Simonides claimed that he had for a fact found a 1st century A.D. papyrus manuscript of the Apostle John's First Epistle (more than three feet long) with the Comma, in full, spelled out, (apparently ?) in:
- the Guardian Newspaper, January, 1863
- the Literary Gazette, August 31st issue, also 1863.
And boasted about showing it off to the learned gentry in London and Cambridge...
Simonides also claims to have written the Codex Sinaiticus, and therefore by default, claims to have hand-written the
Comma-less text of 1 John 5:7-8 in Codex Sinaiticus himself.
Simonides also had this to say, in his publication of the so-called Codex Mayerianus:
FACSIMILES OF CERTAIN PORTIONS OF
The Gospel of St. Matthew,
AND OF THE
Epistles of Ss . James & Jude,
WRITTEN ON PAPYRUS IN THE FIRST CENTURY,
AND PRESERVED IN THE EGYPTIAN MUSEUM OF JOSEPH MAYER , ESQ . LIVERPOOL .
WITH A PORTRAIT OF ST. MATTHEW,
FROM A FRESCO PAINTING AT MOUNT ATHOS.
EDITED AND ILLUSTRATED
WITH NOTES AND HISTORICAL AND LITERARY PROLEGOMENA, CONTAINING CONFIRMATORY
FAC -SIMILES OF THE SAME PORTIONS OF HOLY SCRIPTURE FROM PAPYRI AND PARCH
MENT MSS. IN THE MONASTERIES OF MOUNT ATHOS , OF ST. CATHERINE ON MOUNT SINAI,
OF ST. SABBA IN PALESTINE, AND OTHER SOURCES.
BY CONSTANTINE SIMONIDES, Ph. D.
HON . MEMBER OF THE HISTORIC SOCIETY OF LANCASHIRE AND CHESHIRE , &c. &c. &c.
"Πάντ ' ανακαλύπτων ο χρόνος είς φως φέρει.“ Time bringeth to light all discoveries.'
cis
LONDON :
TRÜBNER & CO., No. 60 PATERNOSTER ROW .
ALEA=1861=MDCCCLXI.
Page 72
"...The papyri were procured by that gentleman several years ago from the Rev. Henry Stobart, who is very well known in England ; and not only were the five strips thus obtained in which, greatly to my surprise, I discovered portions of the Gospel of St. Matthew , but many other rolls of papyrus, most of which had not been opened when the discovery of the five fragments above named was announced in the newspaper, and the hope expressed that, as there were many more to unroll, other portions of the same gospel might be found. But, unfortunately, no other portion of this evangelist has been discovered except the two small fragments mentioned on page 27 ; the mention of the discovery of the portions of the Epistles of St. James and St. Jude was made on page 7. On the 2nd of the month of March, 1861, I discovered the whole of the third Epistle
of St. John, notice of which was given at a meeting of the Liverpool Historic Society on the 7th of the same month, which was thus noticed in the Daily Post and the Liverpool Mercury of Friday, March 8th,“ Dr. Simonides announced other discoveries amongst the papyri in Mr. Mayer's Museum, being the third Epistle of St. John, and two pages of the Works of Aristeas, both of the 1st century." While these pages have been going through the press, Ι have unrolled papyri from the same collection, which contain all the second part of the First Epistle of St. Peter, and a
small part of the First Epistle of St. John, and the greater part of the Second and Third Epistles, and the first three chapters of the Apocalypse, besides one, the most recently opened, but perhaps the most interesting of all, which contains portions of the last chapter of the Gospel of St. John. What then was the error committed by the journalists, or, if you please, by Mr. Mayer and myself, in expressing joy at this wonderful and indisputable discovery ; or in giving expression to the hope ( unfortunately not realised) that some other portions of the Gospel of Matthew might come to light; an expectation which had its basis in the number of the unrolled papyri, and the appearance of Greek characters upon
their external surface ? Yet the hope so expressed has been greatly derided by Dr. Tregelles, in the rather hasty pamphlet which he has published on the subject of the Codex Sinaiticus, which he praises without discretion [= Simonides' seething jealousy is so evident], being guided entirely by the reputation of the editor, and not by any critical examination ; being led away, as many others have been, by the fame which the discoverer so unworthily enjoys.“ [= Simonides' jealousy again] 'Of a truth, says Jamblichus, “bad judgment is the cause of all evil ; as fire the gold , so time tries the wise.' To return to our text. According to the Codex Mayerianus, with many other ancient manuscripts still preserved..."
[Emphasis and comments in green added by me]
Samuel Prideaux
Tregelles had this to say: