What is in a Scribe’s Mind and Inkwell
Archaeology of the Gotha Collection of Early Qur’anic Manuscripts as a Case Study at the Intersection of Philology and Natural Sciences
2023–2025
RFK06
This research project aims to explore the socio-cultural context of manuscripts as a process by means of an interdisciplinary approach that integrates philology and archaeometry. The physical layers deposited over time (and space) by the people who planned, produced, and then experienced the artefacts and their texts are the object of investigation for both philology and archaeological science. Identifying the composition of seemingly similar/dissimilar inks can confirm or contradict previous theories proposed by philologists and historians through processes of deduction and induction. In his 1974 book The Freudian Slip, Timpanaro warns of the dangers of deciding what is in a scribe’s mind and suggests being cautious in applying psychoanalysis to explain the mistakes of scribes/editors/readers. This warning is important when scholars seek to establish sequences and explanations of the layers in the making of manuscripts. Accepted models are sometimes imposed in interpreting the sequences, forgetting that ‘when a theory is highly successful and becomes firmly established, the model tends to become identified with “reality” itself, and the model nature of the theory becomes obscured’ (Everett 1956).
The research project will produce a protocol for an integrated approach by philologists and scientists to the investigation of manuscript layers. Early Qur’anic manuscripts from the 7th to the 10th centuries represent an interesting case of stratigraphy because they show not only signs of the making of the manuscripts (corrections, amendments, updating processes) but also traces of the development of their writing system.
The interdisciplinary approach is applied to understanding the Seetzen collection of early Qur’anic manuscripts (Gotha Research Library, Ms. orient. A 427 to 464). The case study aims to establish a protocol of the interdisciplinary approach and to reflect on the bias of philologists in using the method of induction when interpreting seemingly similar or dissimilar (coloured) elements and proposing plausible theories.
People
Project lead: Alba Fedeli