The Chronicle of Pseudo-Zachariah Rhetor

The Chronicle attributed to Zachariah of Mytilene is one of the most important sources for the history of the church from the Council of Chalcedon in 451 to the early years of the reign of Justinian (527-565). The author who compiled the work in Syriac in A.D. 568/9 drew extensively on the Ecclesiastical History of Zachariah the Rhetor, who later became bishop of Mytilene and ended up giving his name to the whole work. But Zachariah’s Ecclesiastical History, which forms books iii to vi of Pseudo-Zachariah’s work and covers the period from 451 to 491, is just one of a range of sources cited by this later compiler. For the period that follows, he turned to other well-informed sources, which cover both church and secular affairs. His reporting of the siege of Amida in 502-3 clearly derives from an eye-witness account, while for the reign of the Emperor Justinian he offers not only numerous documents, but also an independent narrative of the Persian war, as well as notices on the Nika riot and events in the West.This translation (of books iii-xii) is the first into a modern language since 1899 and is equipped with a detailed commentary and introduction, along with contributions by two eminent Syriac scholars, Sebastian Brock and Witold Witakowski.

“... I would recommend this book very highly to those interested in Christian history or those who are wishing to investigate every nuance of the history of the Later Roman Empire, and I would like to put on record my thanks to LUP for making this volume available.”

Geoffrey GREATREX. The Chronicle of Pseudo-Zachariah Rhetor. Church and War in Late Antiquity. Translated from Syriac and Arabic Sources by Robert R. PHENIX and Cornelia B. HORN, with Introductory Material by Sebastian BROCK and Witold WITAKOWSKI (= Translated Texts for Historians, 55). Liverpool, University Press, 2011, XIV-562 p., cartes [ISBN 978-1-84631-494-0] Two Early Lives of Severos, Patriarch of Antioch. Translated with an Introduction and Notes by Sebastian BROCK and Brian FITZGERALD (= Translated Texts for Historians, 59), Liverpool, University Press, 2013, XI-175 p., 2 cartes [ISBN 978-1-84631-883-2] 1. Le titre "Chronique du Pseudo-Zacharie le Rheteur" designe une compi-lation historique confectionnee par un moine anonyme de la region d'Amida (auj. Diyarbakir, Turquie) en 568/569. Cette oeuvre qui, en realite, tient plus de l'his-toire ecclesiastique que de la chronique, etait constituee a l'origine de 12 livres in-corporant des ecrits de nature diverse: - Les livres I-II proposent une serie de recits legendaires et historiques, parmi les-quels figurent les versions syriaques de l'histoire apocryphe de Joseph et Aseneth (cf. BHG 178), du bapteme de l'empereur Constantin (BHO 1069; cf. BHG 1628- 1630f), de l'Invention des reliques de S. Etienne le Protomartyr (BHO 1087 a et b; cf. BHG 1648x et non 1648 comme indique p. 81), et de la Legende des sept dor-mants d'Ephese (BHO 1012; cf. BHG 1593-1599b). Comme il arrive bien souvent, ces versions transmettent un etat de texte plus ancien que celui conserve dans la langue grecque originale. - Les livres III-VI (consacres aux regnes des empereurs Marcien, Leon, Zenon et Basiliscus) reproduisent en l'abregeant succinctement une version syriaque de l'His-toire ecclesiastique (perdue en grec) de Zacharie de Mytilene. - Les livres VII-IX couvrent les regnes d'Anastase et de Justin, ainsi que celui de Justinien jusqu'a l'an 536/7, avec une evocation du siege d'Amida (502/3). - Les livres X (conserve de maniere fragmentaire), XI (perdu) et XII (egalement fragmentaire) sont supposes evoquer la seconde partie du regne de Justinien. L'auteur de ce miscellanee est conventionnellement denomme le Pseudo-Zacharie, du fait que Michel le Syrien et Barhebraeus attribuerent a tort l'ensemble de la com-pilation a Zacharie le Rheteur, auteur d'une Histoire ecclesiastique (precisement transmise dans les livres III-VI) et futur titulaire du siege episcopal de Mytilene, un ecrivain dont il sera question ci-apres. La chronique, editee au siecle dernier par Brooks dans la serie du Corpus scrip-torum christianorum Orientalium (nos 87-88 = Script. Syr. III.5-6, Louvain, 1924), constitue donc une source capitale, certes d'origine anti-chalcedonienne, pour tous ceux qui s'interessent a l'histoire de l'empire byzantin entre les annees 440 et le milieu du VIe siecle. Nul doute que la traduction anglaise proposee par R. R. Ph. et C. B. H. remplacera la venerable traduction latine de Brooks. On remarquera toutefois que les textes qui ne relevent pas de l'histoire au sens strict (c'est-a-dire ceux contenus dans le livre Ier et au debut du deuxieme) font seulement l'objet d'un simple resume. L'ensemble est assorti d'une annotation abondante, tenue a jour dans une "accompanying webpage" /~greatrex/zach.html). Huit cartes et plusieurs index completent l'ouvrage. 