Greek and Latin Narratives about the Ancient Martyrs (Oxford Early Christian Texts)

Author: Rebillard, Éric

Brand: Oxford University Press, USA

Edition: First Edition

Number Of Pages: 412

EAN: 9780198739579

Release Date: 23-05-2017

Package Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.1 x 1.2 inches

Languages: English

Binding: hardcover

Details: Greek and Latin Narratives about the Ancient Martyrs provides a collection, with facing-page translations, of Greek and Latin Christian martyr narratives dating from the first four centuries CE. While Herbert Musurillo's authoritative collection The Acts of the Martyrs (1972) aimed to gather the most 'authentic' and 'reliable' accounts of early Christian martyrdom, Eric Rebillard argues that modern scholarship instead calls for texts which attest to the contexts in which the memories of the martyrs were constructed. As such, this extensive volume provides a textual basis for the study of martyr narratives without making assumptions about their date of composition or their authenticity. It focuses on the ancient martyrs executed before 260, and examines which of their texts was known to Eusebius or to Augustine. Introductions describe the hagiographical dossier of each martyr with crucial information about the manuscript tradition of the different texts and provide a terminus ante quem for their composition based only on external evidence.