A series of interconnected conjectures to the text of Ps.-Maur. VII B 17. 2,12 (8, 9-10, 33-34 Dennis) is proposed, which makes the text more understandable: rj tau omicron iota tau a (3 tau wy a kappa iota wy ... a7to 7t alpha lambda alpha iota wy [delta] kappa alpha i ywy .... tau oy lambda epsilon gamma mu epsilon y omicron y i lambda rho chi eta y [chi omicron y tau alpha f sigma wS kappa alpha i ay alpha lambda gamma wS tau omicron S y epsilon w tau rho omicron uS rj tau omicron iota tau aS a kappa alpha S]. To explain this, author proposes the hypothesis of a transcription error in the archetype (rj tau omicron iota tau a (3 theta eta > rj tau omicron iota tau a (3y delta alpha), of compensatory asterisk and of the later marginal gloss (rj tau omicron iota tau aS a kappa alpha S), as well as of the transmission of the passage chi omicron y tau alpha f sigma wS kappa alpha i ay alpha lambda gamma wS tau omicron S y epsilon w tau rho omicron uS rj tau omicron iota tau aS a kappa alpha S from 2 to 12. The proposed hypothesis assumes a multiple processing (glosses, added leafs) of the codex of the archetype xi, its active use and subsequent rewriting into a new codex (alpha), which is the precursor of both uncial families (lambda and (3). The five phases of the development of the discussed passages are proposed: (1a) the Urtext with the books I-III, V, VII A und VII B 1-15; (1b) creation of the text VII B 16-17 (4952 characters) on the three bifolia with a reading error ((3 theta eta > (3y delta alpha), the source for the 12 being the passage II 20/19, 1 (4-7 Dennis), where are no parallels for the words "chi omicron y tau alpha f sigma wS kappa alpha i ay alpha lambda gamma wS tau omicron S y epsilon w tau rho omicron uS rj tau omicron iota tau aS a kappa alpha S"; (1c) the appearance of marginalia - "rj tau omicron iota tau aS a kappa alpha S" to the words "rj tau omicron iota tau a (3y delta alpha tau wy a kappa iota wy", as well as asteriskos to 12 and 2 after 7t alpha lambda alpha iota wy; (2) moving the text "chi omicron y tau alpha f sigma wS kappa alpha i ay alpha lambda gamma wS tau omicron S y epsilon w tau rho omicron uS rj tau omicron iota tau aS a kappa alpha S" from 2 to 12, replacement of the asteriskos with delta in 2; (3) division of the tradition between lambda (without marginalia) and (3 (integration of marginalia).
This article continues the series devoted to the study of an extensive zoological excursus in Hexaemeron by George of Pisidia, a 7th-century Byzantine poet. It deals with two accounts of the miraculous properties of vultures which offer their author(s) an opportunity to engage in anti-pagan polemics and to assert the truth of the virgin birth of Jesus (vv. 1077-1086, 1124a-r). The second of these passages is attested only in part of the paradosis, and it is placed differently in different MSS, which indicates that at least for some time it was transmitted in the margins. The question of whether these verses should be considered an interpolation or an author's variant has been raised twice by Fabrizio Gonnelli, with opposite results. A doxographic commentary on both passages permits a cautious decision for the authenticity of vv. 1124a-r, since it involves a sophisticated and highly original theological development (or even a correction) of a phrase from Homilies in Hexaemeron of Basil the Great (8. 6. 76DE). At the same time, the second passage should be regarded as a later version of the first, since the position of vv. 1077-1086 in the poem seems to point to a hidden polemic with the famous story from Physiologus (ch. 4 of the oldest recension) about the pelican resurrecting its chicks with its own blood; vv. 1124a-r, where nothing is said about vultures feeding their chicks, could not fulfil this role. Incidentally, two unnoticed quotations from Hexaemeron are identified, namely in the scholia recentiora to Aristophanes' Plutus (v. 63i Chantry) and in the anonymous Byzantine text Pi alpha rho delta epsilon iota gamma mu alpha pi epsilon rho tau omicron lambda kappa tau omicron rho omicron zeta.
