Lessico
Eustazio di Tessalonica
Letterato
bizantino (Costantinopoli ca. 1130 - Tessalonica ca. 1195). Professore di
eloquenza a Costantinopoli, fu eletto vescovo di Tessalonica
nel 1174 e
svolse, durante l'occupazione normanna del 1185, un'importante opera di
mediazione ottenendo la fine dei saccheggi. La sua Espugnazione di
Tessalonica è la testimonianza di tali avvenimenti.
Oltre a un
commento a Pindaro,
di cui si ha solo l'introduzione, scrisse un vasto commentario all'Iliade e
all'Odissea, raccogliendovi materiale importantissimo. Altre sue opere
riguardano la storia, la vita monastica e la politica del tempo.
Il
commento di Eustazio a Periegesi della Terra
poemetto didascalico in 1187 esametri
di Dionisio il Periegeta - poeta greco del II sec. dC
Eustazio di Tessalonica
Eustazio di Tessalonica, in greco: Eustáthios (Costantinopoli, 1110 circa - 1198) fu arcivescovo di Tessalonica. Fu inizialmente monaco nel monastero di San Floro, gli fu in seguito affidata la carica di sovrintendente alle suppliche e fu quindi professore di retorica e diacono della Chiesa di Costantinopoli. Dopo essere stato nominato vescovo di Myra (o Mira, antica e importante città della Licia, sulla costa meridionale dell'odierna Turchia), fu promosso arcivescovo di Tessalonica, città in cui rimase fino alla morte, sopraggiunta nel 1198.
L'orazione funebre in sua memoria fu composta da Eutimio e Michele Coniata ed è giunta fino a noi contenuta in un manoscritto che si trova alla Biblioteca Bodleiana di Oxford. Niceta Coniate (storico e teologo bizantino, spesso erroneamente designato con l'epiteto di Acominato - Chonae, Frigia, metà sec. XII -Nicea 1210/1220) (Storia VIII.238, X.334) lo lodò definendolo l'uomo più colto della sua epoca, un giudizio che risulta difficile da contestare. Scrisse commentari alle opere dei poeti della Grecia antica, trattati teologici, sermoni, epistole e un importante resoconto del saccheggio di Tessalonica operato da Guglielmo II di Sicilia nel 1185.
Tra i suoi lavori, i commentari all'epica di Omero sono i più noti e citati: dimostrano una profondissima conoscenza della letteratura greca, da quella delle origini a quella dell'ultimo periodo; altre opere mostrano invece una capacità di scrittura di notevole effetto e una grande capacità oratoria, che gli meritò la stima della famiglia imperiale dei Comneni. Queste sono le sue opere più importanti:
Il saccheggio di Tessalonica, un resoconto fatto da testimone oculare dell'assedio del 1185 e delle sofferenze che ne seguirono per gli abitanti della città. Nei primi capitoli di questa avvincente cronaca Eustazio descrive gli sviluppi politici a Coastantinopoli a partire dalla morte di Manuele I di Bisanzio, attraversando il breve regno di Alessio II Comneno fino all'usurpazione di Andronico I Comneno, non lesinando taglienti osservazioni sulle attività dei nobili e dei cortigiani. Il testo in greco originale fu rivisto in tempi successivi da Kyriakidis.
I commentari all'Iliade e all'Odissea. Non si tratta di commentari originali ma di una raccolta di estratti dai lavori di precedenti commentatori dei due poemi. Questa vasta raccolta fu realizzata con grande diligenza e perseveranza sulla base dei numerosi e ponderosi lavori dei grammatici e critici alessandrini, nonché di studiosi di epoca più tarda, e rappresenta il più importante contributo agli studi omerici medievali, anche perché tutte le opere da cui Eustazio ha preso i suoi estratti sono andate perdute.
Eustazio cita un incredibile numero di autori, ma
anche se è certo che non abbia potuto leggerli tutti di persona (alcune
citazioni sono fatte di seconda mano), è del tutto verosimile che avesse una
certa familiarità con le opere dei più importanti critici dell'antichità,
come Aristarco di Samotracia, Zenodoto, Aristofane di Bisanzio e altri che probabilmente
si potevano ancora consultare nelle biblioteche di Costantinopoli. Fu anche un
appassionato lettore de I deipnosofisti di Ateneo di Naucrati. Presi per il loro valore intrinseco, i commentari
di Eustazio sono un'opera meno incisiva: le sue annotazioni sono molto lunghe,
frequentemente si interrompono per perdersi in digressioni di ogni tipo e
contengono diversi errori di tipo etimologico e grammaticale ereditati dai
suoi predecessori alessandrini. I commentari contengono pochissimo materiale
originale ma si occupano di diverse materie come grammatica, mitologia, storia
e geografia.
