Venetus A
| Venetus A | |
|---|---|
| Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana | |
"Homerus Venetus A"
Gr. Z. 454 (=822), fol. 24r. | |
| Date | tenth century |
| Language | Greek |
| Material | vellum, black and crimson ink |
| Size | 39.5cm by 28.5/29cm, 327 leaves |
| Condition | folios 69–74, 229–234, 238, 254–257, 319–320 are not original |
| Script | semiuncial |
| Illumination | Illuminations (twelfth century) depicting mythological scenes from the Judgment of Paris up to the fighting of the Trojan War. |
| Accession | Gr. Z. 454 (=822) |
Venetus A is the more common name for the 10th-century AD manuscript codex catalogued in the Biblioteca Marciana in Venice as Codex Marcianus Graecus 454, now 822. Its name is Latin for "Venetian A."
Venetus A is the most famous manuscript of the Homeric Iliad; it is regarded by some as the best text of the epic. As well as the text of the Iliad, Venetus A preserves several layers of annotations, glosses, and commentaries known as the "A scholia", and a summary of the early Greek Epic Cycle which is by far the most important source of information on those lost poems.