We may observe, in regard to its execution, that scarcely any of the letters have the summits or tails above or below the level of the line. In general the vertical strokes end in a point, and the strokes above the line are thickened at the top, and bent to the left; the transverse of the T is very short, and circumflexed, and its base not truncated, but, like the L, bent inwards by a hair-stroke, becoming almost like cursive l and t*. The letters E and A are irregularly formed, and in general the scribe has not exercised that perfection which would have retarded his pen. The top lines are to be read, L. POSTUMIUS ALBINUS M. POPILIUS LAENAS, CUM OMNIUM PRIMUM DE PROVINCIS, etc., which form the commencement of the first chapter of the 42nd book of the history of Livy. PLATE CIX. ROMAN UNCIAL WRITING. VITH CENTURY. THE THEODOSIAN CODE, FROM THE LIBRARY OF DE ROSNY. THE Theodosian Code, or redaction of Roman law, which for a long time regulated the legislation of the ancient world, was drawn up by a council of jurisconsults under the direction of Pulcheria, who reigned in the name of her weak brother the Emperor Theodosius. It consisted of a collection of the Constitutions published by the emperors after the time of Constantine, and was promulgated in the year 438, as a * It must be observed, that the same forms of the t and occur in the fac-simile of Cicero's treatise De Republica, assigned to the third century, in Plate XCVII.-ED. system of jurisprudence to be adopted throughout the empire. It was composed of sixteen books. A century afterwards Justinian drew up another code of laws, which supplanted that of Theodosius, upon which it was founded. Until the middle of the fifteenth century, the latter part only of the Theodosian Code, comprising the Books IX. XVI., was known, but by a fortunate discovery, the end of Book VI., and Books VII., and VIII. were then recovered; since which time only some few fragments have been added to them. The manuscript which contained the text of Books VI., VII., and VIII., (of the early history of which we have no account,) fell into the hands of the jurisconsult Etienne Charpin, who communicated it to the celebrated Cujas, by whom it was published in 1566, in his edition of the Theodosian Code*. This manuscript (from which the specimen in the Plate is copied) subsequently passed into the library of the brothers Pithou; the younger of whom, François, gave it to his nephew Pierre Pithou, as appears by the following note on the first fly-leaf of the volume:-" Hoc vetustissimum exemplar librorum vi., vii., et viii., Codicis Theodosiani, quo V. C. Cujacius in edendo eo libro usus est, dono mihi dedit V. C. Franciscus Pithoeus, patruus, anno MDCXX. MDCXX. (Signed) PITHOU." The manuscript of the Theodosian Code was thus lost to the literary world, and its importance and value not known, for Cujas had neither mentioned its antiquity nor early history, but contented himself with simply acknowledging his obligations to Charpin for the loan of it‡. From that time until the year 1837 this volume remained unnoticed; when it unexpectedly made its appearance amongst * Lyon, Rovilles, à l'écu de Venise, 1566, folio. It was given by Cujas to François Pithou in 1620.—ED. "E quibus primam gratiam habeo Stephano Charpino, a quo inventi et proditi sunt hi libri VI. VII. VIII.”