Manuscripts from Boyana Church
Several important literary pieces of Old Bulgarian Heritage were found in the Boyana Church.
The Boyana Gospel or Boyana Palimpsest
The Boyana Gospel, or the Boyana Palimpsest was found and taken in 1845 by the Russian scientist and explorer V. Grigorovich during his visit to Boyana Church. Currently it is located in the Russian State Library in Moscow. It is a short selection gospel in Middle Bulgarian language, in Cyrillic alphabet and dates back to the beginning of the 13th century. Of the total 109 preserved parchment sheets, 42 are palimpsests, written in Glagolitic in the 11th century. 26 Glagolitic pages were read and promulgated by the Bulgarian linguist Ivan Dobrev in 1972. The initial letters in the manuscript are colored and painted with cinnabar.
Boyana Psalter
The Boyana Psalter is a Middle Bulgarian parchment manuscript from the second half of the 13th century. It was discovered in 1977 during the restoration of Boyana Church, imbedded into one of the walls. When found, it was significantly damaged by moisture and in many places the text was illegible. The manuscript was restored by the specialized laboratory at The St. St. Cyril and Methodius National Library. Nowadays it is being preserved in the National History Museum – Sofia under the signature NMH. Slav. 1. It comprises 115 parchment sheets (9 of which were added from another book from the 14th century) and contains a preface, the text of the Psalter and part of the biblical songs that follow the psalms, but the end is missing. This is the oldest psalter copy preserved in Bulgaria.
Boyana triodion
The triodion is a Middle Bulgarian literary monument from the 13th century. 21 parchment sheets are stored in The St St Cyril and Methodius National Library and have not been renovated yet. They represent a fragment of so-called Posten (Fasting) Triodium. Other fragments are kept in the Library of the Academy of Sciences in St. Petersburg, Russia.
Boyana memorial book
The Boyana memorial is a Cyrillic literary monument created by the Serbian writer Jov Šishatovac in The Dragalevtsi Monastery commissioned by the Boyana Church probably in 1612. It contains the names of 71 medieval Bulgarian kings, queens and patriarchs, as well as 688 donors from later times. The numerous notes and inscriptions in the document date from the 17th – 19th centuries. The Sofia Regional History Museum keeps 42 sheets from the artefact, and the three pieces which were torn by V. I. Grigorovich during his visit to the Boyana Church in 1845 are kept in the Russian State Library.
