Jews In the Roman and Byzantine Empire

Roma İmparatorluğu hakimiyeti sırasında İskenderiye’de yaşayan Philo (yak. M.Ö. 25-M.S. 50), Büyük Herodes, İsa ve Paulus gibi tarihi kişilerle çağdaştır. Kendisinin zengin bir aileye mensup olduğu ve iyi bir eğitim aldığı bilinmekle birlikte, mitzvot hükümlerini yerine getiren dindar bir Yahudi olduğu kabul görmektedir. Sadece Helence bilmesi dolayısıyla kutsal metin yorumlarında Septuaginta’yı kullanan Philo, Eski Ahit ile Helen felsefesini uzlaştırmaya ve onların aynı öze sahip olduklarını göstermeye çalışmıştır. Zira kendisine göre Musa ilk filozoftur ve başta Platon olmak üzere Helen filozofları, felsefeyi ve hikmeti Musa’dan öğrenmişlerdir. Ana önermesi bu hipotez üzerine oturan Philo, Helenistik Yahudilik adıyla anılan oluşumun da en önemli temsilcisi haline gelmiştir. Ayrıca eklektik bir yazar niteliği taşıyarak, felsefe, din ve siyaset içerikli çok sayıdaki kitabı aracılığıyla sadece kendi çağdaşları ya da Hıristiyanlar arasında değil modern araştırmacılar arasında da ilgi odağı olmayı başarmıştır. Bu bağlamda Dursun Ali Aykıt’ın 2011 yılında yayımlanan Hıristiyanlığın Öncüsü Olarak İskenderiyeli Philo adlı eseri söz konusu ilginin Türkçe’deki bir yansıması olarak ortaya çıkmaktadır.

The late Antique mosaic of Orpheus decorated a small room, approximately 18 m2 in area, connected with two even smaller ones, in 4 m2 and the other 2 m2 in area, belonging most likely to a small funerary chapel (or tomb) discovered in the ancient necropolis by the Damascene Gate in Jerusalem; it was discovered in 1901 by H. Vincent.
The author proposes a new interpretation of the iconographic program of the Orpheus myth used by wealthy Christians in a sepulchral context (see Olszewski M.T. «Orphée endeuillé de la mosaïque funéraire de Jérusalem», in Rey Mimoso-Ruiz, B. ed., Actes du colloque «Orphée entre Soleil et ombre», à l’Institut Catholique de Toulouse du 16 au 17 novembre 2007, Inter Lignes, numéros spécial – mars 2008, pp. 205-214, 226). He also proposes a new interpretation of the role Orpheus played in Roman funerary art, concentrating on the importance of the play on words and the visual and textual punning that was popular in ancient art and especially in funerary art. He rejects the popular interpretation of Orpheus as Christ in the Roman catacombs and proposes to interpret the image as that of Orpheus, bard of the departed souls, without any ahistorical connection with Christ. The program of the mosaic from Jerusalem is thus explained as a play on the words Orpheus-orphanos and Chiron (Chi-Rho) and Pan [Παν(τοκράτωρ)].The frequently used Christian funerary formula of resting in peace, Christ or the Lord corresponds
perfectly with the mood created around the mythical bard.
Orpheus’ universal role as singer and musician moving even the most stony of hearts, extolling the beloved departed, is absolutely justified in the context of a 6th-century Christian tomb. Orpheus is a popular and neutral figure, meaning that in effect it does not constitute a threat to Christian theology and can be tolerated by the educated Christians of Jerusalem.

The paper aims to study Hadrian’s reputation as a ruler on the move in Latin, Greek, Syriac, and Byzantine histories and chronicles from the third to the twelfth century. The paper also assesses how early Roman, late antique and medieval historians’ opinions on mobile and sedentary modes of governing influenced Hadrian’s portrait. In addition, it will study how his attitudes towards Jews and Christians were depicted in conjunction with his journeys.

A Chronology for events leading to the creation of Christianity with Historical Background: The Long War: Beginning with the Jewish changeover from the Seleucid leadership to the Hasmonean leadership (circa 135 BCE). The War Between The Hasmonean Leadership & The Pharisees (to circa 50 BCE, Julius Caesar). The Sadducees, Herodians & The Caesars (circa 30 BCE-6 BCE). The Roman Committee To Create A New Religion (Under Tiberius, circa 14-37 CE).

