John of Ephesus, in his Ecclesiastical History (III.6.13), records how in the year 577, after an unsuccessful siege of the city of Tella de-Mawzelat/Constantia in Mesopotamia, the Persian troops destroyed the church of *Mary (Mother of Christ, S00033) located outside the city. Written in Syriac in Constantinople, 580/581.
E02058
Literary - Other narrative texts (including Histories)
John of Ephesus
John of Ephesus, Ecclesiastical History, Book III 6.13:
ܗ̣ܘ ܗܟܝܠ ܐܕܪܡܗܢ ܡܪܙܒܢܐ ܪܒܐ ܕܦܖ̈ܣܝܐ܆ ܗ̇ܘ ܕܡܠܠ ܒܫܝܢܐ ܥܡ ܐܝܙܓ̈ܕܐ ܕܖ̈ܗܘܡܝܐ܆ ܡܚܕܐ ܕܦܣܩܘܢ ܕܠܝܬ ܫܝܢܐ ܬܘܒ܆ ܡܢ ܚܡܬܗ ܕܐܨܛܚܝ ܡܢ ܐܝܙܓ̈Jܕܐ ܟܕ ܡܬܡܪܡܪ܆ ܟܢܫ ܚܝܠܐ ܘܢܦܩ ܘܚܪܒ ܘܐܘܩܕ ܠܓܡܪ ܠܟܠܗ ܒܝܬ ܕܖ̈ܝܐ ܘܒܝܬ ܬ̈ܠܝܐ ܘܒܝܬ ܬܠܒ̈ܫܡܝܐ܆ ܘܒܝܬ ܖ̈ܝܫܥܝܢܝܐ ܩܘܖ̈ܝܐ ܬܩ̈ܝܦܬܐ ܘܥ̈ܕܬܐ ܘܕܝܖ̈ܬܐ ܘܟܠܗ ܐܬܪܐ ܐܚܪܒ ܘܐܘܩܕ ܘܩܛܠ ܘܐܬܐ ܥܠ ܬܠܐ܆ ܘܐܡܪ ܠܗܘܢ. ܕܐܫܠܡܘܢ ܠܢ ܡܕܝܢܬܐ܆ ܕܠܐ ܠܡ ܢܗܘܐ ܠܟܘܢ܇ ܡܕܡ ܕ ܗܘܐ ܠܕܖ̈ܝܐ ܘܬܐܒܕܘܢ. ܕܐܝܟܐ ܠܡ ܐܝܬܝܗܘܢ ܐܝܙܓ̈ܕܝܟܘܢ ܕܡܓܙܡܝܢ ܗܘܘ ܥܠܝܢ. ܢܐܬܘܢ ܠܡ ܗܫܐ ܢܦܩܘܢ ܠܩܘܒܠܢ. ܗܢܘܢ ܕܝܢ ܒܢ̈ܝ ܬܠܐ ܐܡܪܘܢ ܠܗܘܢ. ܕܚܢܢ ܗܫܐ ܕܢܫܠܡ ܠܟܘܢ ܠܐ ܡܫܟܚܝܢܢ. ܡܛܠ ܕܩܒܠܢܢ ܐܓܖ̈ܬܐ܆ ܕܢܦܝܩ ܕܢܐܬܐ ܦܛܪܝܩܝܘܤ ܝܘܣܛܝܢܝܢܘܤ܆ ܘܐܝܬ ܥܡܗ ܫܬܝܢ ܐ̈ܠܦܝܢ ܠܢܓܒܖ̈ܕܘ. ܘܐܢ ܠܟܘܢ ܗܫܐ ܡܫܠܡܝܢ ܚܢܢ܆ ܐܬܐ ܗ̣ܘ܆ ܘܡܚܕܐ ܡܓܡܪ ܠܢ ܡܢ ܐܪܥܐ. ܘܗܟܢܐ ܗܦܟܘ ܡܢܗܘܢ܆ ܟܕ ܐܘܩܕܘ ܠܗܝܟܠܐ ܪܒܐ ܘܬܩܝܦܐ ܕܝܠܕܬ ܐܠܗܐ ܕܠܒܪ ܡܢܗ̇ ܕܡܕܝܢܬܐ.
‘Now, the great marzban of the Persians Adarmahan, who spoke about peace with the Roman ambassadors, as soon as they had decided that there wouldn’t be peace again, embittered and angered that he had been reviled by the ambassadors, gathered an army and went out and laid waste and burned down completely the whole regions of Dara, Tella, Tell Beshme and Reshayna, [including] big villages and churches and monasteries. And he laid waste the whole land, while burning down and killing. And he came to Tella and said to them, “Hand over the city to us, so that what happened to the people of Dara will not happen to you and you will not perish. Where are your ambassadors, who threatened us? Let them come now and go out against us!” But the people of Tella said to them, “We cannot surrender to you now, for we have received letters that the patricius Justinianus went out to come [here] and there are sixty thousands of Langobards with him. And if we will surrender to you now, he will come and at once wipe us out from [the face of] the earth.” And so, they [the Persians] turned back from them, having burned down the great and big church of the Mother of God outside of the city.’
