Phocas's Ecphrasis
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Phocas's Ecphrasis
__NOTOC__ John Phokas (, ''Iōánnēs Phōkâs'') or Phocas () was a 12th-century Byzantine pilgrim to the Holy Land. He wrote an account of his travels, the so-called ''Ekphrasis'' or ''Concise Description of the Holy Places'', which has been called "the most elegant of Palestinian pilgrimage accounts". Michael Angold (2016), "The Fall of Jerusalem (1187) as Viewed from Byzantium," in Adrian J. Boas (ed.), ''The Crusader World'' (London & New York: Routledge) pp. 289–308, at 294. Doubt has recently arisen over whether Phokas was in fact the author of the ''Ekphrasis'', which has been re-attributed instead to the John Doukas who went on an imperial mission to the Holy Land in 1177. Little biographical information about Phokas is available. One manuscript of the ''Ekphrasis'' contains a note stating that he was a priest and that his father, a certain Matthew, became a monk on Patmos. According to this marginal note, his trip to the Holy Land took place in either 1177 or 1195. He is ...
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Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th centuryAD, it endured until the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453. The term 'Byzantine Empire' was coined only after its demise; its citizens used the term 'Roman Empire' and called themselves 'Romans'. During the early centuries of the Roman Empire, the western provinces were Romanization (cultural), Latinised, but the eastern parts kept their Hellenistic culture. Constantine the Great, Constantine I () legalised Christianity and moved the capital to Constantinople. Theodosius I, Theodosius I () made Christianity the state religion and Greek gradually replaced Latin for official use. The empire adopted a defensive strategy and, throughout its remaining history, expe ...
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John Chrysostom
John Chrysostom (; ; – 14 September 407) was an important Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of abuse of authority by both ecclesiastical and political leaders, his '' Divine Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom'', and his ascetic sensibilities. He was also the author of '' Adversus Judaeos'' and was strongly anti-Judaism. The epithet (''Chrysostomos'', anglicized as Chrysostom) means "golden-mouthed" in Greek and denotes his celebrated eloquence. Chrysostom was among the most prolific authors in the early Christian Church. He is honored as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran churches, as well as in some others. The Eastern Orthodox, together with the Byzantine Catholics, hold him in special regard as one of the Three Holy Hierarchs (alongside Basil of Caesarea and Gregory of Nazianzus). Along with them and Athanasius of Alexa ...
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12th-century Byzantine Scientists
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sports, where it commonly denotes the first, leading, or top thing in a group. 1 is the unit of counting or measurement, a determiner for singular nouns, and a gender-neutral pronoun. Historically, the representation of 1 evolved from ancient Sumerian and Babylonian symbols to the modern Arabic numeral. In mathematics, 1 is the multiplicative identity, meaning that any number multiplied by 1 equals the same number. 1 is by convention not considered a prime number. In digital technology, 1 represents the "on" state in binary code, the foundation of computing. Philosophically, 1 symbolizes the ultimate reality or source of existence in various traditions. In mathematics The number 1 is the first natural number after 0. Each natural number, ...
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Byzantine Geographers
The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th centuryAD, it endured until the fall of Constantinople to the Ottoman Empire in 1453. The term 'Byzantine Empire' was coined only after its demise; its citizens used the term 'Roman Empire' and called themselves 'Romans'. During the early centuries of the Roman Empire, the western provinces were Latinised, but the eastern parts kept their Hellenistic culture. Constantine I () legalised Christianity and moved the capital to Constantinople. Theodosius I () made Christianity the state religion and Greek gradually replaced Latin for official use. The empire adopted a defensive strategy and, throughout its remaining history, experienced recurring cycles of decline and recovery. It reached its greatest extent un ...
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12th-century Byzantine Writers
1 (one, unit, unity) is a number, numeral, and glyph. It is the first and smallest positive integer of the infinite sequence of natural numbers. This fundamental property has led to its unique uses in other fields, ranging from science to sports, where it commonly denotes the first, leading, or top thing in a group. 1 is the unit of counting or measurement, a determiner for singular nouns, and a gender-neutral pronoun. Historically, the representation of 1 evolved from ancient Sumerian and Babylonian symbols to the modern Arabic numeral. In mathematics, 1 is the multiplicative identity, meaning that any number multiplied by 1 equals the same number. 1 is by convention not considered a prime number. In Digital electronics, digital technology, 1 represents the "on" state in binary code, the foundation of computing. Philosophically, 1 symbolizes the ultimate reality or source of existence in various traditions. In mathematics The number 1 is the first natural number after 0. ...
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Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society
__NOTOC__ The Palestine Pilgrims' Text Society (PPTS) was a text publication society based in London, which specialised in publishing editions and translations of medieval texts relevant to the history of pilgrimage to the Holy Land. Particular attention was given to accounts by pilgrims and other travellers containing geographical or topographical information, as well as those which discussed the manners and customs of the Holy Land. The original narratives were written in a variety of languages, including Greek, Latin, Arabic, Hebrew, Old French, Russian, and German language">German. The Society first started publishing its work in 1884, and continued for eleven years, publishing a total of twelve volumes. In 1896, these works were transferred to the Palestine Exploration Fund, for distribution to the members of the PPTS. The editions remain valuable and are frequently cited in scholarly works. A version is also available as ''The Library of the Palestine Pilgrims' Text Soci ...