The book is a voluminous study (330 pages) that follows the history of the presence and life of Jews and Jewish tribes in pre-Islamic Arabia in the 5th, 6th and 7th centuries, the appearance and teachings of Hazreti Muhammad, and his religious, ideological, political and military contacts and relations with the Jews of Medina (Yathrib), Kaibar, Fadak, Kamusa, Wadi al-Qura, Tema. A part of the book is dedicated to the complete content of the Qur'an text, citing and quoting all parts of the text in the Qur'an which refer to the Jews. And that is 29 per cent of the total content and text of the Qur’an. Through the chapters in the book that talk about the Arabs, Muhammad, the Qur'an, Islam, etc... the book introduces us to mutual historical contacts, relations, influences, interconnections, but also the opposites of Jews and Arabs, as well as their religious teachings expressed in Judaism (and Christianity) and Islam. A particularly interesting part is an introduction with characters of common prophets and angels in Judaism (and Christianity) and Islam. Very interesting, and certainly less known, are the fact that out of a total of 25 prophets in Islam mentioned in the Qur'an, 22 of them are taken from the Jewish and Christian Bible and biblical history, and 15 of them are Jews! Each of them, as well as the angels mentioned in the Qur'an, is given a special description and explanation. An important fact, certainly is, that most of the authors and data sources used in the content of this book are Arabic, Persian, Indian, Pakistani, Turkish ... so primarily Muslim-Islamic authors, historians, writers, and theologians. The foreword to the book was written by Muharem Bazdulj.

Mit dem Kaiseraugster Menora-Ring – einem der wenigen römischen Judaica Mitteleuropas aus einem beobachteten archäologischen Fundzusammenhang – liegt nun ein Beleg für die Anfänge jüdischer Ansiedlungen im aschkenasischen Raum römischer Zeit vor. Die Kontinuität jüdischer Anwesenheit von der Römerzeit ins Mittelalter in Mitteleuropa – von vielen Forscherinnen und Forschern bislang abgelehnt – wird damit etwas plausibler.
Teil I Der Menora-Ring von Kaiseraugst:
Die Präsentation des Menora-Rings, seiner Technologie und Typologie sowie der dargestellten Symbole und seines Kaiseraugster Umfeldes des 4. Jahrhunderts. Beleuchtung der Frage, ob der Kaiseraugster Ring ein singuläres Zeugnis ist oder ob ihm aus den benachbarten Grenzprovinzen des römischen Reiches weitere Dokumente für die Anwesenheit von Juden zur Seite gestellt werden können.
In Teil II Zur Anwesenheit von Juden zwischen Britannien und Pannonien in römischer Zeit:
Versuch aus dem Katalog ein historisches Fazit zur Präsenz von Juden im umschriebenen Gebiet zu ziehen, wobei auch ein Ausblick ins Frühmittelalter gewagt wird.
Teil III Katalog der römischen Judaica zwischen Britannien und Pannonien:
Dieser Beitrag versteht sich als Ergänzung zum Werk R. Hachlilis «Ancient Jewish Art and Archaeology in the Diaspora» von 1998. Der Katalog der jüdischen Archaeologica, Inschriften, Münzen und Texte des Gebiets von England bis Ungarn stützt sich auf bereits veröffentlichte Objekte und Quellen. Lediglich der Katalog der Fingerringe und Gemmen mit der Darstellung des siebenarmigen Leuchters greift über die Grenzen des umschriebenen Arbeitsgebiets hinaus und versucht die ganze Diaspora sowie das Heilige Land zu erfassen, um die unmittelbaren Vergleichsstücke zum Kaiseraugster Menora-Ring möglichst vollständig zusammenzutragen.
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The Kaiseraugst menorah ring – one of only a small number of Roman Central European Judaica from a documented archaeological context – provides us with evidence of the earliest presence of Jews in the Ashkenazic region during the Roman period. This makes the continuity of the Jewish presence in Central Europe from the Roman period into the Middle Ages – which has so far been rejected by many researchers – a bit more plausible.
Part I: The menorah ring of Kaiseraugst
The presentation of the menorah ring, its technique and typology as well as the symbols depicted, but also its 4th century Kaiseraugst background, all form the contents of the first part of this work. Exploration of the question whether the Kaiseraugst ring is a singular witness or whether it could be joined by additional evidence of the presence of Jews from the neighbouring border provinces of the Roman Empire.
Part II On the presence of Jews between Britain and Pannonia during the Roman period:
Attempt to draw an historical conclusion on the Jewish presence in the outlined region from based on the findings of the catalogue; their presence in Early Middle Age Europe is also touched upon.
Part III: Catalogue of the Roman Judaica between Britain and Pannonia
This catalogue is seen as contribution to Rachel Hachlili’s work “Ancient Jewish Art and Archaeology in the Diaspora” from 1998. It catalogues Jewish archaeological finds, inscriptions, coins and texts from the region extending from England to Hungary and is strictly based on objects and sources already published. The catalogue of finger rings and gems depicting the seven-branched candelabrum extends beyond the boundaries of the research area outlined and attempts to incorporate the entire Diaspora as well as the Holy Land in order to collect the immediate reference finds of the Kaiseraugst menorah ring as comprehensively as possible.