Una prima edizione in quattro volumi fu pubblicata a Roma tra il 1542 e il 1550, e ne venne fatta una ristampa poco curata a Basilea tra il 1559 e il 1560. L'edizione realizzata da A. Potitus (Firenze, 1730, 3 volumi, folio) contiene solo il commentario ai primi cinque libri dell'Iliade con una traduzione in latino. Una ristampa sufficientemente fedele dell'edizione romana fu pubblicata in due parti a Lipsia; la prima parte, contenente il commentario all'Odissea (2 volumi, in quarto), appariva nel 1825-1826, e la seconda che conteneva il commentario all'Iliade (3 volumi, in quarto) fu edita da G. Stalbaum nel 1827-1829. Diverse edizioni dei poemi omerici comprendono comunque degli estratti dai commentari di Eustazio.
Commentario a Periegesi della Terra di Dionisio il Periegeta, dedicato a Giovanni Ducas, figlio di Andronico Camatero. È realizzato con lo stesso stile di quelli ad Omero e ne ha la stessa prolissità. Contiene comunque numerosi preziosi estratti da scrittori di epoca precedente che illustrano il lavoro geografico di Dioniso. Venne stampato per la prima volta contenuto nell'edizione di Dioniso di R. Stephens (Parigi, 1547, in quarto), e più tardi in quella di H. Stephens (Parigi, 1577, in quarto, e 1697 in ottavo), nel Geographia Minor di Hudson e nell'edizione di Bernhardy di Dioniso (Lipsia, 1828, in ottavo).
Un commentario alle poesie di Pindaro. Sfortunatamente quest'opera sembra andata perduta o, perlomeno, non è ancora venuto alla luce alcun manoscritto che la contenga. È comunque sopravvissuta l'introduzione che fu pubblicata per la prima volta da Tafel nel suo Eustathii Thessalonicensis Opuscula (Francoforte sul Meno, 1832, in quarto), e traendola da questa edizione fu poi ristampata da sola da Schneidewin, come Eustathii prooemium commentariorum Pindaricorum (Göttingen, 1837, in ottavo).
Altre opere di Eustazio furono pubblicate per la prima volta da Tafel nel già menzionato Opuscula del 1832, mentre altre sono apparse in tempi più recenti. Altre ancora non sono mai state pubblicate. Tra queste gli scritti teologici e i discorsi commemorativi; si tratta comunque, in molti casi, di fonti storiche di una certa importanza.
Eustathius of Thessalonica (Greek: Eustáthios) (1110 c. - 1198) was a native of Constantinople who became archbishop of Thessalonica. After being a monk in the monastery of St. Florus, he was appointed to the offices of superintendent of petitions, professor of rhetoric, and deacon of the church of Constantinople. After being appointed to the bishopric of Myra he was raised to the archbishopric of Thessalonica, where he remained until his death in 1198.
Euthymius and Michael Choniates delivered funeral orations on him, of which manuscripts survive in the Bodleian Library at Oxford. Nicetas Choniates (viii.238, x.334) bestowed praise on him as the most learned man of his age, a judgement which is difficult to dispute. He wrote commentaries on ancient Greek poets, theological treatises, homilies, epistles, and an important account of the sack of Thessalonica by William II of Sicily in 1185.
Of his works, his commentaries on Homer are the most widely referred to: they display an extensive knowledge of Greek literature from the earliest to the latest times; other works exhibit an impressive character, and a great oratorical power which earned him the esteem of the imperial family of the Comneni.
His most important works are the following:
The Sack of Thessalonica, an eye-witness account of the siege in 1185 and the subsequent sufferings of the people of Thessalonica. In the early sections of this compelling memoir Eustathius describes political events at Constantinople from the death of Manuel I Comnenus through the short reign of Alexius II Comnenus to the usurpation of Andronicus I Comnenus, with sharp comments on the activities of nobles and courtiers. The Greek text was edited most recently by Kyriakidis; there is an English translation by Melville-Jones and a German translation by Herbert Hunger.
Commentaries on the Iliad and Odyssey. These are not original commentaries but collections of extracts from earlier commentators of those two poems; there are many correspondences with the Homeric scholia. This vast compilation was made with great diligence and perseverance from the numerous and extensive works of the Alexandrian grammarians and critics, as well as from later commentators, and constitute the most important contribution to Homeric scholarship in the Middle Ages, not least because all the works from which Eustathius made his extracts are lost.
