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Greek "ΗΧV ΓΕΝΝΗΣΙΣ" on painting

Posted: November 12th, 2012, 2:56 am
by Daniel Mehta
Please see the attached picture. If the attachment doesn't work, it is fount at http://ikonmaleri.no/galleri/Festsyklus/nativity.jpg

The question is, what does the inscription mean? I assume the second word, "genesis", is "beginning". But ΗΧV?!

Thanks,
Daniel

Re: Greek "ΗΧV ΓΕΝΝΗΣΙΣ" on painting

Posted: November 12th, 2012, 3:52 am
by Stephen Carlson
It says ἡ Χριστοῦ γέννησις and it means "The Birth of Christ"

The HXV is really Ἡ ΧΥ, with a line over the XY, the standard nomen sacrum (sacred name) abbreviation for Χριστοῦ.

Γέννησις means birth, and it reflect the wording of the Byzantine text of Matt 1:18. The critical text, however, there has γένεσις, which was the word you were thinking of.

Re: Greek "ΗΧV ΓΕΝΝΗΣΙΣ" on painting

Posted: November 13th, 2012, 3:40 am
by Daniel Mehta
Thanks! Even given two years of intense studying I would never have figured that out by myself.