The christian topography of Kosmas Indikipleustes

About this book

"The Christian Topography was composed near the middle of the sixth century of our era. Its author set out to replace the classical conception of the universe with a radically different one that could accommodate the handful of biblical references to the terrestrial and heavenly worlds as well as everyday experience. The Florence manuscript, attributed to the middle of the eleventh century, is one of only three surviving witnesses to the entire Greek text with illustrations. This first complete publication of the manuscript sets out the history of the book, its physical structure, the work of its scribe and that of subsequent annotators. The illuminator and his contribution are examined, as are the materials used in painting the miniatures. The diagrams and illustrations, all reproduced in color, are described and their inscriptions transcribed. Final essays are devoted to the intellectual milieu in which the text was created and a framework for the study of the illustrated Slavic versions."--