The ''Chronicon'' (''Chronicle'') or ''Temporum liber'' (''Book of Times'') was a universal chronicle by

Jerome Jerome (; ; ; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was an early Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, theologian, translator, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome. He is best known ...

written in

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

around the year 380. One of the earliest attempts of universal history; this is a

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

translation and expansion of the Greek chronological tables in the second part of the '' Chronicon'' of Eusebius, written about 50 years earlier. Despite numerous errors taken from Eusebius, and some of his own, Jerome produced a valuable work of universal history, if only for the example which it gave to such later chroniclers as Prosper of Aquitaine,

Cassiodorus Magnus Aurelius Cassiodorus Senator (c. 485 – c. 585), commonly known as Cassiodorus (), was a Christian Roman statesman, a renowned scholar and writer who served in the administration of Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths. ''Senato ...

, and Victor of Tunnuna to continue his annals. In conformity with the Eusebius, Jerome dated Creation to 5200 BC. The Chronicle includes a chronology of the events of

Greek mythology Greek mythology is the body of myths originally told by the Ancient Greece, ancient Greeks, and a genre of ancient Greek folklore, today absorbed alongside Roman mythology into the broader designation of classical mythology. These stories conc ...

based on the work of

Hellenistic In classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Greek history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the death of Cleopatra VII in 30 BC, which was followed by the ascendancy of the R ...

scholars such as Apollodorus, Diodorus Siculus, and Eusebius. While many of the earlier sections contain legendary characters and events that are not necessarily historically factual (the kings of Assyria, for example, are solely based on Greek legends), there may be scattered remnants of historical events of late

Mycenean Greece Mycenaean Greece (or the Mycenaean civilization) was the last phase of the Bronze Age in ancient Greece, spanning the period from approximately 1750 to 1050 BC.. It represents the first advanced and distinctively Greek civilization in mainlan ...

from entries of the 12th century BC (See the historicity of the ''Iliad''; Jerome's date for the capture of

Troy Troy (/; ; ) or Ilion (; ) was an ancient city located in present-day Hisarlik, Turkey. It is best known as the setting for the Greek mythology, Greek myth of the Trojan War. The archaeological site is open to the public as a tourist destina ...

of 1183 BC corresponds remarkably well with the destruction layer of Troy VIIa, the main candidate for the historical inspiration of legendary Troy, dated to ).

Homer Homer (; , ; possibly born ) was an Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Despite doubts about his autho ...

himself is dated to 940 BC, while modern scholarship usually dates him after 800 BC. The chronicle contains several regnal lists, including the rulers of

Assyria Assyria (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , ''māt Aššur'') was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization that existed as a city-state from the 21st century BC to the 14th century BC and eventually expanded into an empire from the 14th century BC t ...

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

and

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. Each year in the table corresponds to a whole calendar year, meaning that years are counted inclusively. Eusebius attempted to synchronize every year with a regnal year; while the specific years do not always match reality, the overall chronology, specially closer to Eusebius' own time, is often accurate. Some of the discrepancies may be explained by the fact that several of the events were originally recorded in different calendars that do not always match perfectly with each other.

Timeline

From Adam until the 14th year and 6th consulate of

Valens Valens (; ; 328 – 9 August 378) was Roman emperor from 364 to 378. Following a largely unremarkable military career, he was named co-emperor by his elder brother Valentinian I, who gave him the Byzantine Empire, eastern half of the Roman Em ...

(AD 378), 5579 years; this places Creation in 5200 BC :From Creation to Abraham, 3184 years :*From Adam to the

Flood A flood is an overflow of water (list of non-water floods, or rarely other fluids) that submerges land that is usually dry. In the sense of "flowing water", the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tide. Floods are of significant con ...

(2957 BC), 2242 years :*From the Flood to

Abraham Abraham (originally Abram) is the common Hebrews, Hebrew Patriarchs (Bible), patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father who began the Covenant (biblical), covenanta ...

(2016 BC), 942 years :*From the reign of Ninus (2058 BC) to Abraham, 43 years :*From the reign of Europs (2037 BC), the 2nd ruler of Sicyon, to Abraham, 22 years :*In the times of Abraham, the Sixteenth Dynasty of Egypt ruled for 190 years :From Abraham to the capture of Troy (26 Assyrian kings), 835 years :* Ninus, son of Belus, reigned 52 years;

Zoroaster Zarathushtra Spitama, more commonly known as Zoroaster or Zarathustra, was an Iranian peoples, Iranian religious reformer who challenged the tenets of the contemporary Ancient Iranian religion, becoming the spiritual founder of Zoroastrianism ...

