Gripla - 20.12.2015, Page 76

GRIPLA76
Had it not been for the use of vellum leaves taken from manuscripts to
protect books and papers after the advent of the printing press, the only
record of the life of St. Basil in Iceland would have been Basil’s name listed
in conjunction with unknown books in several church inventories, and the
story of his interaction with Julian the Apostate from addenda to Maríu
saga, though even that tale owes its presence in Iceland rather to the figure
of mary than to st. Basil. the five badly damaged leaves of Basilius saga,
of which fewer than seven pages could be edited, presented a tantalizing,
but incomplete picture of Basil the Great in Icelandic literary history. With
the editing of Lbs fragm 74, this article demonstrates that a common, but
long overlooked, version of the Vita Basilii made its way to Iceland and
served as the source for the vernacular version, probably around the be-
ginning of the thirteenth century. A comparison of Basilius saga with the
Latin source shows us how much of the Icelandic text has been lost and
gives us a glimpse of the Icelandic translator’s modus operandi. Finally, as
this article has shown, neither Basilius saga nor the Latin manuscript of the
Vita Basilii that made its way to Iceland could have served as the source for
the Icelandic miracle about the death of emperor julian that is appended
to Maríu saga.
BIBLIOGRAPHy
mANUsCRIPts
Landsbókasafn Íslands – Háskólabókasafn, Reykjavík:
Lbs fragm 74
Den Arnamagnæanske samling, Nordisk forskningsinstitut, Københavns Universitet,
Copenhagen:
Am 238 II fol.
Am 655 vI 4to
Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana, Vatican City:
Lat. 8565
Ottobonianus, lat. 120
Palatinus, lat. 582
Regina sueciae, lat. 528
Bibliothèque municipale d’Angers, Angers:
804
GRIPLA XXVI. - 12.12.B.indd 76 12/13/15 8:24:33 PM