In the second book of the Histories, Herodotus recounts a legend that attributes the establishment of the oracle of Dodona to Egypt's influence: a more fantastical variant of the tale features a black dove capable of human speech, while a more realistic rendition identifies an abducted Egyptian priestess as the founder. Notably absent from Herodotus' account are the Selloi, a group of ascetic diviners mentioned in the Iliad's brief depiction of Dodona, where they are said to sleep on the ground and refrain from washing their feet, presumably to maintain a spiritual connection to earth. This absence of the ancient priesthood from the Histories led some scholars to conclude that the Selloi must have disappeared by the time of Herodotus, fully replaced by a college of priestesses said to derive their sacred knowledge from the Egyptian Thebes. This point of view was challenged lately, as more evidence for the continued presence of male priests in Dodona had been uncovered and cataloged. Hence it seems consequent to suppose that the exclusion of the Selloi from the Histories may have been entirely intentional on Herodotus' part, since the existence of this college and its acknowledgement in the Iliad could be difficult to reconcile with a theory proposed in the second book, which suggests that Dodona had a foundational role in the early development of the Greek religion as a conductor of the Egyptian influence in the pre-Homeric Greece.
A large group of adjectives in Apicius' De re coquinaria is formed with the suffix-atus. Although they contain a suffix which is typical of the perfect participle, their base is not verbal, but nominal: this is their peculiarity.They are all adjectives referring to food; their meaning is possessing "the quality/condition expressed by the base-noun" (e. g. Apic. 8. 7. 14 liquamen piperatum). Many of them are Apicius' creations and attested only in his cooking book (e. g. allecatum, coriandratus, syringiatus); a great number of them have a Greek origin. This paper proposes not only a semantic analysis of denominal adjectives with the suffix-atus, but also a comparison with adjectives ending in-osus, which have the meaning "full of ". The formations in-atus of De re coquinaria are also examined according to the qualia theory, the principles of which are clearly recognisable in these adjectives. Apicius' denominal adjectives in-atus can be compared to suffixed adjectives in some modern languages (Italian-ato, Spanish-ado, French-& eacute;), which express the concept of possession of a quality, and which derive from a noun, not from a verb, although they are formally identical to past participle, as it happens in Latin.
This article examines an unpublished manual on epistolography "On the Method of Studying Epistolary Styles", composed by the Leichoudes brothers for students of the Slavic-Greek-Latin Academy in the late 17th century. This manual, preserved in two manuscripts by the Leichoudes' students (Mt Athos, Iviron Monastery, No. 98, and St. Petersburg, NLR, f. 906, No. 506), represents the first systematic course on letter-writing theory and practice in Russia. The study investigates the manuscript tradition, establishes its creation date (1687), and attributes the copies to the Leichoudes' first students - Nikolai Golovin and Fyodor Gerasimov. The manual's position in the academy's curriculum is examined as an intermediate course between grammar and rhetoric, aligning with both ancient and post-Byzantine educational traditions. The research analyzes the manual's ancient prototypes - "Epistolary Types" by Pseudo-Demetrius and "Epistolary Styles" by Pseudo-Libanius - and traces their influence on the structure and content of the Leichoudes - work. The treatise is also considered within the context of 17th-century Greek epistolary theory development, identifying common features. Special attention is paid to the manual's structure, which includes a theoretical introduction and sample letters of various types, classified according to Aristotle's three genres of rhetoric (epideictic, judicial, and deliberative). Special attention is paid to the manual's structure, featuring a theoretical introduction in question-and-answer format, and to its discussion of key epistolographic concepts (definition of a letter, opening and closing formulas, structure, style, dating, titulature). The article includes a critical edition of the Greek text of the theoretical introduction with a Russian translation.