In 398 CE the western Roman emperor Honorius issued a law condemning attempts by Jewish town councillors in southern Italy to seek exemptions from compulsory public services. While this law is usually read for the light it sheds on the legal situation of Jews in the Christian Roman Empire, it is argued here that the ruling is also concerned with another issue. It was issued three years after the division of the Roman Empire into two halves, East and West, each with its own administrative structures, and with its emperor issuing laws for territories under his jurisdiction. Honorius notes that Italian Jews claimed exemptions in accordance with recent eastern legislation but rejects its validity for the West. This indicates how tensions between East and West caused difficulties for Italian Jews who, because of their pan-Mediterranean connections, did not fit easily into the empire's administrative frameworks.

The article focuses on the author's research on the chronographical background of the Zodiac Mosaic Calendar in Synagogue at Hammath-Tiberias. He researched to find the origin of mosaic decoration, the twelve zodiac sign, the four seasons, and Helios, which was found in synagogues in two parts of Palestine, Galilee and Judah. The chronograph of the mosaic art was extensively debated. The author further studied the history of Palestine Jews in the 4th century. Most of the work was done during the period of Hillel II.
The author concludes that the mosaic from the Stratum IIa synagogue with the Zodiac Calendar was executed in the time of Hillel II, who said to have died around 365 CE. He proposes the new date of the execution of the Zodiac Mosaic from Hammat-Tiberia (Stratum IIa) after the earthquake in 363, that is, in 364 or 365.

Yahudilerin tarihi, her araştırmacı açısından, ilgi çekici olmuştur. Bunun altında, birçok ülkeye dağılmaları, çeşitli baskılar görmeleri ve gittikleri yerlerde daima önemli bir konuma gelmeleri gibi çeşitli nedenler yatmaktadır. Biz de bu çalışmamızda Bulgaristan’daki Yahudilerin tarihini ele alacağız. Ne yazık ki ülkemizde bu konuda birkaç çalışmadan başka yapılan araştırma bulunmamaktadır. Çalışmamızın boyutu dolayısı ile gerekli yerlerde örnekler verilerek çok fazla detaya girilmeyecektir.
  İlk bölümde, Yahudilerin, Bulgaristan topraklarına ilk yerleşiminden başlanarak, Osmanlı’nın bölgeyi fethettiği zamana kadar olan dönem ele alınacaktır. İkinci bölümde, Osmanlı egemenliği altında, Bulgaristan’daki Yahudilerin durumu ve yaşanan tarihi süreç aktarılacaktır. Sonraki bölümde, ikisi de birer dönüm noktası olan, 93 Harbi’nden, 2. Dünya Savaşı yıllarına kadar Yahudilerin, Bulgaristan topraklarındaki yaşamı ile ilgili bilgiler verilecektir. Son bölümde ise 2.Dünya Savaşı yıllarında Yahudilerin durumlarına dair bir tasvir çizilecektir. Her bölüm okuyucu tarafından dikkatle ele alındığında, zihninde Bulgaristan’daki Yahudilerin, tarihi ve yaşadıkları süreçler hakkında genel bir çerçeve oluşacaktır.