2. A Beyrouth, tandis qu'il y etudiait le droit, Zacharie s'etait lie d'amitie avec Severe, qu'il avait croise un an plus tot a Alexandrie. C'est a son instigation que Severe se convertit au christianisme dans les annees 488-490. Le destin separa les deux compagnons: Zacharie entama une brillante carriere d'avocat qui le con-duisit a Constantinople - ce qui lui valut d'etre appele "le Rheteur" ou encore "le Scholastique" -, tandis que Severe se fit moine a Maiuma, avant de devenir patri-arche d'Antioche en 512. Fervent opposant au concile de Chalcedoine, Severe dut abandonner son siege en 518 a l'avenement de l'empereur Justin, et se refugia en Egypte. Fin 535 ou debut 536, a l'invitation de Justinien, qui s'efforcait de ramener les miaphysites a l'orthodoxie, Severe arriva a Constantinople et entra en commu-nion avec le patriarche nouvellement installe, Anthime. La chose deplut au pape Agapet, qui, apres avoir fait deposer Anthime, convoqua a Constantinople un sy-node, qui anathematisa ce dernier ... et Severe, lequel se reempereur Constantin (BHO 1069; cf. BHG 1628- 1630f), de l'Invention des reliques de S. Etienne le Protomartyr (BHO 1087 a et b; cf. BHG 1648x et non 1648 comme indique p. 81), et de la Legende des sept dor-mants d'Ephese (BHO 1012; cf. BHG 1593-1599b). Comme il arrive bien souvent, ces versions transmettent un etat de texte plus ancien que celui conserve dans la langue grecque originale. - Les livres III-VI (consacres aux regnes des empereurs Marcien, Leon, Zenon et Basiliscus) reproduisent en l'abregeant succinctement une version syriaque de l'His-toire ecclesiastique (perdue en grec) de Zacharie de Mytilene. - Les livres VII-IX couvrent les regnes d'Anastase et de Justin, ainsi que celui de Justinien jusqu'a l'an 536/7, avec une evocation du siege d'Amida (502/3). - Les livres X (conserve de maniere fragmentaire), XI (perdu) et XII (egalement fragmentaire) sont supposes evoquer la seconde partie du regne de Justinien. L'auteur de ce miscellanee est conventionnellement denomme le Pseudo-Zacharie, du fait que Michel le Syrien et Barhebraeus attribuerent a tort l'ensemble de la com-pilation a Zacharie le Rheteur, auteur d'une Histoire ecclesiastique (precisement transmise dans les livres III-VI) et futur titulaire du siege episcopal de Mytilene, un ecrivain dont il sera question ci-apres. La chronique, editee au siecle dernier par Brooks dans la serie du Corpus scrip-torum christianorum Orientalium (nos 87-88 = Script. Syr. III.5-6, Louvain, 1924), constitue donc une source capitale, certes d'origine anti-chalcedonienne, pour tous ceux qui s'interessent a l'histoire de l'empire byzantin entre les annees 440 et le milieu du VIe siecle. Nul doute que la traduction anglaise proposee par R. R. Ph. et C. B. H. remplacera la venerable traduction latine de Brooks. On remarquera toutefois que les textes qui ne relevent pas de l'histoire au sens strict (c'est-a-dire ceux contenus dans le livre Ier et au debut du deuxieme) font seulement l'objet d'un simple resume. L'ensemble est assorti d'une annotation abondante, tenue a jour dans une "accompanying webpage" /~greatrex/zach.html). Huit cartes et plusieurs index completent l'ouvrage. 