The Vatican Apostolic Library has digitized and made the Byzantine Minology of Basil II available for free. Minology of Basil II (Vatican minology, Vat. Gr. 1613) - the oldest surviving illustrated Byzantine manuscript in the genre of hagiographic literature.
A dedicatory poem in the manuscript testifies that it was compiled in 979-989 for the emperor Vasily II of the Bulgarians, from which he got his name. The book contains short lives of the saints and reports of memorable events in church history (from September 1 to February 28), accompanied by 430 miniatures. Perhaps there was a 2nd, now lost volume, for the other half of the year.
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The name of the author is written by the hand of a scribe near each miniature, which is a unique fact in the history of Byzantine book illustration. There were 8 artists: 79 signed with the name of Pantoleon, 45 - George, 61 - Mikhail Vlakhernit, 67 - Mikhail the Younger, 32 - Simeon, 48 - Simeon Vlahernit, 27 - Mina and 71 - with the name of Nestor. The text of Basil's Menology is placed in volume 117 of Greek Patrology.