Misplaced Pages

Octavo

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.

Octavo , a Latin word meaning "in eighth" or "for the eighth time", (abbreviated 8vo , 8º , or In-8 ) is a technical term describing the format of a book, which refers to the size of leaves produced from folding a full sheet of paper on which multiple pages of text were printed to form the individual sections (or gatherings ) of a book. An octavo is a book or pamphlet made up of one or more full sheets (e.g. of A2 paper ) on which 16 pages of text were printed, which were then folded three times to produce eight leaves. Each leaf of an octavo book thus represents one eighth the size of the original sheet. Other common book formats are folios and quartos . Octavo is also used as a general description of the size of books that are about 8 to 10 inches (200 to 250 millimetres) tall (almost A4 paper size ), and as such does not necessarily indicate the actual printing format of the books, which may even be unknown as is the case for many modern books. These terms are discussed in greater detail in book sizes .

#333666

81-522: An octavo is a book or pamphlet made up of one or more full sheets of paper on which 16 pages of text were printed, which were then folded three times to produce eight leaves. Each leaf of an octavo book thus represents one eighth the size of the original sheet. There are many variations in how octavos were produced. For example, bibliographers call a book printed as an octavo (eight leaves per full sheet), but bound in gatherings of 4 leaves each, an "octavo in 4s." The actual size of an octavo book depends on

162-415: A commemoration on 30 September. Jerome is also often depicted with a lion, in reference to the popular hagiographical belief that Jerome once tamed a lion in the wilderness by healing its paw. The source for the story may actually have been the second century Roman tale of Androcles , or confusion with the exploits of Gerasimus (Jerome in later Latin is "Geronimus"); it is "a figment" found in

243-848: A crucial source of information on the pronunciation of the Hebrew language in Byzantine Palestine . Due to his work, Jerome is recognized as a saint and Doctor of the Church by the Catholic Church , and as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church , the Lutheran Church , and the Anglican Communion . His feast day is 30 September ( Gregorian calendar ). Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus

324-686: A damaged paper copy of volume II. The largest portion of this, the New Testament, is now owned by Indiana University. The leaf carrying part of Chapter 14, all of Chapter 15, and part of Chapter 16 of the Book of Ezekiel was donated to the General Theological Seminary to repair their copy of the bible (now located at the Württembergische Landesbibliothek). The matching first volume of this copy

405-473: A few were certainly used for study. Kristian Jensen suggests that many copies were bought by wealthy and pious laymen for donation to religious institutions. The Gutenberg Bible had a profound effect on the history of the printed book. Textually, it also had an influence on future editions of the Bible. It provided the model for several later editions, including the 36 Line Bible , Mentelin's Latin Bible, and

486-457: A forged leaf, carrying part of Chapter 14, all of Chapter 15, and part of Chapter 16 of the Book of Ezekiel . It was impossible to tell when the leaf had been inserted into the volume. It was replaced in the fall of 1953, when a patron donated the corresponding leaf from a defective Gutenberg second volume which was being broken up and sold in parts. This made it "the first imperfect Gutenberg Bible ever restored to completeness." In 1978, this copy

567-436: A result, Aldus became closely associated with the octavo format. Beginning in the mid-nineteenth century, technology permitted the manufacture of large sheets or rolls of paper on which books were printed, many text pages at a time. As a result, it may be impossible to determine the actual format ( i.e. , the number of leaves formed from each sheet fed into a press). The term "octavo" as applied to such books may refer simply to

648-483: A single physical section , called a quinternion , that could then be bound into a book. Some sections, however, had as few as four leaves or as many as twelve leaves. The 42-line Bible was printed on the size of paper known as 'Royal'. A full sheet of Royal paper measures 42 cm × 60 cm (17 in × 24 in) and a single untrimmed folio leaf measures 42 cm × 30 cm (17 in × 12 in). There have been attempts to claim that

