Chronicle of Pseudo-Joshua the Stylite (Translated Texts for Historians, 32)

by Pseudo-Joshua the Stylite, John W. Watt (translator)

This is a Syriac text written, in all probability, by an inhabitant of Edessa almost immediately after the conclusion of the war between Rome and Persia in 502-506 AD. Although that conflict is treated in other ancient texts, none of them can match 'Joshua' in his wealth of detail, his familiarity with the region where the hostilities occurred, and his proximity in time to the events. The Chronicle also vividly describes the famine and plague that swept through Edessa in the years immediately before the war. The work is a document of great importance for both the social and military history of late antiquity, remarkable for the information it provides on Roman and Persian empires alike.

Genres: History

240 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2001

Reviews

[Timothy Andrew Mitchell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Shocking to find another historical primary source on my list, I know. What can I say? The history nerd in me loves the first-person account of things that once had been, and this era, this part of the world, I found it enlightening.

[Lamar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Good historical account of a very niche topic from an interesting perspective

[Anatolikon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Liverpool University Press' Translated Texts for Historians series has provided a wide variety of late antique and early medieval texts in translation that are not easily accessible elsewhere. They also frequently have excellent scholarly apparati, and 'The Chronicle of Pseudo-Joshua the Stylite' is no exception. It is the earliest extant work of Syriac historiography, and a fine one at that. The text itself is quite short and covers the war between the Romans and Persians in the late fifth and early sixth century under the reign of Anastasius I. The detail surrounding Edessa and the famines in both it and its hinterland are excellent, as are the fine descriptions of the siege of Amida. The unknown author must have had access to a wide variety of contemporary sources given the detailed information that he gives on things like grain prices. There is a lengthy but important introduction covering all of the basic areas of the text, such as authorship, aims, sources, etc. which is extremely useful and does a very good job putting the entire source into context. There are also some excellent maps, good indices, a glossary in which certain Syriac terms are defined alongside their Latin and Greek equivalents, and an interesting appendix on the fortifications of Amida.

This is an excellent edition of an important text that will hopefully no longer be neglected. The translation is easy to read, the copious notes provide an insight into academic debates surrounding key issues and references to further reading, and the introduction and appendices are fantastic.