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The Cult of Saints in Late Antiquity


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


Greek inscription on a boundary stone of a church dedicated to a saint *Theodore (presumably the soldier and martyr of Amaseia and Euchaita, S00480). Found at Fa‘loūl near Apamea on the Orontes (central Syria). Probably late antique.

Evidence ID

E01640

Type of Evidence

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

+ ὅρο[ι]
τοῦ ἁ-
γίου
Θεοδ-
ώρου

'+ Boundaries (of the sanctuary) of Saint Theodore.'


Text:
IGLS IV, no. 1570bis.

Cult Places

Cult building - independent (church)

Non Liturgical Activity

Awarding privileges to cult centres
Seeking asylum at church/shrine

Source

A stone. There is no published description of the object.

First published by René Mouterde in 1955, based on a copy made by Jean Lauffray at the village of Fa‘loūl.


Discussion

The inscription marked the boundaries of the asylum zone or of an estate of a church or monastery, dedicated to a certain Theodore. This is almost certainly Theodore, the soldier and martyr of Euchaita in Helenopontus, northeast Asia Minor (S00480).

Though this inscription does not say so explicitly, boundary stones were usually bestowed upon sanctuaries by emperors.


Bibliography

Edition:
Jalabert, L., Mouterde, R., Mondésert, Cl., Inscriptions grecques et latines de la Syrie, vol. 4: Laodicée, Apamène (BAH 61, Paris: Librairie orientalise Paul Geuthner, 1955), no. 1570bis.

Further reading:
Peña, I., Lieux de pèlerinage en Syrie (Milan: Franciscan Printing Press, 2000), 19, 26.

Trombley, F.R.,
Hellenic Religion and Christianization c. 370-529, vol. 2 (Leiden, New York, Cologne: Brill, 1994), 301.

Reference works:
Bulletin épigraphique (1956), 325.


Record Created By

Paweł Nowakowski

Date of Entry

18/06/2016

Related Saint Records
IDNameName in SourceIdentity
S00480Theodore, soldier and martyr of Amaseia and EuchaitaΘεόδωροςUncertain


Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Paweł Nowakowski, Cult of Saints, E01640 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E01640