Evidence ID
E00785
Type of Evidence
Inscriptions - Graffiti
Archaeological and architectural - Cult buildings (churches, mausolea)
ἀρχιστράτηγε, στρατηγὲ τõν ἀγγέλον,
βοήθη τὸν δοῦλον σου Ἠοάννη
'O commander-in-chief, captain of the angels, help your servant Ioannes!'
Text: I. Ephesos, no. 4145.
Non Liturgical Activity
Prayer/supplication/invocation
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesOther lay individuals/ people
Source
One of numerous graffiti scratched in plaster on the eastern wall of the southern nave in the church of *Mary in Ephesos. Letter height 0.018-0.025 m.Discussion
The inscription is an invocation of *Michael the Archangel by an otherwise unknown Ioannes. The archangel is called with his two usual by-names, ἀρχιστάτηγος (commander-in-chief) and στράτηγος τῶν ἀγγέλων (captain of the angels), that derive from the function he plays in the Heavenly Host.This kind of inscription is undatable but it is unlikely to occur before the 6th c.
Bibliography
Edition:Die Inschriften von Ephesos, no. 4145.
Keil, J., Reisch, E., Knoll, F. (eds.), Forschungen in Ephesos, vol. 4/1: Die Marienkirche in Ephesos (Vienna: Selbstverlag des ÖAI Wien, 1932), no. 45.
Record Created By
Pawel Nowakowski
Date of Entry
15/10/2015
ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00181 | Michael, the Archangel | ἀρχιστράτηγος, στράτηγος τῶν ἀγγγέλων | Certain |
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Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Pawel Nowakowski, Cult of Saints, E00785 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E00785