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Phokas (Byzantine Family)
Phokas () or Phocas ( Latinized), feminine form Phokaina or Phocaena (, ), was the name of a Byzantine aristocratic clan from Cappadocia, which in the 9th and 10th centuries provided a series of high-ranking generals and an emperor, Nikephoros II Phokas (963–969). Its members and their clients monopolized the high-command positions of the Byzantine army for much of the 10th century and led the successful Byzantine offensive against the Arabs in the East. As one of the leading families of the Anatolian military aristocracy, the Phokades were also involved in a series of rebellions that laid claim to power and challenged the emperors at Constantinople. Their power was eventually broken by Basil II (r. 976–1025), and the family declined in importance after the 11th century. History Origin and early members The Byzantine official and historian Michael Attaleiates, writing in the second half of the 11th century, claimed to have come across the genealogical tree of the family in an ...
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Constantine Manasses
Constantine Manasses (; ) was a Byzantine chronicler who flourished in the 12th century during the reign of Manuel I Komnenos (1143–1180). He was the author of a ''Synopsis Chronike'' (Σύνοψις Χρονική, "summary chronicle"), which narrates history from the creation of the world to the end of the reign of Nikephoros III Botaneiates (1081), sponsored by Irene Komnene, the emperor's sister-in-law. It was probably written around 1150, shortly before Irene's death. It consists of about 7000 lines in political verse. It obtained great popularity and appeared in a free prose translation; it was also translated into Bulgarian in the 14th century. This translation, which includes several miniatures, was commissioned by tsar Ivan Alexander between 1340 and 1345. An Arabic translation written in 1313 is now hosted at the British Library.
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Achilles Tatius
Achilles Tatius (Greek: Ἀχιλλεὺς Τάτιος, ''Achilleus Tatios'') of Alexandria was a Roman-era Greek writer of the 2nd century AD whose fame is attached to his only surviving work, the ancient Greek novel, or ''romance'', '' The Adventures of Leucippe and Clitophon''. Life and minor works Eustathius of Thessalonica (in his commentary on Homer's ''Odyssey'' 14.350), the ''Suda'', Photius, in his '' Bibliotheca'' (cod. 87), and the manuscript tradition all affirm he lived and wrote in Alexandria. The papyrus, and linguistic evidence demonstrate he flourished early in the 2nd century AD. Suda preserves a tradition that "He became at last a Christian and a bishop." There are literary parallels between Leucippe and Clitophon and the Christian Acts of Andrew, a roughly contemporary composition. The ''Suda'' also ascribes to the author a work on the sphere (in Greek ), a fragment of which, professing to be an introduction to the ''Phaenomena'' of Aratus, may ...
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Josephus Flavius
Flavius Josephus (; , ; ), born Yosef ben Mattityahu (), was a Roman–Jewish historian and military leader. Best known for writing '' The Jewish War'', he was born in Jerusalem—then part of the Roman province of Judea—to a father of priestly descent and a mother who claimed Hasmonean royal ancestry. He initially fought against the Roman Empire during the First Jewish–Roman War as general of the Jewish forces in Galilee, until surrendering in AD 67 to the Roman army led by military commander Vespasian after the six-week siege of Yodfat. Josephus claimed the Jewish messianic prophecies that initiated the First Jewish–Roman War made reference to Vespasian becoming Roman emperor. In response, Vespasian decided to keep him as a slave and presumably interpreter. After Vespasian became emperor in AD 69, he granted Josephus his freedom, at which time Josephus assumed the Emperor's family name of '' Flavius''. Flavius Josephus fully defected to the Roman side ...
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Bible
The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Koine Greek. The texts include instructions, stories, poetry, prophecies, and other genres. The collection of materials accepted as part of the Bible by a particular religious tradition or community is called a biblical canon. Believers generally consider it to be a product of divine inspiration, but the way they understand what that means and interpret the text varies. The religious texts were compiled by different religious communities into various official collections. The earliest contained the first five books of the Bible, called the Torah in Hebrew and the Pentateuch (meaning 'five books') in Greek. The second-oldest part was a collection of narrative histories and prophecies (the Nevi'im). The third co ...
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Jericho
Jericho ( ; , ) is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, and the capital of the Jericho Governorate. Jericho is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It had a population of 20,907 in 2017. From the end of the era of Mandatory Palestine, the city was Jordanian annexation of the West Bank, annexed and ruled by Jordan from 1949 to 1967 and, with the rest of the West Bank, has been subject to Israeli occupation of the West Bank, Israeli occupation since 1967; administrative control was handed over to the Palestinian Authority in 1994. Jericho is among the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world,Murphy-O'Connor, 1998, p. 288.Freedman et al., 2000, p. 689–671. and it is also the city with the oldest known defensive wall.Michal Strutin, ''Discovering Natural Israel'' (2001), p. 4. Archaeology, Archaeologists have unearthed the remains of more than 20 successive settlements in Jericho, the first of ...
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