Lycia is best known among Christians worldwide as the place where Paul stopped at the harbors of Patara and Myra, and as the home of the famous Saint Nicholas. However, the rise of Christianity in Anatolia is built on the foundation of Judaism, and the story of early Judaism in Lycia is little told. This article discusses the rise of Judaism and Christianity and interacts especially with a 2015 article by the historian Julian Bennett. Several of his hypotheses are debatable such as Paul’s visit to Myra on his first Anatolian journey, so a reappraisal of these is done in this article. Bennett also failed to provide a substantive discussion of the Jewish presence in Lycia; that omission is rectified here. Lycia’s most famous early bishops, Methodius of Olympus and Nicholas of Myra, are discussed. The role of these two bishops in the final persecutions of Christians in the late Roman Empire is then evaluated. The article’s chronological scope spans the Hellenistic period through Late Antiquity.

Shchavelev A.S. The Dates of Diplomatic Letters of Hasdai Ibn Shaprut. Vestnik Volgogradskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta. Seriya 4, Istoriya. Regionovedenie. Mezhdunarodnye otnosheniya [Science Journal of Volgograd State University. History. Area Studies. International Relations], 2018, vol. 23, no. 5, pp. 186-195. (in Russian). DOI: https://doi.org/10.15688/jvolsu4.2018.5.17

Датировка дипломатических писем Хасдая ибн Шапрута // Вестник Волгоградского государственного университета. Серия 4. История. Регионоведение. Международные отношения. 2018. Т. 23. № 5. С. 186–195. DOI: https://doi.org/10.15688/jvolsu4.2018.5.17

The article aims to analyze the possible dating of letters from the archive, which belonged to Hasdai ibn Shaprut, the grandee of the court of the first two caliphs of the Cordoba from the Umayyad dynasty. These letters are the key source for the political and diplomatic history of Europe in the 10 th century. Methods. For the first time, the whole letters and separate passages, related to the Khazar project of Hasdai ibn Shaprut, hav been analyzed from the viewpoint of absolute and relational chronology. So, the investigation is based on methods of epistolography and chronology, the epistemological aim is the reconstruction of the interval date of the complex of letters. Analysis. Many of the present dates of letters and the identification of addressees adopted in historiography are based on outdated or erroneous arguments. Hasdai's letters were sent to Byzantine rulers Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus, his son Roman II and Roman's wife Anastasia-Theophano. A significant marker is the mention of the book of Josippon, which was written in 953. Most likely, Hasdai ibn Shaprut became interested in Khazaria not earlier than the 950s, and this actualized his interest to Byzantium, which had regular trade and diplomatic contacts with Khazars. In the mid or the end 960s, after the walloping of Khazaria, Hasdai's interest in it had to be extinguished. Results. The main body of the collection of letters from the Hasdai ibn Shaprut's archive can be dated by the mid 950s – the first half of the 960s. As far as the remains of one personal archive are concerned, earlier dates of letters are certainly unlikely.

"The Enochic Son of Man and Pauline Christology"

A comparative analysis of the Messiah in the Book of the Parables of Enoch and the Letters of Paul, this study locates one aspect of Paul’s thought, his christology, in the context of Jewish intellectual traditions of the first century BCE and the first century CE. Conceptual elements of messianic traditions are identified in these documents by examining the nature and functions of the divine figure and the nature and functions of the messiah figure. This has implications for understanding divine and human agency and the relationships between mediatorial figures and the one God in Jewish literature from the Second Temple period. Comparative analysis demonstrates that the Book of the Parables and the Letters of Paul share specific conceptual elements of messianic traditions. The combination of shared elements is so striking as to preclude the possibility that the Book of the Parables and the Letters of Paul constituted independent, parallel developments. The evidence indicates that Paul was familiar with the conceptual elements of the Enochic messiah, and that Paul developed his concept of Jesus as the Kyrios out of the Son of Man traditions in the Book of the Parables of Enoch. This study argues that at least one facet of Paul’s thought, his christology, was heavily influenced by Enochic Son of Man traditions.

A red Jew or why the character in Bosch’s Epiphany is not the Antichrist

The character present in the stable of the Epiphany in Prado Museum – traditionally identified as the Antichrist – is the best link between Flemish Art and the historical legend of the red Jew.
Bosch uses a red shade to portray the unbelieving Jew who would not uncover in the presence of God, colouring his hair, clothes, even his skin, with this shade. When the Epiphany is painted, at the end of the 15th c., the “red danger” – an ethnic variety of Judaism – has spread all over Europe.

This peculiar religious group, originating in Gog’s and Magog’s apocalyptic lands would have been absorbed by the Ottoman Empire after the conquest of Constantinople in 1453.
During the second half of the 15th c., some artists in the Northern Flanders provinces depict any representative of the Hebrew nation in red, due to a fin de siècle terror that spreads around Flanders and Germany.