729-593: Is actually a varnish, and that means it sticks to its surface." Each unique character requires a piece of master type in order to be replicated. Given that each letter has uppercase and lowercase forms, and the number of various punctuation marks and ligatures (e.g., " fi " for the letter sequence "fi", commonly used in writing), the Gutenberg Bible needed a set of 290 master characters. It seems probable that six pages, containing 15,600 characters altogether, would be set at any one moment. The Gutenberg Bible

810-461: Is depicted alongside his red cardinal hat. Jerome is often depicted in connection with the vanitas motif, the reflection on the meaninglessness of earthly life and the transient nature of all earthly goods and pursuits. In the 16th century Saint Jerome in his study by Pieter Coecke van Aelst and workshop, the saint is depicted with a skull. Behind him on the wall is pinned an admonition, Cogita Mori ("Think upon death"). Further reminders of

891-528: Is extensive. In addition to his biblical works, he wrote polemical and historical essays, always from a theologian's perspective. Jerome was known for his teachings on Christian moral life, especially those in cosmopolitan centers such as Rome. He often focused on women's lives and identified how a woman devoted to Jesus should live her life. This focus stemmed from his close patron relationships with several prominent female ascetics who were members of affluent senatorial families . In addition, his works are

SECTION 10

#1732786749334

972-678: Is neither read nor held among the Hebrews, but does not explicitly call it apocryphal or "not in the canon". His Preface to the Books of Samuel and Kings (commonly called the Helmeted Preface ) includes the following statement: This preface to the Scriptures may serve as a "helmeted" introduction to all the books which we turn from Hebrew into Latin, so that we may be assured that what is not found in our list must be placed amongst

1053-441: Is not known exactly how long the Bible took to print. The first precisely datable printing is Gutenberg's 31-line Indulgence which certainly existed by 22 October 1454. Gutenberg made three significant changes during the printing process. Some time later, after more sheets had been printed, the number of lines per page was increased from 40 to 42, presumably to save paper. Therefore, pages 1 to 9 and pages 256 to 265, presumably

1134-422: Is printed in the blackletter type styles that would become known as Textualis (Textura) and Schwabacher . The name Textura refers to the texture of the printed page: straight vertical strokes combined with horizontal lines, giving the impression of a woven structure. Gutenberg already used the technique of justification , that is, creating a vertical, not indented, alignment at the left and right-hand sides of

1215-488: Is thought to have been imported from Caselle in Piedmont, Italy based on the watermarks present throughout the volume. In Gutenberg's time, inks used by scribes to produce manuscripts were water-based. Gutenberg developed an oil-based ink that would better adhere to his metal type. His ink was primarily carbon, but also had a high metallic content, with copper, lead, and titanium predominating. Head of collections at

1296-833: The Vulgate ; the Vulgate eventually superseded the preceding Latin translations of the Bible (the Vetus Latina ). The Council of Trent in 1546 declared the Vulgate authoritative "in public lectures, disputations, sermons, and expositions". Jerome showed more zeal and interest in the ascetic ideal than in abstract speculation. He lived as an ascetic for 4~5 years in the Syrian desert, and later near Bethlehem for 34 years. Nevertheless, his writings show outstanding scholarship and his correspondence has great historical importance. The Church of England honours Jerome with

1377-812: The B42 , was the earliest major book printed in Europe using mass-produced metal movable type . It marked the start of the " Gutenberg Revolution " and the age of printed books in the West. The book is valued and revered for its high aesthetic and artistic qualities and its historical significance. The Gutenberg Bible is an edition of the Latin Vulgate printed in the 1450s by Johannes Gutenberg in Mainz , in present-day Germany . Forty-nine copies (or substantial portions of copies) have survived. They are thought to be among

1458-468: The British Library , Kristian Jensen, described it thus: "if you look [at the pages of The Gutenberg Bible] closely you will see this is a very shiny surface. When you write you use a water-based ink, you put your pen into it and it runs off. Now if you print that's exactly what you don't want. One of Gutenberg's inventions was an ink which wasn't ink, it's a varnish . So what we call printer's ink

