Manuscript miscellany written and illuminated at Ptepouhar, in the Fayyūm Province, Egypt, between Apr. 14, 891 and Aug. 29, 893.
Roughly a seventh of leaves have sewing repairs.
The present Coptic Jeremiah Apocryphon (Paralipomena Ieremiae) is probably translated from Greek. It also exists in Arabic and Garshuni (Kars̆ūni) versions, though they are not identical to the present Coptic version. This is not the same work as the better known Paralipomena Ieremiae, extant in Greek and Ethiopic.
Colophons on lower pastedown, now at the Coptic Museum in Cario: 1) recto: Donation in Coptic: By the arch(imandrite?) and ascetic Karuïēl; to the Monastery of St. Michael near present day Hamuli. 2) recto: Memorial: For Deacon [Iōannēs, or the like], archimandrite of the aforementioned monastery near present day Hamuli. 3) recto: Copyist, artists (?), place of copying, date of copying: By Isak the priest and Deacon Arkhēllit(ēs), Iōhannēs, "sons" of the late Deacon Joseph, from Ptepouhar in the Faiyum.
Life of Stamuel of Qalamūn edited and translated into English by Alcock; translated into Italian by Orlandi. Homily on the Patriarch Joseph translated from the Greek by Halkin. Coptic Jeremiah Apocryphon edited and translated into English by Kuhn.
Colophons edited and translated into French by Munier.
Marginal annotations: on fol. 9r and drawings and pen trials on fols. 68r and 97r by a second hand.
Written area ca. 258 x 181 mm. Divisions: Head of fol. 1r: remains of black tab at major division of the codex?; ekthesis, enlarged or greatly enlarged initial (reddened fols. 1-70), and paragraphus sign setting off paragraphs; passage (fols. 21v-22r) marked by a small diple in margin of each line.
Script: Upright (titles right-sloping). By the same hand as fol. 35 of M.567, M.612 and M.611 (Cf. Petersen 1954, p. 317). 10 lines = ca. 83 mm
Superlineation: Non-standard. Punctuation: Raised dot followed by a space or by a reddened(fols. 1-70) stroke; colon and horizontal rule as space fillers at end of textual units. Many tremas.
Collation: Signed on first and last page of the quire, top inner margin. No quire ornaments, monograms, headlines or catchwords.
When originally purchased from Arthur Sambon this manuscript was divided into two parts: (a) the Life of Samuel of Qalamūn and (b)(c) the remainder of the work; at the time the manuscripts were first catalogued (a) was assigned the call number Pierpont Morgan Library. MS M.578 and (b)(c) was assigned the call number Pierpont Morgan Library. MS M.601--Depuydt.
By 1922 (a), (b), and (c) were united as M.578; M.601 was reassigned.
Scribes: Isak, Arkhēllitēs, and Iōhannēs.
Decoration: headpieces, tailpieces, marginal ornaments, paragraphus signs, signatures and page numbers, extended letters. Colors: moderate reddish orange (Centroid 37), dark yellow (88); often faded or chemically altered. See Buchthal-Kurz.