The Flemish artist starts a trend that would use a red shade to depict the unbelieving Hebrew. This is particularly popular in Southern Flanders art, where Jews are fully portrayed in red. Painters of Northern Flanders include a red badge in the yellow outfit instead. Due to traditional iconographic loans between the Hebrew and the Devil, the latter is dressed up in red, although none of the above-mentioned images depicts the Antichrist.

Resumen:
La mejor relación entre la pintura flamenca y la leyenda histórica de los judíos rojos, se logra en este personaje que asoma por el establo de la Epifanía del Museo del Prado, tradicionalmente identificado con el Anticristo.

El Bosco tiñó de color bermejo al judío incrédulo que no se descubre ante la divinidad. Tonalidad que ocupa el pelo, las ropas y hasta la piel. A fines del s. XV, cuando este artista de Bolduque pintó la tabla, el peligro rojo se había extendido por toda Europa. Esta peculiar etnia judía, procedente de las tierras apocalípticas de Gog y Magog, había sido absorbida por el Imperio Turco tras la conquista de Constantinopla en 1453. En la segunda mitad del s. XV, debido al terror finisecular que se despertó, algunos artistas del Norte de Flandes comenzaron a colorear de rojo a los representantes del pueblo hebreo. Tras el maestro de Bolduque el tono bermejo se impuso de forma generalizada en la imagen de los judíos, especialmente en las escuelas del Sur de Flandes, que los coloreó así en su totalidad. Los centros pictóricos del Norte, optaron por añadir un distintivo rojo en sus prendas junto al preceptivo color amarillo. Debido a los tradicionales préstamos iconográficos entre el hebreo y el diablo, éste último vistió también de colorado; aunque hay que informar que ninguna de las imágenes citadas corresponde al Anticristo.

The study addresses the legal rules that allowed in Rome and in some Eastern provinces of the Roman Empire, especially Egypt, women to serve as guardians or to assist the guardian of their prepubescent children. In Rome, mothers as guardians are attested during the second century by individual imperial concession, and the mother as manager in aid to the guardian is amply attested in the classical age. In Egypt, mothers could serve as guardians, appointed by a private act of the husband (since the beginning of the province until 212 AD), while in connection to the guardian (with the name ἐπακολουθήτρια) they appear only from the first half of the second century ad. the author questions the mutual influences between the two sets of rules.

Nel presente articolo si esaminano le norme giuridiche in base alle quali a Roma e in alcune province orientali dell'impero romano, soprattutto l'Egitto, la madre poteva essere tutrice o poteva svolgere fuzioni di ausilio al tutore dei propri figli impuberi. A Roma la madre tutrice appare attestata già dal secondo secolo per concessione imperiale individuale, e la madre amministratrice in ausilio al tutore è ampiamente attestata in età classica. In Egitto la madre tutrice, nominata con atto privato del marito, compare dalle origini della provincia e fino al 212 d.C., mentre, affiancata al tutore, con il nome di ἐπακολουθήτρια, è documentata solo dalla prima metà del secondo secolo d.C. In dottrina ci si è interrogati circa le influenze reciproche tra i due sistemi di norme. L'autore conclude che è legittimo ipotizzare che la scomparsa della madre tutrice egizia dopo il 212 sia stata causata dalla diffusione del diritto romano nelle province a seguito della Constitutio Antoniniana, mentre non sembra possibile rinvenire altre reciproche influenze. In particolare, si nega che la madre amministratrice romana sia derivata dall'ἐπακολουθήτρια egizia.