1539-525: The philologist Aelius Donatus . There he learned Latin and at least some Koine Greek , though he probably did not yet acquire the familiarity with Greek literature that he later claimed to have acquired as a schoolboy. As a student, Jerome engaged in the superficial escapades and sexual experimentation of students in Rome; he indulged himself quite casually but he suffered terrible bouts of guilt afterwards. To appease his conscience , on Sundays he visited

1620-525: The sepulchers of the martyrs and the Apostles in the catacombs. This experience reminded him of the terrors of Hell : Often I would find myself entering those crypts, deep dug in the earth, with their walls on either side lined with the bodies of the dead, where everything was so dark that almost it seemed as though the Psalmist's words were fulfilled, Let them go down quick into Hell. Here and there

1701-559: The vanitas motif of the passage of time and the imminence of death are the image of the Last Judgment visible in the saint's Bible, the candle and the hourglass. Both Agostino Carracci and Domenichino portrayed Jerome's last communion . Jerome is also sometimes depicted with an owl , the symbol of wisdom and scholarship. Writing materials and the trumpet of final judgment are also part of his iconography . A four and three quarters foot tall limestone statue of Jerome

SECTION 20

#1732786749334

1782-632: The Alps and the Pyrenees, between the Rhine and the Ocean, has been laid waste by hordes of Quadi , Vandals , Sarmatians , Alans , Gepids , Herules, Saxons , Burgundians , Allemanni , and – alas! for the commonweal! – even Pannonians . His Commentary on Daniel was expressly written to offset the criticisms of Porphyry , who taught that Daniel related entirely to the time of Antiochus IV Epiphanes and

1863-780: The Antichrist sat in God's Temple inasmuch as he made "himself out to be like God." Jerome identified the four prophetic kingdoms symbolized in Daniel ;2 as the Neo-Babylonian Empire , the Medes and Persians , Macedon , and Rome. Jerome identified the stone cut out without hands as "namely, the Lord and Savior". Jerome refuted Porphyry's application of the little horn of chapter seven to Antiochus. He expected that at

1944-599: The Apocryphal writings. Wisdom , therefore, which generally bears the name of Solomon, and the book of Jesus, the Son of Sirach , and Judith , and Tobias , and the Shepherd are not in the canon. The first book of Maccabees I have found to be Hebrew, the second is Greek, as can be proved from the very style. The following passage, taken from Jerome's Life of St. Hilarion which was written c.  392 , appears to be

2025-518: The Bible's date comes from a letter. In March 1455, the future Pope Pius II wrote that he had seen pages from the Gutenberg Bible, being displayed to promote the edition, in Frankfurt. It is not known how many copies were printed, with the 1455 letter citing sources for both 158 and 180 copies. Scholars today think that examination of surviving copies suggests that somewhere between 160 and 185 copies were printed, with about three-quarters on paper and

2106-468: The Gutenberg Bible was stolen from Moscow State University in 2009 and subsequently recovered in an FSB sting operation in 2013. Possession of a Gutenberg Bible by a library has been equated to keeping a "trophy book". Jerome Jerome ( / dʒ ə ˈ r oʊ m / ; Latin : Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus ; ‹See Tfd› Greek : Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος ; c.  342–347 – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon ,

2187-583: The Hebrews") translation of the Old Testament. However, detailed studies have shown that to a considerable degree Jerome was a competent Hebraist. Jerome also produced two onomastica : For the next 15 years, until he died, Jerome produced a number of commentaries on Scripture, often explaining his translation choices in using the original Hebrew rather than suspect translations. His patristic commentaries align closely with Jewish tradition, and he indulges in allegorical and mystical subtleties after

2268-490: The actual meaning of Scripture belonged to the "synagogue of the Antichrist". "He that is not of Christ is of Antichrist," he wrote to Pope Damasus I . He believed that "the mystery of iniquity" written about by Paul in 2 Thessalonians 2:7 was already in action when "every one chatters about his views." To Jerome, the power restraining this mystery of iniquity was the Roman Empire, but as it fell this restraining force

2349-564: The binding of later books . Some fragments of the Gutenberg Bible are housed at... Today, few copies remain in religious institutions, with most now owned by university libraries and other major scholarly institutions. After centuries in which all copies seem to have remained in Europe, the first Gutenberg Bible reached North America in 1847. It is now in the New York Public Library. In the last hundred years, several long-lost copies have come to light, considerably improving

