Greek New Finds Minuscule 134

Sinai manuscript Greek New Finds Minuscule 134 is an incomplete copy of the Ladder of Divine Ascent. It is written on parchment, and has been dated to the tenth or eleventh century. Saint John Climacus concludes his great work with a quotation of the last verse of the thirteenth chapter of First Corinthians, Νυνὶ δὲ μένει τὰ τρία ταῦτα· πίστις ἐλπίς αγάπη· μείζων δὲ πάντων ἀγάπη, ‘And now abideth these three: faith, hope, love; but the greatest of all is love.’ (I Corinthians 13:13)

When two Greek words share a common central letter, they can be written in cross form. Below, the scribe has written (on the left), ὅπλον καλόν, ‘A good shield’ (a reference to Ephesians 6:11). To the right, he has written, Ἰησοῦ σῶσον, ‘Jesus save us’. And in the centre he has written τρίπλοκον ξύλον ὀραῖον θέαμα, ‘Threefold Wood, wondrous vision’. The Cross was made from cedar, pine, and cypress.