11-09-2017, 11:03 PM
(This post was last modified: 11-13-2017, 01:44 PM by Julian de Vries.)
The Parthica of Pseudo-Appian
The Parthica found in the manuscripts of Appian's Roman History has received little attention since the work was shown to be a forgery by Schweighäuser in the late 18th Century. Since then it has been assumed that the work is of Byzantine provenance, and it has been omitted from subsequent scholarly editions of Appian. This article presents a reconsideration of the Parthica, its date, and the possible intentions of its pseudonymous author. It is argued that the work, whether or not an example of deliberate literary imposture, may in fact be of far greater antiquity than what is generally thought.
Chris Mallan (Oxford) dealt with Pseudo-Appian’s Parthica, a text previously neglected by scholars, dismissed as a product of the Byzantine period. Yet references to a projected Parthica in Appian’s own work, and similarities between this text and Plutarch’s Antony suggest, Chris argued, that the author of the Parthica was more probably familiar with Appian’s work, and wrote in the second century A.D. This author may have appropriated Appian’s name for legitimacy, which raises questions regarding literary imitation and imposture at the time.
*
I go to LacusCurtius. There is no Parthica in sight. I go to Perseus Project. Still no Parthica. Am I seeing double? There is no modern translation of this text?
*
Greek/Latin edition:
https://archive.org/stream/appianialexan...7/mode/2up
It starts at page 21 (28/1050)
The Parthica found in the manuscripts of Appian's Roman History has received little attention since the work was shown to be a forgery by Schweighäuser in the late 18th Century. Since then it has been assumed that the work is of Byzantine provenance, and it has been omitted from subsequent scholarly editions of Appian. This article presents a reconsideration of the Parthica, its date, and the possible intentions of its pseudonymous author. It is argued that the work, whether or not an example of deliberate literary imposture, may in fact be of far greater antiquity than what is generally thought.
Chris Mallan (Oxford) dealt with Pseudo-Appian’s Parthica, a text previously neglected by scholars, dismissed as a product of the Byzantine period. Yet references to a projected Parthica in Appian’s own work, and similarities between this text and Plutarch’s Antony suggest, Chris argued, that the author of the Parthica was more probably familiar with Appian’s work, and wrote in the second century A.D. This author may have appropriated Appian’s name for legitimacy, which raises questions regarding literary imitation and imposture at the time.
*
I go to LacusCurtius. There is no Parthica in sight. I go to Perseus Project. Still no Parthica. Am I seeing double? There is no modern translation of this text?
*
Greek/Latin edition:
https://archive.org/stream/appianialexan...7/mode/2up
It starts at page 21 (28/1050)
