New Testament Manuscripts

Material and Form of the NT  Material Papyrus (Egyptian reeds) and Parchment (vellum, animal skins) were the two primary materials used for writing during NT period.  Form  First form of NT was a scroll.  Codex or leaf form of book was developed around the close of the 1st century.

Method of Writing  Uncials Written in all capital letters; used for more formal literary documents.  Minuscules Arose in 9th Century; it was a script of smaller letters in a running hand.

Fourfold Division of Manuscripts  Papyri B2nd-8th Century  Uncials B4th-10th Century  Minuscules B9th-16th Century  Lectionaries B8th-15th Century

Present Status of the Manuscripts  No extant original manuscripts  Over 5,000 full and partial Greek NT manuscripts have been discovered

Number of Extant Manuscripts  Papyri 96  Parchment (vellum)  Uncial script (capital letters) 299  Minuscule2812  Lectionaries2281 TOTAL 5488

Modern version of an ancient scroll

Dead Sea Scroll Isaiah 57:17- 59:8 (1QIsabX) found in Cave 1 in Qumran First discovered in 1947

P 52 Oldest known text of the New Testament containing portion of John 18

Bodmer Papyrus (P 66 ) containing John 11:31-37 from A.D. 200

Bodmer Papyrus (P 75 ) containing Luke 16:9-21 from early third century.

Codex Alexandrinus One of the most important ancient copies of the bible made from vellum (animal skin), 773 pages, bound in four volumes, from 5th century.

Codex Sinaiticus

Picture depicting St. Luke from an 11th-12th Century Bible.

Introductory page to the 1611 edition of the King James Bible

Mark 1:1-8 from Nestle-Aland edition of the Greek New Testament