And here is some more of the Caroline minuscule script. There are a couple of little details to note in this section. In line 2, after the words genui te, there is a question mark. This form of punctuation mark is supposed to have been invented in the Carolingian era, possibly to aid in the reading of Latin for those whose grammar was not quite fluent enough to manage without punctuation. It supposedly indicates a rising intonation in a similar manner to the way it was done in early musical notation. Interestingly, it is the only one shown in the passage, although there are two other questions. At the end of line 4, the word adorent finishes in an NT ligature of uncial form, possibly to squish the end of the word into the space available, or perhaps because old habits die hard. |
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Latin Vulgate Bible, 9th century. British Library add. ms. 10546. (From Fairbank 1952, Pl.7) |
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