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African History Commons

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History of Religion

Coptic manuscripts

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in African History

Coptic Prayer Book Leaves: Overview Of Text, Bronwyn Dorhofer Jan 2012

Coptic Prayer Book Leaves: Overview Of Text, Bronwyn Dorhofer

Gift of the Word

PSU student Bronwyn Dorhofer presents her research on a selection of pages from an 18th-century prayer book, an Agpeya, written in Bohairic Coptic and Arabic. This manuscript on paper was transcribed for the purpose of hourly prayers and hymns and it is likely that the text would have been read and sung by a Coptic priest in a church setting as part of daily ritual. Cresting the top of each prayer page are hand-drawn archways reflecting the interlaced geometric patterns in Islamic designs.

Dimensions: 19.5 x 13.7 cm Origin: Egypt

Portland State University Library, Special Collections, Mss. …


Coptic Prayer Book Leaves: Warrior Saint Images, Denise Loncar Jan 2012

Coptic Prayer Book Leaves: Warrior Saint Images, Denise Loncar

Gift of the Word

PSU student Denise Loncar presents her research on a selection of illustrated pages from an 18th-century Coptic prayer book. The hand-painted images of Christian saints on horseback (St. George, St. Theodore the Eastern, and St. Mercurius) are similar to equestrian representations seen in Eastern Orthodox, Armenian, and Ethiopian iconography, indicating a complex interplay of cultural influences that is also shown by the Coptic, Arabic, and Greek text.

Dimensions: 19.5 x 13.7 cm Origin: Egypt

Portland State University Library, Special Collections, Mss. 40


Coptic Prayer Book Leaves: Video Exploration, Jordan Long Jan 2011

Coptic Prayer Book Leaves: Video Exploration, Jordan Long

Gift of the Word

PSU student Jordan Long wrote and narrated this video as part of PSU’s University Studies program for the Medieval Portland Capstone taught by Professor Anne McClanan. This five-minute presentation demonstrates that the hand-illuminated Agpeya in Portland State’s Special Collections is a rare example of a manuscript book created after the rise of printing, describes the technique, materials, and meanings of its illustrations and calligraphy, and identifies its liturgical use as a ritual text.

Soundtrack: Choir of the Coptic Church, "Litugical Hymns," Chants from the Holy Land, vol. 35: Ecumenical Evening.

Portland State University Library, Special Collections, Mss. 40