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The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity


from its origins to circa AD 700, across the entire Christian world


Greek invocation of the God of a saint, whose name is lost, probably *John the Apostle and Evangelist (S00042). Found in the monastery of John the Theologian on Patmos. Possibly late antique or later.

Evidence ID

E01179

Type of Evidence

Inscriptions - Formal inscriptions (stone, mosaic, etc.)

Inscriptions - Inscribed architectural elements

+ κ(ύρι)ε θ(εό)ς τοῦ ἁ[γίου - - -]
Εὐσεβίου κ[- - -]

ΚΕΘC Manganaro, Κ(ύρι)ε θ(εὸ)ς Robert

'+ O Lord, God of Saint [- - - help?] of Eusebios [- - -]'

Text: Manganaro 1963-1964, no. 49.

Non Liturgical Activity

Prayer/supplication/invocation

Protagonists in Cult and Narratives

Other lay individuals/ people

Source

Fragment of a marble plaque. H. 0.18 m; W. 0.3 m; Th. 0.09 m; letter height 0.025 m. Seen and copied in the autumn of 1962 by Giacomo Manganaro in the Monastery of John the Theologian on Patmos.

Discussion

The inscription is the invocation of the God of a saint whose name is lost. This was most probably *John the Evangelist (also venerated as the Theologian). John was said to have been exiled on Patmos during the persecutions of the emperor Domitian and it was believed that he authored the Book of Revelation on the island. He is also frequently mentioned in other (mostly middle Byzantine) inscriptions from the island, see: Manganaro 1963-1964, p. 346. In 1088 the emperor Alexios I Komnenos founded a monastery there, dedicated to John as the Theologian. The date of our inscription is disputable, but as the plaque was cut to be reused in a new structure, we can at least suppose that it predates the construction of the monastery.


Bibliography

Edition:
Manganaro, G., "Le iscrizioni delle Isole Milesie", Annuario della Scuola archeologica di Atene e delle missioni italiane in Oriente, 41-42 (1963-1964), no. 49.

Further reading:
Kiourtzian, G., "Pietas insulariorum", [in:] Eupsychia: mélanges offerts à Hélène Ahrweiler, vol. 2 (Série Byzantina Sorbonensia 16, Paris: Publications de la Sorbonne, 1998), 377.

Reference works:
Bulletin épigraphique (1966), 323.

Images



From: Manganaro 1963-1964, 345.
























Record Created By

Paweł Nowakowski

Date of Entry

10/03/2016

Related Saint Records
IDNameName in SourceIdentity
S00042John, the Apostle and EvangelistUncertain
S01744Saints, name lost or very partially preservedCertain


Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Paweł Nowakowski, Cult of Saints, E01179 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E01179