""Recent scholarship in Classics and related fields has shown great interest in letters and epistolary literature of all forms (e.g. Morello and Morrison 2007; Trapp 2003; Rosenmeyer 2001).  The use of embedded letters to advance the narrative in genres such as historiography and the novel, and the potential for real or pseudonymous letters to function as biography (real or fictionalized), autobiography, or historical fiction, mean that letters in antiquity play a crucial role in the development of narrative literature of many kinds.  The apparent popularity of letters as reading matter rather than merely tools for communication, especially in the Imperial period, makes it essential that we pay attention to this genre, as we assess the reading practices and literary preferences of antiquity. The literary qualities of Greek letters are often overlooked, despite the fact that they display the same kind of awareness of generic conventions and self-consciousness of their literary nature as other narrative genres. 
Letters are always about narrative, among other things, whether directly – narrating events to absent correspondents - or indirectly – presenting fragments of an underlying narrative that the reader attempts to reconstruct.  This collection of essays explores the inherent narrative quality of letters and its use by Greek authors in a variety of genres and time periods, as well as the limited and sometimes even willfully obscure nature of epistolary narratives that omit vital information in the name of verisimilitude.  A series of case studies, with topics ranging from Classical poetry and historiography through to Philostratus and Christian martyrs, asks why particular authors choose the letter form; how an embedded letter relates to its narrative environment, and, conversely, the effect of the epistolary form on the narrative it contains; and how each author manipulates the epistolary tradition.  It explores various types of epistolary forms:  individual letters (embedded or free-standing); collections of continuous epistolary narrative; and letters presenting fragmented or discontinuous narrative.  It pays close attention to the self-consciously literary or fictional qualities in Greek letters, including intertextuality with other literary texts and particularly allusions to earlier letters as literature.  A chronological organization of the volume encourages the reader to consider epistolary narrative as a kind of literature that develops over time, growing in popularity and in the variety of forms it takes.  ""

Is it possible to summarize the history of the Jews in late antiquity?
The lack of source material makes it challenging, but this
short book provides a brief snapshot, based on the available
evidence. It focuses on seven different regions: Italy, North
Africa (except Egypt), Gaul, Spain, Egypt, the Land of Israel,
and Babylonia, and identifies common patterns, but also clear
regional and temporal differences between each distinct area.
The Jews in Late Antiquity should be considered as a first step
towards the understanding of a little-known period in Jewish
history, and its aim is to leave the reader wanting to know more.

Çok fazla bilinmeyen bir konu olmasına rağmen Ortaçağ Müslüman tarihçileri, eserlerinde Roma İmparatorluğu tarihinden de bahsetmişlerdir. Bunlar arasında en yalın olanı, Ortaçağ Müslüman tarihçi ve coğrafyacılarının önde gelen isimlerinden birisi sayılan Ya‘kūbî’nin (ö. 292/905’ten sonra) Târîhu’l-Ya‘kūbî isimli eserinde bulunmaktadır. Söz konusu anlatım, aynı zamanda Ortaçağ Müslüman yazılı
kaynaklarında Roma İmparatorluğu’na dair olarak günümüze ulaşabilenlerin de en eskisidir. Çok büyük bir ihtimalle, buradaki bilgilerin menşei Claudius Ptolemaios’un (MS II. yüzyıl) Πρόχειροι ϰανόνες (Tabulae manuales) isimli eseridir. Bununla birlikte, Ya‘kūbî’nin yararlandığı metin, Ptolemaios’un söz konusu eserine Theon Alexandrinus (MS IV.-V. yüzyıllar) tarafından ilaveler yapılmış hâlidir. Fazla bir
detaya sahip olmayan bu anlatımda, birkaç yerde özet halinde birtakım bilgilerin aktarılmasıyla yetinilmiştir. Bu nedenle söz konusu anlatımı “Roma İmparatorları Listesi” şeklinde adlandırmak daha doğrudur. Sürekli münasebette bulundukları Doğu Roma (Bizans) İmparatorluğu’nu oldukça iyi tanımalarına
rağmen Müslümanların Roma İmparatorluğu’yla tanışmaları bu liste vasıtasıyla olmuş olmalıdır ve bu açıdan değerlendirildiğinde söz konusu listenin sahip olduğu önem aşikardır.


Although it is little known, Medieval Muslim historians mentioned the history of the Roman Empire in their works. Of these Ta’rikh (d. 292/905), respected one of the leading historians and geographers of the Medieval Muslim school, in his work Ta’rikh, provides the reader with basic information and this work contains the oldest Muslim historical records concerning the Roman Empire which has survived to date amongst the Medieval Muslim written sources. It seems most probable that the
source of this information was Claudius Ptolemaios (II. century A.D.), from his Πρόχειροι ϰανόνες (Tabulae manuales). However, the text that al-Ya‘kūbī employs in his work is no simple transcription of Ptolemy’s work but was updated and modified with additions from Theon Alexandrinus (. IV.-V. c. A.D.). The record provided by Ta’rikh is not full of detail but was content to convey some information in a summarised form and, for this reason, it is more accurate to describe it as a “List of Roman Emperor’s”. Despite having a very good understanding of the Eastern Roman Empire which they bordered and were constantly in contact with in various ways, the Muslims’ knowlege of the history of the Roman Empire must have been through this list, a point of importance when evaluated from this point of view.