2430-466: The book was printed on larger paper measuring 44.5 cm × 30.7 cm (17.5 in × 12.1 in), but this assertion is contradicted by the dimensions of existing copies. For example, the leaves of the copy in the Bodleian Library, Oxford , measure 40 cm × 28.6 cm (15.7 in × 11.3 in). This is typical of other folio Bibles printed on Royal paper in

2511-440: The catalog. Johann Froben was the first in 1491 to print Bible in octavo and with illustration, his edition became known as "Poor man's Bible" due to its affordability. Beginning in 1501, Aldus Manutius of Venice began to print classical works in small octavo format which were easily portable. These editions contained only the text of the works, without the commentary and notes, and became very popular with educated readers. As

Octavo - Misplaced Pages Continue

2592-789: The column. To do this, he used various methods, including using characters of narrower widths, adding extra spaces around punctuation, and varying the widths of spaces around words. Initially the rubrics—the headings before each book of the Bible—were printed, but this practice was quickly abandoned at an unknown date, and gaps were left for rubrication to be added by hand. A guide of the text to be added to each page, printed for use by rubricators, survives. The spacious margin allowed illuminated decoration to be added by hand. The amount of decoration presumably depended on how much each buyer could or would pay. Some copies were never decorated. The place of decoration can be known or inferred for about 30 of

2673-561: The direction of Professor Toshiyuki Takamiya , the HUMI team has made digital reproductions of 11 sets of the bible in nine institutions, including both full-text facsimiles held in the collection of the British Library . The last sale of a complete Gutenberg Bible took place in 1978, which sold for $ 2.4 million. This copy is now in Austin, Texas. The price of a complete copy today is estimated at $ 25−35 million. A two-volume paper edition of

2754-446: The earliest account of the etiology , symptoms and cure of severe vitamin A deficiency : From his thirty-first to his thirty-fifth year he had for food six ounces of barley bread , and vegetables slightly cooked without oil. But finding that his eyes were growing dim, and that his whole body was shrivelled with an eruption and a sort of stony roughness ( impetigine et pumicea quad scabredine ) he added oil to his former food, and up to

2835-473: The end of the world, Rome would be destroyed, and partitioned among ten kingdoms before the little horn appeared. Jerome believed that Cyrus of Persia is the higher of the two horns of the Medo-Persian ram of Daniel 8:3. The he-goat is Greece smiting Persia. Jerome opposed the doctrine of Pelagianism , and wrote against it three years before his death. Jerome, despite being opposed to Origen,

2916-399: The equipment of a scholar, or in a rocky desert, or in a setting that combines both aspects, with him studying a book under the shelter of a rock-face or cave mouth. His study is often shown as large and well-provided for, he is often clean-shaven and well-dressed, and a cardinal's hat may appear. These images derive from the tradition of the evangelist portrait , though Jerome is often given

2997-466: The fifteenth century. Most fifteenth-century printing papers have a width-to-height ratio of 1:1.4 (e.g. 30:42 cm) which, mathematically, is a ratio of 1 to the square root of 2 or, simply, 2 {\textstyle {\sqrt {2}}} . Many suggest that this ratio was chosen to match the so-called Golden Ratio , 1 + 5 2 {\textstyle {\tfrac {1+{\sqrt {5}}}{2}}} , of 1:1.6; in fact

3078-879: The first and third Eggestein Bibles. The third Eggestein Bible was set from the copy of the Gutenberg Bible now in Cambridge University Library . The Gutenberg Bible also had an influence on the Clementine edition of the Vulgate commissioned by the Papacy in the late sixteenth century. Joseph Martini, a New York book dealer, found that the Gutenberg Bible held by the library of the General Theological Seminary in New York had

