Journal of Byzantine Studies (JOEB)/Jahrbuch der Österreichischen Byzantinistik, volume 71 (2021).

CONTENTS INCLUDE

Byzantine Easter Computi. An Overview with an Edition of Anonymus 892
Fabio Acerbi

The Easter Computus in Par. suppl. gr. 920, dated to year 892, is the earliest known Byzantine Easter Computus that is not embedded in a discursive framework but is a collection of bare procedures and examples. After an outline of the tradition of Easter Computi, I present four approaches to this Computus: an edition of the Greek text that preserves all linguistic features of the original; a faithful translation; a transcription of any pertinent algorithm in a mildly symbolic formalism; and a discursive elucidation of the same algorithm. The symbolic transcriptions will prove more useful in comparing the procedures set out in different Computi than the algebraic formulas usually used to formalize them.

« Dialogus Timothei et Aquilae » (CPG 7794). Une nouvelle histoire du texte / Eine neue Überlieferungsgeschichte / Dialogus Timothei et Aquilae (CPG 7794). A New History of the Transmission of the Text.
Patrick Andrist, Caroline Macé, and Sabine Fahl

Scholarship about the “Dialogus Timothei et Aquilae” has a long history, which is outlined here. The complete Greek manuscript tradition, including some newly discovered manuscripts, is described, together with the Slavonic translation, whose importance for the history and reception of the Greek text is reassessed, taking account of its relationship to the Slavonic chronographic and Paleya traditions.The examination of the Greek tradition and of the Slavonic translation allows us to propose new hypotheses about the history of the text and the origin of the two recensions known to date. A critical edition of three selected passages in both the Greek original and the Slavonic translation is offered here for the first time.

The Sphragistic Images of the Virgin and Saints Portrayed with Their Hands Raised before Their Breast. A Sign of Intercession and Purity
John Cotsonis

This article discusses the relatively rare sphragistic images of the Virgin and various saints depicted with their hands raised before their breast. It outlines their chronological frequencies and percentile values among the corpus of published seals bearing sacred figures. The literature dealing with this Marian iconographic type is also reviewed. An investigation of monastic and homiletical texts reveals that the significance of this gesture of intercession is shared for images of the Virgin and primarily monastic saints based upon their common life of purity. The chronological high points for such sphragistic images are the tenth/eleventh and the eleventh centuries, a period of increased use of sacred figures for seals, reflecting the greater use of intercessory images in the realm of private devotions.

Anspielungen und Missverständnisse. Scholien verstehen und emendieren. Betrachtungen über die moschopouleischen Kommentare zur „Elektra“ des Sophokles vv. 823–825 / Allusions and Misunderstandings: Understanding and emending Scholia. Considerations on the Moschopoulean Comments on Sophocles’ “Electra” vv. 823–825
Andrea Massimo Cuomo

In this article, I am looking into the question of what the scholia on theByzantine triad of Sophocles by Manuel Moschopoulos contain and what understanding and possibly emending them entails.In particular, I consider the comments on Sophocles’ Electra (vv. 823–825), which are preserved in the so-called Moschopoulean manuscripts of Sophocles, and discuss techniques of textual criticism with regard to Scholion Σ_2 for the expressionφαέθων Ἅλιος (vv. 823–824). In the first part, I will briefly describe the context in which these verses are to be found. In the second part, I edit, for the first time, the marginal scholia and the interlinear glossae on these verses with a few notes and(where necessary) translations. I also emphasize the relationships between the Moschopoulean manuscripts of Sophocles.Finally, I examine various literary sources and exegetical material from different eras in order to determine whether the expressionκαὶ ὁ ἕτερος τῶν ἵππων αὐτοῦ, applied to Phaethon in the manuscripts, is justifiable.