This study is the first to successfully address the identification of the botanical components of a garden in the palatial courtyard of Herod’s the Great Promontory Palace in Caesarea Maritima. Based on the extraction and identification of fossil pollen grains, we were able to reconstruct at least part of the garden's flora, which we argue, could only have grown within the architecturally-protected confines of a garden of this splendid seaside palace. The palynological spectrum included, among other taxa, high percentages of Cupressaceae pollen as well as pollen of the non-local tree Corylus sp. (hazelnut), which was most probably imported from the northeast Mediterranean or Italy. These trees appear to have been accompanied by other ornamental plants (e.g., Salvia and various Rosaceae plants). The choice of flora to be planted in the garden is consistent with our knowledge of Roman gardens dated to Herod’s time. This exceptional and magnificent palace, with its luxurious architectural features and its impressive, well-maintained garden, symbolized the power and the abilities of Herod, the greatest builder in ancient Jewish history.

A persistent tradition of studies has often interpreted the text of the Apocalypse of John as a kind of “Christian” meditation on the destructive effects of the Roman imperial power. Such an interpretation has often moved from the idea that 1st cent. Christianity was an entirely structured and a well-defined institutional entity, in spite of divergent visions as well as considerations about Roman Empire well-attested in proto-Christian sources. This essay moves from a different consideration: it is at least anachronistic to consider the Apocalypse as a “Christian” meditation on Imperial power as the manifestation par excellence of the Evil. In my approach, the Apocalypse of John is a local discourse, i.e. a tentative to affirm (or to re-affirm) a particular group authority (which is re-constructed in terms of “true” belonging to Judaism) in specific urban spaces, where religious and cultural cohabitations influenced and repositioned actual proto-Christian and/or Jewish self-definitions in response and/or competition with other group (proto-Christian and/or Jewish) self-definitions. In such a context (i.e. the urban spaces of 1st cent. Asia Minor), different declinations as regards Jesus’ worship and/or faith cohabited, and in such a context traditional imagery (or a distinctive reinventions of traditional imageries) functioned as discursive stratagems in order to stigmatize competitive postures of group-authority as well as deviant (or considered as deviant) Jewish and/or proto-Christian self-definitions.

Wilfred Cantwell Smith commented that, alone of modern world religions, Islam is conscious of the world being divided into many religions from the outset. He argues that Islam launched itself into a world that already had religious traditions, but did so with a developed self-consciousness that allowed it to be conceived of as a closed system. In this sense, he argued, it was quite unlike a movement like Manichaeism, which emphasized its continuity with and inheritance from other traditions. 1 Islam was, moreover, also different from Christianity, in that the Gospels have little sense of Christianity as a distinct religion: following Jesus is a new form of discipleship, but it is unclear how this relates to older forms of communal membership or scripture. 'Muhammad seems to know what he was speaking of when he spoke of Islam, but it is hazy thinking to speak of Guru Nanak or Jesus or Lao Tzu as founders of religions.' 2 Cantwell Smith was writing some seventy years ago and we might wish to issue several caveats over his statements. We would now be much more wary of speaking of a single Islam, or to equate it so straightforwardly with Muhammad's 'revelation'. We might instead separate the thought-world of the Qur'an from the traditions that grew from it (or claimed to grow from it) in Kufa, Basra and Damascus, and then in Baghdad and a host of other centres of scholarship. 3 Fred Donner (2010) has recently proposed that Muhammad presided over a much more heterogenous community than has 1 Cantwell Smith 1964: 81-86, 93-94.

Two lexical notes:
1) The word UDAY "Jew" in Berber, which probably comes from Latin IUDAEUS;
2) The interpretation given by Augustine to the word ISRAEL and the question of the languages spoken by Augustine and by the African dwellers of the time.

