Language Scattered, Treasures Revealed: Tibet’s First Millennium Manuscripts
A Most Fortuitous Find at Dunhuang, China (1900 C.E.) Among its many accomplishments, the Pugyal empire of Tibet (ca. 7th–9th century C.E.) rivaled
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origins forum
Collective Enthusiasm and the Cautious Scholar: The Birmingham Qur’ān
The Case of the Discovery of the “Birmingham Qur’ān” In July 2015, the BBC released the news about the “‘Oldest’ Koran fragments found
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Seeing the Forest but Missing the Trees
Nils H. Korsvoll on the magic of material culture Philology and text-critical studies traditionally see manuscripts as repositories of traces and clues to
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The Staffordshire Hoard and the Distance of the Past
Samuel Collins on a dazzling trove of medieval treasure Early medieval archaeology rarely makes news. Star power rests instead with discoveries from the
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“Property of a gentleman”: The market of ancient manuscripts and the problem of provenance
Roberta Mazza on cultural artifacts as commodity “The elderly owner of our new Sappho papyrus wishes to remain anonymous, and its provenance is obscure (it
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(Still) Rethinking the Origins of the Nag Hammadi Codices
Nicola Denzey Lewis on what we know about Nag Hammadi The find story of the Nag Hammadi codices is well known to anyone
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Origin Stories: A Forum on the “Discovery” and Interpretation of First-Millennium Manuscripts.
Introduction – Jennifer Barry (University of Mary Washington) and Eva Mroczek (UC Davis) Cluster #1 Årstein Justnes (University of Agder, Norway) – Fragments for Sale:
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Fragments for Sale: Dead Sea Scrolls
Årstein Justnes on selling scripture Since 2002 more than 75 previously unknown Dead Sea Scroll fragments have surfaced on the antiquities market, and recent
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Batshit Stories: New Tales of Discovering Ancient Texts
Eva Mroczek on stories of discovery In his short story Forevermore, Israeli writer S.Y. Agnon relates the story of a scholar, Adiel Amzeh.
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Gleanings from the Cave of Wonders? Fragments, Forgeries, and “Biblicism” in the Dead Sea Scrolls
Kipp Davis on the treasures of Qumran “Remember, boy. First fetch me the lamp. And then you shall have your reward . .
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