Copying Centres and Scribal Networks in the Armenian World
(2025) Spaces of Book Production and Scribal Activity in the Eastern Mediterranean — Location: Wien, Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften (16.January.2025)
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- Abstract
- Copying centres or ‘scriptoria’ are complex and often elusive realities, that can be defined by a specific place, period of activity, output, and personnel. In the context of mediaeval Armenia, colophons serve as prime sources of information to apprehend these realities (complemented by archaeological data, artistic and codicological information, historical accounts, etc.). In particular, they bear valuable witness to the decisive role played by human relationships in shaping the output and outreach of a given centre. This talk begins by summarizing the direct evidence relating to the physical spaces devoted to the copying and storage of manuscripts in the medieval period, then proposes a typology of copying centres (monastic, secular, and courtly), based on the human networks underpinning them. The relevancy and limits of this typology are illustrated through select case studies. It is argued that the best approach to Armenian copying centres moves from the specific (each individual manuscript) to the general (the production of each centre or ‘school’) and proceeds from the study of interpersonal networks.
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Van Elverdinghe, E. (2025). Copying Centres and Scribal Networks in the Armenian World. Spaces of Book Production and Scribal Activity in the Eastern Mediterranean, Wien, Österreichische Akademie der Wissenschaften. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/239747