Walters Ms. W.739, Fragment of the book of Exodus Fragment of the Book of Exodus Cataloger Dennis, Nathan S Cataloger Walters Art Museum curatorial staff and researchers since 1934 Editor Herbert, Lynley Copy editor Dibble, Charles Contributor Bockrath, Diane Contributor Bucca, Lauren Contributor Emery, Doug Contributor Noel, William Contributor Tabritha, Ariel Contributor Toth, Michael B. Conservator Evers, Jennifer Conservator Quandt, Abigail The Walters Art Museum

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 This fragment from the Book of Exodus is a bifolium presenting the text of Exodus 21:16-35a on fol. 1 and 23:5b-21a on fol. 2. The missing text in between these two folios would have constituted another bifolium. Written in Sahidic Coptic script, the biblical manuscript to which the bifolium once belonged was produced in Egypt in the eighth century, probably by a monastic scribe and perhaps in the Fayum or Wadi al-Natrun, where monasteries continued to thrive during the early Islamic conquest. It is difficult to determine the full extent of the manuscript, but a combined volume of Genesis and Exodus as part of a multivolume set of the Bible is certainly possible, if not likely, on the evidence of the Coptic numerals inscribed at the top of each folio side. Baltimore The Walters Art Museum W.739 The primary language in this manuscript is Coptic. 1r - 2v Fragment of the Book of Exodus

Probably goatskin, originally ivory-colored but now stained medium- to deep-brown with significant damage to fore-edges and evidence of trimming along the upper edges

 Foliation: None31.5 26.0 23.5 18.25 Text on the first folio represents Exodus 21:16-35a, and the second folio shows Exodus 23:5b-21a; therefore, a bifolium with Exodus 21:35b-23:5a is missing from the quire; foliated with pencil in upper-right corner of each recto side

Bifolium Nonconsecutive pages with at least one gathering missing in between the extant bifolium; Coptic numerals at the top of each folio side (which are very faint) indicate that the folio pages corresponded to either 19, 20, 25, and 26 or 99, 100, 105, and 106, the latter making more sense for a codex containing the books of Genesis and Exodus

 Sahidic Coptic script Small bird outlined in brown ink at the top of the first column on fol. 1r; abstract vegetal motifs in brown and red ink attached to larger letters at the beginning of verses; large vinescroll motif in the left margin of fols. 1v and 2v, outlined in brown and red ink and filled with yellow pigment; monochromatic black crosses appear beside the text on fols. 1v and 2v; text in dark-brown ink; larger initials for the beginning of verses set out into margins Text page Exodus 21:16-35a Text 8th century CE Egypt Produced in the eighth century, most likely by a Coptic monk at an Egyptian monastery Frank Tano of Cairo sold the bifolium to Joseph Brummer on September 14, 1945 (account no. 6440) Joseph Brummer sold the bifolium through Parke-Bernet Galleries in New York (no. 97) to the Walters Art Museum on May 23, 1949 Museum purchase, 1949 Relevant Works Bellet, Paulinus. "Analecta Coptica." Catholic Biblical Quarterly 40 (1978): pp. 37-52. Art Medicine Museum Poetry Script Muhammad, the Prophet Kashmiri Horses Walters Art Museum Document Astrology Devotion History Legal Literature -- Poetry Literature -- Prose Liturgy Philosophy Science Science -- Medicine Scripture Sufism Theology Mineralogy Logic Geography Geomancy Cosmology Cartography Fortune-telling Koran Qur`an Firman Palimpsest Prayer Bible Gospels Psalter Missal Lectionary Book of Hours Antiphonary Homilary Processional Horologion Breviary Hymnal Chronicle Maghreb Sub-Saharan (West) Africa Turkey Afghanistan Central Asia Egypt England India Iran Iraq Pakistan Germany France Austria Netherlands Ethiopia Armenia Flanders Greece Mamluk Mughal Ottoman Ottonian Armenian Byzantine Abbasid Qajar Rajput Christian Arabic Austrian Dutch Egyptian Fatimid German Indian Islamic Persian Safavid Timurid Turkish Umayyad English French Flemish Ethiopian Carolingian Calligraphy Colophon Headpiece Illumination Illustration Medallion Miniature Ornament Painting Early Abbasid script Ragini Romanesque Gothic Watermark Grotesques Historiated initial Inhabited initial White-vine lettering Textura Batarda Humanistic Uncial Accordion book Album Book Codex Manuscript Heraldry Saint's Life Drawing Grisaille Binding New Abbasid style Musical notation Russia Romania Charter Russian Genealogy Mass book Prayer book Gospel Lectionary Psalter-Hours Treatise Grammar Gloss Pontifical Private devotional text Gradual Protective scroll Scroll 10th century 11th century 12th century 13th century 14th century 15th century 16th century 17th century 18th century 19th century 20th century 8th century 9th century Block book Caroline minuscule Central Arab lands (Near East) Chart English secretary hand Kufic Gothic book hand Original binding Treasure binding Gospel Book Spanish Spain Italian Italy Coptic Scrapbook American United States Maryland Historical Society Friendship book Friendship Liturgical Devotional Scriptural Theological Legal Historical Scientific Scientific -- Medical Literary -- Prose Literary -- Poetry Philosophical Astrological Sufi English Bible Christian Egyptian Manuscript Coptic Walters Art Museum Egypt 8th century Scripture