Lacuna (manuscripts): Difference between revisions
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{{Other uses|Lacuna (disambiguation)}} |
{{Other uses|Lacuna (disambiguation)}} |
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[[File:G(012).JPG|thumb|First page of the [[Codex Boernerianus]] with lacuna in [[Epistle to the Romans|Romans]] 1:1-4]] |
[[File:G(012).JPG|thumb|First page of the [[Codex Boernerianus]] with lacuna in [[Epistle to the Romans|Romans]] 1:1-4]] |
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A '''lacuna'''<ref group="Note">Plural ''lacunae''. From [[Latin]] ''lacūna'' (ditch, gap), diminutive form of ''lacus'' (lake).</ref> is a gap in a [[manuscript]], [[inscription]], text, painting, or a musical work. A manuscript, text, or section suffering from gaps is said to be '''lacunose''' (or '''lacunulose'''). Some books intentionally add lacunas to be filled in by the owner (e.g. "The _____ played with the _____ in the _____."), often as a game or to encourage children to create their own stories. |
A '''lacuna'''<ref group="Note">Plural ''lacunae''. From [[Latin]] ''lacūna'' (ditch, gap), diminutive form of ''lacus'' (lake).</ref> is a gap in a [[manuscript]], [[inscription]], text, painting, or a musical work. A manuscript, text, or section suffering from gaps is said to be '''lacunose''' (or '''lacunulose'''). Some books intentionally add lacunas to be filled in by the owner (e.g. "The _____ played with the _____ in the _____."), often as a game or to encourage children to create their own stories. |
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Weathering, decay, and other damage to old manuscripts or inscriptions are often responsible for lacunae—words, sentences, or whole passages that are missing or illegible. [[Palimpsests]] are particularly vulnerable. To reconstruct the original text, the context must be considered. In [[papyrology]] and [[textual criticism]] this may lead to competing reconstructions and interpretations. Published texts that contain lacunae often mark the section where text is missing with a bracketed ellipsis. For example, "This sentence contains 20 words, and [ |
Weathering, decay, and other damage to old manuscripts or inscriptions are often responsible for lacunae—words, sentences, or whole passages that are missing or illegible. [[Palimpsests]] are particularly vulnerable. To reconstruct the original text, the context must be considered. In [[papyrology]] and [[textual criticism]] this may lead to competing reconstructions and interpretations. Published texts that contain lacunae often mark the section where text is missing with a bracketed ellipsis. For example, "This sentence contains 20 words, and [...] nouns," or, "Finally, the army arrived at [...] and made camp." |
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==Famous examples== |
==Famous examples== |
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* In [[Minuscule 69|Codex Leicester]] the text skips from [[Acts of the Apostles|Acts]] 10:45 to 14:17 without a break; possibly a scribe rewrote it from a defective manuscript. |
* In [[Minuscule 69|Codex Leicester]] the text skips from [[Acts of the Apostles|Acts]] 10:45 to 14:17 without a break; possibly a scribe rewrote it from a defective manuscript. |
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==Media== |
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*The company that carries out a memory-erasing procedure in ''[[Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind]]'' is called Lacuna, Inc., relating to the word's meaning. |
*The company that carries out a memory-erasing procedure in ''[[Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind]]'' is called Lacuna, Inc., relating to the word's meaning. |
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* In [[Peter Milligan]] and [[Mike Allred]]'s comic [[X-Force]], a person who has the power to remove herself from normal time begins calling herself "Lacuna", as her sojourns are missing moments of other people's lives. |
* In [[Peter Milligan]] and [[Mike Allred]]'s comic [[X-Force]], a person who has the power to remove herself from normal time begins calling herself "Lacuna", as her sojourns are missing moments of other people's lives. |
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==Notes== |
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{{reflist|group=Note}} |
{{reflist|group=Note}} |
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==See also== |
==See also== |
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*[[Unfinished work]] |
*[[Unfinished work]] |
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*[[Bit rot]] |
*[[Data degadation|Bit rot]] |
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[[Category:Manuscripts]] |
[[Category:Manuscripts]] |
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Revision as of 10:25, 2 April 2014
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A lacuna[Note 1] is a gap in a manuscript, inscription, text, painting, or a musical work. A manuscript, text, or section suffering from gaps is said to be lacunose (or lacunulose). Some books intentionally add lacunas to be filled in by the owner (e.g. "The _____ played with the _____ in the _____."), often as a game or to encourage children to create their own stories.
Weathering, decay, and other damage to old manuscripts or inscriptions are often responsible for lacunae—words, sentences, or whole passages that are missing or illegible. Palimpsests are particularly vulnerable. To reconstruct the original text, the context must be considered. In papyrology and textual criticism this may lead to competing reconstructions and interpretations. Published texts that contain lacunae often mark the section where text is missing with a bracketed ellipsis. For example, "This sentence contains 20 words, and [...] nouns," or, "Finally, the army arrived at [...] and made camp."
Famous examples
- A famous Old English example of a lacuna is in the manuscript British Library MS Cotton Vitellius A. xv, the poem Beowulf:
- hyrde ich thæt [... ...On]elan cwen. (Fitt 1, line 62)
- This particular lacuna is always reproduced in editions of the text, but many people have attempted to fill it, notably editors Wyatt-Chambers and Dobbie, among others, who accept the verb "waes" (was). Malone (1929) proposed the name Yrse for the unnamed queen, as that would alliterate with Onela. This is still hotly debated amongst editors, though.[1]
- Another notable lacuna is the eight-leaves-long Great Lacuna in the Codex Regius, the most prominent source for Norse mythology and early Germanic heroic legends. Parts of it survived in independent manuscripts and in prose form in the Völsunga saga.
- In Codex Leicester the text skips from Acts 10:45 to 14:17 without a break; possibly a scribe rewrote it from a defective manuscript.
Media
- The company that carries out a memory-erasing procedure in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is called Lacuna, Inc., relating to the word's meaning.
- In Peter Milligan and Mike Allred's comic X-Force, a person who has the power to remove herself from normal time begins calling herself "Lacuna", as her sojourns are missing moments of other people's lives.
Notes
References
- ^ G. Jack, "Beowulf: A Student Edition", Oxford University Press, Oxford: 1994. Pp.31-32, footnote 62.
See also
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