:* Semiramis, 42 years :*Zameis, 38 years; covenant of Abraham with God (1942 BC) :*Arius, 30 years; birth of

Isaac Isaac ( ; ; ; ; ; ) is one of the three patriarchs (Bible), patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and the Baháʼí Faith. Isaac first appears in the Torah, in wh ...

(1916 BC) :*Aralius, 40 years :*Xerxes Balaneus, 30 years; Inachus of Argos reigned 50 years (1856 BC) :*Armamitres, 38 years; Seventeenth Dynasty of Egypt (1826 BC) :*Belocus, 35 years; birth of Joseph (1765 BC); Ogygian Flood (1757 BC) :*Balaeus, 52 years; Eighteenth Dynasty of Egypt founded by Amosis (1723 BC) :*Altadas, 32 years; Prometheus :*Mamynthus, 30 years :*Magchaleus, 30 years :*Sphaerus, 20 years; birth of

Moses In Abrahamic religions, Moses was the Hebrews, Hebrew prophet who led the Israelites out of slavery in the The Exodus, Exodus from ancient Egypt, Egypt. He is considered the most important Prophets in Judaism, prophet in Judaism and Samaritani ...

(1592 BC) :*Mamylus, 30 years :*Sparetus, 40 years; Deucalian flood (1526 BC) :*Ascatades, 40 years; Moses on Mount Sinai (1515 BC) :*Amynthes, 45 years; birth of

Minos Main injector neutrino oscillation search (MINOS) was a particle physics experiment designed to study the phenomena of neutrino oscillations, first discovered by a Super-Kamiokande (Super-K) experiment in 1998. Neutrinos produced by the NuMI ...

, Rhadamanthus, and Sarpedon (1445 BC) :*Belochus, 25 years :*Bellepares, 30 years; Perseus, Nineteenth Dynasty of Egypt (1375 BC) :*Lamprides, 32 years; Tros founds

(1365 BC) :*Sosares, 20 years; Pegasus :*Lampares, 30 years; Europa, temple at

Eleusis Elefsina () or Eleusis ( ; ) is a suburban city and Communities and Municipalities of Greece, municipality in Athens metropolitan area. It belongs to West Attica regional unit of Greece. It is located in the Thriasio Plain, at the northernmost ...

:*Pannias, 45 years;

Miletus Miletus (Ancient Greek: Μίλητος, Mílētos) was an influential ancient Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia, near the mouth of the Maeander River in present day Turkey. Renowned in antiquity for its wealth, maritime power, and ex ...

; Argonauts; Oedipus; Gideon :*Sosarmus, 19 years; Hercules, Priam,

Theseus Theseus (, ; ) was a divine hero in Greek mythology, famous for slaying the Minotaur. The myths surrounding Theseus, his journeys, exploits, and friends, have provided material for storytelling throughout the ages. Theseus is sometimes desc ...

, the war of the

Seven against Thebes ''Seven Against Thebes'' (, ''Hepta epi Thēbas''; ) is the third play in an Oedipus-themed trilogy produced by Aeschylus in 467 BC. The trilogy is sometimes referred to as the ''Oedipodea''. It concerns the battle between an Argive army, led by ...

(1234 BC) :*Mithraeus, 27 years; Hercules creates the

Olympic games The modern Olympic Games (Olympics; ) are the world's preeminent international Olympic sports, sporting events. They feature summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a Multi-s ...

(1212 BC) :*Tautanes, 32 years; Trojan War (1191–1182 BC),

Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt The Twentieth Dynasty of Egypt (notated Dynasty XX, alternatively 20th Dynasty or Dynasty 20) is the third and last dynasty of the Ancient Egyptian New Kingdom period, lasting from 1189 BC to 1077 BC. The 19th and 20th Dynasties together constitut ...

(1182 BC) :From the capture of Troy until the first Olympiad, 406 years. :From Ninus to Sardanapalus: 36 Assyrian kings in 1240 years (2060–820 BC) :From the first Olympiad, to the 14th year of Valens, 1155 years (776 BC–AD 378) :From the founding of Rome to the 14th year of Valens, 1131 years (753 BC–AD 378), 240 years under kings, 464 years under consuls, 427 years under caesars and augusti. :*1st

Olympiad An olympiad (, ''Olympiás'') is a period of four years, particularly those associated with the Ancient Olympic Games, ancient and Olympic Games, modern Olympic Games. Although the ancient Olympics were established during Archaic Greece, Greece ...