Neue Texte zum Computus byzantinischer Zeit im Codex Ambrosianus A 45 sup. Das originale Schreiben des Theophilos von Alexandria zum Ostertermin – Ein ägyptisches Paschalion 475–512 n. Chr. (adaptierte Ostertafel des Kyrill von Alexandria) – Die Trochoi zum Computus-Traktat des Presbyters Georgios / New Texts about the Byzantine Computus in Codex Ambrosianus A45 sup. The Original Letter from Theophilus ofAlexandria on the Easter Date – An Egyptian paschalion 475–512 CE (adapted Easter Table by Cyril of Alexandria) – Thetrochoi of Presbyter George’s Treatise on the Computus
Christian Gastgeber

This paper investigates the computus texts of the Greek 12th-century manuscript A 45 sup of the Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana. Due to its bad state of conservation the manuscript did not attract the interest of researchers on Byzantine Easter calculations until now although it comprises a remarkable collection of the works of various authors and preserves some texts as the sole witness. The most important findings are the original version of the letter by Theophilos of Alexandria to Emperor Theodosius I on the date of Easter, the solar and lunar wheels (trochoi) by the 6th-century author Georgios, presbyter of Constantinople (?), and a paschalion of Egyptian origin which reveals how the lost Easter table by Cyril of Alexandria was composed.

Uno schedarion, due rielaborazioni. Fozio Epistola 94 e Biblioteca 186, 131b.32–40 / One Schedarion, two Revisions
Álvaro Ibáñez Chacón

During his exile, Photios began the composition of his Bibliotheca thanks to the reading-notes (schedaria) on the books read by him and his reading circle, because some of his books were burnt in the VIIIEcumenical Council. One of these reading-notes on the Narrationes of Konon was used by Photios for the letter sent to the patrikios Ioannes (Epist. 94). The Bibliotheca and the letter are the only witnesses to the actual knowledge of the Narrationes in Byzantium.

The Use of Oaths in the Conspiracies and Revolts against Andronikos II Palaiologos (1282–1328)
Savvas Kyriakidis

The purpose of this paper is to examine the oaths which were exchanged between leaders and supporters of conspiracies and rebellions against Andronikos II Palaiologos (1282–1328). It investigates the content of these oaths and the ritual swhich were used in order to increase their binding power. It explores the effectiveness of oaths in solidifying alliances and trust between conspirators. It also examines the oaths of loyalty Andronikos II demanded from imperial subjects in response to conspiracies against him and discusses how conspirators justified breaking oaths of loyalty to the emperor. Τhe analysis of these oaths contributes to a better understanding of the organization of conspiracies in the later Byzantine period.

Ein Verkaufskatalog mit griechischen Handschriften aus der venezianischen Werkstatt des Nikolaos Malaxos / A Sales Catalogue of Greek Manuscripts from the Venetian Workshop of Nicolas Malaxos
Teresa Martínez Manzano

In this paper I edit and analyse a Greek document preserved in cod. Marc. lat. XIV 342, 374776. My conclusion is that this document is a sales catalogue of Greek manuscripts that were transcribed in Nikolaos Malaxos’ workshop in Venice or commercialised by him. I also argue that this catalogue is an autograph by Malaxos himself and I suggest that he would use as his trademark the well known Byzantine tetragramma ΙΣ, ΧΣ, Ν, Κ. Furthermore, I explain why this document is kept among the papers of Juan Páezde Castro, cardinal Francisco de Mendoza’s librarian.

Varia Lexicographica III. Neues Material zum byzantinischen und postbyzantinischen Wortschatz / Varia Lexicographica III. New Material on Byzantine and Post-Byzantine Vocabulary
Andreas Rhoby

This article discusses various Greek words, which are attested in lexicographical tools, especially in the Lexikon zur Byzantinischen Gräzität (LBG). However, the present study is much more than a list of Addenda et Corrigenda. On the contrary, it considers the development of Greek vocabulary from Antiquity up to Modern Times and it offers linguistic observations which are missing from the LBGand other dictionaries. The article also stresses that research on (Byzantine) Greek vocabulary needs consideration of nonliterary sources too, especially epigraphy.

The ho Ōn (ὁ ὤν) Inscription in Christ’s Halo
Justin L. Wilson

The present study investigates the spread of the ho Ōn (ὁ ὤν) inscription in Christ’s halo. Developed in the early Palaiologan period, the inscription originated with the liturgy for the Feast of the Transfiguration and was popularized through the theology of light elucidated by Hesychasts. Contextualizing the epigraphic innovation within the wider debates over Hesychast theology, this essay pursues lines of inquiry first proposed by Titos Papamastorakis, who drew attention to the proliferation of this inscription in dome ensembles. The study concludes by discussing the reception of the ho Ōn in the Post-ByzantineGreek and Slavic worlds.