Stichometry

Stichometrie is the modern name ( from Greek stichos = line and metrein = measure, count ) for the line count of literary texts in ancient manuscripts.

Molding

While the seal every verse stichometrisch corresponds to a line in prose the " normal line" the length of an epic hexameter ( in the early phase 15, later 16 syllables or 35 letters) is equalized. Attested literary are stichometrische information since the 4th century BC In rolls and codices in manuscript form provides two types of Stichometrie are: 1 edge count ( Marginalstichometrie ). In this most common method in every hundred line is marked on the left edge of the papyrus roll with a Greek letter (A = 1 and 100 to Ω = 24 or 2400) or only by a dash. 2 total count ( Totalstichometrie ). In this method, at the end of the roll, the total number of lines is provided. The total number of lines in ancient times was part of the bibliographic description of a work; in the Pinakes of Callimachus, the catalog of the library of Alexandria, she was attached to each item.

Purpose

The Stichometrie dates back to ancient Greece. The information stichometrischen meet in the book essence of antiquity several purposes. First guarantee of completeness, a retired text for librarians, booksellers and readers; due to better comparability of copies also prevent counterfeiting. ( Sets the price edict of the Roman emperor Diocletian from the year 306 AD maximum prices for writers work per 100 lines of text fixed) 2 basis for the calculation of the wage clerk and the Book Prize. 3 Knowing volume of the text allows the copyists the choice of an appropriate roll of papyrus. 4 In the ancient world still rare and detectable only in a few cases: exact job specification when referring to other works (eg in Cicero 's comment Asconius ). 5 Apparently there were texts that were planned stichometrisch from the outset, was determined by the total text as well as its parts the exact level and then kept in the drafting of the text. Also guidelines on what kind of text the appropriate size are known.

Stichometrie and colorimetry

In addition to the Stichometrie has to be another method of text analysis, the colorimetry developed. In both cases it is a decomposition of texts into smaller units, but according to different criteria and objectives. Comparisons to the article colorimetry.