Il Romanzo di Cambise: alcune osservazioni sulla fortuna di un genere e una proposta di nuova datazione

Six parchment leaves of unknown origin, preserved in Berlin, convey one of the most compelling Coptic literary works from the point of view of the narrative plot and one of the most enigmatic from that of its genesis and aims, the so-called Cambyses Romance. What remains of the original manuscript is enough to affirm that it must have been a good quality parchment codex, written in a single column with a beautiful unimodular script. Whoever owned it, the manuscript was therefore not an informal copy, but what we could define as a luxury item. In this short article, we will focus on a particular aspect that seems to have eluded the attention of scholars: its place in Coptic literary production, which may initially appear somewhat eccentric. We will also explore the manuscript’s codicological features that preserve the Romance and propose a significant revision of its dating and purpose.