3159-554: The first ones printed, have 40 lines each. Page 10 has 41, and from there on the 42 lines appear. The increase in line number was achieved by decreasing the interline spacing , rather than increasing the printed area of the page. Finally, the print run was increased, necessitating resetting those pages which had already been printed. The new sheets were all reset to 42 lines per page. Consequently, there are two distinct settings in folios 1–32 and 129–158 of volume I and folios 1–16 and 162 of volume II. The most reliable information about

3240-406: The first volume ending with The Book of Psalms . Copies on vellum were heavier and for this reason were sometimes bound in three or four volumes. The Bible seems to have sold out immediately, with some initial purchases as far away as England and possibly Sweden and Hungary. At least some copies are known to have sold for 30 florins (equivalent to about 100 grams or 3.5 ounces of gold ), which

3321-605: The guidance of a converted Jew ; and he seems to have been in correspondence with Jewish Christians in Antioch. Around this time he had copied for himself a Hebrew Gospel, of which fragments are preserved in his notes. It is known today as the Gospel of the Hebrews , which the Nazarenes considered to be the true Gospel of Matthew . Jerome translated parts of this Hebrew Gospel into Greek. As protégé of Pope Damasus I , Jerome

Octavo - Misplaced Pages Continue

3402-489: The high standards achieved in the production of the Gutenberg Bible, some describing it as one of the most beautiful books ever printed. The quality of both the ink and other materials and the printing itself have been noted. The paper size is 'double folio', with two pages printed on each side (four pages per sheet). After printing the paper was folded once to the size of a single page. Typically, five of these folded sheets (ten leaves, or twenty printed pages) were combined to

3483-653: The history of engraving," was partly responsible for the illumination of the copy held by the Princeton University library. However, all that can be said for certain is that the same model book was used for some of the illustrations in this copy and for some of the Master's illustrated playing cards. Although many Gutenberg Bibles have been rebound over the years, nine copies retain fifteenth-century bindings . Most of these copies were bound in either Mainz or Erfurt . Most copies were divided into two volumes,

3564-450: The initial expense of press equipment and materials and of the work to be done before the Bible was ready for sale suggests that he may have started with more lucrative texts, including several religious documents, a German poem, and some editions of Aelius Donatus 's Ars Minor , a popular Latin grammar school book. Preparation of the Bible probably began soon after 1450, and the first finished copies were available in 1454 or 1455. It

3645-539: The library and desk of a serious scholar. His attribute of the lion, often shown at a smaller scale, may be beside him in either setting. The subject of "Jerome Penitent" first appears in the later 15th century in Italy; he is usually in the desert, wearing ragged clothes, and often naked above the waist. His gaze is usually fixed on a crucifix and he may beat himself with his fist or a rock. In one of Georges de La Tour's 17th century French versions of St. Jerome his penitence

3726-418: The light, not entering in through windows, but filtering down from above through shafts, relieved the horror of the darkness. But again, as soon as you found yourself cautiously moving forward, the black night closed around and there came to my mind the line of Virgil, "Horror ubique animos, simul ipsa silentia terrent". The quotation from Virgil reads, in translation, "On all sides round, horror spread wide;

3807-576: The mainstream Rabbinical Judaism had rejected the Septuagint as invalid Jewish scriptural texts because of what were ascertained as mistranslations along with its Hellenistic heretical elements. He completed this work by 405. Prior to Jerome's Vulgate, all Latin translations of the Old Testament were based on the Septuagint, not the Hebrew. Jerome's decision to use a Hebrew text instead of

3888-635: The manner of Philo and the Alexandrian school . Unlike his contemporaries, he emphasizes the difference between the Hebrew Bible "Apocrypha" and the Hebraica veritas of the protocanonical books . In his Vulgate's prologues , he describes some portions of books in the Septuagint that were not found in the Hebrew as being non- canonical (he called them apocrypha ); for Baruch , he mentions by name in his Prologue to Jeremiah and notes that it

3969-507: The one to whom he was writing. Due to the time he spent in Rome among wealthy families belonging to the Roman upper class, Jerome was frequently commissioned by women who had taken a vow of virginity to write to them in guidance of how to live their life. As a result, he spent a great deal of his life corresponding with these women about certain abstentions and lifestyle practices. Jerome warned that those substituting false interpretations for