He quotes from a prodigious number of authors; but though it is certain that he had not read all of them, and that he quoted some at second-hand, it is entirely likely that he was personally acquainted with the works of the greatest ancient critics, namely Aristarchus of Samothrace, Zenodotus, Aristophanes of Byzantium, and others, which were probably still accessible in the libraries of Constantinople. He was also an avid reader of the Deipnosophistae of Athenaeus. As commentaries per se these works are less impressive: his remarks are very diffuse, frequently interrupted by all kinds of digressions and filled with etymological and grammatical errors inherited from his Alexandrian predecessors. The commentary contains very little original material, but covers grammar, mythology, history, and geography.
The first edition, by Majoranus, was published in Rome in 1542-1550 (4 volumes, fol.), an inaccurate reprint being later published in Basel in 1559-1560. A. Potitus' edition (Florence, 1730, 3 volumes, folio), contains only the commentary on the first five books of the Iliad with a Latin translation. A tolerably correct reprint of the Roman edition was published at Leipzig in two parts; the first, containing the Odyssey commentary (2 volumes, 4to.), appeared in 1825-1826, and the second, containing the Iliad commentary (3 volumes, 4to.), was edited by G. Stallbaum for the Patrologia Graeca, 1827-1829. These however have all been superseeded by the very thorough van der Valk edition. (Useful extracts from the commentaries are also contained incidentally in several editions of the Homeric poems.)
A Commentary on Dionysius Periegetes, dedicated to John Ducas, son of Andronicus Camateros. This is in the same spirit as the commentary on Homer, and shares its diffuseness. It does, however, comprise numerous valuable extracts from earlier writers to illustrate the geography of Dionysius. It was first printed in R. Stephens' edition of Dionysius (Paris, 1547, 4to.), and later in that of H. Stephens (Paris, 1577, 4to., and 1697, 8vo.), in Hudson's Geograph. Minor, vol. iv., and lastly, in Bernhardy's edition of Dionysius (Leipzig, 1828, 8vo.).
A Commentary on Pindar. Unfortunately this seems to be lost; at least no manuscript of it has yet come to light. The introduction survives, however, and was first published by Tafel in his Eustathii Thessalonicensis Opuscula (Frankfurt, 1832, 4to.), from which it was reprinted separately by Schneidewin, Eustathii prooemium commentariorum Pindaricorum (Göttingen, 1837, 8vo.).
Of Eustathius' other works some were published for the first time by Tafel in the 1832 Opuscula just mentioned, some have appeared more recently, as by P. Wirth for the CFHB series, and some remain unpublished. They include theological writings and commemorative speeches; the latter are, in several cases, important historical sources.
Eustathius
Archibishop of Thessalonica
Dictionary of Greek and
Roman biography and mythology
William Smith, Boston, 1867
Archbishop of Thessalonica, was a native of Constantinople, and lived during the latter half of the twelfth century. At first he was a monk in the monastery of St. Floms, but afterwards he was appointed to the offices of superintendent of petitions, professor of rhetoric, and diaconus of the great church of Constantinople. After being bishop elect of Myra, he was at once raised to the archbishopric of Thessalonica, in which office he remained until his death in A. D. 1198. The funeral orations which were delivered upon him by Euthymius and Michael Choniates are still extant in MS. in the Bodleian Library at Oxford. The praise which is bestowed upon him by Nicetas Choniates (viii. p. 238, x. p. 334) arid Michael Psellus (Du Cange, Glossar. s. v. ῥήτωρ) is perfectly justified by the works of Eustathius that have come down to us: they contain the amplest proofs that he was beyond all dispute the most learned man of his age. His works consist of commentaries on ancient Greek poets, theological treatises, homilies, epistles, &c., the first of which are to us the most important. These commentaries shew that Eustathius possessed the most extensive knowledge of Greek literature, from the earliest to the latest times; while his other works exhibit to us the man's high personal character, and his great power as an orator, which procured him the esteem of the imperial family of the Comneni. The most important of all his works is,
