Venetus A

Venetus A
Biblioteca Nazionale Marciana
"Homerus Venetus A" Gr. Z. 454 (=822), fol. 24r.
Datetenth century
Language(s)Greek
Materialvellum, black and crimson ink
Size39.5cm by 28.5/29cm, 327 leaves
Conditionfolios 69–74, 229–234, 238, 254–257, 319–320 are not original
Scriptsemiuncial
Illumination(s)Illuminations (twelfth century) depicting mythological scenes from the Judgment of Paris up to the fighting of the Trojan War.
AccessionGr. 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.