Author:

Keywords:

C16/17/001#54271306

Abstract:

My PhD thesis proposes an investigation of three aspects of a remarkable yet understudied late-antique epistolary corpus—the 2000 letters preserved under the name of Isidore of Pelusium (360-449/450?): the dynamics of the formation of the corpus (a), the difficulties in establishing its historical relevance (b), and the relevance of its threefold reception in Greek, Latin, and Syriac (c). a. This chapter offers a full reexamination of the current theories regarding the formation of the corpus, a critique of what seems to be—somewhat too confidently given the scarcity of the evidence—the consensus, and propose a new model for understanding the dynamics that led to the corpus as we reconstruct it today, in the light of recent studies on ancient epistolary papyri. b. The second part is an investigation of Isidore's network outside Pelusium, as a test case for the historiographical limits of the Isidorian corpus. It thus questions to what extent the historical landmarks which have been considered in past research as established can withstand a critical scrutiny. As such, I am addressing the historical limitations of the corpus by analysing the correspondence of Isidore to some distinguished correspondents of the ecclesiastical and imperial milieu outside Pelusium—emperor Theodosius II, Cyril of Alexandria, bishops Gregory (probably of Nazianzus), Sarapion, Synesius (probably of Cyrene), and Evoptius (of Ptolemais), to priest Didymus (possibly Didymus the Blind), and to deacon Evagrius (of Pontus?). This chapter ultimately proposes a more nuanced perspective on what we can draw historically from the corpus. c. The third line of investigation considers the various aspects of the reception of the corpus. Its Greek transmission, reflected in the large number of extant manuscripts testifies to their widespread and diverse circulation. There are also two interesting Latin manuscripts with a selection of 49 letters, and a number of still unedited Syriac manuscripts. This chapter gathers and analyses the available data and discusses further possible venues of research, in an integrated attempt to address the relevance of the threefold reception of the corpus.