2. A Beyrouth, tandis qu'il y etudiait le droit, Zacharie s'etait lie d'amitie avec Severe, qu'il avait croise un an plus tot a Alexandrie. C'est a son instigation que Severe se convertit au christianisme dans les annees 488-490. Le destin separa les deux compagnons: Zacharie entama une brillante carriere d'avocat qui le con-duisit a Constantinople - ce qui lui valut d'etre appele "le Rheteur" ou encore "le Scholastique" -, tandis que Severe se fit moine a Maiuma, avant de devenir patri-arche d'Antioche en 512. Fervent opposant au concile de Chalcedoine, Severe dut abandonner son siege en 518 a l'avenement de l'empereur Justin, et se refugia en Egypte. Fin 535 ou debut 536, a l'invitation de Justinien, qui s'efforcait de ramener les miaphysites a l'orthodoxie, Severe arriva a Constantinople et entra en commu-nion avec le patriarche nouvellement installe, Anthime. La chose deplut au pape Agapet, qui, apres avoir fait deposer Anthime, convoqua a Constantinople un sy-node, qui anathematisa ce dernier ... et Severe, lequel se refugia a nouveau en Egypte, ou il mourut en 538, age de 70 ans environ. Justinien confirma les deci-sions du synode et fit bruler les ecrits de Severe, provoquant de ce fait la damnatio memoriae de l'homme et de son oeuvre dans l'Eglise grecque. Lorsqu'il acceda a la dignite patriarcale, Severe dut faire face a un pamphlet l'accusant d'avoir participe a des sacrifices paiens lorsqu'il etudiait a Beyrouth. Sa defense fut assuree par Zacharie, avec qui il serait, suppose-t-on, reste en contact: ce dernier, que Justinien installera sur le siege episcopal de Mytilene vers 530, redi-gea une apologie, ou il evoque le genre de vie mene par son condisciple a Beyrouth, ainsi que le cheminement de Severe vers l'episcopat. C'est ce texte, conserve en version syriaque (BHO 1060) et improprement qualifie de Vie, qui est ici traduit par S. B. d'apres l'edition de Kugener (Patrologia Orientalis 2, fasc. 1, Paris, 1907). Comme on l'aura remarque, la composition de Zacharie ne couvre pas toute la vie de Severe. Les biographies integrales en l'honneur de celui que les Coptes, les Syriens et les Ethiopiens honorent comme saint, ne manquent pas. La plus ancienne d'entre elles, attribuee erronement dans les manuscrits a Jean bar Aphtonia, fonda-teur du monastere de Qenneshre (+ 537), constitue le second texte retenu dans la presente publication. Cette veritable Vie de saint, composee en grec entre 538 et 543, mais accessible elle aussi dans la seule version syriaque (BHO 1061), est tra-duite par B. F. d'apres l'edition du meme Kugener, parue dans PO 2, fasc. 3 cette fois. Deux autres textes, pour lesquels on dispose d'une traduction anglaise recente, ont ete laisses de cote: la Vie (cf. BHO 1062) habituellement attribuee a Athanase, patriarche anti-chalcedonien d'Antioche (594-631/2), dont la version arabe vient d'etre editee par Y. N. Youssef (PO 49, fasc. 4, Turnhout, 2004), et le poeme sy-riaque (BHO vacat) compose par Georges, dit "l'eveque des Arabes" (+ 724) et publie par K. E. McVey (CSCO, 530-531 = Script. Syr. 216-217, Louvain, 1993). La Vie ou homelie en l'honneur de Severe par Cyriaque de Tagrit, reperee par Voobus dans le ms. Chicago, Oriental Institute A. 12.008, attend toujours les hon-neurs d'une premiere publication. La lecture de ces deux early Lifes, abondamment annotees, constitue un excel-lent complement aux monographies recemment consacrees par P. Allen (Severus of Antioch [= The Early Church Fathers]..., Londres, 2004) et F. Alpi (La route royale: Severe d'Antioche et les Eglises de l'Orient [= Bibliotheque archeologique et historique, 188], Beyrouth, 2009) a cet incontournable personnage de l'actualite ecclesiastique au tournant du VIe siecle. X. LEQUEUX One of the main factors which have restricted study of the Late Roman Empire has been the nature of the sources. Fragmented, confused, brief, and often in languages - in this case Syriac - known only to a few specialists, the sources have either lacked reliable translations, or the translations themselves were produced a long time ago and they have now reached a price far beyond that of mere mortals. Yet recently the tide has turned. Specialist printers, a major example being Liverpool University Press (LUP), appear to have made it their task to translate as much primary source material as possible concerning the Late Empire into English. Their latest offering is 'The Chronicle of Pseudo-Zachariah Rhetor' (PZ), translated by Robert R. Phenix and Cornelia B. Horn with contributions from Sebastian B. Brock and Witold Witakowski, all edited by Geoffrey Greatrex. The fact that it has taken the concerted efforts of five people to translate Books 3-12 of PZ demonstrates