Vatican Library, Syr. 559 is a Syriac

manuscript A manuscript (abbreviated MS for singular and MSS for plural) was, traditionally, any document written by hand or typewritten, as opposed to mechanically printed or reproduced in some indirect or automated way. More recently, the term has ...

produced around 1220. It is an

evangeliary The Evangeliary or Book of the Gospels is a liturgical book containing only those portions of the four gospels which are read during Mass or in other public offices of the Church. The corresponding terms in Latin are and . The Evangeliary develo ...

containing the text of the

Peshitta The Peshitta ( ''or'' ') is the standard Syriac edition of the Bible for Syriac Christian churches and traditions that follow the liturgies of the Syriac Rites. The Peshitta is originally and traditionally written in the Classical Syriac d ...

. It is one of the few well illustrated Middle Eastern Christian manuscripts from the 13th century. There is some dispute about the reading of the date, some scholars arguing for 1220, while others argue for 1260. The location where the manuscript was created is the

Jazira region The Jazira Region, formerly Jazira Canton (; ; ), is the largest of the three original regions of the de facto Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria (AANES). As part of the ongoing Rojava conflict, its democratic autonomy was off ...

near

Mosul Mosul ( ; , , ; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. It is the second largest city in Iraq overall after the capital Baghdad. Situated on the banks of Tigris, the city encloses the ruins of the ...

, at the monastery of

Deir Mar Mattai Dayro d-Mor Mattai (; ; ''The Monastery of St. Matthew'' or ''Dayro d-Mor Mattai'') is a Syriac Orthodox Church monastery on Mount Alfaf in northern Iraq. Located 20 kilometers northeast of the city of Mosul, it is recognized as one of the oldest ...

. The writing is in

Estrangela The Syriac alphabet ( ) is a writing system primarily used to write the Syriac language since the 1st century. It is one of the Semitic abjads descending from the Aramaic alphabet through the Palmyrene alphabet, and shares similarities with the ...

script. It is considered as a near twin of

Syriac Gospels, British Library, Add. 7170 British Library, Add. 7170 is a Syriac manuscript dated to circa 1220 CE. This is one of the few highly illustrated Middle-Eastern Christian manuscripts from the 13th century. The colophon is lost, but a scribal note indicates that the manuscript ...

manuscript, also attributed to the northern Iraq (

). The manuscript is derived from the Byzantine tradition, but stylistically has a lot in common with Islamic illustrated manuscripts such as the ''

Maqamat al-Hariri The ''Maqāmāt al-Ḥarīrī'' (Arabic: مقامات الحريري) is a collection of fifty tales or '' maqāmāt'' written at the end of the 11th or the beginning of the 12th century by al-Ḥarīrī of Basra (1054–1122), a poet and go ...

'', pointing to a common pictorial tradition that existed since circa 1180 CE in

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

and

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

. Some of the illustrations of these manuscript have been characterized as "illustration byzantine traitée à la manière arabe" ("Byzantine illustration treated in the Arab style"). Notably, Constantine and Helena are shown in post-

Seljuk Seljuk (, ''Selcuk'') or Saljuq (, ''Saljūq'') may refer to: * Seljuk Empire (1051–1153), a medieval empire in the Middle East and central Asia * Seljuk dynasty (c. 950–1307), the ruling dynasty of the Seljuk Empire and subsequent polities * S ...

clothing, a style attributable to the influence of local Turkic polities.''Cambridge History of Christianity'' Vol. 5 Michael Angold p.387 Note 34: Vatican Syr.559

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press was the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted a letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it was the oldest university press in the world. Cambridge University Press merged with Cambridge Assessme ...

"In May 1260, a Syrian painter gave a new twist to the iconography of the Exaltation of the Cross by showing Constantine and Helena with the features of Hulegu and his Christian wife Doquz Khatun" File:Twenty of the XL Martyrs of Sebaste, Syriac lectionary, copied at the monastery of Mar Mattai, near Mosul, Iraq; 1219–20 (Biblioteca Apostolica Vaticana, Syr. 559, fol. 93v.jpg, Twenty of the

Forty Martyrs of Sebaste The Forty Martyrs of Sebaste or the Holy Forty (Ancient/Katharevousa Greek and Ἅγιοι Τεσσαράκοντα; Demotic: Άγιοι Σαράντα) were a group of Roman soldiers in the Legio XII ''Fulminata'' (Armed with Lightning) whose m ...

File:Vatican Library, Ms. Syr. 559 Detail of f.29v, Beheading of John the Baptist.jpg,

Beheading of John the Baptist The beheading of John the Baptist, also known as the decollation of Saint John the Baptist or the beheading of the Forerunner, is a biblical event commemorated as a holy day by various Christian churches. According to the New Testament, Hero ...

. File:Vatican Library, Ms. Syr. 559 Detail of f.18r, Massacre of the Innocents.jpg,

Massacre of the Innocents The Massacre (or Slaughter) of the Innocents is a story recounted in the Nativity narrative of the Gospel of Matthew ( 2:16– 18) in which Herod the Great, king of Judea, orders the execution of all male children who are two years old and u ...

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