Mistakes that Make It - March 11th

I sat at breakfast with some classical history post grads from Notre Dame University today. They had come to Vienna to research ancient documents.

Each was focusing on just one, say a 12th Century copy of the 1st or 2nd Century original by Cicero or a divinity tract. It was interesting for a couple of reasons.

Firstly, these weren´t the most oft read items in the Viennese Library. One student said that the most recent previous borrower was in 1995.

Secondly, they said that it was the mistakes or additions to the docuemtns that gave them clues as to the true content of the original which was long lost. Often back in the 16th Century when printing presses were first invented the printer would then destroy the, say 12th Century, version they had copied as being inferior to his new work. So the historical lineage comes to an abrupt halt. However, by cross referencing copies from different sources they can put together a true picture of the original.

It´s like a tree with most of the branches cut off and you are trying to find your way back to the trunk. If medieval transcribers made a mistake then they would cross it out, paint over or try to erase it. But as some  survive you can piece together the true content of the original.

It seems that mistakes are worth making.