Editors:

1. A description of the physical facts of the fragment you have discovered; also hand in the fragment itself. Be sure to cover these points:
   • writing materials (type of paper, ink, etc.)
   • size
   • any damage the fragment has suffered
   • the scribeÕs hand
   • the scribeÕs methods (spacing between words, habits at the end of the line, punctuation, etc.)
   • the scribeÕs quality (frequency and type of error you detect)

2. A description of what the text you have discovered seems to be. Give it a title if you like. (To keep this part of the assignment manageable, you do not need to produce a commentary, but you may call attention briefly to any passages that are especially interesting or crucial to your identification.)

3. Depending on the condition of the letters, you may need to produce a so-called Òdiplomatic transcript,Ó in which you simply reproduce exactly the way the fragment looks, but in better shapes easy for you and everyone else to read. DonÕt bother to do this if the letters on your fragment are already easy to read.

4. Present a readable text of the fragment with editorial marks to show where the skeptical reader might want to consult the original fragment. Provide line numbers every third line. Use the editorial symbols of the ÒLeiden systemÓ explained below.

   Leiden System:
   abcd letters about which the reading is doubtful
   .... illegible letters, the approximate number of which is known
   [...] missing letters, the approximate number of which is known
   ] or [] or [ missing letters, the number of which is unknown
   [abcd] letters restored by the editor
   < > lacunae in the text (omissions of the scribe)
   additions made by the editor to expand an abbreviation
   (abcd) letters added by the editor to expand an abbreviation
   {abcd} interpolations (letters or words wrongly added by the scribe which the editor judges ought to be cancelled)
   [[abcd]] letters or words written but then erased by the scribe
   ÔabcdÕ interlinear additions
   

Helpful Hints:

1. Your first step as you begin to read your fragment will be to try and identify what kind of text it is. Look for significant words, see if you can tell if it is poetry or prose.
2. If your text seems to be from the Classical period, you may want to use the on-line word search function available in Perseus. To do this, go to the Perseus English Index and follow the instructions there.
3. If you think you may have another author you can identify, you may be able to use another on-line word search tool, or a concordance in the library. Please ask me before you ask for help in the library.

Due Date: Tuesday, November 10