—Præf. other valuable manuscripts, in the library of the Duchess de Berri*, which was then sold by auction, and the manuscript before us was purchased, against competitors from Germany and England, for the Bibliothèque Royale, at the price of 5,600 francs. (2257.) It is a quarto volume, nearly square, being ten inches high by nine wide, written upon strong vellum, the pages of which are whiter on one side than the other. It consists of 122 leaves, the two first and the two last being almost destroyed; many of the others also have had the outer margin mended. It is bound in plain parchment, as were nearly all the manuscripts in the Pithou library, but it is now enclosed in a red morocco case. The fac-simile in the plate represents the exact size of one of the pages of the manuscript, all of which are written in long lines. The title is in uncial capitals, taller than wide, but unequal; it is to be read this DE TABULARIIS LOGOGRAFIS ET CENSUALIB[us]. The words lib. 8, in a modern cursive hand, indicate that page is part of the eighth book of the Code. This note is in the hand-writing of Cujas, who has added many others on the margins of the volume, chiefly consisting of the additions of letters, to supply those which had been destroyed by damp at the end of the lines. The text is written in elegant uncial Roman letters, with thick strokes, slightly mingled with demi-uncial letters, and with the words not divided; without either bases or summits; the tailed letters turning to the left; the alineæ extended beyond the perpendicular line, with initials in uncials, instead of capitals; with some marks in the margin, but without any punctuation; the single point indicating only an abbreviation. The fac-simile is to be thus read: *Catalogue de la riche Bibliothèque de Rosny, Paris, 1837, 8vo. p. 211, No. 2383. IMP.[erator] CONSTANTIUS A[ugustus] AD CATULLINUM PPO.[præceptio.] NULLUS OMNINO EX* TABULARIIS, VEL SCRIBIS, VEL DECARIONIB[us], EORUMQ[ue] FILIIS IN QUOCUMQ[ue] OFFICIO MILITET, SED EX OMNIB[us] OFFICIIS NECNON ET SI INTRA NOSTRUM PALATIUM MILITENT, NEC DUM INPLETO ISQ[ue] MUNICIPALIB[us] REDDANTUR. DAT[a] VIII. KAL.[en- CELLINO ET PROBINO CONSS[consulibus]. IMPP. [Imperatores] VALENTINIANUS ET VALENS AA [Augusti] PANIARUM. SI QUI TABULARIORUM NECESSITATE PERFUNC TI VEL ADSPIRARE COEPERINT AD CURIAS VEL VOCARI, NON PRI- NEM. DAT[a] KAL[endis] JUN[ii] TRIU[m] VALENTINIANO ET PPO. [præceptio.] RIB[us] CURIARUM CONPERIMUS ALIQUANTOS RELICTIS MUNE SCRIBAS, SED ET LOGOGRAFOS CIVITATUM IN NOMEN INREPSIS- VAGIS VETERANORUMQ[ue] FILIIS VACANTIB[us] q[ue] POTUERIT FIDA PERVESTIGATIONE CONPLERI. DAT[a] IIII. NON.[as] FEB[ruarii] THESSALLONICA. The letter X is here of the peculiar form of the Gallican uncial writing. The letter B was originally written for the first P. GRATIANO Ã [Augusto] v. [quintum] ET THEODOSIO A [Augusto] 1. [primum] CONSS[consulibus]. ID. AAA [Iidem Augusti]. QUICUMQ[ue] DECURIONUM SPONTE SE CENSUALI MINISTERIO MANCIPARIT, CONDICIONEM HABEAT QUAM IPSE DELEGIT, DEPOSITURUS SUI ORDINIS PAENITUS DIGNITATEM, SI EAM NECESSITAS QUAESTIONI SUBDENDUM INVENERIT. DAT[a] XV. KAL.[endarum] OCT[obris] OSTP [Constantinopoli], RICHOMERE ET CLEARCHO CONSS[consulibus]. The importance of this text (which differs, however, only in a few letters from that first published by Cujas) has induced us to give the transcription of the fac-simile entire. It must be considered of the highest interest to the jurisconsult, since it is the only known manuscript of this portion. of the Theodosian code; and equally so to the palæographer, as a rare monument of writing not later than the sixth century. The beauty of the writing and the extreme accuracy of the text, united to the absence of abbreviations, have indeed caused it to be referred by some critics to the fifth century. At all events, it is one of the most precious manuscripts in the Bibliotheque Royale, and is now for the first time noticed palæographically. The acquisition of this volume excited great interest amongst the learned throughout Europe. The volume has been consulted by many, and especially by the Chevalier Baudi de Vesme, member of the Commission of National History of Turin, who having spent several months in its examination, has been enabled by chemical processes to revivify the ink in parts which had become obliterated, and thus by new readings to improve the text of Cujas to such an extent, as to induce him to undertake the publication of a new edition of this celebrated code. |