the enormity and complexity of the task. Pseudo-Zachariah is the name given to an unknown writer who used the work of Zachariah of Mytilene as the basis for his own work. Although the original book by Zachariah has been lost, the work has to some degree survived in large part in the writings of PZ. As it contains much that is valuable concerning both the religious and the political period it covers, PZ is a valuable primary source for students of the Late Empire. The book is split into two main sections. The first is the "Introduction". Coming in at 92 pages, the introduction is almost a book in its own right. However, once the reader delves into this section it quickly becomes apparent why this chapter is so long. It picks apart the work of PZ, introducing Zachariah himself and his works, before discussing the relationship between the original work and the manuscript of PZ. It then moves on to PZ; what little is known or believed about his life and work, and, just as important, the sources other than Zachariah which he used to compile the "Chronicle". The introduction ends with a "Historical Introduction" and the reasons for the exclusion of Books 1 and 2 from the present volume, plus an outline and a few translated snippets from Books 1 and 2 which are "relevant to the rest of the work". The second section of the book contains the translations, which cover the period from the reign of Marcian in the mid-fifth century to the reign of Justinian in the sixth century. Unfortunately, my knowledge of Syriac is, to say the least, minimal, so it is impossible for me to comment on the accuracy of the translations. All that is possible is for me to comment on the layout, the method used in relaying PZ's style, and the readability of the book. On two of these criteria the books rates extremely high, whilst on the third I have one - possibly minor - complaint. Dealing with the negative first, the translated books are, as is usual for this period, divided into many smaller chapters, each of which is numbered in the text by PZ. For example, Book Three, Chapter Two begins: "The second chapter concerns the exile of Dioscorus ... ". My complaint here is two-fold. Firstly, either the Editor, the Translators or the Publisher has decided not to include a numbered prefix at the start of these chapters. This means that, in order for the reader to work out where they are in the book, they have to continually find the starts of the chapters and read the first sentence. In itself, this is not too problematic and is merely a minor irritation. However, and again as is usual for such translations, long chapters are subdivided for ease of reference, in this case with the use of letters - for example, iii, 1k (Book Three, Chapter One, Paragraph "k"). When attempting to find specific paragraphs the lack of a clearly-numbered prefix becomes extremely annoying, especially as the inclusion of a clearly-labelled prefix would have rendered finding any reference simple. Instead, readers have to flick backwards and forwards through the surrounding pages in an attempt to find either "iii.1a" or "iii.2a" in order to correctly identify the passage in question. Although this may seem a minor problem, it does mean that using the book as a reference tool is made a lot harder than was necessary. It should be noted, however, that Professor Greatrex is aware of the problem and is considering modifying the situation should the book go to another edition. Having covered the negative aspect, it is possible to turn to the positive features of the book. With reference to the book's readability, it is simply superb. The layout and translation are clear, even though at times the contents can be a little confusing, largely due to the high number of names that PZ introduces to the reader. Further, although the book is very heavily annotated, the quality and precision of these notes add to the utility of the book far beyond what may have been expected. With regards to the style, which is explained in the Introduction, all of the experts involved in this translation need to be paid the highest compliments possible. PZ writes in a manner specific to his time, but unfortunately it is difficult to translate his words and tone accurately into modern