4050-405: The others on vellum . In a legal paper, written after completion of the Bible, Johannes Gutenberg refers to the process as Das Werk der Bücher ("the work of the books"). He had introduced the printing press to Europe and created the technology to make printing with movable types finally efficient enough to facilitate the mass production of entire books. Many book-lovers have commented on

4131-417: The point that she died just four months after starting to follow his instructions; much of the Roman populace was outraged that Jerome, in their view, thus caused the premature death of such a lively young woman. Additionally, his insistence to Paula that Blaesilla should not be mourned and complaints that her grief was excessive were seen as heartless, which further polarized Roman opinion against him. Jerome

SECTION 50

#1732786749334

4212-476: The previously translated Septuagint went against the advice of most other Christians, including Augustine , who thought the Septuagint inspired . Modern scholarship, however, has sometimes cast doubts on the actual quality of Jerome's Hebrew knowledge. Many modern scholars believe that the Greek Hexapla is the main source for Jerome's "iuxta Hebraeos" (i.e. "close to the Hebrews", "immediately following

4293-400: The ratios are, plainly, not at all similar (equating to a difference of about 12 per cent). The ratio of 1:1.4 was a long established one for medieval paper sizes. A single complete copy of the Gutenberg Bible has 1,288 pages (4×322 = 1288) (usually bound in two volumes); with four pages per folio-sheet, 322 sheets of paper are required per copy. The Bible's paper consists of linen fibers and

4374-578: The sections or gatherings, which were then sewn together to form the final book. The oldest surviving octavo book apparently is the so-called "Turkish calendar" for 1455, presumably printed in late 1454, about the same time as the Gutenberg Bible. Numerous other octavos survive beginning from about 1461. The British Library Incunabula Short Title Catalogue currently lists about 28,100 different editions of surviving books, pamphlets and broadsides (some fragmentary only) printed before 1501 of which about 2,850 are octavos, representing 10 percent of all works in

4455-457: The sixty-third year of his life followed this temperate course, tasting neither fruit nor pulse, nor anything whatsoever besides. Jerome's letters or epistles , both by the great variety of their subjects and by their qualities of style, form an important portion of his literary remains. Whether he is discussing problems of scholarship, or reasoning on cases of conscience, comforting the afflicted, or saying pleasant things to his friends, scourging

4536-466: The size of the book. The use of the term "octavo" as applied to such books refers to books which are generally between 8 and 10 inches (200 and 250 mm) tall, the most common size for modern hardbound books. More specific sizes are denoted by reference to certain paper sizes as follows: Gutenberg Bible The Gutenberg Bible , also known as the 42-line Bible , the Mazarin Bible or

4617-691: The size of the full sheet of paper on which it was printed. The size of such sheets varied in different localities and times. A sixteenth century octavo printed in France or Italy is about the size of a modern cheap paperback, whereas an eighteenth-century octavo printed in England is larger, about the size of a modern hardcover novel. The Gutenberg Bible was printed as a folio in about 1455, in which four pages of text were printed on each sheet of paper, which were then folded once. Several such folded conjugate pairs of leaves were inserted inside another to produce

4698-647: The surviving copies. It is possible that 13 of these copies received their decoration in Mainz, but others were worked on as far away as London. The vellum Bibles were more expensive, and perhaps for this reason tend to be more highly decorated, although the vellum copy in the British Library is completely undecorated. There has been speculation that the " Master of the Playing Cards ", an unidentified engraver who has been called "the first personality in

4779-545: The ten kings. ... After they have been slain, the seven other kings also will bow their necks to the victor. In his Commentary on Daniel , he noted, "Let us not follow the opinion of some commentators and suppose him to be either the Devil or some demon, but rather, one of the human race, in whom Satan will wholly take up his residence in bodily form." Instead of rebuilding the Jewish Temple to reign from, Jerome thought

4860-402: The thirteenth-century Golden Legend by Jacobus de Voragine . Hagiographies of Jerome talk of his having spent many years in the Syrian desert, and artists often depict him in a "wilderness", which for West European painters can take the form of a wood. From the late Middle Ages, depictions of Jerome in a wider setting became popular. He is either shown in his study, surrounded by books and

