Commentary on the Hexameron

Last updated

The Commentary on the Hexameron of Pseudo-Eustathius is an anonymous commentary on the Genesis creation narrative written in Greek between 375 and 500 AD. More than 26 medieval manuscripts exist containing it, all of which give Eustathius of Antioch as the author. The work contains rather more material than a typical commentary on creation, including historical material down to the time of Alexander the Great, all excerpted from earlier Christian writers. Consequently, it has been given the Latin title Liber chronicorum ('book of chronicles').

The Commentary includes extracts from the lost writings of Alexander Polyhistor, and the author appears to have had direct access to copies of Polyhistor. It is also a useful early witness to the Physiologus . That it could not have been written by Eustathius of Antioch, who was deposed in 330, is clear from the material it draws from the Homilies on the Hexameron of Basil the Great, delivered around 370. In addition, Eusebius of Caesarea is labelled "holy" in the work, despite being an enemy of Eustathius. Although these factors mean that the name passed down in the manuscripts as the author cannot be right, no other obvious candidate for authorship is available.

A copy of the Commentary was discovered in Sicily by Cardinal Gugliemo Sirleto in 1583, who intended to publish it [1] but did not do so. The first and only edition was printed in 1629 by Leo Allatius, with copious notes and a Latin translation, but also many misprints. The text and translation were reprinted by Jacques Paul Migne in the Patrologia Graeca , volume 18. No edition has been printed since. No translation exists in any modern language.

Related Research Articles

Bartholomaeus Anglicus, also known as Bartholomew the Englishman and Berthelet, was an early 13th-century Scholastic of Paris, a member of the Franciscan order. He was the author of the compendium De proprietatibus rerum, dated c.1240, an early forerunner of the encyclopedia and a widely cited book in the Middle Ages. Bartholomew also held senior positions within the church and was appointed Bishop of Łuków in what is now Poland, although he was not consecrated to that position.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nikephoros Kallistos Xanthopoulos</span> Byzantine ecclesiastical historian (c.1256–c.1335)

Nikephoros Kallistos Xanthopoulos was a Greek ecclesiastical historian and litterateur of the late Byzantine Empire. His most popular work, the voluminous Ecclesiastica historia, constitutes a significant documentary source on primitive Christianity and its doctrinal controversies, as well as for hagiographical, liturgical, and legendary texts from Byzantine culture.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jacques Paul Migne</span> French priest and scholar (1800–1875)

Jacques Paul Migne was a French priest who published inexpensive and widely distributed editions of theological works, encyclopedias, and the texts of the Church Fathers, with the goal of providing a universal library for the Catholic priesthood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Pachymeres</span> Late 13th-century Byzantine Greek historian, philosopher, and writer

George Pachymeres was a Byzantine Greek historian, philosopher, music theorist and miscellaneous writer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leo Allatius</span> Greek scholar (1586–1669)

Leo Allatius was a Greek scholar, theologian, and keeper of the Vatican library.

John Malalas was an East Roman chronicler from Antioch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eustathius of Antioch</span>

Eustathius of Antioch, sometimes surnamed the Great, was a Christian bishop and archbishop of Antioch in the 4th century. His feast day in the Eastern Orthodox Church is February 21.

<i>Patrologia Latina</i> 1841–1855 collection of Christian texts

The Patrologia Latina is an enormous collection of the writings of the Church Fathers and other ecclesiastical writers published by Jacques-Paul Migne between 1841 and 1855, with indices published between 1862 and 1865. It is also known as the Latin series as it formed one half of Migne's Patrologiae Cursus Completus, the other part being the Patrologia Graeca of patristic and medieval Greek works with their medieval Latin translations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hugh of Saint Victor</span> German-French canon regular and theologian

Hugh of Saint Victor was a Saxon canon regular and a leading theologian and writer on mystical theology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Symeon the Metaphrast</span> 10th-century Byzantine historian and hagiographer

Symeon or Simeon, distinguished as Symeon Metaphrastes (Latin) or Symeon the Metaphrast, was a Byzantine writer and official regarded as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church. His feast day is celebrated on 9 or 28 November. He is best known for his 10-volume Greek menologion, a collection of saints' lives.

The Patrologia Graeca is an edited collection of writings by the Church Fathers and various secular writers, in the Greek language. It consists of 161 volumes produced in 1857–1866 by J.P. Migne's Imprimerie Catholique, Paris.

George Kodinos, also Pseudo-Kodinos or Codinus, is the conventional name of an anonymous late 15th-century author of late Byzantine literature.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Arethas of Caesarea</span> Byzantine theologian (860–939)

Arethas of Caesarea was Archbishop of Caesarea Mazaca in Cappadocia early in the 10th century, and is considered one of the most scholarly theologians of the Greek Orthodox Church. The codices produced by him, containing his commentaries are credited with preserving many ancient texts, including those of Plato and Marcus Aurelius' "Meditations".

George of Pisidia was a Byzantine poet, born in Pisidia. As an important early poet of Byzantine literature, his work "contributed a great deal to the formation of many of the main features of Byzantine poetry".

Hesychius of Jerusalem, also spelt Hesychios and also known as Hesychius the Priest, was a Christian priest and exegete, active during the first half of the fifth century. Nothing certain is known as to the dates of his birth and death (450s?), or, indeed concerning the events of his life. Bearing as he does the title πρεσβύτερος "priest", he is not to be confused with Bishop Hesychius of Jerusalem, a contemporary of Gregory the Great.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eustathius of Thessalonica</span> 12th-century Byzantine scholar and bishop

Eustathius of Thessalonica was a Byzantine Greek scholar and Archbishop of Thessalonica and is a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church. He is most noted for his stand against the sack of Thessalonica by the Normans in 1185, contemporary account of the event, for his orations and for his commentaries on Homer, which incorporate many remarks by much earlier researchers.

Eutychius of Alexandria was the Melkite Patriarch of Alexandria. He is known for being one of the first Christian Egyptian writers to use the Arabic language. His writings include the chronicle Nazm al-Jawhar, also known by its Latin title Eutychii Annales.

Oecumenius is the name under which are transmitted several commentaries in Greek on the New Testament. It now appears that these were not all written by the same person nor in the same period.

George Metochites was an archdeacon in Constantinople during the 1270s and early 1280s, and an important, fervent supporter of the Union of the Greek and Latin Churches that was agreed to at the Second Council of Lyons (1274).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Severian of Gabala</span>

Severian, Bishop of Gabala in Syria, was a popular preacher in Constantinople from around 400 until 404. He became the enemy of John Chrysostom and helped condemn him at the Synod of the Oak.

References

  1. Latino Latini, Epistolae..., vol. 2, p. 116.

Bibliography