Text: Brooks 1935-1936, vol. 1, 308-9.
Translation: Sergey Minov.
Cult building - independent (church)
Rejection, Condemnation, SceptisismDestruction/desecration of saint's shrine
Protagonists in Cult and NarrativesForeigners (including Barbarians)
Source
The Ecclesiastical History of John of Ephesus originally consisted of three parts, but only the third part, covering the period from 571 to 588, has been preserved almost in its entirety. It survives in one single manuscript, BL Add. 14640 (7th century); additionally, chapters III 6.5-7 are also found in Vat. Syr. 154 (10th century).John of Ephesus (507-c. 589) was a miaphysite, hailing from Amida in Roman Mesopotamia; his mother tongue was Syriac. He became a monk and was eventually ordained as miaphysite bishop of Ephesus in the late 550s, yet his main residence from around 540 was always Constantinople.
He started writing the third part of his History in the early 570s in Constantinople, whilst in prison during the persecution of the miaphysites under Justin II. This third part consists of six books which John continually updated by adding new chapters up to his death – a method which explains the many repetitions found in it. The work is incomplete and lacks a final redaction. Nevertheless, it is one of the most important sources for the reigns of Justin II (565-578), Tiberius (578-582) and Maurice (582-602). Despite its title, it not only deals with ecclesiastical events, but also includes numerous accounts of events at the imperial court and of warfare against the Persians and in the Balkans. Furthermore, it is a prime source for some non-Roman communities who lived at the borders of the empire and for their relations with Constantinople. These include Arabs, Armenians, Nubians, Persians, Slavs and Turks.
The third part of John's Ecclesiastical History is not rich in information on the cult of saints: we have just two entries from it in the CSLA database - this one, and an important entry relating to Sergios' church at Rusafa being used as a neutral safe venue for a meeting between Gahassinid and Byzantine commanders: E02073.
Discussion
On this episode of Roman-Persian military history, see Greatrex & Lieu 2002, pp. 160, 288, n. 51. "A raid into Osrhoene, ravaging the area around Constantia, Resaina and Tell Beshme, was undertaken by Adarmahan in 577; the attackers drew off, however, when the people of Constantia warned of the imminent arrival of more forces under Justinian."This passage testifies to the existence of a major church dedicated to Mary outside the city of Tella in the second half of the sixth century.
Bibliography
Editions:Brooks, E.W., Iohannis Ephesini historiae ecclesiasticae pars tertia. 2 vols (Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium, Scriptores Syri III.3; Louvain: L. Durbecq, 1935-1936). (With translation into Latin)
A new edition of the text, by Nikolai Kiel, is currently available online (and will, in time, also be available in print): https://pta.bbaw.de/de/reader/42f98b11/pta0200.pta001.pta-syc1
Translations:
Payne Smith, R. (trans.), The Third Part of the Ecclesiastical History of John Bishop of Ephesus (Oxford University Press 1860). (English translation)
Schönfelder, J.M., Die kirchen-geschichte des Johanes von Ephesus aus dem Syrischen übersetzt. Mit einer Abhandlung über die Tritheïten (Munich: Lentner, 1862). (German translation)
Both Payne Smith's and Schönfelder's translations can be accessed at http://syri.ac/johnofephesus
Further reading:
Destephen, Sylvain, Prosopographie chrétienne du Bas-Empire, t. 3: Prosopographie du diocèse d’Asie (325-641) (Paris, 2008), 494-519
Greatrex, G., and Lieu, S.N.C. (eds.), The Roman Eastern Frontier and the Persian Wars. Part 2: AD 363–630. A Narrative Sourcebook (London / New York: Routledge, 2002).
van Ginkel, J., John of Ephesus: A Monophysite Historian in Sixth-Century Byzantium (PhD thesis, Groningen, 1995)
Silvio Roggo, Sergey Minov
11/07/2025
| ID | Name | Name in Source | Identity | S00033 | Mary, Mother of Christ | ܝܠܕܬ ܐܠܗܐ | Certain |
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Please quote this record referring to its author, database name, number, and, if possible, stable URL:
Silvio Roggo, Sergey Minov, Cult of Saints, E02058 - http://csla.history.ox.ac.uk/record.php?recid=E02058