249	N^ι10	XIV	John Comm		K
251	ε192	XII	e	I'	C^\|		Cl 1229
262	ε1020	X	e	I^r	K^r	V	L (core)
265	ε285	XII	e	I^κa	K^k		Π^a (core)
267	ε1289	XII	e#	I^φb	C^φ	V	Cl 7
270	ε291	XII	e	I^κb	K^k	V	Π^b+Π^a
273	ε370	XIII	e#	I'	C^\|		K^mix+K^x
280	ε294	XII	e	I^κc	K^k	V	Π^a (core)
291	ε377	XIII	e	I^σ	C^σ	V	291

Table of Minuscules 301-600


Gregory Number	Soden Symbol	Date	Contents	Soden Desc	Merk Desc	Aland Desc	CPM Desc	Comment
317	N^ι31	XII	John Comm		K
343	ε120	XI	e	K^x		V	Cl 343+K^mix
346	ε226	XII	e#	I^ιc	C^ι	III	13 (core)
348	ε121	1022	e	I^βa	C^β		1216 (core)
349	ε413	1322	e	I^φa	C^φ		M349 (with 2388)
372	ε600	XVI	e#	I^a	C^a		Mix ("strange text")
397	C^ι10	X/XI	John Comm		K
399	ε94	IX/X	e	I^α (Matt) K¹ (MkLcJo)	C^a (Matt) Kⁱ (MkLkJo)	V	Mix+K^x
423	N^μ60, N^ι60	1556	Mt Jo Comm		K
430	N^ι11	XI	Jo# Comm		K
440	δ60	XII	eapc	I'	C^\|		K^x+K^mix
443	ε270	XII	e	I^o	C^o	V	M159
461	ε92	835	e	K¹	Kⁱ	V	K^x Cl Ω
472	ε1386	XIII	e#	I'	C^\|		Mix+K^mix
473	ε1390	XIII	e	I^κc	K^k	V	Π⁴⁷³
475	ε138	XI	e#	K^x		V	K^x+Cl475
477	ε350	XIII	e	I^βa	C^β	V	1216 (with 2174)
478	ε1082	X	e	K^ak		V	K^x
480	δ462	1366	eapc	K^r	K	V	K^r (perfect)
482	ε329	1285	e	I^κc	K^k	V	K^x+Π^a
485	ε247	XII	e#	I'	C^\|	V	K^x
489	δ459	1316	#eapc	I^κa	K^k		Π^a (with 1219)
495	ε243	XII	e	I'	C^\|		K^mix
517	ε167	XI/XII	#eapcr	I^φa	C^φ		Cl 1675 (core)
544	ε337	XIII	e	I^α	C^a		Π^a+K^mix+K^x
545	ε511	1430	e	I^r	K^r		Cl 585 (core)
565	ε93	IX	e#	I^α	C^a	III	B+K^x	Considered one of the primary Caesarean witnesses. Very close to Θ in Mark.
577	ε454	1346	e	K^x		V	K^mix
579	ε376	XIII	e#	H	H	II (Mark, Luke only)	B	Strongly Alexandrian in Mark-John; about as good as 33 or 892. Perhaps closer to ℵ than B. Matthew is much more Byzantine, though it has a few early readings.
597	ε340	XIII	e	K^x		V	291

Table of Minuscules 601-900


Gregory Number	Soden Symbol	Date	Contents	Soden Desc	Merk Desc	Aland Desc	CPM Desc	Comment
655	ε177	XI/XII	e	K¹	Kⁱ	V	K^mix+K^x
659	ε1216	XII	e	I^φb	C^φ
660	ε178	XI/XII	e#	I'	C^\|	V	22a (** to K^r)
661	ε179	XI	e	K¹	Kⁱ
669	ε1025	X	e#	K^x		V	K^x
692	ε1284	XII	MtMkLk	I^φr	C^φ (Mark)	V	M27
700	ε133	XI	e	I^α	C^a	III	Mix+B+K^x	Considered one of the primary Cæsarean witnesses.
713	ε351	XII	e#	I^σ	C^σ		Mix+K^mix
716	ε448	XIV	e	I'	C^\|		Cl 343+Cl 686
726	ε384	XIII	e	I^κb	K^k		Π^b
743	N^ι50	XIV	#ecr? Comm
788	ε1033	XI	e	I^ιb	C^ι	III	13 (core)
821	C^ι60	XVI	John Comm		K
826	ε218	XII	e	I^ιc	Cⁱ	III	13 (perfect)	By most accounts, the best and central witness of family 13.
827	ε309	XIII	e#	I^φb	C^φ (Mark)		Cl 827
828	ε219	XII	e	I^ιc	Cⁱ	III	13
850	K^ι20	XII	John# Comm		H
869	C^ι21	XII	John# Comm		K
872	ε203	XII	e#	I^ηb	C^η		K^x
892	ε1016	IX	e#	H	H	II	B (core)	Overall, perhaps the most Alexandrian of the gospel minuscules. Portions of John, from a later hand, are mostly Byzantine.

