Searching for the Autograph of Zinovy Otensky

Abstract

The article is devoted to a manuscript from E.E. Egorov’s collection of manuscript books, contain ing the polemical theological work “Truth’s Indication for Those Asking about the New Doctrine” by the monk Zinovy of the Otensky Monastery in Novgorod Veliky. The verified modern scientific dating of this manuscript (the 1560s), as well as its thorough handwriting and textual analysis, allow to conclude, that the first half of the book is the autograph of the writer, who died either in 1568 or in 1571/72. Basing on the comparison of the book with another assumed autographic copy of the “Truth’s Indi cation”, kept now in the National Library of Russia and dated to the 1560s as well, but written in the calligra phic handwriting, different from the two cursive hand writings of Egorov’s manuscript, it is concluded that the latter is an unfinished draft of the author, which contains the second abridged version of the «Truth’s Indication», written by Zinovy after the creation on his order of the “white” calligraphic copy of the work in primary exten sive edition - the manuscript of the NLR. This latter was not only the protograph for all copies of the first edition but also the original (antigraf) for the second - fi nal part of Egorov’s collection, written in a different handwriting and on different paper (of the late 1560s). In this com bination - of two codicologically independent parts - Egorov’s manuscript became the protograph for all copies of the second abridged edition of the “Truth’s Indica tion”. Possessing the handwriting sample of Zinovy Oten sky, the researchers now have the opportunity to disco ver some other autographs of this outstanding Novgorod writer and theologian.