Colophons in Middle Eastern Manuscripts Workshop, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton, June 12–13, 2020

The colophon, the ultimate or “crowing touch” paragraphs of a manuscript, provides readers with a the historical context in which the scribe produced the manuscript. At its most fundamental level, the colophon gives us the “metadata” of the manuscript: who was the scribe? When and where was the manuscript produced? For whom was it produced and who paid for it?

But colophons are far more rich. They are literary works on their own right, having a style and rhetoric independent of the main literary text of the manuscript. In addition, colophons provide historical facts otherwise lost to histories: wars, earthquakes, religious events, etc.

The aim of this workshop is to bring together scholars from various disciplines to study colophons in Middle Eastern manuscripts in various languages, including, but not limited to, Arabic, Armenian, Coptic, Ethiopian, Hebrew, Persian, and Syriac. Topics may include:

• The colophon as a literary genre.
• Typology of colophons.
• The formulaic structure of colophons.
• Factoids found in colophons.
• How can colophons or confirm help us reconstruct historical events?
• Colophons born in print publications or born digital.

Comparative analyses across traditions is encouraged but not required.

Scholars are expected to fund their travel to/from and accommodation in Princeton. The Institute will provide meals and a conference celebratory dinner. Speakers will be invited to contribute to a collected volume on an agreed-upon theme.

Conveners: Sabine Schmidtke and George A. Kiraz