Some theories on the dating of Arnobius
The Adversus Gentes of Arnobius is commonly dated to c. 303 AD though a date of c. 297 has also been proposed. This article asks whether the case for a later dating, implied by Jerome’s Chronicle and recently defended by Oliver Nicholson (1982) and Mark Edwards (2004), has been conclusively refuted...
Main Author: | |
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Format: | Electronic/Print Article |
Language: | English |
Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
Journals Online & Print: | |
Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
Published: |
Peeters
[2016]
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In: |
Ephemerides theologicae Lovanienses
Year: 2016, Volume: 92, Issue: 4, Pages: 671-684 |
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Arnobius, Rhetor -327, Adversus nationes
/ Dating
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IxTheo Classification: | KAB Church history 30-500; early Christianity |
Online Access: |
Volltext (doi) |
Summary: | The Adversus Gentes of Arnobius is commonly dated to c. 303 AD though a date of c. 297 has also been proposed. This article asks whether the case for a later dating, implied by Jerome’s Chronicle and recently defended by Oliver Nicholson (1982) and Mark Edwards (2004), has been conclusively refuted by Michael Simmons (2015). It concludes that, while some of the arguments employed by Edwards and Nicholson carry little weight, the objections to the conventional date of 303 have not been fully answered. The unreliability of Jerome is frequently exaggerated, and the consequences of his testimony that Arnobius wrote with an epideictic, rather than an apologetic, purpose have not been fully appreciated. It is possible that the conflict of evidence can be resolved by postulating a history of redaction. |
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ISSN: | 0013-9513 |
Contains: | Enthalten in: Ephemerides theologicae Lovanienses
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Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.2143/ETL.92.4.3183466 |