Papyrus 43, designated by siglum𝔓43 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), is an early copy of the New Testament in Greek. It is a papyrusmanuscript containing text from the Book of Revelation, specifically Rev 2:12-13, and 15:8-16:2. Using the study of comparative writing styles (palaeography), the manuscript has been dated to the 6th or 7th century CE.
Description
Scholars W. E. Crum, and H. I. Bell describe 𝔓43 as "a small scrap of light-coloured papyrus... [written] in two, rough, inelegant sloping hands."[1] Though the lines on each side are long, it is likely the papyrus only had extracts from Revelation on it, as it is hardly possible to have text from chapters 2 and 15 if the text was continuous. The text on the reverse side (known as the verso) being the opposite way around to the text on the front side (known as the recto) supports this conclusion.[1]
The Greek text of this codex is considered a representative of the Alexandrian text-type. Biblical scholar Kurt Aland placed it in Category II of his New Testament manuscripts classification system due to its assigned date.[2]
^ abW. E. Crum; H. I. Bell, eds. (1922). Wadi Sarga: Coptic and Greek Texts from the Excavations Undertaken by the Byzantine Research Account. Coptica. Vol. III. Copenhagen: Gyldendalske Boghandel-Hordisk Forlag. p. 43.