In 70 na Christus werd de tempel van Jeruzalem verwoest door de Romeinen. Hiermee kwam een einde aan wat later ook wel de Eerste Joods-Romeinse Oorlog genoemd zou worden. De Joodse rebellen waren in 66 na Christus in opstand gekomen tegen hun Romeinse overheersers. Er worden verschillende redenen genoemd waarom de Joodse bevolking van Judea in opstand kwam. Dit was het gevolg van politieke en economische onvrede gemengd met religieus nationalistische sentimenten.  Ook zou er sprake zijn van een hoge belastingdruk, bemoeienis met de benoeming van hogepriesters, spanningen tussen Joodse en andere etnische gemeenschapen en de misdragingen van Romeinse bestuurders. Er waren dus verschillende redenen waarom de joden in opstand kwamen. Interessant is om te kijken wat de Joodse rebellen uiteindelijk bereikten met  hun opstand. Slaagden zij erin om, hoewel de opstand neergeslagen werd, hun positie binnen het Romeinse rijk enigszins te verbeteren of zorgde de opstand er juist voor dat de Romeinen negatief tegen de Joden aan gingen kijken en hun positie daardoor verslechterde? Dit essay zal een poging doen om de gevolgen van de opstand in kaart te brengen. De hoofdvraag die in dit onderzoek centraal zal staan is: Wat waren de gevolgen van de Joodse Oorlog, voor de Joodse gemeenschap binnen het Romeinse rijk in de periode van 66 tot 96 na Christus?

Die literaturwissenschaftliche Ausrichtung der althistorischen Quellenkritik in den letzten Jahrzehnten hatte fundamentale Auswirkungen auf die Deutung ethnographischer Texte. Durch diesen Forschungsfokus ist die Analyse möglicher Realitätsbezüge weitgehend in den Hintergrund getreten. Bisweilen wird den Aussagen über fremde Völker sogar jedweder Wahrheitsgehalt abgesprochen. Ein wichtiges Element dieser Forschungsproblematik sind Topoi, die in den antiken Texten praktisch omnipräsent sind. Trotz dieser besonderen Bedeutung liegt bis heute keine umfangreiche Betrachtung zum Toposbegriff aus Perspektive der Alten Geschichte vor.

The article focuses on the author's research on the chronographical background of the Zodiac Mosaic Calendar in Synagogue at Hammath-Tiberias. He researched to find the origin of mosaic decoration, the twelve zodiac sign, the four seasons, and Helios, which was found in synagogues in two parts of Palestine, Galilee and Judah. The chronograph of the mosaic art was extensively debated. The author further studied the history of Palestine Jews in the 4th century. Most of the work was done during the period of Hillel II. It remains for us to connect these facts–the creation of  themosaic in the synagogue at Hammath-Tiberias by Severos and Hillel II, and the revolutionizing of the Jewish calendar by Hillel II. Thus, the mosaic from the synagogue at Hammath-Tiberias represents the new lunar-solar calendar of Hillel II.
The author concludes that the mosaic from the Stratum IIa synagogue with the Zodiac Calendar was executed in the time of Hillel II, who said to have died around 365 CE. He proposes the new date of the execution of the Zodiac Mosaic from Hammat-Tiberia (Stratum IIa) after the earthquake in 363, that is, in 364 or 365.

Modern-day scholars engage in the complementary study of rabbinic literature and material culture. Whereas the archaeologist occasionally illustrates the discussion of architectural remains, artistic representations, or small finds with the aid of random Talmudic texts, the Talmudist, for his part, attempts to explain words, terms, or ideas found in the literary sources with archaeological artifacts. As a result, this interdisciplinary approach seems artificial, and even detached, since each makes little effort to understand the broader context or contemporary socio-cultural setting of a specific find or tradition.

After addressing some methodological problems relating to each of these disciplines, with regard to both the nature of the subject matter as well the obstacles modern scholarship faces in their integration, this paper will broach the question of how Rabbinic sources are to be used in the analysis of material culture in Roman Palestine. We shall try to evaluate to what extent, if any, the rabbis’ discourses are reliable in reflecting their reality and if they are somehow akin to what is known today from the archaeological finds, or whether they were tailored to fit their academic discussion. To illustrate the main points of our paper and demonstrate the mutually fructifying advantage in the thorough study of both disciplines, the discussion will focus on public spectacles and competitions held in Roman Palestine through the presentation of relevant archaeological finds and literary sources. It will be shown that an extensive analysis of the literary sources can shed light on certain aspects that the archaeological finds cannot, whereas a wider appreciation of the available material culture enables us enhance our understanding of certain issues embedded in Rabbinic literature.