4941-461: The time, he was criticized for it. Even in his time, Jerome noted Porphyry's accusation that the Christian communities were run by women and that the favor of the ladies decided who could accede to the dignity of the priesthood. In Rome, Jerome was surrounded by a circle of well-born and well-educated women, including some from the noblest patrician families. Among these women were such as

SECTION 60

#1732786749334

5022-453: The understanding of how the Bible was produced and distributed. In 1921 a New York rare book dealer, Gabriel Wells , bought a damaged paper copy, dismantled the book and sold sections and individual leaves to book collectors and libraries. The leaves were sold in a portfolio case with an essay written by A. Edward Newton , and were referred to as "Noble Fragments". In 1953 Charles Scribner's Sons , also book dealers in New York, dismembered

5103-469: The very silence breathed a terror on my soul". Although at first afraid of Christianity, he eventually converted . Seized with a desire for a life of ascetic penance , Jerome went for a time to the desert of Chalcis , to the southeast of Antioch , known as the "Syrian Thebaid " from the number of eremites (hermits) inhabiting it. During this period, he seems to have found time for studying and writing. He made his first attempt to learn Hebrew under

5184-507: The vices and corruptions of the time and against sexual immorality among the clergy, exhorting to the ascetic life and renunciation of the world , or debating his theological opponents, he gives a vivid picture not only of his own mind, but of the age and its peculiar characteristics. (See Plowboy trope .) Because there was no distinct line between personal documents and those meant for publication, his letters frequently contain both confidential messages and treatises meant for others besides

5265-536: The view that all Christians would eventually be reunited to God was criticized by Augustine in his treatise "on faith and works". Jerome is the second-most voluminous writer – after Augustine of Hippo (354–430) – in ancient Latin Christianity. The Catholic Church recognizes him as the patron saint of translators, librarians, and encyclopedists . Jerome translated many biblical texts into Latin from Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. His translations formed part of

5346-433: The widows Lea , Marcella , and Paula , and Paula's daughters Blaesilla and Eustochium . The resulting inclination of these women towards the monastic life, away from the indulgent lasciviousness in Rome, and his unsparing criticism of the secular clergy of Rome, brought a growing hostility against him among the Roman clergy and their supporters. Soon after the death of his patron Pope Damasus I on 10 December 384, Jerome

5427-729: The work of another printer. The Gutenberg Bible, an edition of the Vulgate , contains the Latin version of the Hebrew Old Testament and the Greek New Testament . It is mainly the work of St Jerome who began his work on the translation in AD 380, with emendations from the Parisian Bible tradition, and further divergences. While it is unlikely that any of Gutenberg's early publications would bear his name,

5508-461: The world's most valuable books, although no complete copy has been sold since 1978. In March 1455, the future Pope Pius II wrote that he had seen pages from the Gutenberg Bible displayed in Frankfurt to promote the edition, and that either 158 or 180 copies had been printed. The 36-line Bible , said to be the second printed Bible, is also sometimes referred to as a Gutenberg Bible, but may be

5589-609: Was a scholar at a time when being a scholar implied a fluency in Greek. He knew some Hebrew when he started his translation project , but moved to Jerusalem to strengthen his grip on Jewish scripture commentary. A wealthy Roman aristocrat, Paula, funded Jerome's stay in a monastery in the nearby city of Bethlehem , where he settled next to the Church of the Nativity – built half a century prior on orders of Emperor Constantine over what

5670-540: Was about three years' wages for a clerk . Although this made them significantly cheaper than manuscript Bibles, most students, priests or other people of moderate income would not have been able to afford them. It is assumed that most were sold to monasteries, universities and particularly wealthy individuals. At present only one copy is known to have been privately owned in the fifteenth century. Some are known to have been used for communal readings in monastery refectories; others may have been for display rather than use, and

