Page 242 - גנזי קדם ז

12* Jay Rovner

midrash.7 The recto side of the manuscript contains the carpet page, executed in
micrographic Hebrew letters, set within a framing border composed of two lines
of text written in a different Oriental square hand from the same period (fig.
2a & b; and fig. 3, with transcriptions, translations and diagram, in Appendix
2 below).8 The outer border lettering of the carpet page is in a majuscule hand;
the interior is in minuscule — or micrographic — writing. The interior design
of our page displays remarkable balance and symmetry: Bisected, the left half
is a mirror image of the right one, and the upper half is similarly symmetrical
with the lower one, with the exception of an additional lozenge at the bottom.

severly abraded, it is clear that the lettering ofthis first word was done by the copyist ofthe
remainder of the page. It is also noteworthy that the corresponding line on the other side
has also been virtually obliterated. Not only has the upper portion of both sides suffered
damage, it has also been trimmed, as will be explained in the final section.
7 I have made use of a line-by-line collation supplied by Gert Wildensee, who is preparing
an edition of Midrash Tehillim.
8 On the dating of the page see below.