5°

Umberto Roberto

who authored a chronicle linked to the Alexandrian context. Malalas deems him a
σοφώτατος χρονογράφος, but he is the only author who cites him. Judging from
what Malalas says, Timotheus was an authoritative source on several problems also
debated by Africanus, for example the dates concerning the life of Christ (such as the
crucifixion) or the rationalistic interpretations of Greek myths.2
In any case, right from the very introduction to his work, Malalas acknowledges
his debt to Julius Africanus:
Δίκαιον ήγησάμην μετά τό άκρωτηριάσαι τινά έκ των Εβραϊκών
κεφαλαίων ύπό Μωϋσέως <καί τών> χρονογράφων Αφρικανού καί
Ευσεβίου τού Παμφίλου καί Παυσανίου καί Διδύμου καί Θεοφίλου
καί Κλήμεντος καί Διοδώρου καί Δομνίνου καί Εύσταθίου καί άλλων
πολλών φίλο πόνων χρονογράφων καί ποιητών καί σοφών έκθέσαι
σοι μετά πάσης άληθείας τά συμβάντα εν μέρει εν τοϊς χρόνοις τών
βασιλέων έως τών συμβεβηκότων εν τοϊς έμοϊς χρόνοις έλθό<ν>των είς
τάς εμάς άκοάς, λέγω δή άπό Αδάμ έως τής βασιλείας Ζήνωνος καί τών
έξής βασιλευσάντων.
I thought it right, after abbreviating some material from the Hebrew books written
by Moses ... in the narratives of the chroniclers Africanus, Eusebios Pamphilou,
Pausanias, Didymos, Theophilos, Clement, Diodoros, Domninos, Eustathios and
many other industrious chroniclers and poets and learned historians, and to relate
as truthfully as possible a summary account of events that took place in the time
of the emperors, up till the events of my own life-time which came to my hearing,
I mean indeed from Adam to the reign of Zeno and those who ruled afterwards.3
As it is well known, the manuscript Oxoniensis Baroccianus 182 (Oxford, Bodleian Li-
brary, 12th century) does not preserve the preface to Malalas’ Chronographia. Malalas’
preface and first book are found on ff. 9-14 of Parisinus Suppl. graecus 682 (Paris, Bib-
liotheque nationale de France, 10th century) together with the first part of Book II. In
particular, Paris. Suppl. gr. 682, ff. 9-14' is part of an ancient 10th century manuscript.
Another part is contained in Vatopedin. 290, f. 148. The lost manuscript from which
both codices, Paris, suppl. gr. 682 and Vatopedin. 290, derive contained ecclesiastical
and chronological excerpts. Furthermore, the preface is also preserved in the Slavonic
version of Malalas.4
The presence of the preface in the Parisinus graecus 1630 (Paris, Bibliotheque na-
tionale de France, 14th century), ff. 234r-239 deserves separate mention. These folia
2 Malalas only knew Africanus’ Chronographiae through an intermediary: Wallraff (2007), p. XXXIX.
Timotheus as mediator between the Africanus’ tradition and Malalas: Bourier (1900), pp. 61-62. In
general, on Timotheus as a source of Malalas see Jeffreys (1990b), pp. 194-195, and Mecella (2013),
PP- 357_358· According to Gelzer (1885), pp. 137-138 the lost chronicle of the Alexandrian Annianus was
an important source for the first section of Malalas’ Chronographia.
3 Malalas, Chronographia praefatio (p. 3,4-11 Thurn); English translation by Jeffreys/Jeffreys/Scott (1986),
p. 1; see also lulius Africanus, Chronographiae'Xio Wallraff/Roberto.
4 See Jeffreys/Jeffreys/Scott (1986), pp. xxxvii-xxxviii (under the heading ‘P’); Jeffreys (1996), pp. 53-57;
Richard (1955), pp. 331-335- On Malalas’ Slavonic translation see Franklin (1990) and Sorlin (2004).