English. The translators have used the simple method of directly translating the words of PZ but of using additional words and phrases in modern English to clarify the meaning, keeping these in brackets so that the translation, whilst readable, still retains the unique voicing of the original. Only two other factors need to be brought to the attention of the potential reader. One is that this book is not a straightforward history of the period in question. It is an Ecclesiastical History, and although there are sections of the book, such as the Siege of Amida in Book 7, which are highly detailed political and military accounts, the non-ecclesiastical information often takes the form of asides and comments only included where these impinge upon the history of the Church. A reader expecting a detailed overview of, for example, the wars against the Persians is going to be disappointed. On the other hand, for those interested in Ecclesiastical history this book is almost certainly compulsory reading, covering as it does the religious controversies which raged from the mid-fifth to the early-sixth century. And even though it does not include a large number of detailed accounts of non-Ecclesiastical affairs, there is still much in the book that can be used to either support or counter the details given in other historical works, for example the Histories of Procopius. The second factor is highly relevant in the period of drastic economic conditions prevalent at the time of writing this review. The "Chronicle", which weighs in at a hefty 92 pages of Introduction and 366 pages of translation (plus Indices, Glossary, Bibliography, Maps and two Appendices to a total of 562 pages) is currently available for as little as GBP20/$35 in paperback. There is little that can be done other than praise Liverpool University Press, and other like-minded publishers, who are producing such valuable translations at such a low cost. Late in the sixth century CE an otherwise unknown monk evidently in the vicinity of Amida (Diyarbakir) composed a historical work in Syriac in twelve books. While Books 1 and 2 are a miscellaneous assortment mainly of miracle stories and legendary material, the remainder--Books 3 thru 6 covering 450-491 CE, focusing on the Council of Chalcedon in 451 and its consequences in the reigns of Marcian, Leo, and Zeno; Books 7 and 8 on Anastasius and Justin I; and Books 9 thru 12, of which Book 11 is lost and Books 10 and 12 fragmentary, on Justinian and Justin II down to 569 CE--is an important witness to the ecclesiastical controversies and geopolitical upheavals of the period. The work as a whole has been variously called either a chronicle, as here, or an ecclesiastical history. Its author proceeded for the most part by selecting, abridging, and compiling material produced by others, including narrative accounts, letters, and ecclesiastical documents originally written in Greek. Flashes of personality are apparent in occasional first-person asides, although one cannot be certain whether these are the work of the author or his sources: mild complaints about the prolixity of the Greeks (6.7b, 226); expressions of solicitude on behalf of the reader, lest he become bored by the accumulation of too much detail (e.g. 4.6d, 144); or scandalized by the retailing of salacious stories (9.19c, 369). Throughout the work the predominating frame of reference remains the Roman East and its intractable quarrel over the mystery of the Incarnation and the relationship between the divine and human qualities predicated of the figure of Christ. Opposition to the definition of the faith reached at Chalcedon characterizes the author and his intended audience. Vivid accounts of the Sasanian siege of Amida and its aftermath and the founding of the fortress city of Dara in the reign of Anastasius (7.3-5, 232-251) anchor the work as a whole on the frontier in Mesopotamia and offer hints about the author's provenance and sources. Yet interest abides, at the same time, in Justinian's campaign of reconquest in North Africa and Italy as in other events in the West, and the work as we have it concludes with an encyclopedic catalogue of cities and provinces attributed to Ptolemy's Geography (12.7, 431-455). Writing about the city of Rome