Category: Eusebius

Eusebius update

Posted on by Roger Pearse

The proof copy fixes to the Eusebius have all been done and entered.  Yippee!!!   I have finally, finally, got all the Coptic changes into the PDF, decided what they all should be, etc.  To do so, I’ve actually had to learn some Coptic, in order to work out what to do, which has delayed matters for a month.  I was rather left in the dark on the original language stuff.

But this morning I have sent off the PDF to Bob the typesetter.  Deep rejoicing here, indeed.

I also included a word document of notes about it, plus an extra Coptic fragment that the contributor strongly insisted on — I ended up typing in the Coptic text for that myself!  I also sent him a new version of the Alphabetum font.  In the old one, the two Coptic letters lambda and beta were too tall so that overscores intersected the letters.  The font author did a bug fix for me.

So it has been a very busy month.  But that’s it.  That’s the text done, or so I hope.

I can now start paying attention to the cover.  That can wait a few days, I think.

UPDATE: And once I’d done that, I went to collect my email.  And … there was an email from Les editions du Cerf, giving approval from their end of the translation.  I’ve been waiting nearly four months for that (the lady responsible was widowed during the period), but it has come at last!  We have some momentum going here, chaps!

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Eusebius update

Posted on by Roger Pearse

I’ve been trying to process the last outstanding problem on the text of the Eusebius Gospel Problems and Solutions book.  In essence the translator has decided that she wants to include an extra fragment.  

Of course that also means hunting out the Coptic text, and transcribing it, and recognising — although I don’t know Coptic — precisely where on the line the text is supposed to start and stop.  I’ve done this myself, and completed the task this morning.  It’s about 100 words of English, and the same of Coptic.  I’ve also managed to render the translator’s somewhat diffuse comments into a couple of footnotes. 

I think I will pass this new material across to the typesetter as a small Word file, rather than try to add it as stickys to the PDF. 

In the process of typing Coptic — a first for me — I have discovered a couple of problems with the Alphabetum font I have been using for Coptic.  These I have reported to the font owner.

There is also some kind of note that needs to be added about how the original editor of the Coptic handled spaces.  When I can understand what is required, I will compose something.  And that will be the last change.  Laus deo!

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Eusebius update

Posted on by Roger Pearse

All the corrections to the proof of Eusebius: Gospel problems and solutions were entered on the PDF as stickys a week or so ago.  I’m quite impressed, actually, by Acrobat as a tool for collaborative editing.

The remaining issue is a chunk of text in the Coptic.  The problem is that the manuscript is damaged.  However the translator feels that a chunk close to the end is in fact Eusebian, although it does not say so.  She would like me to add this as a new fragment, enter the Coptic text, plus some extra wording.  The format of the latter is rather different to anything else in the book.  I’m very reluctant to do something like this at this stage.  Hum.  I suspect it isn’t that much, tho.  I will consider this a bit.  The less the typesetter has to do, the better.

The book is showing up on Amazon.co.uk as well, and finding its way through the distribution channels.  Today I had someone write demanding a free copy.  Luckily I don’t have to reply to say that it hasn’t been published yet.

I also need to do something about the cover and logo.   I wasn’t that happy with the output from the design company I used, so I need to find someone else.  In addition I need to work out what to supply to Lightning Source for the cover.  This I’ll do once I have turned round the PDF. 

Lots to do!  But we’re really very close now.

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Eusebius update

Posted on by Roger Pearse

I’ve entered all the Coptic corrections as sticky notes on the PDF of Eusebius, Gospel Problems and Solutions!  VERY loud rejoicing here.  It took about 3 hours in the end, which is not at all bad. 

There’s one query outstanding, which is to do with a couple of paragraphs the translator is quite keen on adding.  Unfortunately they read more like footnotes.  So a couple of queries.

Otherwise all the corrections are done, in all languages, and ready for correction by the typesetter.  I must remember to tell him to set Acrobat up with Alphabetum as the default font for comments, or he won’t be able to see the Coptic!

One problem — I can’t get a reply from the typesetter by email.  Bob, if you’re reading this, would you email me?

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Eusebius update

Posted on by Roger Pearse

I’ve started working through the 6 pages of revisions to proof text the Greek and Latin text of the forthcoming Eusebius Gospel Problems and Solutions.  Most of them are indeed proof corrections, which is something — missing commas or closing quotes and the like.  I’m going to see if I can move this forward in the evenings.

Meanwhile Lightning Source have decided — after a week — that they need yet more signatures from me in order to take my money, bless them.   Apparently some more of the boxes needed them, than the ones I spotted.  You wonder how they continue to exist!  But it isn’t holding anything up.

The cover design is pretty much clear in my mind.  A company logo will appear on it, and the design company has produced some good ideas.  It looks as if a Latin motto will be required, tho.  Anyone any ideas?  Thinking of Lightning Source inevitably leads me to Illegitimis non carborundum, but of course we can’t use that.

UPDATE: I managed to process around 20% of the proof corrections into the PDF tonight.  Better than I had thought!

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From my diary

Posted on by Roger Pearse

It’s all a bit boring here at the moment.  I can’t pay any attention to antiquity because of the pressure of other dull but necessary things.  The days are short, the evenings dark, and all that jazz.