(776 BC), in the times of Jonathan of Israel and Bocchoris of Egypt :*6th Olympiad; founding of Rome (755 BC), 7th Olympiad:

Roman Kingdom The Roman Kingdom, also known as the Roman monarchy and the regal period of ancient Rome, was the earliest period of Ancient Rome, Roman history when the city and its territory were King of Rome, ruled by kings. According to tradition, the Roma ...

(752 BC)Eusebius had previously stated that Rome was founded in the 7th Olympiad
''Chronographia'' 110
, but this is somewhat changed in the ''Canons''. :*8th Olympiad; Assyrian captivity (747 BC) :*47th Olympiad;

Babylonian captivity The Babylonian captivity or Babylonian exile was the period in Jewish history during which a large number of Judeans from the ancient Kingdom of Judah were forcibly relocated to Babylonia by the Neo-Babylonian Empire. The deportations occurred ...

(591 BC) :*65th Olympiad;

Darius the Great Darius I ( ; – 486 BCE), commonly known as Darius the Great, was the third King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire, reigning from 522 BCE until his death in 486 BCE. He ruled the empire at its territorial peak, when it included much of West A ...

(520 BC) :*67th Olympiad;

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...

(502 BC) :*111th Olympiad;

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon (; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), most commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia (ancient kingdom), Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip ...

(330 BC) :*181st Olympiad;

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caesar's civil wa ...

(44 BC) :*194th Olympiad; birth of

Jesus Jesus (AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many Names and titles of Jesus in the New Testament, other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Chris ...

(2 BC); he dies in the 202nd Olympiad (AD 31) :*289th Olympiad; Battle of Adrianople, Emperor Valens is defeated by the Goths (AD 378)

Notes

References

* Richard W. Burgess, ''Studies in Eusebian and post-Eusebian Chronography'', Stuttgart (1999). * Malcolm Drew Donalson, ''A Translation of Jerome's Chronicon With Historical Commentary'', Mellen University Press (1996). . * J. K. Fotheringham, ''The Bodleian Manuscript of Jerome's Version of the Chronicle of Eusebius Reproduced in Collotype''. Oxford: Clarendon (1905) * J. K. Fotheringham, ''Eusebii Pamphili Chronici canones''. London: Humphrey Milford (1923). * R. Helm, Eusebius Werke 7: ''Die Chronik des Hieronymus'', Die Griechischen Christlichen Schriftsteller der Ersten Jahrhunderte 47 (1956). * Benoît Jean-Jean & Bertrand Lançon, ''Saint-Jérôme, Chronique : Continuation de la Chronique d'Eusèbe, années 326-378'', Brest, (2004), . *Josef Karst, ''Eusebius Werke, 5. Band : Die Chronik aus dem Armenischen übersetzt''. Die Griechischen Christlichen Schriftsteller der Ersten Jahrhunderte 20 (1911). * Alden A. Mosshammer, ''The Chronicle of Eusebius and the Greek Chronographic Tradition'', Lewisburg/London (1979), . * Alfred Schoene, ''Eusebi Chronicorum Libri''. 2 vols. Berlin: Weidmann (1875). * Robert Graves, ''The Greek Myths'' (1955), * Alden A. Mosshammer, ''The Chronicle of Eusebius and Greek Chronographic Tradition'', Bucknell University Press (1979), * J. C. Stobart, ''The Glory that Was Greece'' (1911), * Michael Wood (1998), ''In Search of the Trojan War'', {{ISBN, 0-520-21599-0 * Michael Wood (2005), ''In Search of Myths and Heroes'' http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/greeks/jason_01.shtml

External links

2005 online edition
(tertullian.org) *

*

*

*
part 2
Xerxes to AD 379 *
Merton manuscript
facsimile of Merton College ms.
Chronological tables
4th-century history books Chronicles Classical Latin literature Greek literature (post-classical) Hellenistic historiography 4th-century Christian texts Patristic historical writings Works by Jerome 4th-century books in Latin References on Greek mythology

Timeline

See also

Notes

References

External links