itself with reference to the vicissitudes of Justinian's long war against the Ostrogoths, our author declares in his own voice: "God is faithful, for he will increase the later prosperity more than the first one, because of the great glory of the dominion of the Romans"--a striking vote of confidence in the future of the Roman state, as the editor remarks (10.16b, 424 with n.187), on the part of such a seemingly marginalized figure. This anonymous, non-Chalcedonian Amidene monk is conventionally known as Pseudo-Zachariah (PZ) because authorship of the entire late sixth- century Syriac chronicle was attributed by the later chronicler Michael the Syrian and others to Zachariah (or Zacharias) Rhetor, also known as Zachariah Scholasticus or Zachariah of Mytilene, a Constantinopolitan lawyer who in the 490s published an anti- Chalcedonian ecclesiastical history in Greek covering the period from the council down to his own day. No longer extant in its original form, it attracted the notice of the sixth-century Chalcedonian church historian Evagrius Scholasticus and served as the basis of books three to six of PZ, as described above. As the impressive list of collaborators--to whom I will refer, for the sake of convenience and with apologies for obscuring individual contributions, simply as Greatrex et al.--suggests, the present volume brings a great deal of expertise as well as painstaking care to the elucidation of a complex and composite text--so much so that the authors' detailed and lengthy introduction (1-92) itself requires a prefatory overview and finding aid (1-2). The volume offers a translation of the critical edition of PZ published with an accompanying Latin translation in the Corpus Scriptorum Christianorum Orientalium (CSCO) series by E. W. Brooks in 1919-1924. There are prior translations into German, by K. Ahrens and G. Kruger, and into English, by F. J. Hamilton and the same E. W. Brooks, both of which happened to be published in 1899. The Hamilton-Brooks translation (HB) is in the public domain and, as Greatrex et al. acknowledge (viii), readily available online. One routinely finds it referenced in Anglophone scholarship down to the present day, [1] and Greatrex et al. follow HB in omitting the mostly unhistorical material appearing in books one and two. [2] It is possible to wonder, therefore, whether there is a market for a new English translation and how it improves upon its predecessor. Showing is sometimes more illustrative than telling, and so let me reproduce--without insisting upon their representativeness of the works as a whole--the two translations' respective versions of PZ's account of the enormously consequential embassy undertaken by Pope Agapetus to Constantinople in 536 (9.19d). This western intervention had been set in motion by Ostrogothic alarm at the prospect of Justinian's imminent invasion of Italy, and it coincided with mounting concern among the Chalcedonian hierarchy in the East over solidifying non-Chalcedonian influence at court. Anthimus, recently (and uncanonically) elevated to the patriarchate of Constantinople from the see of Trebizond, was perceived to be increasingly indifferent to Chalcedon and aligned with two of the leading non-Chalcedonian figures at the time, the newly elected Patriarch of Alexandria, Theodosius, and Severus of Antioch, who had been persuaded not long before to accept an imperial invitation to the capital. Bishop of Antioch from 512 until 518 and the subject of a Life- -written by his fellow-student Zachariah Rhetor--that is itself extant only in a Syriac translation, Severus was the leading theologian of what would become by the end of the sixth century, in spite of imperially-directed attempts at compromise, a schismatic miaphysite church. Greatrex et al. join with contemporary practice in frowning upon the term "Monophysite." In 451 the Council of Chalcedon defined the union of Christ's divine and human natures in one person or hypostasis; in contrast to this dyophysite Christology, which they were unwilling to distinguish from the Nestorianism condemned by the council, Severan miaphysites identified the divine nature in Christ with his hypostasis while professing his complete humanity and the corruptibility of his body prior to