1. His commentary on the Iliad and Odyssey, or rather his collection of extracts from earlier commentators of those two poems. This vast compilation was made with the most astonishing diligence and perseverance from the numerous and extensive works of the Alexandrian grammarians and critics, as well as from later commentators; and as nearly all the works from which Eustathius made his extracts are lost, his commentary is of incalculable value to us, for he has preserved at least the substance of their remarks and criticisms. The number of authors whose works he quotes, is prodigious (see the list of them in Fabric. Bill. Graec. vol. i. p. 457, &c.); but although we may admit that he had not read all of them, and that he quoted some at second-hand, yet there seems to be no sufficient reason for believing that he was not personally acquainted with the greatest of the ancient critics, such as Aristophanes of Byzantium, Aristarchus, Zenodotus and others, whose works were accessible to him in the great libraries of Constantinople. If, on the other hand, we look upon the work as a commentary, and estimate it by .the standard of what a good commentary should be, we find it extremely deficient in plan and method; the author, however, cannot be blamed for these deficiencies, as his title does not lead us to expect a regular commentary. His remarks are, further, exceedingly diffuse, and frequently interrupted by all kinds of digressions; the many etymological and grammatical fancies which we meet with in his work are such as we might expect. There is very little in the commentary that is original, or that can be regarded as the opinion of Eustathius himself. He, incorporated in it everything which served to illustrate his author, whether it referred to the language or grammar, or to mythology, history, and geography. The first edition of it was published at Rome, 1542—1550, in 4 vols. fol., of which an inaccurate reprint appeared at Basle in 1559-60. The Florence edition by A. Potitus (1730, 3 vols. fol.), contains only the commentary to the first five books of the Iliad with a Latin translation. A tolerably correct reprint of the Roman edition was published at Leipzig in two sections; the first, containing the commentary on the Odyssey in 2 vols.4to., appeared in 1825-26, and the second, or the commentary on the Iliad, in 3 vols. 4to. was edited by G. Stalbaum, 1827-29. Useful extracts from the commentary of Eustathius are contained in several editions of the Homeric poems.
2. A commentary on Dionysius Periegetes, dedicated to Joannes Ducas, the son of Andronicus Camaterus, is on the whole of the same kind and of the same diffuseness as the commentary on Homer. Its great value consists in the numerous extracts from earlier writers to illustrate the geography of Dionysius. It was first printed in R. Stephens's edition of Dionysius (Paris, 1547, 4 to.), and afterwards also in that of H. Stephens (Paris, 1577, 4to., and 1697,8vo.), in Hudson's Geograph. Minor, vol. iv., and lastly, in Bernhardy's edition of Dionysius. (Leipzig, 1828, 8vo.).
3. A commentary on Pindar which however seems to be lost, at least no MS. of it has yet come to light. The introduction to it, however, is still extant, and was first edited by Tafel in his Eustathii Thessalonicensis Opuscula, Frankfurt, 1832,4to., from which it was reprinted separately by Schneidewin, Eustathii prooemium commentariorum Pindaricorum, Göttingen, 1837, 8vo. The other works of Eustathius which were published for the first time by Tafel in the Opuscula just mentioned, are chiefly of a theological nature; there is, however, among them one (p. 267, &c.) which is of great historical interest, viz. the account of the taking of Thessalonica by the Normans in A.D. 1185.
Eustathe
de Thessalonique, en grec ancien Eustáthios (XIIe siècle), grammairien
byzantin, mort vers 1198. Eustathe vécut sous le règne des empereurs Manuel,
Alexis II et Andronic Commène. Il était archevêque de Thessalonique.
Il fut selon le dictionnaire Bouillet le plus savant grammairien de son temps.
Avant d'être élevé au siège épiscopal, il avait été maître des
orateurs, c.-à-d. chargé d'expliquer au peuple les livres saints, et s'était
fait connaître par de nombreux ouvrages.
Il était un grammairien réputé et rédigea des Commentaires dont le plus important est celui sur Homère, largement inspiré du Banquet des sophistes (Deipnosophiste) d'Athénée, compilation de l'apport philologique hellénistique. L'autre commentaire qui nous est parvenu porte sur Denys le Géographe, auteur de la Description du monde habité (IIe siècle). On a de lui :
des Commentaires
sur l'Iliade et l'Odyssée, qui renferment des extraits des scholiastes
antérieurs (Rome ; Bâle, 1559 ; Leipzig, 1825-1830, 5 volumes);
des Remarques sur Denys le Périégète (dans les éditions de Denys);
des Notes sur Saint Jean Damascène;
des fragments d'un Commentaire sur Pindare;
divers Opuscules, publiés par Gottlieb Lukas Friedrich Tafel,
Francfort, 1832.
On lui a attribué à tort le Roman d'Ismène et Isménias, qui est l'œuvre d'Eumathius.
