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Unknown, Easter Chronicle 603.19-604.14

   https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/250

Context

The so-called Easter Chronicle (Chronicon paschale) is a universal history from the Creation down to the later reign of Heraclius, when it was composed, based on an amalgam of biblical, Christian, and secular sources. While the work shows a particular interest in the dating of religious festivals, it contains a wealth of historical and geographic information. Like other chronographic works in the Byzantine tradition—John Malalas before and Theophanes the Confessor and George Syncellus after—the Easter Chronicle is organized annalistically with successive entries by year. In this passage, the author conflates two Samaritan revolts, one in 484 C.E. under Zeno concentrated at Neapolis and one in 556 C.E. under Justinian concentrated at Caesarea Maritima.

Text

Ἐν τοῖς χρόνοις τούτοις πρόφασιν λαβόντες οἱ ἐκ τοῦ ἔθνους τῶν Σαμαρειτῶν ἐν Παλαιστίνῃ ἐτυράννησαν, καὶ ἔστεψαν λῄσταρχον, ὀνόματι Ἰουστασᾶν, Σαμαρείτην. καὶ εἰσῆλθεν ἐν Καισαρείᾳ, καὶ ἐθεώρησεν ἱππικόν, καὶ πολλοὺς ἐφόνευσεν ἡγεμονεύων τῆς Παλαιστίνης. ἔκαυσεν δὲ καὶ τὴν ἐκκλησίαν τοῦ ἁγίου Πρόβου ὁ αὐτὸς Ἰουστασᾶς ἐπὶ Τιμοθέου ἐπισκόπου Καισαρείας. καὶ εὐθέως ὁ δοὺξ Παλαιστίνης Ἀσκληπιάδης ἦλθεν μετὰ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ βοηθείας, ὡς λῃστοδιώκτης, ὁ ἀξιωματικὸς Καισαρείας, μετὰ τῶν Ἀρκαδιανῶν, καὶ ὁρμήσας κατ’ αὐτοῦ Ἰουστασᾶ συνέβαλεν αὐτῷ, καὶ ἀπεκεφαλίσθη ὁ αὐτὸς Ἰουστασᾶς, καὶ ἐπέμφθη ἡ κεφαλὴ αὐτοῦ μετὰ τοῦ διαδήματος αὐτοῦ τῷ βασιλεῖ Ζήνωνι. ὁ δὲ βασιλεὺς Ζήνων εὐθέως ἐποίησε τὴν συναγωγὴν αὐτῶν τὴν οὖσαν εἰς τὸ καλούμενον Γαργαρίδην εὐκτήριον οἶκον μέγαν τῆς δεσποίνης ἡμῶν τῆς θεοτόκου καὶ ἀειπαρθένου Μαρίας, ἀνανεώσας καὶ τὸν οἶκον τοῦ ἁγίου Προκοπίου, ποιήσας διάταξιν μὴ στρατεύεσθαι Σαμαρείτην, δημεύσας τοὺς εὐπόρους αὐτῶν. καὶ ἐγένετο φόβος καὶ εἰρήνη. 1

Textual Note

Ed. Dindorf 1832

Translation

[484 C.E.] In these times the people of the Samaritan race in Palestine seized a pretext and rebelled, and crowned a bandit chief, the Samaritan named Justasas. And he came to Caesarea and watched chariot races and murdered many people while he was ruler of Palestine. The same Justasas also burned the Church of St. Probus when Timothy was bishop of Caesarea. And immediately Asclepiades, dux Palestinae and dignitary of Caesarea, came with his forces as bandit-hunter, together with the Arcadiani. He set out against the same Justasas and engaged with him, and the same Justasas was beheaded and his head was sent along with his diadem to the emperor Zeno. The emperor Zeno immediately made their synagogue, which was in the place called Gargarides, into a great house of prayer for Our Lady the Mother of God and Eternal Virgin Mary. He also renovated (the Church of) St. Procopius, issued an edict that a Samaritan could not hold a military post, and confiscated the property of their wealthy. And there was fear and peace. 2

Translation Note

Rev. from Whitby and Whitby 1989

Works Cited

  • 1 Ludwig August Dindorf and Charles Du Fresne Du Cange, eds., Chronicon paschale, Corpus Scriptorum Historiae Byzantinae (Bonn: Weber, 1832), p: 603.19-604.14.Link to Zotero Bibliographic Record
  • 2 Unknown, Chronicon Paschale, 284-628 AD, trans. Michael Whitby and Mary Whitby, Translated Texts for Historians 7 (Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 1989), p: 95-96, section: 484.Link to Zotero Bibliographic Record
About This Text

 

How to Cite This Entry

Joseph L. Rife, “Unknown, Easter Chronicle 603.19-604.14,” in Caesarea Maritima: A Collection of Testimonia, entry published June 30, 2023, https://caesarea-maritima.org/testimonia/250.

Bibliography:

Joseph L. Rife, “Unknown, Easter Chronicle 603.19-604.14.” 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/250.

About this Entry

Entry Title: Unknown, Easter Chronicle 603.19-604.14

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 editor, “Unknown, Easter Chronicle 603.19-604.14”
  • Joseph L. Rife, entry contributor, “Unknown, Easter Chronicle 603.19-604.14”

Additional Credit:

  • TEI encoding by William L. Potter
  • Electronic text added by Joseph L. Rife
  • Testimonia identified by Joseph L. Rife
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