the Resurrection, distancing themselves from Eutychianism and the aphthartodocetism of Julian of Halicarnassus. The increasingly anti-Chalcedonian tenor of the reign of Anastasius, 491-518, was met, upon Justin's accession in 518, by a pro- Chalcedonian reaction, resulting notably in Severus' deposition; Justinian struggled throughout his long reign, 527-565, to conciliate firmly Chalcedonian sentiments in the western churches while formulating a Christology that might reconcile the differences between Chalcedonians and non-Chalcedonians in the East. Some suggestion of the involuted politics of the period is offered by the fact that in 536 Zachariah Rhetor is attested, now as the bishop of Mytilene on Lesbos, participating in the non-ecumenical synod at Constantinople that condemned Severus and his followers, as a consequence of which Justinian proscribed their writings. These developments were precipitated, PZ reports, when the Chalcedonian Patriarch of Antioch, Ephrem of Amida, dispatched emissaries who conveyed his misgivings about Anthimus to Agapetus in Rome: [HB, pp. 267-68] These men also accordingly came to Rome to Agapetus, and they delivered the epistle and were received; and the man was pleased with their epistle, in which he found agreement with his opinions. And he came with them to Constantinople in the month of March in the year fourteen; and Severus was there, and Anthimus was chief priest. And the whole city was disturbed at the arrival of Agapetus; and the earth with all that is upon it quaked; and the sun began to be darkened by day and the moon by night, while ocean was tumultuous with spray (?) from the 24th of March in this year till the 24th of June in the following year fifteen. And Agapetus, when he appeared before the king, had a splendid reception from him, because he spoke the same language and was chief priest of the country of Italy, which had been conquered and brought into subjection to him. And he was instructed in the outward words of Scripture but did not understand its meaning; and he held an ignoble opinion upon the Incarnation of Jesus, our Lord Christ, God the Word, and he would not consent to call the Virgin Mary the Theotokos, and divided the unity into two natures, since he held the priority of the conception of the babe, like those of the school of Diodorus and Nestorius. And he abstained from communion with Anthimus and Severus, and they yet more from communion with him; and one of them he called an adulterer and the other a Eutychianist; and he perverted the love of the king towards them and made him hostile to them; and he drove them from the city. And Anthimus and Severus and Theodosius of Alexandria made union with one another in epistles, which we have set down below; and Anthimus and Severus left the city to live each of them in hiding wherever was convenient for him. [Greatrex et al., pp. 369-71] Agapetus, gave him the letters, and were received. [Agapetus] was pleased with their letters, in which he found agreement with his inclination. He came with them to Constantinople in the month of March in [indiction year] fourteen, while Severus was there, and [while] Anthimus was the head of the priests. The whole city was disturbed, and the earth with all that is upon it shook at the arrival of Agapetus. The sun began to become dark at daytime, and the moon by night, while the ocean was stormy with spray from the 24th of the same month of this year until the 24th of June of the following [indiction] year fifteen. When Agapetus appeared before the emperor, he was received by him magnificently, because he [spoke] the same language and was the chief of the priests of the region of Italy, which had been conquered and subjugated to [Justinian]. He was instructed in the form of the word of Scripture, but its meaning he did not understand, and he held an injurious opinion concerning the embodiment of Jesus, our Lord, the Christ, God the Word; he did not consent to call the virgin Mary "Birthgiver of God," and he divided the unity into two natures because he maintained the priority of the conception of the infant, like those [of the opinion] of Diodore and Nestorius. He abstained from communion with Anthimus and Severus, and they even more from [communion with] him. One