Scribes and Their Remains begins with an introductory essay by Stanley Porter which addresses the principal theme of the book: the text as artifact. The rest of the volume is then split into two major sections. In the first, five studies appear on the theme of 'Scribes, Letters, and Literacy.' In the first of these Craig A. Evans offers a lengthy piece that argues that the archaeological, artifactual, and historical evidence suggests that New Testament autographs and first copies may well have remained in circulation for one century or more, having the effect of stabilizing the text. Other pieces in the section address literacy, orality and paleography of early Christian papyri. In the second section there are five pieces on 'Writing, Reading, and Abbreviating Christian Scripture.' These range across numerous topics, including an examination of the stauros (cross) as a nomen sacrum.

Editors Introduction AbbreviationsText as Artifact: An Introduction - Stanley E. Porter, McMaster Divinity College, CanadaPart I: Scribes, Letters, and Literacy1. Longevity of Late Antique Autographs and First Copies: A Postscriptum - Craig A. Evans, Houston Baptist University, USA2. Greek Writ Plain: Village Scribes, Q, and the Palaeography of the Earliest Christian Papyri - Gregg Schwendner, Wichita State University, USA3. My Lord and Protector: Papyri and Skepe Patronage in Sirach and 3 Maccabees - Christopher J. Cornthwaite, Canadian Institute in Greece, Greece4. Hilarion's Letter to His Wife, Child Exposure, and Early Christianity - Jeremiah J. Johnston, Houston Baptist University, USA5. Fetishizing the Word: Literacy, Orality and the Dead Sea Scrolls - Ian C. Werrett, St Martin's University, USAPart II: Writing, Reading, and Abbreviating Christian Scripture6. Signed with an "X": Stauros and the Staurogram Among the Nomina Sacra - Benjamin R. Overcash, Macquarie University, USA7. New Light from the Papyri: The Sacred Background of Biblos in Matthew 1:1 - Michael P. Theophilos, Australian Catholic University, Australia8. The Early Papyri, "Gospel-Parallel" Variants, and the Text of the New Testament in the Second Century - Roy D. Kotansky, Independent Scholar9. Terms of Kinship from Usage in Everyday Language to Official Christian Life - Eleonora Angela Conti, University of Florence, Italy 10. Early Christian Rolls - Marco Stroppa, University of Florence, ItalyIndex