Table of Minuscules 901-1200


Gregory Number	Soden Symbol	Date	Contents	Soden Desc	Merk Desc	Aland Desc	CPM Desc	Comment
903	ε4002	1381	e	I^φ?			Mix
945	δ362	XI	eapc	I^φc	C^φ	V	K^mix+K^x
954	ε1454	XV	e	I^φa	C^φ		Cl 1675
983	ε3017	XII	e	I^ιa	C^ι	III	13
990	ε1260	XIV	e	I^φc	C^φ
994	A²²⁷/ C^ι33	X/XI	#MtJo Comm		K	V
998	ε1385	XII	e#	I'	C^\|	V	K^x Cl 180
1005	ε1263	XIV	e	I^η			22a
1006	ε1156	XI	er	K¹		V	K^mix (with 974; also U)
1009	ε1265	XIII	e	I^κ			Mix+K^mix (with 472)
1010	ε1266	XII	e#	I^φc	C^φ	V	K^mix+K^x Cl 160
1012	ε1132	XI	e	I^σ	C^σ		Cl 1012
1038	ε1493	XIV	e	I'	C^\|
1047	ε1354	XIII	e#	I'	C^\|		M609
1071	ε1279	XII	e	I^o	C^o	III	Mix
1077	ε1139	X	e	K¹		V	K^x Cl Ω
1079	ε1045	X	e	I^κ			Π^a(core)
1080	A³¹²	IX	e Comm	A^b		V	K^x Cl Ω
1082	ε3015	XIV	e	I^φb	C^φ		K^x+K^r
1093	ε1443	1302	e	I'	C^\|		Mix
1170	ε541	XI	e#	I'	C^\|		M27 (with 569)
1187	ε1083	XI	e	I^r	K^r	V	L
1188	ε1114	XI/XII	e	I^φa	C^φ	V	K^mix+K^x
1192	ε1115	XI	e	I^ηb			22b
1194	ε1094	XI	e	I^φr	C^φ		M10
1195	ε1116	1123	e	K^x			M1195
1200	ε1250	XII	e#	I^κb	K^k	V	Π^b

Table of Minuscules 1201-1500


Gregory Number	Soden Symbol	Date	Contents	Soden Desc	Merk Desc	Aland Desc	CPM Desc	Comment
1203	ε1042	X	e	K^x		V	K^x
1207	ε1098	XI	e	I^φc	C^φ (LkJo)	V	Π⁴⁷³
1210	ε1198	XI	e	I^ηb			22b
1215	ε1315	XIII	e	K^ak		V	Mix+K^x+K^mix
1216	ε1043	XI	e	I^βb	C^β		1216 (core)
1220		X	e#			V	M609
1223	ε1093	X	e	I^φc	C^φ	V	Π¹⁴⁴¹+Π²⁶⁸
1229	ε1317	XIII	e#	I'	C^\|		Cl 1229
1230	A²²⁵	1124	e Comm				Mix
1241	δ371	XII	#eapc	H	(H)	III	B	Probably the most Alexandrian minuscule of Luke. It is somewhat less good on John, and weaker still in Matthew and Mark.
1242	δ469	XIII	eapc	I'	C^\| (John)	V	K^mix+1167
1243	δ198	XI	eapc	I^β		III	1216 (with 1579)
1247	δ556	XV	eapc	K^x		V	K^r (weak)
1253	Θ^ε64	XV	e# Comm				Mix
1278	ε277	XII	e	I^η			22a
1279	ε1178	XI	e	I^βa	C^β		1216
1292	δ395	XIII	eapc	I^κ		V	Π^b+K^x
1293	ε190	XI	e#	I^φc	C^φ		K^mix+K^x
1295	ε96	IX	e#	I'	C^\|		K^x Cl Ω
1313	A¹¹⁵	XI	e Comm	A^c		V	Π^a
1319	δ180	XII	#eapc	I^κ		V	Π^b
1321	ε1110	XI	e	A^k	C^o		1519
1338	ε1243	XII	e#	K^x			K^x Cl 281
1342	ε1311	XIII/ XIV	e#	(I)	C^a	II (Mark)	Mix+B+K^x
1344	ε1244	XII	e#	K^x			K^x+K^mix
1346	ε1089	X/XI	e	I^κa	K^k		Π^a
1347	ε1038	X	e#	I^φr		V	K^mix+K^x
1351	ε1040	X	e#	K^x		V	K^x Cl 2592
1352	δ396	?	eapc(r)	K^x		V	K^x	1352a contains eapc; 1352b contains r
1354	δ470	XIV	eapc	I^κc	K^k	V	Π^a+K^x
1355	ε1246	XII	e	I'	C^\|	V	Π^a
1365	ε381	XII	e	I'	C^\|		22a
1375	ε1225	XII	e	I^κb	K^k	V	Π^b
1391	ε1413	XIII	e	I^φb	C^φ		K^x
1392	A²²⁹	X	e Comm	A^c		V	K^x+Π^a
1396	ε1416	XIV	e	I'	C^\|		M1326
1402	ε1333	XII	e	I^φb	C^φ		M1402
1424	δ30	IX/X	eapcr+ Hermas (Comm)	I^φa	C^φ	III (Mark)	Cl 1675 (diverging)
1443	ε1138	1047	e	I^φr			Mix+K^mix+K^x (with 1282)
1452	ε1274	992?	e	K^x		V	K^x (with 568)
1458	ε1142	X	e	K^x			M27 (core)

Table of Minuscules 1501-1800


Gregory Number	Soden Symbol	Date	Contents	Soden Desc	Merk Desc	Aland Desc	CPM Desc	Comment
1505	δ165	XII	eapc	K^x		V	K^mix+K^x (with 2495)
1506	Θ^ε402	1320	e#p# Comm			V
1510	ε2024	XI	e#	I^κ			K^mix+Π²⁷⁸
1515	ε1442	XIII	e#	I'	C^\|		K^mix+Π¹⁷¹
1542a/b	ε1337	XII	e#	I^α	C^a	III (Mark) V (Luke)	Mix+K^x
1546	ε1339	1263?	e	I^κ			Π^a
1555	ε1341	XIII	e	I^r	K^r		L
1573	δ398	XII/ XIII	eapc	I^r	K^r	V	Mix+L
1574	ε551	XIV	e	I^o	C^o		Mix
1579	ε1349	XI	e	I^βb	C^β		1216 (with 1243)
1582	ε183	949	e	I^ηa	C^η	III	1	Along with 1 itself, one of the basic witnesses of family 1. It was copied by the same scribe as 1739.
1588	ε1435	XIV	e	I^βb	C^β		16
1604	ε1353	XIII	e	I'	C^\|	V	Mix+K^mix (with 2546)
1606	ε1441	XIII	e	I^φb	C^φ		K^x Cl 187
1630	ε1472	1314	e	K^r			M349
1654	ε1468	1326	e#	I^α	C^a		Cl 7
1675	ε1444	XIV	e#	I^φb	C^φ		Cl 1675 (core)
1685	ε3048	1292	er	I^φb			Cl 1685
1689	ε1054	1200	e	I^ιa	C^ι
1697	ε2068	XIII	e	K^x			K^mix+K^x+Mix
1709	ε1053	X	e	K^x

Table of Minuscules 1801-2100


Gregory Number	Soden Symbol	Date	Contents	Soden Desc	Merk Desc	Aland Desc	CPM Desc	Comment
1820	K^ι50	XV	John Comm		H
2096	ε2080	XII	#MtMkLk			V	Cl 1012

Table of Minuscules 2101 and up


Gregory Number	Soden Symbol	Date	Contents	Soden Desc	Merk Desc	Aland Desc	CPM Desc	Comment
2145	ε1222	1145	e	I^o	C^o		M1195+K^x
2148	Θ^ε400	1337	e Comm				Cl 2148
2174	ε393	XIV	e	I^β			1216 (with 477)
2191	δ250	XII	eapc	I^φb		V	K^x+K^mix
2193	ε1131	X	e	I^ηa	C^η (MkLkJo)	III
2322		XII/ XIII	e#				K^r(perfect)
2372		XIII	e#				22a
2399		XIV	e#				K^r Cl 1059
2427		XIV?	Mark			I		Very close to B. Most Alexandrian minuscule now known. It is, however, probably a forgery.
2430		XI	e#		C^\| (Mark)	V	Mix+Π¹⁷¹+K^mix
2487		XI	e#				Cl 1229
2542		XIII	#MtMkLk			III	Mix+1
2613		XI	e				M106
2643		1289	er				Mix (with 792)
2757		XII/ XIII	e				Mix+K^mix+K^x
2766		XIII	e				K^mix+Cl 827

Notes

Gregory Number -- The standard numerical designation for manuscripts, based on the system created by Caspar Rene Gregory.

