A Medieval Armenian Manuscript: The Transmission of Sacred Texts Across Space, Time, & Communities

Today the Library of Congress holds in its collection a medieval Armenian manuscript, originally copied in Jerusalem in 1321 A.D. at the Armenian monastery of Holy Archangels by a scribe named Nerses Abeła. This is the oldest Armenian manuscript held at the Library. It was donated by Dr. Henry Foster from Clifton Springs, New York. This manuscript tells the fascinating story of the transmission of not only the treasures of the manuscript itself but the unique connections across socio-political and inter-religious cultures, and across space and time. How and when did the Library acquire this manuscript? What is the history of the transmission of this artifact across time, space, and diverse communities? What content of the manuscript interested the diverse parties to secure and transfer this artifact? These are some of the principal questions addressed in the presentation to explore the ways in which the manuscript held at the Library tells the story of the socio-political context of communities from Jerusalem to Van, to Kharpert, Turkey, to Clifton Springs, New York, and to the heart of western civilization and the capital of the United States of America in Washington D.C. It tells the story of what these communities valued in their engagements with timeless societal questions of politics, religions, languages, and cultures. This single manuscript carries not only its ordinary contents but also the history of the peoples who have interacted with this treasure.
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