of them he called an adulterer and the other a Eutychian, and he changed the love of the emperor towards them and set him against them in a disputation, and [Justinian] drove them out from the city. Anthimus, Severus, and Theodosius of Alexandria became united with one another in the letter that we have copied out below, and from then on Anthimus and Severus departed from [Constantinople] to live in hiding, each one of them in the place that was suitable for him. Substantively there is not very much that distinguishes one translation from the other, and in general Greatrex et al. seem to signal more concurrences with HB than departures. This is not at all to cast aspersions upon the meticulousness or the originality of the translators, and cumulatively their choices mark a distinct improvement upon HB. In particular, their habit of supplying the antecedents of pronouns and other clarifying details is welcome as an aid to comprehension, and close attention to the original language is paid throughout and effectively communicated to the reader. Once the contribution represented by an exhaustive level of annotation and commentary, supplemented by maps, concordances, and appendices, is added to the account, the indispensability of the volume becomes clear. HB print seven footnotes to the passage cited above, comprising about a dozen lines of type. These identify the indicated indictional years as 536 and 537 CE, respectively (267 nn.3, 6; cf. Greatrex et al. 370 n.306 fin.); discuss the restoration of material lacking in the principal manuscript, BL Add. 17,202, from another witness, BL Add. 12,154, and Michael the Syrian (267 nn.4, 7; 268 n.2; cf. Greatrex et al. 370 n.304); credit Hamilton for his conjectural translation of the phrase "tumultuous with spray" (267 n.5, echoed by Greatrex et al.'s "stormy with spray"; cf. 370 n.305); and notice a parallel with Evagrius (268 n.1; cf. Greatrex et al. 371 n.311). In their corresponding translation Greatrex et al. print nine notes (370-371 nn.303-311), including those already mentioned, comprising 44 lines of type occupying roughly a half of each page. Among other topics, these reference some eighteen works of modern scholarship dating from 1939; offer detailed cross-references to a range of ancient sources; reconstruct the chronology of Agapetus' embassy and assess PZ's accuracy; evaluate Justinian's motives and psychology in light of the unfolding military situation in Italy; explicate the charge of "adulterer" leveled by Agapetus against Anthimus (he had spurned his original see for another); and discuss the circulation of the correspondence establishing communion among the three anti- Chalcedonians, which PZ goes on to reproduce in chapters 20-26. It should be clear, then, that Greatrex et al. accomplish their purpose of making PZ's work more accessible to scholars and students (viii), in no small part by distinguishing so carefully PZ's work from that of his namesake. The incredible level of detail and high standard of editing are characteristic of the Translated Texts for Historians (TTH) series more generally. [3] -------- Notes: 1. E.g. Volker L. Menze, Justinian and the Marking of the Syrian Orthodox Church (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2008), passim. As the author observes, "a thorough study of (Ps.-)Zachariah Rhetor is a desideratum" (113 n.24). 2. Greatrex et al. do however translate certain chapters in books one and two (75-92), as well as two fragmentary chapters from the later books (10.16, 12.7) that appear in neither Ahrens-Kruger nor Hamilton- Brooks. 3. I noticed very few typos for a work of such size and complexity. Let me note here that Geoffrey Greatrex has established a web page /~greatrex/zach.html with additional notes and bibliography on the project. ... Greatrex et al. accomplish their purpose of making PZ's work more accessible to scholars and students, in no small part by distinguishing so carefully PZ's work from that of his namesake. The incredible level of detail and high standard of editing are characteristic of the Translated Texts for Historians (TTH) series more generally.

Sebastian Brock is Professorial Fellow at Wolfson College, Oxford.

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