Scholars Reconstruct 42 ‘Lost’ Pages From a 6th-Century New Testament Codex

Overview

• An international team at the University of Glasgow led by Prof. Garrick Allen used multispectral imaging with radiocarbon checks to digitally recover 42 pages from Codex H.
• The 6th-century Greek codex was dismantled in the 13th century at the Great Lavra monastery, and its leaves were reused as binding supports that ended up in libraries across Italy, Greece, Russia, Ukraine, and France.
• Imaging isolated near‑invisible mirror traces of the original ink on facing pages, which let researchers rebuild pages that no longer survive.
• The pages reveal early chapter lists, scribal corrections, marginal notes, and signs of liturgical use that chart how the letters were organized and read.
• The team says the new pages are not yet public, with prior digital fragments already online and a print edition in preparation, and notes funding from Templeton Religion Trust and the UK Arts and Humanities Research Council.