The International Monthly, Volume 4, No. 1, August, 1851Various
History
The International Monthly, Volume 4, No. 1, August, 1851
Various
Art, Modern -- 19th century -- Periodicals; Literature, Modern -- 19th century -- Periodicals; Science -- History -- Periodicals
At the meeting for the 22nd May, of the ROYAL SOCIETY OF LITERATURE,
in London, a very interesting Greek MS. was exhibited. It is owned by
a Mr. Arden, who purchased it of an Arab near Thebes. It is nearly
four yards long, divided into pages or columns containing twenty-eight
lines, the length of which exceeds six inches, and the breadth two
inches; the whole is written in a large and clear hand, with great
accuracy, since few corrections or interpolations are visible.
Although it is difficult to assign to it the actual age, still there
seems to be every reason to conjecture that it is of the commencement
of the present era--or indeed, which is by no means improbable, that
it was written a century or two before the birth of Christ. The
delicacy of the texture of the papyrus will afford a strong
presumption in favor of the latter period; for it is well known to
Egyptologists that a coarseness and inferiority of papyrus indicate a
more recent date. The first portion of the MS. is much broken, and
presents many gaps and fragments; the end of it bears the title of an
Apology, or Defence of Lycophron. The second, or larger portion of the
MS., is much more perfect, as it contains only here and there an
hiatus, which will probably be easily restored; at its termination we
are informed that it is a Defence of the accusation of Euxenippus
against Polyeuctus. The author of these orations will, in all
likelihood, prove to be the great Athenian orator Hyperides, whose
works have been long lost. Indeed, this appears to be almost certain,
since some of the Greek lexicographers mention a speech of Hyperides
'for Lycophron,' and another 'against Polyeuctus concerning the
accusation.' But who Lycophron was, and what was the nature of the
defence for him, remain to be more amply detailed. The subject of
this second oration, however, appears to be known,--for Polyeuctus,
the Athenian orator, was accused, with Demosthenes, of receiving a
bribe from Harpalus. Moreover, the fragments of a papyrus MS. procured
a few years ago at Egyptian Thebes by Dr. Harris, lately ably edited
by Mr. Babington, at Cambridge, and proved to be parts of the oration
of Hyperides against Demosthenes, are so exceedingly similar, both in
handwriting and the papyrus, to the present MS. belonging to Mr.
Arden, that it is not improbable but that they may have been copied by
the same Greek scribe and may originally have formed one entire MS.
roll of the orations of Hyperides. A careful examination and
comparison of these interesting MSS. will, after a time, decide these
questions.
* * * * *
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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