5751-533: Was an early Christian priest , confessor , theologian , translator , and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome . He is best known for his translation of the Bible into Latin (the translation that became known as the Vulgate ) and his commentaries on the whole Bible. Jerome attempted to create a translation of the Old Testament based on a Hebrew version, rather than the Septuagint , as prior Latin Bible translations had done. His list of writings

5832-459: Was born at Stridon around 342–347 AD. He was of Illyrian ancestry. He was not baptized until about 360–369 in Rome, where he had gone with his friend Bonosus of Sardica to pursue rhetorical and philosophical studies. (This Bonosus may or may not have been the same Bonosus whom Jerome identifies as his friend who went to live as a hermit on an island in the Adriatic.) Jerome studied under

5913-650: Was forced to leave his position at Rome after an inquiry was brought up by the Roman clergy into allegations that he had an improper relationship with the widow Paula. Still, his writings were highly regarded by women who were attempting to maintain vows of becoming consecrated virgins . His letters were widely read and distributed throughout the Christian empire and it is clear through his writing that he knew these virgin women were not his only audience. Additionally, Jerome's condemnation of Blaesilla's hedonistic lifestyle in Rome led her to adopt ascetic practices, but these affected her health and worsened her physical weakness to

5994-588: Was given duties in Rome, and he undertook a revision of the Vetus Latina Gospels based on Greek manuscripts. He also updated the Psalter containing the Book of Psalms then in use in Rome, based on the Septuagint . Throughout his epistles he shows himself to be surrounded by women and united with close ties; it is estimated that 40% of his epistles were addressed to someone of the female sex and, at

6075-465: Was influenced by Origenism in his soteriology. Although he taught that the Devil and the unbelieving will be eternally punished (unlike Origen), he believed that the punishment for Christian sinners, who have once believed but sin and fall away will be temporal in nature. Some scholars such as J.N.D Kelly have also interpreted Ambrose to have held similar views considering the judgement of Christians. Although Augustine does not name Jerome personally,

6156-574: Was partially fulfilled by Antiochus. Instead, he advocated that the "little horn" was the Antichrist: We should therefore concur with the traditional interpretation of all the commentators of the Christian Church, that at the end of the world, when the Roman Empire is to be destroyed, there shall be ten kings who will partition the Roman world amongst themselves. Then an insignificant eleventh king will arise, who will overcome three of

6237-495: Was removed. He warned a noblewoman of Gaul : He that letteth is taken out of the way, and yet we do not realize that Antichrist is near. Yes, Antichrist is near whom the Lord Jesus Christ "shall consume with the spirit of his mouth". "Woe unto them," he cries, "that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days." ... Savage tribes in countless numbers have overrun all parts of Gaul. The whole country between

6318-526: Was reputed to be the site of the Nativity of Jesus – and he completed his translation there. He began in 382 by correcting the existing Latin-language version of the New Testament, commonly referred to as the Vetus Latina . By 390 he turned to translating the Hebrew Bible from the original Hebrew, having previously translated portions from the Septuagint which came from Alexandria. He believed that

6399-603: Was sold for US$ 2.2 million to the Württembergische Landesbibliothek in Stuttgart , Germany. As of 2009 , 49 Gutenberg Bibles are known to exist, but of these only 21 are complete. Others have pages or even whole volumes missing. In addition, there are a substantial number of fragments, some as small as individual leaves, which are likely to represent about another 16 copies. Many of these fragments have survived because they were used as part of

6480-508: Was subsequently discovered in Mons, Belgium, having been bequeathed by Edmond Puissant to the city in 1934. The only copy held outside Europe and North America is the first volume of a Gutenberg Bible (Hubay 45) at Keio University in Tokyo. The Humanities Media Interface Project (HUMI) at Keio University is known for its high-quality digital images of Gutenberg Bibles and other rare books. Under

6561-410: Was written by an unknown individual living in the second century BC. Against Porphyry, Jerome identified Rome as the fourth kingdom of chapters two and seven, but his view of chapters eight and eleven was more complex. Jerome held that chapter eight describes the activity of Antiochus Epiphanes, who is understood as a "type" of a future antichrist; 11:24 onwards applies primarily to a future antichrist but

#333666