Philo, Embassy to Gaius 37.299
https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/1
Context
Philo was a Jewish philosopher and historian who flourished at Alexandria
during the first generations of Roman provincial rule in Egypt. His voluminous writings are
marked by their learning, variety, and fusion of Hellenistic philosophy with biblical
exegesis, particularly his application of the critical strategy of allegoresis. In 40 C.E.,
he joined a diplomatic mission to the emperor Gaius (Caligula) as an advocate for the rights
of the Alexandrian Jewish community after the major wave of riots with the resident Greeks.
In his account of this “embassy” (πρεσβεία,legatio), Philo expresses to
the emperor his concern over preserving the inviolability of the Temple in Jerusalem,
especially against the introduction of foreign cult-images. Here he cites the affair of the
golden shields that the governor Pontius Pilate had dedicated in Jerusalem during the reign
of Tiberius.
Text
ἔχω δέ τι καὶ φιλοτίμημα
αὐτοῦ προσδιηγήσασθαι, καίτοι μυρίων ἀπολελαυκὼς ὅτε ἔζη κακῶν· ἀλλὰ τἀληθὲς φίλον καὶ σοὶ
τίμιον. Πιλᾶτος ἦν τῶν ὑπάρχων ἐπίτροπος ἀποδεδειγμένος τῆς Ἰουδαίας· οὗτος οὐκ ἐπὶ τιμῇ
Τιβερίου μᾶλλον ἢ ἕνεκα τοῦ λυπῆσαι τὸ πλῆθος ἀνατίθησιν ἐν τοῖς κατὰ τὴν ἱερόπολιν Ἡρῴδου
βασιλείοις ἐπιχρύσους ἀσπίδας μήτε μορφὴν ἐχούσας μήτε ἄλλο τι τῶν ἀπηγορευμένων, ἔξω τινὸς
ἐπιγραφῆς ἀναγκαίας, ἣ δύο ταῦτα ἐμήνυε, τόν τε ἀναθέντα καὶ ὑπὲρ οὗ ἡ ἀνάθεσις.
1
Textual Note
Ed. Cohn and Wendland 1902Translation
I can relate one example
of (Tiberius’s) lust after honor, even though I have suffered thousands of hardships when he
was alive; nevertheless, the truth is a dear thing, and worthy of your (sc. Gaius’s)
respect. Pilate was appointed prefect over Judaea from among his lieutenants. This man, not
so much to honor Tiberius as to vex the populace, dedicated gold-covered shields in the
Palace of Herod in the holy city. These bore no shape nor anything other forbidden feature
apart from the requisite inscription, which mentioned two things: the one who made the
dedication, and the one for whom the dedication was made.
2
Translation Note
Trans. J. L. Rife with ref. to Yonge and Scholer 1855Works Cited
- 1 Philo, Philonis Alexandrini opera quae supersunt, ed. Leopold Cohn and Sigofried Reiter, vol. 6 (Berlin: Georg Reimer, 1905), bk: 37, section: 299.
- 2 David M. Scholer, ed., The Works of Philo: Complete and Unabridged in One Volume, trans. Charles Duke Yonge, New, updated edition (Peabody, Massachusetts: Hendrickson Publishers, 2013), p: 784.
How to Cite This Entry
Bianca Gardner et al., “Philo, Embassy to Gaius 37.299,” in Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, entry published June 30, 2023, https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/1.
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Bibliography:
Bianca Gardner et al., “Philo, Embassy to Gaius 37.299.” In Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, edited by Joseph L. Rife., edited by Joseph L. Rife. Caesarea City and Port Exploration Project, 2023. Entry published June 30, 2023. https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/1.About this Entry
Entry Title: Philo, Embassy to Gaius 37.299
Authorial and Editorial Responsibility:
- Joseph L. Rife, general editor, Vanderbilt University
- Joseph L. Rife, editor, Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia
- David A. Michelson, Daniel L. Schwartz, and William L. Potter, technical editors, “Philo, Embassy to Gaius 37.299”
- Bianca Gardner and Joseph L. Rife, entry contributors, “Philo, Embassy to Gaius 37.299”
Additional Credit:
- TEI encoding by William L. Potter
- Testimonium edited by Joseph L. Rife
- Electronic text added by Bianca Gardner
- Testimonia identified by Joseph L. Rife