I don’t know how interesting people find the details of producing the Eusebius volume.  All the proof corrections are in, and I now need to spend some serious time processing them into the PDF so they can be sent to the typesetter. 

The bureaucracy with getting an “account” set up at print-on-demand firm Lightning Source grinds on — amusingly they demand an annual fee to do business with you, but I don’t think there is more for me to do.  But ad-hoc printing is not their thing.  I’ve had to do the proof copies via Lulu.

The cover design that I want is now in my mind, and will consist of a dark green cloth covered hardback with gold lettering; author, title, and, lower down, publisher logo.  The logo design people, Add Design of Leiston, have sent me some possible logos today, and they all look good and possible.  I’ve not told them yet, but the chances are good that they will be doing the cover setup and the website as well.

I’ve decided that the Syriac text needs to be reset in a larger font — it’s just too tiny as it stands, and I think this is partly the fault of the Meltho fonts themselves, which seem smaller than usual. 

On a different note someone asked me if I had a PDF of a manuscript of al-Makin.  I hunted around last night and found that I did.  But not enough time to do anything about it.

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How to find a lost manuscript of Eusebius

Posted on by Roger Pearse

The lost manuscript of the full text of Eusebius’ Gospel problems and solutions was last seen in Sicily five centuries ago.  But it could quite possibly still be there.

It might be nice to search for Sicilian mss.  I was thinking about it last night.  We have a couple of clues.  Latino Latini writes that Sirleto had seen the ms. in Sicily.
 
1.  We need to work out what Cardinal Sirleto was doing in Sicily, and where he was doing it.  A study of his life should provide clues, and possibly his correspondence is extant (published would be nice, but improbable).  This might tell us where he found the ms.
 
2.  We need to work out what collections of Greek mss exist in Sicily, and also which were taken elsewhere (to Naples? to Spain?)  An enquiry of specialists like N.G.Wilson should provide clues.  Are there Greek abbeys there?
 
3.  We know (how) that Aurispa sent a shipment of Greek patristic mss from Constantinople to Sicily a century earlier.  Why to Sicily?  Where to?  Where might they have ended up?  Is this one?
 
Once we know the answers to these, and have a list of search sites, then it becomes a question of looking in catalogues, and visiting collections.
 
Might be an interesting project!
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Eusebius update

Posted on by Roger Pearse

A long email from the translator about some issues with the Latin text.  One problem is that we are reprinting three different bits of Latin — one from a modern edition, with “young man” given as “iuuenis”, another from a 19th century edition where it is “iuvenis”, and another from a 16th century volume where it is also “iuvenis”.  The latter two are much smaller in length.  What do we do?

What I have decided to do is reprint the edition and not harmonise them.  There’s also other work on the Latin that needs doing, where we switched edition after the translation was complete.

I’m still feeling rather under the weather, but thankfully the translator is willing to take on some editorial duties and look after it. 

I’ve also started thinking about the cover again.  For the hardback the author and title, followed by a circular logo for the publisher, all in gold and on dark cloth, would seem possible.  If it works for Brepols it should work for me.  I’ve got together some examples, and I will send these over to a graphic design company.

The contracts to print the book have now been signed with Lightning Source.  So we are getting very close indeed here!

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Eusebius update

Posted on by Roger Pearse

The saga of the translation of Eusebius Gospel Problems and Solutions continues.  I had never realised just how much work it is to get a book to print.

We’ve had our first glitch.  An email has arrived from the Coptic translator to the effect that the proof copy does not incorporate a bunch of changes emailed over on 30th August.  Looking in my inbox I find a multi-page Word document which I completely overlooked.  I suppose it was bound to happen sooner or later, but that doesn’t make it less frustrating.

More seriously, even that set of corrections only goes to page 8 of the Coptic.  Apparently there are more to come for the rest.  Sometime.

I’ve emailed requesting the remainder of the corrections.  I will start adding the corrections to the PDF tomorrow night.  I don’t want to keep sending them to the typesetter in dribs and drabs, so I hope the rest of the corrections come through and we can do this once.

Here’s hoping!

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From my diary

Posted on by Roger Pearse

My new job is going well, so I must start chasing up projects like Philip of Side and the Origen book. 

It’s not been possible to do anything interesting this week.  It’s hard to think of anything else when you’re up early and back late.  But I will get back to ancient world stuff soon.

I’m thinking about cover designs for the Eusebius book, and indeed asking for suggestions on how it should look. 

One element that will be required is some form of company logo.  I’ve put out an enquiry with a graphic design firm.  If they do a good job, I’ll get them to do a sales website as well.

Lightning Source, who will be printing the book, continue to be a pain to deal with.  I’ve now received from them a formal contract to sign.  It looks as if you have to be incorporated to do business (which, fortunately, I am).  The materials from them that I am supposed to read now total over 100 pages.  Fortunately I read contracts regularly, as part of my secret identity as a latter-day Bruce Wayne (!), so these should present no problems.

Still no news from Les editions du Cerf on whether they are happy with what I have done with their Greek text.  I shall have to enquire whether anyone else at the firm can assist me.  I’ve just been too busy to bother.  Maybe next week!

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