#  The Manuscript Tradition 

 



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 Each published Latin or Greek text you use is the result of generations of work. Most of the sources from antiquity come down to us through a unique manuscript tradition, which is the collection of copies made of a given work. Often the earliest copies are from medieval Europe, but some may be older (e.g. papyrus scraps preserved in Egypt). The products of a manuscript tradition span time and space, and can often result in several “versions” of a single literary text.

 Since very few texts survive directly from antiquity, scholars use these copies to recreate the ancient text as best they can. They look at the various manuscripts and read them against each other or edit them until they have produced one text that they think is closest to the text as it would have been when it was written. This published version of a text is called an edition.

 The author of a book you use in class has to decide which edition to use (or to create their own). This is the Latin or Greek you’ll find in the book; we refer to the ancient authors as primary sources.

   ![Greek Manuscript, 10th century](/sites/g/files/omnuum8511/files/styles/hwp_1_1__720x720_scale/public/classicswrites/files/640px-greek_manuscript_vetustissimus_thucydides.png?itok=ccN0qNWt)