Soden Symbol -- The designation given to the manuscript by H. von Soden. The user is referred to von Soden's work or the commentaries for a discussion of these symbols, many of which cannot even be reproduced in HTML format.

The Gregory/Soden equivalences given here are taken primarily from Kurt Aland, Kurzgefasste Liste der Grieschischen Handschriften des Neuen Testaments (de Gruyer, 1963). They have been checked against Merk where necessary.

Note: If a manuscript has multiple Soden symbols, this usually means that it comes from two different eras and that von Soden assigned two numbers to the various parts. The first symbol will usually be the one used in the gospels.

Date -- as given by the most recent catalogs (NA²⁷ or the Kurzgefasste Liste). Arabic numerals indicate a precise date listed in a colophon; roman numerals indicate centuries (as judged by paleographers).

Contents -- briefly describes the contents of a manuscript. e=Gospels; a=Acts; p=Paul; c=Catholics; r=Apocalypse. The symbol # indicates a defect. If it follows the description of a section (e.g. p#) it indicates that the manuscript is defective in that section; if it precedes the list, it means that the nature of the defect is unknown to me. Thus, ap#c indicates a manuscript which contains Acts, Paul, and the Catholics, which is defective for part of Paul; #apc indicates a manuscript of those same books which is defective in a way unknown to me. Comm indicates a commentary manuscript; polyglot manuscripts are also noted.

The information here is taken from the Kurzgefasste Liste, from NA²⁷, from a variety of special studies, and from my own researches.

Soden Description -- this indicated the classification in which von Soden placed the manuscripts. There is no room here for a full discussion, but we may note that H is the Aexandrian text. K is the Byzantine text. The various I groups include a wide variety of manuscripts of mixed types.

The information from this section again comes from the Kurzgefasste Liste, supplemented by Wisse and Merk.

Merk Description -- These are the classification used in Augustinus Merk's Novum Testamentum Graece et Latine. It will be observed that, for the most part, they correspond with von Soden's, groups, but Merk has separated the I text into two parts -- the D text and the C (Caesarean) groups. A question mark or parenthesized entry in this column indicates that Merk's list of manuscripts does not correspond to his manuscript groupings; the reader is referred to the group lists.

Aland Description -- Kurt and Barbara Aland undertook to classify "all" minuscules according to quality. In The Text of the New Testament (translated by Erroll F. Rhodes, Eerdmans, 1989) they listed their results. A category I manuscript was considered most important for establishing the text (practical translation: a category I manuscript is supposed to be free of Byzantine influence). A category II manuscript is somewhat poorer and more mixed; category III is important "for the history of the text"; category V is Byzantine. In practice, these categories are an assessment of Byzantine influence.

It will be noted that not all manuscripts have been rated. Some (e.g. 1799) were not collated. In most instances, however, it appears to be because the manuscript is very slightly mixed -- not purely Byzantine, but not clearly anything else, either. In some cases I have been unable to determine why the Alands did not give a rating.

CPM Description -- The classification according to the Claremont Profile Method, detailed in Frederik Wisse, The Profile Method for Classifying and Evaluating Manuscript Evidence (Studies and Documents 44, Eerdmans, 1982).

The Claremont System so far has been applied only to the Gospel of Luke, and only three chapters (1, 10, and 20) have been profiled. Not all manuscripts have been profiled for all chapters, but it will be evident that a block mixed manuscript may show as many as three text-types.

The CPM system is based on a number of basic groups:

Group B (the Alexandrian text, although it also includes D; this is because the CPM was designed to distinguish Byzantine groups)
Group K^r (the dominant late Byzantine text)
Group K^x (the largest Byzantine group, dominant roughly from the ninth to thirteenth centuries and strong thereafter)
M Groups
Λ Groups
Π Groups (the largest Byzantine subfamily other than K^x and K^r, and in the author's view one of the earliest forms of the Byzantine text)
Group 1 (i.e. family 1, non-Byzantine)
Group 13 (family 13, non-Byzantine)
Group 16
Group 22a/b
Group 291
Group 1167
Group 1216
Group 1519

A number of clusters and pairs, as well as many mixed texts, are also cited.

In addition to their classifications, manuscripts may be described as Core or Diverging members of a group. A core member is one that falls very close to the basic profile of the group. (Those which show no deviations from the profile at all may be described as "perfect" members.) A diverging member is one that does not fall close to the core. If a manuscript is marked "with XXXX," it means that Wisse considers these manuscripts to be paired.

Note that Wisse's results are summarized; defects are not noted, partial profiles are treated as complete, and mixture may not be commented on. Full details should be sought from Wisse.

Comment -- this is my attempt to provide the "last word." Usually this is based on a scholarly study or on the consensus of textual critics, but I have sometimes added my own opinions.