Tyrannius Rufinus was a fourth-century Christian monk and theologian. Rufinus is known for his translations of work by Origen, a second and third-century Christian theologian and scholar. In 401, Rufinus was commissioned by Bishop Chromatius of Aquileia (Rufinus was born near Aquileia, in northern Italy) to translate the Historia Ecclesiastica by Eusebius. This translation of the text of ecclesiastical history by the third-century historian Eusebius was intended as address some of the terror in the region caused by attacks from the Goths in Italy at the beginning of the fifth century. Rufinus' translation differs from Eusebius' original text in that most of Book X is removed and the little remaining is added to the ninth book in Rufinus' version.

Nine of the eleven books books of Rufinus' translations of Eusebius' Historia Ecclesiastica are contained in MS 179. The final two books, which are missing, are Rufinus' own work and extend Eusebius' narrative to the year 395.

A very good twelfth century script. The initials, where they are inserted (i.e. only in a few places in Books I and II), are either plain red or red and green. The rubrics have run a little.