Callinicus Was Involved in Transcribing (and Transporting) Ancient Manuscripts During His Exile at St Catherine's Monastery in the Sinai

This is a very important testimony about Callinicus's exile at Sinai and subsequent escape. Linaritakis informs us that the letters of the Patriarch make clear that he spent a lot of time copying rare manuscripts at the Monastery of St Catherines which unfortunately were lost when the ship which was transporting him to Alexandria sunk in the Nile. He makes explicit reference to losing a copy of Ephrem the Syrian's Hymns on Paradise:

ό Καλλίνικος μέ γράμματα χοϋ σκευοφύλακα προς τους φίλους του που είχε στο Πηλούσιο, με τα έξοδα πληρωμένα καί ανθρώπους του σκευοφύλακα, αναχωρούν με καΐκι για την πόλη αύτη. "Κατερχομένων το λοιπόν τετάρτη τού Μαρτίου, ήμερα Τρίτη καί καιρός ήτον μεσημεριού", σηκώθηκε άνεμος σφοδρός, περιέστρεψε αιφνίδια το σκάφος καί τέλος ολοι των βρέθηκαν στού Νείλου το βυθό. Με το νά ξέρουν ομως ολοι των κολύμπι, έγλύτωσαν.

Από τό απρόσμενο αυτό ναυάγιο μπόρεσε ό Καλλίνικος, μέ κίνδυνο της ζωής του, να διασώσει μερικά άπό τά πράγματα του. Στον κωδ.91,533 ό Καλλίνικος γράφει δύο φορές: " Έ ξ ών τίνα έξήγαγον δαπάνη αδρότατη". "'Εξ ών δαπάνη ou σμικρά τίνα τών τετραδίων, ά βλέπεις, έξηγάγομεν". Τά περισσότερα ομως είχαν χειρότερη τύχη άπό αυτή πού είχαν οι " "Υμνοι" τού άγιου Έφραίμ τού Σύρου γιά τόν Παράδεισο
.
Μεταξύ τών πραγμάτων του πού βυθίστηκαν είναι "καί ό τέταρτος τόμος τών γεννημάτων ... καί έκ τού έκτου μερικά τετράδια καί λόγους, διότι ήταν άδετα καί τινας διάλογους"*.
Τά έργα αυτά τά είχε γράψει ό Καλλίνικος στό Σινά, άλλα "άρρήτοις κρίμασι τοΰ δικαίου Θεού του Νείλου θύματα, φευ, γεγόνασιν" [Linaritakis dissertation p. 94]

As Callinicos letters Hu sacristan for his friends who had to Pilousio, with expenses paid and people of the sacristan, depart by boat to this city. "So the descending fourth of March, on Tuesday afternoon weather Eton" fierce wind got up, spun sudden the boat and end all of the Nile was found in the bottom. By knowing But all the swimming eglytosan.

From the unexpected that could wreck everything Callinicos, risking his life to rescue some of the things. In kod.91, 533 as Callinicos says twice: "U n Tina s exported adrotati spending." "'On s expense ou smikra Tina of notebooks, s watch, exigagomen". But most had worse luck than you had with Hymns "of Saint Ephraim the Syrian on Paradise
.
Among the things of which are sunk "and the fourth volume of the brood ... And of some books and sixth reasons, because he was unbound and Tina dialogues" Works such as Callinicos wrote in Sinai, but "arritois krimasi law God Nile victims, alas, gegonasin" (hasty translation)

We know that St Catherine's monastery preserves to this day a very rare copy of Hymns on Paradise. Callinicus certainly treasured this discovery. But it points to the fact that Callinicus was certainly engaged in transcribing manuscripts during his exile at Sinai. I am beginning to suspect that to Theodore might have been present at the monastery at one time. Who knows ...

I think to Theodore was originally found there too. It is the largest repository of manuscripts in the Greek orthodox world and second only to the Vatican.